Employees often have to perform official duties on holidays or work beyond regular hours. To address concerns regarding the grant of compensatory leave or off in such cases, the Department has received multiple queries seeking clarification.
After a detailed examination, it has been decided that the existing guidelines issued by the Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT) vide Memo No PP-16/6/2020-PAP dated 12.11.2020 will continue to be followed. These guidelines, outlined in official memorandums dated 11.08.1976 and 19.03.1991, provide clear instructions on eligibility and procedures for availing compensatory leave.
Who is Eligible for Compensatory Leave?
The grant of compensatory leave applies to the following categories of Central Government employees:
1. Non-Gazetted Employees
All non-gazetted Central Government employees are eligible.
2. Gazetted Officers in the Excepted Category
Gazetted officers falling under the excepted category mentioned in Para 5(a) of the official orders are also eligible.
3. Applicable Staff Categories
- Office Staff
- Other staff whose prescribed working hours and nature of duties are comparable to office staff
4. Authority for Determination
- Administrative Ministries, in consultation with their Internal Financial Advisers (IFA), will determine eligibility for category (ii) staff.
- The Comptroller & Auditor General of India (CAG) will decide eligibility for staff under the Indian Audit and Accounts Department.
Conditions for Grant of Compensatory Leave
1. When can compensatory leave be granted?
Compensatory leave is granted only in special circumstances where official duties require an employee to work beyond normal office hours or on holidays.
2. Who can authorize overtime work?
Only the competent authority can approve overtime work after confirming that the task is urgent and cannot be postponed in the public interest.
3. Can an employee leave early if required to attend office before regular hours?
Yes, an employee working before regular hours should be allowed to leave early. If this is not possible, overtime allowance may be granted after deducting one hour of free duty.
4. How is compensatory leave granted for working on holidays?
- Employees working a full day on a holiday should receive one compensatory leave in lieu.
- If they work beyond a full day, they receive one compensatory leave plus overtime allowance for extra hours (after deducting one hour of free duty).
- For half-day work or less, two such instances will be counted as one full compensatory leave. Half-day leave may be granted where necessary.
5. What if overtime work becomes a regular necessity?
If working beyond office hours is frequent, offices must stagger working hours and implement a rotation system among staff.
6. Can an employee get cash compensation instead of compensatory leave?
Cash compensation (overtime allowance) for duty on holidays or off-days is allowed only in exceptional cases where granting compensatory leave is not possible.
7. Who can approve cash compensation for holiday work?
- Joint Secretary (for Secretariat Offices)
- Head of the Department (for Attached, Subordinate, or other offices)
The approving authority must certify that compensatory leave is not feasible before granting overtime allowance.
Note 1: When duty extends beyond a full working day (i.e., beyond the prescribed working hours), overtime allowance shall be granted only after deducting one hour of free duty. If an employee arrives late to the office, with or without prior permission, and is required to work beyond office hours on that day, the following deductions shall be made while calculating overtime allowance:
(a) One hour of free duty; and
(b) The duration by which the employee arrived late.
Note 2: As a general rule, compensatory leave under these orders should be availed within one month of its accrual. However, in exceptional circumstances, this period may be extended at the discretion of an officer of the rank of Joint Secretary for Secretariat staff or the Head of the Department for staff of attached, subordinate, or other offices. The approving officer must ensure and certify that granting compensatory leave to all staff within a month would seriously disrupt ongoing work. There is no restriction on the accumulation of compensatory leave, but no more than two days may be availed at a time.
Overtime Allowance and Limits
1. Is there a maximum limit on overtime allowance?
Yes, the total overtime allowance payable to a government servant cannot exceed one-third of their monthly emoluments.
2. Can personal staff receive overtime beyond this limit?
In special cases, personal staff may receive overtime beyond the one-third limit if their attached officer certifies that the extra work was necessary in the public interest. However, it cannot exceed 50% of their monthly emoluments.
3. Does the 50% ceiling apply to all personal staff?
No, this higher limit applies only to personal staff posted or sanctioned by the Department of Personnel & Administrative Reforms or authorized by the competent authority. Personal staff arranged informally are not eligible.
4. Is lunch break counted in overtime calculations?
No, the actual time taken for lunch break is deducted from the total hours considered for overtime allowance.
5. Can employees assigned to exhibitions or fairs claim overtime?
No, government servants performing additional duty at an exhibition or fair beyond their normal work are not eligible for overtime allowance.
6. Are Class IV staff eligible for overtime allowance?
Yes, all regular Class IV staff (including waiters, cooks, sweepers, farashes, and chowkidars) whose working hours are prescribed by the competent authority are eligible for overtime allowance, except those covered under statutory rules.
Exemptions and Eligibility for Overtime Allowance
1️⃣ Who is NOT eligible for overtime allowance?
The following government employees are not entitled to compensatory leave or overtime pay:
✅ Gazetted officers, except in special cases (see next point).
✅ Non-gazetted employees earning above ₹750 per month.
✅ Supervisory staff, unless they meet all these conditions:
🔹 They are in direct contact with the staff they supervise.
🔹 They work the same hours as their subordinates.
🔹 Their overtime requires prior approval.
✅ Field staff and inspection staff.
✅ Employees covered under the Factories Act, 1948, or Minimum Wages (Central) Rules, 1950.
✅ Staff Car Drivers.
✅ Resident (night duty) clerks and their attached peons.
✅ Part-time employees or those paid from contingencies.
✅ Contract employees, unless their contract explicitly allows overtime.
✅ Employees already covered by other overtime schemes, such as those in government presses, customs, excise, and communication services.
