Dear readers,
According to the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated 20 April 2023 No. 226-VII ZRK “On Amendments and additions to certain Legislative Acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan on social security issues”, from 1 July 2023 employees in Kazakhstan upon agreement with the employer will be able to switch to a four-day work week with the right to alternate with a five-day and a six-day work week. For example, one week of work with a four-day, then the second with a five-day work schedule. The condition on four-day work week is fixed in the employment agreement, collective agreement, and in the rules of labor regulations.
It is important to note that the transfer to the four-day work week is a right of the employer rather than an obligation. This opportunity is provided by the legislator to meet the interests of the employers and employees, who need the mixed work schedule due to the character of works and production.
Under four-day work week the overall duration of overtime shall not exceed twelve hours. In case of summarized accounting of working hours, the total duration of overtime shall not exceed one hundred and twenty hours per year.
The general day-off for the above-mentioned schedules is Sunday, while the two other days off are defined by mutual agreement with employer.
Please note that the normal duration of work week will still amount to 40 hours. At the same time, the establishment of a four-day work week will not entail an increase in the duration of daily work.
Moreover, the concept of joint employment will be introduced in the labor legislation, according to which employees work together to perform the same task for the same employer. This employment format will be available to the following target groups by agreement of the parties:
- employees caring for a sick family member in accordance with a medical report;
- one of the parents (adoptive parent, adoptive parent) having a child (children) under the age of three years;
- single mothers raising a child under the age of fourteen (a child with a disability under the age of eighteen) or other persons raising the specified category of children without a mother;
- for students to perform work in their free time that does not harm their health and does not disrupt the learning process;
- employees who have less than two years left before reaching the retirement age established by the Social Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan or who have reached the specified retirement age.
For instance, an employee cannot work full-time in connection with caring for a sick family member. In this case, the employer has the right to accept several employees for one position in order to ensure the employment of such an employee without damage to the company's activities.
It should be noted that part-time work in the application of joint employment will not lead to restrictions on the duration of paid annual leave for the employee, the calculation of work experience and other rights in the field of labor, established by the Labor Code, labor and collective agreements and treaties.