6. Weekly day of rest.— (1) Subject to the provisions of this rule, an employee shall be allowed rest for one day in every week (hereinafter referred to as “the rest day”), in case of six-day working week which shall ordinarily be a Sunday and in case of less than six-days working week, the rest day shall include Saturday and Sunday, however, the employer may fix any other day of the week as the rest day for any employee or class of employees:

Provided that in a six-days working week or less than six days working week, as the case may be, the remaining days of the week shall be paid rest days for such employees:

Provided further that an employee shall be entitled for the rest day under this sub-rule, if he has worked under the same employer in case of six-days working week for a continuous period of not less than six days and in case of less than six-days working week for a continuous period of the stipulated number of working days, as the case may be:

Provided also that the employee shall be informed of the day fixed as the rest day and of any subsequent change in the rest day before the change is effected, by display of a notice to that effect at a conspicuous place in the place of employment or electronically.

Explanation.- For the purpose of computation of the continuous period of not less than six days or the stipulated number of days worked in a week specified in the second proviso to this sub-rule,

(a) any day on which an employee is required to attend for work but is given only an allowance for attendance and is not provided with work;

(b) any day on which an employee is laid off on payment of compensation under the Industrial Relations Code, 2020 (35 of 2020), and;

(c) any leave or holiday, with or without pay, granted by the employer to an employee in the period of six days or during the stipulated number of working days of a week, as the case may be, immediately preceding the rest days.

(2) An employee shall not be required or allowed to work on the rest day unless he is allowed a substituted rest day on one of the working days in a week immediately before or after the rest day:

Provided that no substitution shall be made, which shall result in the employee working for more than ten days consecutively without a rest day.

(3) Where any employee works on a rest day and has been given a substituted rest day on any working days before or after the rest day, the rest day shall, for the purposes of calculating the weekly hours of work, be included in the week in which the substituted rest day occurs.

(4) An employee shall be granted for rest day, wages calculated at the rate applicable to the previous working day; where he works on the rest day and has been given a substituted rest day, then, he shall be paid wages for the rest day on which he worked, at the overtime rate and wages for the substituted rest day at the rate applicable to the previous working day:

Provided that in case of six-days working week where–––

(i) the minimum rate of wages of the employee as notified under the Code has been worked out by dividing the minimum monthly rate of wages by twenty- six; or

(ii) the actual daily rate of wages of the employee has been worked out by dividing the monthly rate of wages by twenty-six and such actual daily rate of wages is not less than the notified minimum daily rate of wages of the employee, then, no wages for the rest day shall be payable; and

(iii) the employee works on the rest day and has been given a substituted rest day, then, the employee shall be paid, only for the rest day on which he worked, an amount equal to the wages payable at the overtime rate, which shall not be less than twice the normal rate of wages, and, in case any dispute arises whether the daily rate of wages has been worked out in accordance with the provisions of this proviso, the Chief Labour Commissioner (Central) or the Deputy Chief Labour Commissioner (Central) having jurisdiction may, on application made in this behalf, decide the same, after giving an opportunity to the parties concerned to make written representations:

Provided further that in case of an employee governed by a piece-rate system, the employee shall be paid wages for the rest day on which he works, at the overtime rate and wages for the substituted rest day at the rate applicable to the previous working day.

Explanation.- For the purpose of this sub-rule, the words ‘previous working day’ means the last day on which the employee has worked, which precedes the rest day or the substituted rest day, as the case may be; and where the substituted rest day falls on a day immediately after the rest day, the previous working day means the last day on which the employee has worked, which precedes the rest day.

(5) The provisions of this rule shall not operate to the prejudice of more favourable terms, if any, to which an employee may be, entitled under any other law or under the terms of any award, agreement or contract of service, and in such a case, the employee shall be entitled only to more favorable terms.

Explanation.- For the purposes of this rule, the expression ‘week’ shall mean a period of seven days beginning at midnight on Saturday night.