2️⃣ Are Private Secretaries and Personal Assistants to Ministers eligible?
🔹 Yes, but only if they meet ALL these conditions:
✔️ They were in a non-gazetted post before appointment.
✔️ Their pay is restricted below the minimum gazetted post pay.
✔️ Their total pay does not exceed ₹750 per month.
3️⃣ How is overtime calculated for re-employed pensioners?
📌 For pensioners whose total pay + pension exceeds the maximum pay of the post: Overtime is calculated based on that maximum pay.
📌 For pensioners whose pay is fixed without considering a portion of their pension: That ignored portion is not counted for overtime calculations.
📌 For other cases: Overtime is calculated based on total pay + pension + admissible allowances.
4️⃣ Can employees receiving a salary from a foreign government claim overtime?
🔸 Yes, but only for the portion of salary received from the Government of India.
🔸 Total earnings (Indian + Foreign) must not exceed the eligibility limit for overtime.
Overtime Rules for Workshop Staff and Non-Industrial Staff
5️⃣ How is overtime allowance regulated for workshop staff?
🔸 If covered under the Factories Act or any statutory law, they follow those regulations.
🔸 If NOT covered by statutory provisions, overtime is granted only if work exceeds 48 hours per week.
6️⃣ What are the overtime rules for Government Press employees?
✅ If their weekly working hours are below 48, extra work up to 48 hours is paid at normal time rates.
✅ Work beyond 48 hours qualifies for overtime at double the time rate.
7️⃣ Are non-industrial staff in workshops eligible for overtime?
✔️ Yes, if they meet certain conditions:
🔹 If their working hours and holidays are the same as industrial staff, they continue under existing overtime schemes.
🔹 If NOT covered by any scheme, overtime is paid at the normal time rate for work exceeding:
✔️ Prescribed working hours (but not exceeding 48 hours per week or 9 hours per day).
✔️ For work beyond 9 hours per day or 48 hours per week, they get the same rate as industrial staff (with certification from the Head of Establishment).
8️⃣ What if non-industrial staff have different working hours than industrial staff?
🔹 Overtime is granted at the normal time rate for work exceeding one hour beyond prescribed office hours.
🔹 If a more liberal existing scheme applies, that scheme continues.
9️⃣ What is the definition of ‘Workshop’ in this context?
📍 A “workshop” refers to any factory registered under the Factories Act, 1948.
🔟 Who are classified as ‘Industrial’ and ‘Non-Industrial’ staff?
🔸 “Industrial staff” includes workers as defined under Section 2(1) of the Factories Act, 1948.
🔸 “Non-industrial staff” refers to all employees who are not categorized as workers under this Act.
7️⃣ RATES OF OVERTIME ALLOWANCE
Where a Government servant to whom this order applies is required to perform overtime work, they shall be entitled to overtime allowance in accordance with the following rates:
The current rates of overtime allowance and the basis of reckoning them are as follows:
| Emoluments
Rs. |
Overtime allowance per hour
Up to the first one hour. Thereafter in excess of the prescribed hours of work |
|
| Below Rs. 275 | Nil | 0-95 |
| 275 and above but below
Rs.325 |
Nil | 1.25 |
| 325 and above but below
Rs.375 |
Nil | 1.55
|
| 375 and above but below
Rs.425 |
Nil | 1.80 |
| 425 and above but below
Rs.475 |
Nil | 2.05 |
| 475 and above but below
Rs.525 |
Nil | 2.35 |
| 525 and above but below
Rs.575 |
Nil | 2.60 |
| 575 and above but below
Rs.625 |
Nil | 2.90 |
| 625 and above but below
Rs.675 |
Nil | 3.20 |
| 675 and above | Nil | 3.46 |
8️⃣ Additional Rules for Overtime Allowance
✅ No other remuneration is allowed for overtime work, including conveyance or compensatory leave.
✅ Exception: If a Government servant is recalled from their residence for overtime, the competent authority may allow conveyance charges in addition to overtime pay.
9️⃣ Important Explanations
🔹 EXPLANATION 1: The first one hour of overtime is unpaid only when the employee continues work beyond their prescribed hours. However, if an employee is recalled from home, they get overtime pay for the full period worked.
🔹 EXPLANATION 2: Overtime in excess of one hour is rounded up in half-hour increments. For example:
✔️ If an employee works 2 hours and 10 minutes beyond the first unpaid hour, they will be paid for 2.5 hours.
🔹 EXPLANATION 3: Overtime is rounded to the nearest 5 paise. Fractions ≥ 3 paise are rounded up, while those < 3 paise are ignored.
🔹 EXPLANATION 4: If an office opens for work but is later declared closed, overtime is treated as for a holiday.
🔹 EXPLANATION 5: Overtime is classified as “honorarium” under F.R. 9(9) and does not count as pay under F.R. 9(21).
🔹 EXPLANATION 6: Overtime on tour is allowed only under strict conditions:
✔️ Employees already eligible for overtime at headquarters can claim it on tour.
✔️ Overtime must be ordered on the spot by a competent authority.
✔️ Employees on temporary transfer (<90 days) can claim overtime if ordered by their superior.
✔️ Travel time is excluded—overtime is only paid for time spent halted on tour.
🔟 Certification & Record-Keeping
📌 Form I Certification: Every overtime claim must be certified by the Drawing Officer.
📌 Form II Register: Offices must maintain an overtime register, subject to periodic inspection.
📌 Scrutiny: If an employee is paid overtime more than 10 days a month, their case must be reviewed by higher authorities.