Article 107 settles any dispute over the overtime rate. It sets a floor, not a ceiling: an employer may agree to pay more, and may not pay less even with the worker's consent, because statutory entitlements cannot be waived.
Royal Decree M/44 of 1446H amended the first paragraph to add an option that did not exist before: crediting the worker with paid compensatory leave instead of the overtime pay, where the worker agrees and as detailed by the Regulations.
The text of the article
- 1The employer shall pay the worker for overtime hours an additional wage equal to the hourly wage plus 50% of the basic wage. The employer may, with the worker's agreement, credit the worker with paid compensatory leave days in place of the wage due for overtime hours, as detailed by the Regulations.
- 2Where the establishment operates on a weekly standard of working hours, hours exceeding that standard are overtime hours.
- 3All hours worked on holidays and feast days are treated as overtime hours.
Status of the text: Paragraph 1 amended by Royal Decree M/44 dated 8/2/1446H, effective 20/8/1446H. Paragraphs 2 and 3 are unchanged.
The Arabic text published by the Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers is the reference; the English above is a working translation.
What the article means in practice
The formula and its ceiling
An overtime hour equals the ordinary hourly wage plus half the basic hourly wage, a multiplier of 1.5. The hourly wage is derived from the monthly wage divided by thirty, then by the daily working hours.
Read it with Article 106, which caps actual working hours including overtime at eleven per day. Overtime is a limited allowance, not an open door.
A weekly standard moves the starting point
An establishment on a weekly standard counts overtime from what exceeds the agreed weekly hours rather than from the end of each day, which suits flexible shifts where one day runs long and another short.
Holiday hours count in full
Paragraph 3 is categorical: every hour worked on a holiday or feast day is overtime, not merely the excess hours. Eight hours worked on a feast day are all paid at the overtime rate.
Compensatory leave requires consent
The option added in 1446H is not an employer's unilateral substitution: the text conditions it on the worker's agreement, with the detail left to the Regulations. Employers adopting it need documented consent and a visible balance for the employee.
What payroll should show
- 1Overtime hours per employee taken from attendance records rather than a manager's estimate.
- 2The hourly wage used and its basis, so the employee can check it.
- 3Holiday and feast-day hours separated, since all of them are overtime.
- 4Overtime as its own payslip line, not folded into a general amount.
- 5Any compensatory leave balance, with evidence of the worker's agreement.
Mistakes that recur in practice
Computing overtime on the basic wage alone
The text requires the hourly wage plus half the basic wage, so any multiplier below 1.5 is short.
Paying a flat allowance instead
A lump sum does not remove the calculation; if it falls below the Article 107 entitlement, the difference remains owed.
Imposing compensatory leave
The option depends on the worker's agreement, so converting overtime to leave by management decision alone departs from the amended text.
How Barez applies this article
Overtime derived from attendance
Hours come from the attendance record itself, with no side spreadsheet and no manual entry to argue about.
It reaches payroll at the right rate
The overtime allowance enters payroll as its own line at the 1.5 multiplier and shows on the employee's payslip.
Assignment before accrual
Overtime passes through assignment and approval, so the employer retains proof that the hours were requested.
Sources
This page is explanatory guidance, not legal advice. In a dispute, rely on the official text and consult the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development or a licensed lawyer.