Time at the employer's disposal in Brazil: changing uniforms, minutes before clocking in and on-site travel

Time at the employer's disposal is any period during which the employee is waiting for or carrying out orders (CLT, art. 4 — the CLT is Brazil's Consolidated Labor Laws). Small variations of up to 5 minutes in clock-in times, capped at 10 minutes a day, are not counted; if the limit is exceeded, all the excess time is paid as overtime (art. 58, §1; TST Precedent 366 — the TST is the Superior Labor Court).

Quick summary

• Tolerance: up to 5 minutes per clock entry, at most 10 minutes a day.
• Over the limit: all the excess time becomes overtime, not just what exceeds 10 minutes.
• Changing uniforms: counts when required to be done at the workplace; does not count if the employee may arrive in uniform (art. 4, §2, VIII).
• Commute time (home to work) stopped counting in 2017 (art. 58, §2).
• Walking from the entrance to the workstation: may be time at the employer's disposal if it exceeds 10 minutes a day (TST Precedent 429).

What does not count as time at disposal (art. 4, §2)

When the employee, by their own choice, stays on the premises for:

• religious practice, rest, leisure or study;
• meals, social activities and personal hygiene;
• changing clothes or uniform, when changing at the workplace is not required;
• seeking protection from unsafe streets or bad weather.

What usually counts

• Mandatory queues for searches on entry or exit — see Body and belongings searches.
• Changing PPE and uniforms that can only be done at the workplace — see Uniforms and PPE.
• Meetings, training and preparation before clocking in.
• Waiting for employer-provided transport inside the premises, depending on the case.

How to claim

1. Write down when you arrive and when you clock in.
2. Keep witnesses and internal rules requiring uniforms to be changed at work.
3. Check your time record.
4. Calculate the daily minutes: 20 minutes a day over 22 days is more than 7 overtime hours a month.

Frequently asked questions

Does arriving 15 minutes early on my own generate overtime?

If you are just waiting, without working and without an order from the employer, it tends not to count. If you start working, it counts.

Can the employer require me to arrive early to change clothes without pay?

If changing at the workplace is mandatory, the time is working time.

Read more in this series

• Time records: how to check them
• Overtime: how to calculate it, limits and how to claim
• Uniforms and PPE: who pays
• Body and belongings searches at work
• Index: complete guide to labor rights