Shrnutí: Your boss wants to send you to a business meeting abroad, combined with a two-day business trip, and you are wondering what will happen to your overtime pay or bonuses? We’re probably going to disappoint you, but overtime probably won’t be involved in this case. Are you still entitled to any benefits or is business travel one big disadvantage? We summarise everything in detail in our article.
If you are not sure what you are entitled to, you can describe your case to our lawyer – you will get an answer within 24 hours.
If you spend two days on a business trip, it probably won’t be treated as many hours of overtime. This is due to the fact that you are not usually working continuously. Some part of the day on a business trip is spent driving or travelling in general, and only a smaller part of the day is spent actually doing the work, e.g. attending a business meeting in another city. The rest of the day is filled with things like rest, sleeping in a hotel, etc.
Describe your problem to us and we will help you. You will have a response from one of our attorneys within 48 hours.
In practice, we often see that employees expect to be reimbursed for all the time spent travelling as working time. However, the Labour Code does not allow this. The most frequent disputes arise precisely in the case of evening returns from business trips, when employees mistakenly assume that they are entitled to overtime. In such cases, it always depends on whether the work was actually performed or just travel.
Your business trip and your normal working hours may be far from coinciding. Often, you will leave home much earlier than you would on a normal trip to work, or stay overnight on the road, spending much more time away from home than usual.
On the positive side, even if you spend just one hour of the entire trip on real work (i.e. a business meeting, for example), your pay or salary is not reduced. This is not your fault, of course, and the law says it is an impediment to work on the part of the employer. So you don’t have to do anything extra and you are entitled to be compensated for your wages or salary at the rate of your average earnings.
In addition, your employer must, of course, reimburse you for your travel expenses, which are mainly travel and meal expenses. However, if you are planning to go to the most expensive restaurant in town and then present your boss with a receipt, we must disappoint you. As a rule, the amount of meal allowances is set by individual employers themselves; the Labour Code only sets a lower limit for the business sector.
The amount of the meal allowance is changed annually by decree of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. The employer is obliged to provide the employee with at least the minimum statutory rate of meal allowance, the specific amount of which depends on the length of the working trip.
In the business sector, the Labour Code sets only minimum limits for meal allowances, and employers may provide higher amounts. In the non-business sector, the rates are determined by a range within which the employer must stay.
It is always advisable to check the current meal allowance rates against the applicable Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs decree for the calendar year in question.
As we have indicated above, although you will spend, say, 48 hours on a business trip, you will normally only receive your normal salary or salary replacement, or the travel allowances mentioned above. This is because it is not usually overtime work for which you would be entitled to extra pay. It would only be overtime if you were actually working (for example, conducting business) during a period that does not fall within your working shift.
However, if you travel home from a business trip on a rest day or in the evening, for example, then this time would not fall within the scheduled shift and the employee would only be entitled to travel expenses for this time. The Labour Code does not entitle you to wages or compensatory time off.
If you feel that your employer is not paying you what you are entitled to, you can have the situation checked by a lawyer.
Tip: For more information on wage compensation and the calculation of average earnings, see our article.
Compensation alone does not usually compensate you for spending, for example, two days away from home and not being able to use your time as you would like. Sometimes this involves some logistical and organisational adjustments, for example, regarding children or pets.
If you know that business trips will be part of your work schedule frequently, think about some bonuses or perks early on. It is ideal to agree everything in advance when you draw up your employment contract.
In practice, it has been shown time and again that employees who do not negotiate the terms of business travel in advance lose out in the long run – typically there is no agreement on bonuses or compensation for frequent travel.
Driving a vehicle is, however, considered work if the employee is driving the vehicle and has agreed in the employment contract to drive the vehicle as a type of work.
However, a different procedure will apply if you drive a so-called “reference vehicle”. This means that for an employee who drives a so-called referent vehicle, which is usually an employer’s vehicle that the employee is allowed to use for transport as part of his/her work duties (or even privately). In such a case, the driving itself is not the performance of work duties.
The time spent in the means of transport can only be work for the professional driver. However, some employers may negotiate a contract of employment with employees who frequently drive their company or own private car on business trips to perform the work of a driver of a reference vehicle. In this case, they may also reimburse the employee for driving the vehicle.
