Quick answer
- Full-time work is 8 hours per day and 40 hours per week.
- On average about 168 hours are worked per month full-time.
- The exact number of hours differs each month, by that month's working days.
- Public holidays falling on working days reduce the month's hours.
- The month's hours are obtained by multiplying working days by 8 hours.
What the law says
- Art. 112 Labour Code: normal working time is 8 hours/day and 40 hours/week.
- Art. 114 Labour Code: the maximum legal duration cannot exceed 48 hours/week, including overtime.
- Art. 139 Labour Code: public holidays are days off and are not counted in hours worked.
- Monthly norm = the month's number of working days × 8 hours.
- For uneven schedules, the 40 hours/week average is met over the reference period.
Practical examples
- Example: a month with 22 working days and no public holidays means 22 × 8 = 176 hours.
- Example: a month with 21 working days and one public holiday means 20 × 8 = 160 hours.
- Example: the annual average is about 168 hours per month full-time.
- Example: at part-time of 4 hours/day, the monthly norm is half the full-time one.
Common mistakes
- Using a fixed norm (e.g. 160 or 168 hours) for every month, with no monthly adjustment.
- Not removing public holidays from the month's working hours.
- Confusing calendar days with working days when computing hours.
- Misreporting the part-time norm relative to full time.
How 4softhr helps
- 4softhr automatically computes the monthly norm from each 2026 month's working days.
- It automatically subtracts public holidays from that month's hours.
- It compares logged hours with the month's norm and highlights any shortfall or overtime.
- It adjusts the norm for part-time or uneven-schedule contracts.
- It uses the monthly norm as the basis for salary and time-tracking in the 4b2b ecosystem.
