Working Hours and Overtime in Guadeloupe

What Are The Standard Working Hours In Guadeloupe?

An employee whose age is 16 or younger has a maximum of 7 hours per day and 35 hours per week. An employee whose age is 18 or older is allowed to work 35 hours per week. A minimum meal interval of 20 minutes must be observed by employees who work more than 6 hours in a day. In typical working hours, Monday through Friday, the hours are 8:00 to 17:00.

Maximum Working Hours In Guadeloupe

In Guadeloupe, which follows French labour law, the statutory working time for full-time employees is 35 hours per week, usually spread over five days. The absolute legal ceiling is 10 hours per day in most cases, and 48 hours in any single week, including overtime. Over a 12-week reference period, the average weekly working time must not exceed 44 hours.

Employers may organize working time over a reference period through collective agreements, allowing fluctuations in weekly hours as long as the average remains compliant. Any schedule that risks exceeding 10 hours per day or 48 hours in a week generally requires specific justification and, in some cases, prior authorization from the labour inspectorate. You must maintain accurate time records for each employee to demonstrate compliance with daily, weekly, and reference-period limits.

Industry-Specific Exceptions

Companies hiring in sectors like healthcare, transportation, manufacturing, or hospitality may be subject to special scheduling rules that adapt the 10-hour daily and 48-hour weekly ceilings. In healthcare and residential care, shifts can be organized over 12 hours, provided that compensatory rest and monitoring of workload are ensured. Hospitality and tourism businesses may concentrate more hours during peak seasons, offset by reduced hours in low season under an approved working-time arrangement.

• Healthcare professionals may work 12-hour shifts with extended rest periods.
• Transport workers must comply with EU-aligned rest and driving limits.
• Manufacturing and security staff often rotate through night or weekend shifts.

Even in these sectors, you must ensure the average weekly limit is respected over a reference period. You should verify whether a sectoral or company-level collective agreement in Guadeloupe sets stricter limits or additional obligations, such as mandatory compensatory rest or specific rostering rules. Documenting these arrangements in writing and communicating them clearly to staff is essential.

Managerial And Exempt Employees

Certain managerial employees in Guadeloupe may be classified under a forfait-jours (days-based) arrangement rather than hourly tracking. Under this system, working time is counted in days per year, typically up to 218 working days annually, instead of hours per week. These employees are exempt from the standard 35-hour weekly limit but still benefit from daily and weekly rest protections.

To use a forfait-jours arrangement, you must have a valid collective agreement and an individual written agreement with the employee. You are also required to monitor workload, ensure respect for health and safety, and hold regular review meetings about working time. Misclassifying employees as exempt or failing to monitor their workload can expose you to back pay claims and penalties.

Statutory Full-Time Working Hours In Guadeloupe

Statutory full-time work in Guadeloupe is 35 hours per week for most employees. Many employers still schedule 39 hours per week, with the additional 4 hours treated as overtime paid at the applicable premium rates. Collective agreements may define different full-time thresholds in specific sectors, but they cannot exceed the legal maximums.

Part-time contracts must clearly state the weekly or monthly working hours and the distribution of those hours across days. Any hours worked beyond the contractual part-time schedule but below 35 hours are generally considered complementary hours and may attract a specific premium, often 110% to 125% of the base rate depending on the agreement. You should ensure that employment contracts and internal policies clearly distinguish between standard, complementary, and overtime hours.

Overtime Regulations In Guadeloupe

Overtime in Guadeloupe is tightly regulated, and employers must track hours accurately to ensure that work beyond the statutory 35-hour week is correctly identified and compensated. You are required to maintain reliable timekeeping systems, preserve records for inspection, and apply the correct premium rates to all qualifying overtime hours. Failure to do so can lead to back pay liabilities, administrative fines, and potential criminal sanctions in serious cases.

What Counts As Overtime In Guadeloupe?

In Guadeloupe, overtime for most employees begins once they work more than 35 hours in a given week. Hours between 35 and the contractual schedule, such as 39 hours, are still overtime and must be paid with the statutory premiums unless a specific collective agreement provides otherwise. Work performed beyond 10 hours in a day or 48 hours in a week is exceptional and must be strictly justified and, in some cases, pre-authorized.

Work performed on a weekly rest day, typically Sunday, or on a public holiday is generally treated as overtime and often attracts higher premiums under collective agreements. When employees are called in on their rest day, you must both pay the applicable overtime premium and grant compensatory rest where required. Standby periods (astreinte) are only counted as working time when the employee is actually called out, but call-out hours themselves are treated as normal or overtime hours depending on the weekly total.

Maximum Overtime In Guadeloupe

Under French rules applicable in Guadeloupe, the standard annual overtime quota is 220 hours per employee per year, unless a collective agreement sets a different numerical quota. Within this framework, employees may work up to 48 hours in a single week, including overtime, and the average weekly working time over 12 consecutive weeks must not exceed 44 hours. In absolute exceptional circumstances, weekly working time can reach 60 hours, but only with prior authorization from the labour inspectorate and consultation with employee representatives.

