Working time, breaks and records in the cleaning industry

Contents

1. The key rules at a glance
2. Agreeing part-time properly
3. Split shifts and travel time
4. Night, Sunday and public-holiday work
5. Record-keeping
6. Which time tracking fits?
7. Common mistakes
8. Scheduling checklist
9. Practical example: a schedule across three sites
10. Frequently asked questions
11. Sources

In short: Normal hours are 40 per week per collective agreement. Under the Working Time Act (AZG) a 30-minute break applies when daily working time exceeds 6 hours, and a daily rest period of 11 hours. You must keep records. Part-time overtime costs a 25 % surcharge unless compensated 1:1 within three months. As of October 2026.

In our Vienna company most colleagues work part-time – early mornings in offices, evenings in practices, sometimes a special job in between. That suits clients but makes scheduling demanding. Mistakes surface at the latest during an inspection by the labour inspectorate, the financial police or the ÖGK – or when a former employee claims unpaid hours.

The key rules at a glance

Details and exceptions are in the AZG, the Rest Periods Act (ARG) and the agreement – if in doubt, check with your payroll provider or the chamber.

Agreeing part-time properly

Part-time is the norm in cleaning. To avoid disputes, the written statement or contract should include:

• weekly hours (e.g. 20 hours),
• timing of working hours (e.g. Mon–Fri 6–8 am and 5–7 pm),
• places of work or service area,
• grade under the agreement: Collective agreement for building cleaning in Austria explained.

If a part-timer works longer than agreed, that is additional work. It carries a 25 % surcharge – unless the hours are compensated 1:1 with time off within three months. If a site regularly takes longer than planned, that is a pricing problem, not a staff problem: recalculate and talk to the client.

Split shifts and travel time

Many cleaners work mornings and evenings at different sites. Plan shifts so that:

• the 11-hour daily rest between the end of the evening shift and the start of the morning shift is kept,
• travel time between sites is realistic – it counts as working time and is paid under the agreement,
• travel costs are reimbursed per the agreement (with several sites on the same day from the second trip; with up to 25 weekly hours generally, unless you organise transport).

Example (assumption): an employee cleans three sites a day with 15 minutes’ travel between them. That is 30 minutes of paid travel per day – 10.5 hours a month at 21 working days that no client pays directly. At WG 6 (2026: €12.37 plus payroll costs) that is easily €170 or more a month. This time belongs in your hourly rate: Calculating the hourly rate for cleaning – the right way.

Good route planning (clustering sites by district) saves more money than any discount on cleaning products.

Night, Sunday and public-holiday work

Some clients want cleaning when nobody is in the office – late evenings, at night or at weekends. Under the agreement, night work within normal hours between 21:00 and 6:00 carries 50 %, Sunday work 100 %. Public holidays follow the Rest Periods Act and the agreement.

Show these surcharges separately in your quote or include them in the price: Writing a quote for contract cleaning – with service specification. A 7 pm job carries no night surcharge, a 10 pm job does.

Record-keeping

Employers must record working time – start, end and breaks. Paper, app or terminal: what matters is that records are

• kept continuously (not from memory at month-end),
• complete (all sites, all travel),
• traceable (who worked where and when),
• available during inspections.

Missing or inadequate records can lead to administrative fines. Even more importantly: without records you are in a weak position in any dispute about hours.

Which time tracking fits?

A well-kept list is enough to start. From about five employees and several sites, an app saves a lot of time – especially if it reports hours per site. You immediately see whether a site takes longer than calculated. Location data is subject to data-protection rules; clarify this first.

Common mistakes

1. Travel time not paid or not recorded.
2. Rest period breached with a late evening and early morning shift.
3. Additional hours not paid because “it’s only 15 minutes”.
4. Timing of hours not agreed – changes become difficult.
5. Records filled in at month-end.

Scheduling checklist

• Hours and timing in the written statement: Registering employees in Austria – employer account, ELDA, written statement
• 11-hour rest between shifts planned
• Travel time and costs calculated per route
• Surcharges (night, Sunday, additional hours) in quotes and payroll
• Time tracking from day one, monthly target-vs-actual per site

Practical example: a schedule across three sites

A typical plan for a part-timer on 25 hours a week (assumptions):

Result: 5 days × 5.25 h ≈ 26.25 h – more than agreed. Either the extra time is compensated 1:1 within three months or it costs a 25 % surcharge. Better to agree 26 hours from the start or cut the route differently. Between 19:30 and 6:00 there are only 10.5 hours – less than the 11-hour daily rest. The plan needs adjusting, e.g. starting at 6:30 or ending the evening shift at 19:00.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

1. WKO – collective agreement building cleaning 2026
2. RIS – Working Time Act (AZG)