Since 1 January 2026, new regulations concerning the employment of temporary workers in Germany have been in force. The provisions in question introduce, among others, changes to the rules for keeping the working time account. It’s extremely important to familiarise with these regulations, because they have a huge impact on both the organisation of work and the settlement of temporary workers’ remuneration.
1. What is a working time account?
A working time account, known in German as Arbeitszeitkonto or Zeitkonto, is a system for recording working hours. It consists in creating individual accounts for employees, where hours worked in excess of standard ones are accumulated. The accumulated hours can later be used as time off. Working time accounts are very popular in Germany, particularly among temporary employment agencies.
The new DGB/GVP collective agreements, applicable from 1 January 2026, establish an absolute obligation to keep a Zeitkonto. The working time account is to be maintained in order to compensate for monthly deviations between the fixed monthly working time standard of 151.67 hours and the actual working time of a temporary employee.
2. Extra and minus hours
Both extra and minus hours shall be recorded in the working time account. Extra hours are these ones worked in excess of the fixed monthly working time standard. On the other hand, minus hours are those ones that aren’t enough for the employee to reach the fixed monthly time standard.
As a rule, an employee may accumulate a maximum of 200 extra hours in his/her working time account. Indeed, the settlement of Zeitkonto should occur when the worker accumulates 200 hours in his/her account. However, in individual cases, working time will be settled when the employee accumulates 230 hours in the working time account. No similar restriction has been introduced for minus hours.
3. Securing the working time account against insolvency
In the event that the temporary worker accumulates more than 150 extra hours in Zeitkonto, the employer is obligated to secure the working time account against insolvency and then present the proof of the security’s existence to the employee. If the employer fails to show such a proof, Zeitkonto may contain a maximum of 150 hours and the worker isn’t obligated to provide overtime.
4. Balancing the working time account
The working time account shall be balanced no later than after 12 months. If the adjustment isn’t possible within the time limit, this shall be done within the following 3 months. For this purpose, an appropriate agreement should be concluded with the employee by the end of the 12th month. If, for operational reasons, it’s still impossible to balance the working time account within the additional period, a maximum of 150 hours may be carried over to the next settlement period, and hours exceeding this limit must be paid.
Contracts with temporary employees may stipulate that the working time account will be reset at the end of the year. The clause in question should be included in contracts with all workers.
5. Settlement of the working time account
The settlement of the working time account should take place by granting the temporary employee time off. In this regard, the following rules apply:
a) after consultation with the worker, overtime may be compensated at any time by granting time off;
b) the employee has the right to request one day off for every 35 overtime hours accumulated in the working time account (the request may be submitted only once per calendar month, for a maximum of 2 working days);
c) by agreement between the worker and the employer, it’s possible to grant additional days off during the month or to take days off cumulatively from several months;
d) the employee and the employer may conclude an agreement concerning the payment of up to 70 hours from the working time account (the agreement in question may be concluded only once during the compensatory period);
e) regardless of the compensatory period, at the worker’s request and with the employer’s consent, it’s possible to establish an individual method of payment for outstanding working hours up to 20 hours per month;
f) at the employee’s request, hours exceeding 91 overtime hours are paid from the working time account.
If an employee becomes unable to work during a reception, the collection hours falling within the period of incapacity are transferred back to the working time account.
6. Termination of employment and working time account
In the event of termination of employment, all extra hours accumulated in the working time account are paid to the temporary employee. On the other hand, minus hours are counted towards remuneration, but only in case of the worker’s resignation or termination of employment on an extraordinary basis. However, this may take place if it isn’t possible to make up the hours for operational reasons, and this may cover up to a maximum of 35 hours.
7. Legal notice
The study is a work within the meaning of the Act of 4 February 1994 on Copyright and Related Rights (OJ 2006, No. 90, item 631, consolidated text, as amended). Publishing or reproducing this study or its part, quoting opinions, as well as disseminating in any other way the information contained therein without the written consent of Crede sp. z o.o. is prohibited.