Once the annual overtime quota of 220 hours is exceeded, you must generally grant compensatory rest in addition to the overtime premium, according to the applicable collective agreement. You should monitor each employee’s cumulative overtime to avoid breaching the quota and to plan compensatory rest in advance. Ignoring these caps can result in orders to reduce working time, financial penalties, and potential damages for harm to employees’ health and safety.

Overtime Payout Rates In Guadeloupe

In Guadeloupe, overtime pay is calculated as a percentage increase over the employee’s normal hourly wage. For the first 8 overtime hours in a week, typically from the 36th to the 43rd hour, the statutory premium is 25%, meaning those hours are paid at 1.25x the base rate. From the 44th overtime hour onward in the same week, the premium rises to 50%, or 1.5x the base rate.

Many sectoral agreements in Guadeloupe provide enhanced rates for work on Sundays and public holidays, often at 100% premium, or 2.0x the base rate, in addition to compensatory rest. Night overtime hours may also attract combined premiums, for example 25% for overtime plus an additional 10% to 30% night premium, depending on the agreement. You must always check the applicable collective agreement to confirm whether higher contractual rates apply beyond these statutory minimums.

Rest Periods And Breaks In Guadeloupe

Employees in Guadeloupe typically work up to 10 hours per day and 35 hours per week under standard arrangements, and rest periods are designed to protect their health within these limits. The law requires minimum breaks during the working day, as well as daily and weekly rest periods that cannot be waived by agreement. As an employer, you must structure schedules so that these breaks and rest periods are effectively taken, not just theoretically granted.

• Meal Break: Employees must receive at least a 20-minute uninterrupted break once daily working time exceeds 6 consecutive hours, and many employers in Guadeloupe provide 30 to 60 minutes by policy or agreement. This break should allow employees to step away from their workstation and is generally unpaid unless a collective agreement states otherwise.
• Daily Rest: Workers are entitled to a minimum of 11 consecutive hours of rest between the end of one workday and the start of the next. You must schedule shifts so that no pattern of work infringes on this 11-hour daily rest, even when overtime is performed.
• Weekly Rest: Employees must receive at least 24 consecutive hours of weekly rest, usually on Sunday, plus the 11 hours of daily rest, totaling 35 consecutive hours. If business needs require Sunday work, you must grant an equivalent rest period on another day and apply any applicable premium rates.
• Minors: Workers under 18 in Guadeloupe benefit from stricter protections, including a minimum 30-minute break after 4.5 hours of work. They also enjoy longer daily rest, typically at least 12 consecutive hours, and tighter limits on night work.
• Employer Duty: You are responsible for organizing work so that statutory breaks and rest periods are actually taken and recorded. Ignoring these obligations can lead to labour inspectorate interventions, fines, and potential liability for work-related health issues.

Night Shifts And Weekend Regulations In Guadeloupe

Night and weekend work are legal in Guadeloupe but subject to additional employer responsibilities and employee protections. You must carefully assess business needs, document justifications for night or Sunday work, and ensure that affected employees receive appropriate compensation and rest. Collective agreements often add further safeguards beyond the statutory minimums.

Night work in Guadeloupe is generally defined, in line with French law, as work performed between 21:00 and 06:00, with some agreements using a 22:00 to 05:00 window. An employee is considered a night worker if they regularly perform at least 3 hours of work during the night period on a set number of nights per year, typically 2 times per week or 270 hours per year. This status triggers specific protections, including health monitoring and limits on maximum working time.

• Premium Pay: There is no single statutory night work premium rate in Guadeloupe, but many sectoral agreements grant a night premium ranging from 10% to 30% of the base hourly wage, for example 1.10x to 1.30x. When night hours are also overtime, the overtime premium of 25% or 50% is added on top of the night premium, leading to combined rates such as 1.35x to 1.95x.
• Health Monitoring: Regular night workers must be offered occupational health assessments at least every 6 months to 1 year, depending on the risk profile of the job. You must adapt schedules or reassign employees if medical evaluations show that night work endangers their health.
• Workplace Restrictions: Minors are generally prohibited from night work, particularly between 22:00 and 06:00, with only narrow exceptions for certain sectors and ages. Pregnant workers and employees returning from maternity leave may request reassignment away from night work, and you must accommodate this or, if impossible, consider suspension with maintained remuneration as required by law or agreement.

Weekend work, especially on Sundays, is normally restricted as Sunday is the customary weekly rest day in Guadeloupe. Authorizations and sectoral exemptions allow Sunday opening in tourism, hospitality, retail, and essential services, but you must then provide compensatory rest and, in many cases, a premium of 50% to 100% of the base wage, such as 1.5x to 2.0x for Sunday hours. Public holiday work often attracts similar or higher premiums, frequently 100% (2.0x), under collective agreements.