Other specifics apply to professional drivers during travel. Because they have a responsibility for not only their own lives, but also the lives of others. Therefore, the law makes sure that they do not drive too tired and intersperse their driving with breaks. Continuous driving time ( drivers of vehicles up to 3.5 tonnes) on a work trip must not exceed 4.5 hours, followed by a break of at least half an hour. However, it may also be divided into two parts of at least 15 minutes each.
Tip: We have covered breaks at work in detail in our article.
Mr Konáš has working hours from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and leaves Olomouc by train at 6 a.m. for a business trip to Prague.
The period from 6 a.m. to 8 a.m. is time spent on a business trip, but outside working hours. During this time, the worker is entitled to meals in accordance with the Decree.
Mr Konáš’s working time officially begins at 8 a.m. If he is still on the train at that time, this constitutes an obstacle to work on the part of the employer, during which time he is entitled to average wage compensation. The same regime will apply to a stay in Prague when no work meeting is still in progress.
At 10 a.m., the work meeting and the actual performance of work begins, followed by another meeting at 2 p.m., which lasts until 4 p.m.
Thereafter, the employer’s obstruction of work regime applies for half an hour and, from 16:30, Mr Konáš is again entitled only to reimbursement of meals and, of course, travel expenses.
However, if there is another work meeting from 5 pm to 7 pm, this will be overtime work for which additional pay is due. Subsequently, the journey back to Olomouc would again mean only reimbursement of the meal allowance for Mr Konáš.
Another client dealt with a situation where he regularly returned from business trips after 8 pm. His employer refused to recognise his overtime. After a legal assessment, it turned out that some of these activities did indeed constitute work outside working hours (e.g. evening meetings) and the client was therefore entitled to additional pay and allowances.
In these situations, it pays to be clear. Describe your case to us and we’ll help and advise you.
Business travel does not automatically mean working overtime, even if the employee spends a whole day or night away from home. He or she will be paid for the time he or she is actually working, but for the time he or she is only travelling or waiting, he or she will usually be paid as if the work was prevented by the employer, or only travel allowances. The employer is obliged to reimburse, in particular, travel and subsistence allowances, the amount of which varies annually in accordance with the Ordinance. The time spent travelling is considered as work only for professional drivers, not for employees using an official vehicle. If an employee works outside his or her scheduled shift, overtime may be worked with entitlement to additional pay. In order to ensure that the employee does not lose out on business travel in the long term, it is advisable to agree on the terms and conditions and any compensation when the employment contract is concluded.
Generally yes, if the posting is agreed in the employment contract or results from the nature of the work. Without such an arrangement, the employer may only send an employee on a business trip with the employee’s consent. Exceptions may apply for short-term or locally customary travel, but it always depends on the specific content of the employment contract.
As a rule, time spent travelling alone is not considered as work and therefore not as working time. The exception is where the employee is actually working during the journey (e.g. professional driver, business meeting, driving as an agreed type of work). In other cases, it may be an obstacle to work on the part of the employer or just the time for which travel allowances are due.
Yes, but only if you actually perform work outside of your scheduled work hours while on duty – for example, an evening meeting, training, or other activity mandated by your employer. Travel by train, plane or car alone is not considered overtime.
The employer is obliged to reimburse in particular travel, meals and, where applicable, accommodation. The amount of the subsistence allowance varies annually according to a decree of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs and depends on the length of the working trip. The law sets minimum limits in the business sector and specific ranges in the non-business sector.
Yes. For professional drivers, driving is considered work and counts as working time. At the same time, they are subject to stricter rules on maximum driving times and compulsory breaks to protect health and safety. Driving is not considered as work for so-called “referee” vehicles, unless otherwise agreed.
Our team of experienced attorneys will help you solve any legal issue. Within 24 hours we’ll evaluate your situation and suggest a step-by-step solution, including all costs. The price for this proposal is only CZK 690, and this is refunded to you when you order service from us.
Ondřej is the attorney who came up with the idea of providing legal services online. He's been earning his living through legal services for more than 15 years. He especially likes to help clients who may have given up hope in solving their legal issues at work, for example with real estate transfers or copyright licenses.
Ondřej is the attorney who came up with the idea of providing legal services online. He's been earning his living through legal services for more than 15 years. He especially likes to help clients who may have given up hope in solving their legal issues at work, for example with real estate transfers or copyright licenses.
We’ll review your case and suggest how to resolve it for CZK 690.
In person and online. Just choose the appropriate service or opt for an independent consultation when you are unsure.
