Core working hours

Core working hours are the fixed period during which employees are required to be present. This period is defined in the employment contract and is usually part of a flexitime model.

Core working hours: How long are they?

How long the core working hours are depends on the employer. Of course, it cannot take up the entire daily working time. A maximum core working time only makes sense up to 6 hours in order to allow at least 1 hour of flexitime before and after.

This means that employees can come and go at any time, as long as they work within the core working hours and fulfill the specified hours.

It is important to note that the core working hours do not have to be the same for all teams. It depends on the individual work and the employer can decide this individually.

Advantages & disadvantages

We took a closer look at the advantages and disadvantages of the whole thing.

These are the advantages at a glance:

Employees are more motivated & satisfied
Strengthens loyalty
Work peaks are easier to absorb
Employer attractiveness increases
Good communication
Strengthens the team’s sense of cohesion
Work-life balance is better

These are the disadvantages at a glance

Employer has a higher administrative burden
Control of core times
Employees are required to be present at certain times

What happens if the core working hours are not adhered to?

An important question that needs to be clarified here is: What happens if an employee does not adhere to the core time?

If colleagues do not keep to the time, there are usually consequences under employment law. As this is a breach of the obligation to be present, it is a breach of duty and, in the worst case, can result in dismissal.

The one-time violation

An employee is not at work during core time. In this case, the employer may issue a warning. It is also possible for the employer to point out the binding nature of the regulation once again.

Repeated infringement

A repeated breach of the core working hours will result in another warning. Accordingly, the employee concerned must change their behavior, otherwise they may be dismissed for conduct-related reasons.

Important: If the core time could not be adhered to due to external causes such as a traffic jam, train failure or similar, this may not be sanctioned.

More episodes

If important projects come to a standstill or entire work processes in departments are permanently disrupted because an employee does not adhere to core working hours, the company can even claim compensation.

Another special feature to bear in mind: if colleagues arrive late for work at core time, they cannot compensate for this misconduct with overtime.

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