Last year, the Norwegian Labor Inspectorate carried out over 1000 inspections of wages and working conditions in the hospitality and catering industry. In 70 percent violations of health and safety regulations were detected during the inspection.
– Supervision over the hospitality industry is important and right. This is clearly visible in the number of violations we have detected - says Trude Vollheim, director of the Norwegian Labor Inspectorate.
The control was unexpected. It was carried out throughout the country from January 2022 to January 2023, mainly in restaurants, but also in bars and hotels.
– Our inspections are risk-based. This means that they are carried out on the basis of an assessment of where the conditions are most likely to be breached employees' work – says Vollheim.
“The high percentage of violations shows both that we are on the right track and that this is an important effort that we must continue. Even though most companies want to be serious, there are too many violations of the law among the ones we checked.
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Violations in related to employment contracts, overtime pay
Most violations were found in relation to employment contracts, overtime pay and minimum wage.
– This is a serious matter and confirms the fact that the hospitality industry is one of the most vulnerable industries. The industry is characterized by many small companies, high turnover and a lot of part-time work, says Trude Vollheim.
– In addition, there is often a high proportion of young and foreign workers, a low level of organization both among employees and employers, and often low and lack of knowledge of the rules of working life, both duties and rights. In this case, it is especially important that we carry out checks.
Minimum wage requirements will be violated
Accommodation and catering is a general industry. This means that workers are entitled to the minimum wage. Among other things, the minimum wage is set to ensure equal pay for all workers in an industry where workers may be at risk of exploitation. It applies regardless of whether the employee is Norwegian or foreign. As well as regardless of whether the employee is employed permanently or temporarily, or works full-time or part-time.
– In our inspections, we found that one in four audited companies had breached the regulations minimum wage regulations, and this is unjustified, says Trude Vollheim.
Lots of violations when it comes to working hours
We also found many violations of working time policies. In 40 percent During the inspection, we found violations of the requirement to pay for overtime. This means that workers either received no overtime pay at all or received less than what they are entitled to. We also found that in 27 percent of inspections, the employer has no information on how many employees are working. For 30% of the audits no work plan was drawn up.
"It makes work unpredictable for employees, and it becomes difficult to keep track of how much you work and what you're entitled to," says Vollheim.
No employment contracts
Employees must always have a written employment contract. This applies whether the position is permanent or temporary and there are no exceptions to this rule. It is the employer's responsibility to draw up a written employment contract. The Working Environment Act sets out the minimum requirements for what a contract must contain. In 68 percent inspections where employment contracts were checked, the contracts did not meet the minimum requirements.
– The employment contract must ensure predictability of work, including in terms of pay, job tasks, working hours and location, probationary period and notice period. These are important rights for employees. When we find deficiencies in employment contracts, this is a serious matter as it can weaken the worker's position in terms of rights and predictability of work, says Vollheim.
Young people must be protected
In 23 audited companies, the employer did not ensure compliance with the working time rules for children and youth.
A large number of young workers work in the accommodation and catering sector. They must be protected from work that could be harmful to them.
This means that they need to be protected from night work even more than adults, which, as we know, can have negative effects, among other things. for health and social life. For example, young people under the age of 18 are generally not allowed to work after 21pm. Breaks and working hours have separate rules, says Vollhem.
The Norwegian Labor Inspectorate wants to be notified of inappropriate working conditions. This may apply to conditions in your own workplace or to conditions observed in other workplaces. You can remain anonymous. We will consider all suggestions and comments and consider whether we should apply supervision.
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Source: Norwegian Labor Inspectorate
