Countries › Uruguay › Guide › 7. Labor and employment › Working hours in Uruguay: the eight hour day, overtime premiums, weekly rest, night work and paid holidays

Working hours in Uruguay: the eight hour day, overtime premiums, weekly rest, night work and paid holidays

Last verified: 2026-10-27 · Status: Stable

The general limit is eight hours a day and 48 hours per six working days (44 hours a week for household workers), with sector rules for commerce, rural work and unhealthy activities. Overtime needs the worker's consent, is capped at eight hours a week and is paid at a 100 percent premium on working days and 150 percent on rest days and holidays; night work between 22:00 and 06:00 for more than five consecutive hours earns at least a 20 percent surcharge. Workers get at least 24 hours of weekly rest, preferably Sunday, and five paid national holidays a year, which pay double if worked.

USD figures use UYU 40.214 per US dollar, the BCU quotation for DLS. USA BILLETE on 26 October 2026, retrieved from the BCU quotations service on 27 October 2026; conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

Maximum ordinary working day	8 hoursLey Nº 5.350, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Maximum hours per six working days (general)	48 hoursLey Nº 5.350, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Overtime premium on working days	100 %Ley Nº 15.996 art. 1, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Overtime premium on holidays and rest days	150 %Ley Nº 15.996 art. 1, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Maximum overtime per week without special authorization	8 hoursLey Nº 15.996 art. 5, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Minimum weekly rest	24 hoursLey Nº 7.318 art. 1, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Minimum night work surcharge (22:00 to 06:00, more than 5 consecutive hours)	20 %Ley Nº 19.313 art. 3 and 4, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Paid national holidays per year	5 daysLey Nº 12.590 art. 18, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Maximum weekly hours for household workers	44 hoursLey Nº 18.065 art. 2, as of 2026-10-27 · in force
Maximum working day in activities classified as unhealthy	6 hoursLey Nº 11.577 art. 1, as of 2026-10-27 · in force

The rule

1. Work is limited to eight hours a day across the country, and the work of adults may not exceed 48 hours for every six working days. The eight hour day was restored for commerce employees and workers in 1944.Ley Nº 5.350 (Eight Hour Law); Ley Nº 10.489 (Commerce), Ley 5.350 (IMPO summary); Ley 10.489 art. 2, 1915-11-17 official text · verified 2026-10-27

2. Hours worked beyond the daily limit that applies to the worker by law or agreement are overtime, paid with a 100 percent premium on the hourly wage on working days and 150 percent on days not worked because of holidays or weekly rest. Fractions under 30 minutes count as half an hour and longer fractions as one hour. Overtime is salary, is averaged into leave pay and the vacation bonus, may be required only with the worker's consent and is capped at eight hours a week unless the MTSS or the Executive authorizes exceptions. More favorable laws, Wage Council decisions or agreements prevail.
Example: A worker on UYU 300 an hour who works four extra hours on a Wednesday earns UYU 600 an hour for them (UYU 2,400); two extra hours on a Sunday rest day earn UYU 750 an hour (UYU 1,500). / UYU 2,400 is about US$59.68 and UYU 1,500 about US$37.30.Ley Nº 15.996 (Overtime), Art. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7, 1988-11-17 official text · verified 2026-10-27

3. Every worker in an industrial or commercial establishment must get one rest day of at least 24 hours after six days of work, given on Sunday except where the authorities allow continuous operations or rotating rest. A worker exceptionally employed on the rest day may choose compensatory rest or money of at least double ordinary pay; work on rest days needs consent renewed each time or a written agreement.Ley Nº 7.318 (Weekly Rest), Art. 1, 2, 3, 8 and 9, 1920-12-10 official text · verified 2026-10-27

4. The national holidays of 1 January, 1 May, 18 July, 25 August and 25 December are paid to every worker as if worked, and a worker who works on them gets double pay.
Example: A worker on UYU 2,000 a day who works on 18 July receives the holiday pay plus pay for the day worked, UYU 4,000 in total. / UYU 4,000 is about US$99.47.Ley Nº 12.590 (Annual Leave), Art. 18, 1958-12-23 official text · verified 2026-10-27

