Time-for-time? Here's what to keep in mind!

Time-for-time sounds like a simple and logical concept. The employee works a bit more at one moment and takes that time back at another moment. Still, it's important to know that as an employer you can't just introduce a time-for-time rule without thinking. There are rules and guidelines involved. And of course, you also need a way to document all of this properly. Let's take a closer look!

What is a time-for-time scheme?

Time-for-time, also called TVT (hours) in Dutch, means that an employee may later use the hours they work overtime to take time off. For example, someone who normally has Fridays off can come in to work one Friday and take a Thursday off in another week, as time-for-time. It can be whole days, but of course also a few hours.

Is a time-for-time scheme mandatory?

As an employer, you can certainly ask employees to work a bit longer during busy periods. That can also come in handy when someone is sick. Giving TVT hours is not even mandatory! Unless the CAO or company rules say otherwise. Still, it's smart to do it, to build goodwill with your employees. After all, you can't only take; you also have to give to keep receiving.

TIP: is TVT not desirable in your company? Then you can also agree with the employee to pay out overtime in money. You can optionally leave this choice to them.

There are a number of TVT rules!

If an employee works an hour longer on Monday to clear the backlog from the weekend, you can certainly let them leave an hour earlier on Tuesday. Especially in small organizations, people don't make a big deal of this, certainly not when it's about a few hours. Still, there are some additional rules. Go through them to see whether they apply in your organization.

• Time-for-time is not allowed if someone earns the minimum wage, because "getting time back" would then make them earn less than the minimum. As an employer, you must pay out overtime.

• Also be careful if you pay just above the minimum hourly wage, because with TVT you can quickly end up below the minimum wage.

When are TVT hours taken?

You'd think time-for-time hours are a win-win for both parties, but there is a catch. Employees must take these hours within a maximum of 6 months after the end of the accrual period. If that doesn't work out, the hours are paid out after all. This is a legal rule. The CAO may contain exceptional agreements about this, by the way.

Keeping good track of time-for-time hours

Now that you know time-for-time hours must be used or paid out within a certain period, you may realize how important good documentation is. Remembering manually when someone worked overtime and took TVT isn't a convenient job. A Workforce Management System is a good solution. It lets you automate time tracking. That way, as an employer you make sure everything is tracked properly, so you can handle TVT the way you want. Want to know how the Workforce Management System helps you with this? Request a demo and get a personal tour of the software.