To ensure working conditions, rights, and the health of laborers engaged in specialized jobs such as those in the field of exploration and exploitation of oil and gas at sea, on November 8, 2023, the Ministry of Industry and Trade issued Decree no. 20/2023/TT-BCT, replacing Decree 24/2015/TT-BTC, which regulates working hours and rest periods for laborers in specialized occupations within the field of exploration and exploitation of oil and gas at sea (hereinafter referred to as “workers“), including determining the rest hours for these workers. (“Decree 20“).

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The resting time is the necessary duration for laborers to restore expended labor force to ensure continuous work processes. Hence, when arranging work shifts for laborers, employers not only have to ensure the working hours but also adhere to the legally regulated rest periods for them.

* For laborers working regularly at offshore oil and gas sites, the rest should be arranged as follows:

• After each offshore work shift, laborers must have a continuous rest of at least 10 hours before starting a new shift.
• Break time during working hours is counted as part of the working time. The total break time must be at least 60 minutes, ensuring a continuous break of at least 30 minutes. For night shifts, a break of at least 45 continuous minutes is allowed.
• Apart from breaks between work shifts, after each work session, regularly working laborers should have continuous rest days equal to the number of days worked in the previous session.

* For irregularly working laborers at offshore oil and gas sites, the rest should be arranged as follows:

• Working at offshore oil and gas sites on a workday in the week: 1 workday on the sea requires compensation of half a workday.
• Working at offshore oil and gas sites on a day off in the week: 1 workday on the sea requires compensation of 1 workday.
• Working at offshore oil and gas sites on holidays: 1 workday on the sea requires compensation of 2 workdays.

This information summarizes the details of laborers working in the field of exploration and exploitation of oil and gas at sea regarding their rest periods. Decree 20 will be effective starting from December 25, 2023.

* This bulletin aims to inform about newly enacted legal regulations and is not intended for specific advice or application in individual cases. 

I hope this information is helpful to our dear readers.