5. Night work, performed between 22:00 and 06:00 for more than five consecutive hours in a shift, carries a minimum surcharge of 20 percent (or an equivalent reduction of hours) unless the Wage Council pay already includes an equal or higher compensation; Councils may set more. A pregnant worker, or one who gave birth up to one year before, may ask for a daytime schedule without losing the night compensation.Ley Nº 19.313 (Night Work), Art. 2, 3 and 4, 2015-02-13 official text · verified 2026-10-27

6. Rural workers: at most eight hours a day and 48 hours per six days worked, overtime under Ley 15.996, a paid break of at least 30 minutes in continuous days, and at least 12 hours between working days (not less than nine where the midday break is three hours or more). Household workers: at most eight hours a day and 44 hours a week, a paid 30 minute break for live out staff or at least two hours for live in staff, 36 consecutive hours of weekly rest including Sunday, and nine hours of uninterrupted night rest for live in staff.Ley Nº 18.441 (Rural work); Ley Nº 18.065 (Household work), Ley 18.441 art. 1 to 5; Ley 18.065 art. 2 to 5, 2008-12-24 official text · verified 2026-10-27

7. Activities classified as unhealthy by the Honorary Commission on Unhealthy Work have a maximum working day of six hours, paid as the full day fixed for the activity.Ley Nº 11.577, Art. 1 and 7, 1950-10-14 official text · verified 2026-10-27

Regime	Daily limit	Weekly limit	Rest	Norm
General (industry, commerce, services)	8 hours	48 hours per 6 days	24 hours weekly, Sunday as rule	Ley 5.350; Ley 7.318
Rural	8 hours	48 hours per 6 days	12 hours between days; weekly rest preferably Sunday	Ley 18.441
Household	8 hours	44 hours	36 hours weekly incl. Sunday	Ley 18.065
Unhealthy activities	6 hours	Not stated in the law	General rules	Ley 11.577
Telework	Free distribution	Legal or contractual weekly limit	8 hours disconnection between days	Ley 19.978
Overtime premium	100% working days	150% rest days and holidays	Max 8 overtime hours a week	Ley 15.996

Hour limits and premiums by regime

Worked example

A logistics company runs a night shift from 22:00 to 06:00. Each worker's shift exceeds five consecutive night hours, so a worker on UYU 250 an hour earns at least UYU 300 an hour (UYU 2,400 for eight hours, about US$59.68) unless the group's Wage Council pay already includes an equal or higher night compensation.
The same company asks a warehouse worker to stay three extra hours on four days in one week: twelve overtime hours exceed the eight hour weekly cap, so the plan breaches Ley 15.996 even though every hour would be paid at the 100 percent premium.

Step by step

1. Set each worker's schedule, breaks and weekly rest and register them with the BPS.
2. Get the worker's consent before assigning overtime and record overtime in the Labor Record Book.
3. Apply the 100 or 150 percent premium and include average overtime when computing leave pay and the vacation bonus.
4. Apply the night surcharge for shifts with more than five consecutive hours between 22:00 and 06:00.
5. Pay the five national holidays and pay double when they are worked.
6. Check the Wage Council decision for sector rules that improve on the statutory minimums.

Common traps

Paying the premium does not cure breaching the eight hour weekly overtime cap or working without consent.
Overtime is salary: it feeds leave pay, the vacation bonus, the year end bonus and severance.
Unrecorded overtime is hard to defend in a claim; the employer keeps the records.
Holiday rules beyond the five paid days depend on other laws and agreements; do not assume every public holiday is paid.
Teleworkers follow a different overtime rule based on the weekly limit; see the telework page.

Sources

← Minimum wage and Wage Councils in Uruguay: the national floor, sector minimums and the 11th bargaining roundAnnual leave, vacation bonus and year end bonus in Uruguay: how much, when and how to calculate them →