Sweden's Arbetstidslagen (ATL) - the Working Hours Act - sets the legal floor for working time. For most Swedish workers, collective agreements set the actual terms, and those agreements exceed the legal minimum in most cases.

Standard and maximum hours

Normal working time under ATL is 40 hours per week. The maximum, including overtime, is 48 hours per week averaged over a 4-month reference period. Individual weeks can exceed 48 hours, but the 4-month average must stay at or below that threshold.

Overtime caps

ATL distinguishes between two types of additional hours:

Övertid (overtime): applies to full-time employees. The cap is 200 hours of "extra overtime" per year (utökad övertid) on top of the standard overtime allowance.

Mertid (additional time): applies to part-time employees working beyond their contracted hours but below full-time hours. The cap is 150 hours per year.

Both types require employer consent in advance. Under most collective agreements, employee consent is also required.

Overtime premium

ATL sets no overtime premium rate. That number comes from the applicable collective agreement (kollektivavtal). Most agreements in manufacturing, retail, and services specify:

  • Weekday overtime: +50% of the hourly rate
  • Weekend overtime: +100% of the hourly rate

Approximately 90% of Swedish workers are covered by a collective agreement. For the remaining 10%, the overtime rate must appear in the individual employment agreement. If neither a collective agreement nor an employment agreement specifies a rate, the employer faces legal exposure on every overtime payment.

Rest requirements

Daily rest: at minimum 11 consecutive hours between shifts. An employer cannot schedule a shift starting less than 11 hours after the previous one ended.

Weekly rest: at minimum 36 consecutive hours per 7-day period. This rest period must include Sunday in most cases, though specific collective agreements provide exceptions for industries with 7-day operations.

Night work

Work between 22:00 and 06:00 carries restrictions under ATL. Night workers cannot exceed an average of 8 hours per 24-hour period over a reference period. Employers must offer night workers a health assessment before they start regular night shifts and at regular intervals thereafter.

On-call time

On-call time may count as working time depending on the restrictions placed on the worker. If an on-call employee must remain at a specific location or cannot use the time freely, Swedish courts treat this as working time for ATL purposes. Employers with on-call arrangements should document the specific conditions and obtain legal review.

Record-keeping and enforcement

Employers must record overtime hours and mertid for each employee. The Swedish Work Environment Authority (Arbetsmiljöverket) conducts inspections and has the power to access records and issue orders. Violations carry fines up to SEK 100,000. Persistent non-compliance can result in formal prohibition notices and increased fines.

Rezano tracks total weekly hours by employee, flags breaches of daily and weekly rest requirements, and generates overtime records in the format required for Arbetsmiljöverket inspection.