Working Hours and Overtime in Swaziland

In Swaziland, your company must comply with working hour and overtime laws – including daily limits, overtime thresholds, and rest requirements – to stay compliant and build a strong employee experience.

As you plan workforce schedules through 2026, you should expect closer scrutiny of working-time records, overtime practices, and rest-period arrangements, particularly in high-risk sectors such as agriculture, security, and hospitality. Clear contracts, transparent overtime policies, and reliable timekeeping systems will be essential to demonstrate that you respect statutory limits, pay the correct premiums, and protect employee health and safety.

• Standard Working Hours
• Overtime Thresholds
• Overtime Pay Rates
• Daily And Weekly Rest Requirements
• Night Work Restrictions
• Penalties For Non-Compliance

What Are The Standard Working Hours In Swaziland?

An employee whose age is 15 or younger has a maximum of 6 hours per day and 30 hours per week. An employee whose age is 16 or older is allowed to work 48 hours per week. A minimum meal interval of 60 minutes must be observed by employees who work more than 5 hours in a day. In typical working hours, Monday through Friday, the hours are 08:00 to 17:00.

Maximum Working Hours In Swaziland

Under Swaziland’s labour framework, a standard full-time schedule is generally based on 8 hours per day and 48 hours per week for adult employees, excluding unpaid meal breaks. You should structure rosters so that employees do not routinely exceed these limits, except where overtime is expressly agreed and compliant with statutory caps. Daily hours should be distributed as evenly as possible across the week to avoid excessive fatigue and health and safety risks.

Where work is organised on a five-day week, many employers adopt 9-hour days Monday to Thursday and a shorter day on Friday, provided the total normal hours do not exceed 45–48 hours per week. Any time worked beyond the employee’s contracted normal hours, or beyond the statutory daily or weekly limits, will typically qualify as overtime and must be compensated at the appropriate premium rate.

Industry-Specific Exceptions

• Agriculture And Seasonal Farm Work
• Hospitality, Hotels, And Restaurants
• Security, Guarding, And Surveillance Services
• Healthcare, Hospitals, And Emergency Services
• Transport, Logistics, And Shift-Based Operations

Managerial And Exempt Employees

Senior managerial and certain high-level professional employees in Swaziland are often treated as partially exempt from strict hour-by-hour tracking, provided their remuneration and responsibilities reflect this status. For these roles, you may agree broader availability expectations and flexible schedules, but you should still ensure that working time remains reasonable and does not endanger health or safety.

Even where managers are not entitled to overtime pay under company policy, it is good practice to document expected working hours, rest periods, and any additional allowances or bonuses that compensate for extended availability. Clear written contracts and internal policies help you demonstrate compliance if labour inspectors review your practices or if disputes arise.

Statutory Full-Time Working Hours In Swaziland

In practice, full-time employment in Swaziland is typically based on 40–48 hours per week, spread over 5 or 6 days. Many employers use a 5-day week of 8–9 hours per day, while others operate a 6-day week with slightly shorter daily shifts. Whatever pattern you adopt, you must respect statutory limits on daily and weekly hours, provide the required meal and rest breaks, and pay overtime for work that exceeds the employee’s normal hours.

To remain compliant, you should maintain accurate time and attendance records, specify normal working hours and overtime rules in employment contracts, and regularly review rosters to ensure that employees are not consistently working beyond the standard full-time thresholds without appropriate compensation and rest.

Overtime Regulations In Swaziland

What Counts As Overtime In Swaziland?

Overtime in Swaziland generally refers to any time an employee works beyond their contracted normal hours or beyond the standard statutory limits, typically 8 hours per day or 48 hours per week for adult employees. Work performed outside the employee’s regular schedule at the employer’s request, whether before the normal start time, after the normal finishing time, or on weekly rest days and public holidays, will usually qualify as overtime.

To classify hours correctly, you should clearly define normal working hours in each employment contract and in your internal policies. Any additional hours must be expressly authorised by a supervisor, recorded accurately, and compensated at the applicable premium rate. Unauthorised overtime should be discouraged through clear procedures, but if you permit or accept the work, you may still be required to pay for it.

Maximum Overtime In Swaziland

While Swaziland’s legislation allows employers to use overtime to meet operational peaks, it also expects you to limit excessive hours to protect employee health and safety. As a best-practice benchmark, overtime should not push total working time beyond an average of 10 hours per day or 55–60 hours per week over short periods, and it should be used only when genuinely necessary.

You should implement internal caps on overtime per day, per week, and per month, and require prior written approval for any work that exceeds those thresholds. Special care is needed for night workers, pregnant employees, and young workers, who should not be scheduled for long or irregular overtime. Keeping detailed overtime records will help you demonstrate that you are managing extended hours responsibly.

Overtime Payout Rates In Swaziland

Overtime work in Swaziland is typically paid at a premium above the employee’s normal hourly rate. A common structure is at least 150% of the regular rate for overtime worked on ordinary working days and at least 200% of the regular rate for overtime worked on weekly rest days or public holidays. Where collective agreements or company policies provide more generous rates, those higher standards will apply.

To calculate overtime pay, you should determine the employee’s normal hourly rate from their basic salary, exclude non-wage benefits unless otherwise agreed, and then apply the relevant multiplier to all qualifying overtime hours. Ensure that payslips clearly itemise normal hours, overtime hours, and the corresponding rates so employees can verify their compensation and you can show compliance during audits or inspections.

Rest Periods And Breaks In Swaziland

In Swaziland, employees typically work around 8 hours per day and up to 48 hours per week, and you are required to organise rest periods and breaks so that these hours do not compromise health, safety, or productivity. This means providing a proper meal break during longer shifts, ensuring adequate daily rest between the end of one workday and the start of the next, and guaranteeing at least one full day of weekly rest, with additional protections for minors and other vulnerable workers.

• Meal Break Requirements
• Daily Rest
• Weekly Rest
• Minors
• Employer Duties