The Labor Code stipulates that the normal duration of working time cannot exceed 40 hours per week, and the daily working time cannot exceed eight working hours, except in cases provided for by this code, law, and other normative legal acts.

At the same time, it is noted that the maximum duration of working time, including overtime work, cannot exceed 12 hours per day (including breaks for rest and meals), and 48 hours during the week.

The legal regulations established by legislation are often violated, and there are cases when an employee works more than the established duration at the initiative of their employer.

Regarding this issue, Marat Atovmyan, Vice President of the Armenian Lawyers’ Association and advocate, told Iravaban.net that 8 hours are set during the day, after which employees can continue to work, but separate decisions are made for this as well.

“In practice, it is very difficult to determine whether it is really overtime work or not, on whose initiative this work was carried out, because very often it happens that the employee stays on their own initiative, they have work to do, there is a deadline-related issue, they stay after work and do it of their own volition,” notes Marat Atovmyan.

In some countries, they are trying to provide legislative solutions to this issue, even to limit this phenomenon – does the employer have the right to contact the employee after working hours and clarify something practical, give an assignment, or should they wait for the working day?

“I returned from Strasbourg a few days ago, these issues were discussed in the Council of Europe, and they say that they often have to work after working hours because, for example, they need to organize a conference, dozens of participants need to come, they need to deal with many organizational issues. Naturally, an employee, based on their conscientiousness, cannot say – it’s already 6 o’clock, I have to go home,” said the advocate.

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