Working hours of motor vehicle driver - Yleistä

The work of professional motor vehicle drivers is regulated by the Finnish Working Hours Act. Professional drivers are therefore advised to also familiarise themselves with the other information on working hours available on the Tyosuojelu.fi website. The Working Hours Act contains special provisions on motor vehicle drivers, some of which are superseded by the EU driving and rest time rules (Regulation (EC) No 561/2006). Drivers’ rest times are mostly regulated by the EU rules. Many aspects of motor vehicle drivers’ work can also be regulated by national collective agreements.

The daily working hours of motor vehicle drivers must not exceed 11 hours during the 24 hours following their daily rest period. If there is no other practical solution, a driver’s daily working hours can be extended to up to 13 hours. However, in these cases, the employer must ensure that the driver’s working hours within the first 48 hours after the daily rest period that follows the longer working day do not exceed 22 hours. (Working Hours Act, section 9)

Diagram: driver's working and resting times in 24-hour and 48-hour periods.

The working hours of professional motor vehicle drivers must not exceed 60 hours per calendar week.

Any work that falls under Regulation (EC) No 561/2006 is subject to the EU driving and rest time rules. In all other cases, professional drivers must get one or two breaks amounting to at least 30 minutes in total for each five hours and 30 minutes that they work. Drivers are also entitled to a continuous rest period of at least 10 hours in each 24-hour period. However, if there is no other practical solution, a driver’s daily rest time can be reduced to no less than seven hours during up to two of seven consecutive 24-hour periods. The provisions on weekly free time also need to be taken into account.

It is the employer’s responsibility to keep track of their drivers’ working hours. Tachograph data alone are not a sufficient record of working hours, as the record must show all working hours and not just those spent driving.

Working hours of motor vehicle driver - Lainsäädäntö

 

Legislation

Working Hours Act (872/2019, in Finnish)
  • Section 7 – Working hours in period-based work
  • Section 8 – Night work
  • Section 9 – Daily working hours of a motor vehicle driver
  • Section 18 – Maximum number of working hours
  • Section 24 – Daily breaks
  • Section 26 – The daily rest period of a motor vehicle driver  
  • Section 27 – Weekly free time
  • Section 28 – Derogations from weekly free time
  • Section 31 – Personal driver’s logs
  • Section 34 – Derogations under collective agreements
  • Section 44 – Violations of working hours regulations

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