Work life balance

Czech Republic flagWork life balance in the Czech Republic

Free time is important to everybody including business people, because that is their only chance of recharging their batteries. However, it is difficult for employees in small or medium-sized enterprises to find enough time because of the difficulties associated with running a business. This is primarily because smaller businesses have fewer numbers of employees and most of the strategic, day-to-day decisions are taken by one person, namely the director or owner of the company.

National holidays

These are public holidays (bank holiday):

  • 1st January – New Year
  • Easter Monday – Easter falls on a different date in late March or early April each year.
  • 1st May – Labour Day
  • 8th May – Day of freedom from fascism
  • 5th July – Slavic Apostles Cyril and Methodius
  • 6th July – The anniversary of the martyrdom of Jan Hus
  • 28th September – Day of Czech Statehood
  • 28th October – Day of Independence for Czechoslovakia
  • 17th November – Day of the Velvet Revolution, the date riot police suppressed a student protest leading to the fall of the Communist Party.
  • 24th December – Christmas Eve
  • 25th December – Christmas Day
  • 26th December – Boxing Day

In the Czech Republic, all employees are entitled to four weeks holiday each year, normally distributed as one week in winter and three weeks in the summer.

Working hours

The Czech Republic‘s official working hours are 40 hours per week and employees get an annual vacation of at least 20 working days. If an employee is asked to work overtime, their total working hours must not exceed 52 hours a week (including 8 hours of overtime a week) and there must be a written agreement between both parties. In specific situations, a collective agreement may provide that scheduled working time for seasonal jobs may exceed 52 hours but are limited to a maximum of 60 hours a week. Generally, these rules are not rigorously enforced at the SME level, where employers and employees are more flexible.

Work culture

The work culture in the Czech Republic is quite formal and structured. The people pride themselves as been highly qualified and productive but you still have to keep a close eye on them so that they don’t slack off.

Czech Republic has a number of legal measures protecting workers. All companies have to adhere to government regulations in the areas of health and safety, discrimination, minimum wage levels, part-time employment, and equal opportunities.

Health insurance

The social security system is overseen and managed by the state. It covers healthcare, pensions, and employment insurance, as well as child-related benefits and other social services. While all Czech citizens are guaranteed a minimum level of basic healthcare by the state, several independent, commercial health insurance companies have been established.

All companies registered on the Czech Commercial Register must pay a total of 35% of their employees’ gross salaries towards social security and health insurance funds, which covers both the employer and employee mandatory contributions.

  • www.cmu.cz (Czech, English, Spanish, Italian, German)

Do you want to learn more about Czech business culture?