Tagging some folks I’d love to hear from! 
@HRJoy @HRHappiness @SabbuSchreiber @andra.enache @Kim Stringer @nina.johansson @Hellohere @Salewa @SalC @rstambolieva @damayantichowdhury09 @Carly Murphy
Thanks @Moe for an other interesting topic! 
If I were faced with rolling out a new law that limits overtime to 3 hours per week, especially in a company where people are used to working much more, I’d start with clear and empathetic communication. I’d make it clear that this is a legal compliance issue rather than an internal policy change.
To ease the transition, I’d suggest a phased communication plan. Start with an announcement explaining the law and the need for contract updates, followed by manager briefings and employee-facing FAQs. I think it’s important to acknowledge the impact, especially on earning potential, while reinforcing the company’s commitment to fairness and support.
To help manage resistance, HR could
• Offer a short transition period (if legally allowed) so teams can adjust gradually
• Explore alternative incentives like project-based bonuses or recognition
• Support managers with talking points and guidance for difficult conversations
• Use pulse surveys or informal check-ins to monitor how people are feeling after the change
At my company, we’ve found that flexible working time makes a big difference. Employees can move within a certain overtime balance range, taking time off when needed and making it up later, even over several days if needed. Overtime payouts are rare and only happen in exceptional cases, since we typically use time off in lieu to compensate extra hours. This flexibility really helps absorb changes like these without too much disruption.
I genuinely believe that combining honest communication with practical flexibility is key to maintaining trust and engagement, even when changes are out of our control.
In addition to the previously written:
Resistances:
No. 1: is self explaining, I don’t see any serious resistance
No.2 + 3: get in contact with the works council to mitigate the reduced income. Look together for tax benefits evereybody profits from. They might have an idea for an operating agreement and then be helpful to sell the “bad news”. Anyway better than to have them against you.
Thanks @Moe for an other interesting topic!
If I were faced with rolling out a new law that limits overtime to 3 hours per week, especially in a company where people are used to working much more, I’d start with clear and empathetic communication. I’d make it clear that this is a legal compliance issue rather than an internal policy change.
To ease the transition, I’d suggest a phased communication plan. Start with an announcement explaining the law and the need for contract updates, followed by manager briefings and employee-facing FAQs. I think it’s important to acknowledge the impact, especially on earning potential, while reinforcing the company’s commitment to fairness and support.
To help manage resistance, HR could
• Offer a short transition period (if legally allowed) so teams can adjust gradually
• Explore alternative incentives like project-based bonuses or recognition
• Support managers with talking points and guidance for difficult conversations
• Use pulse surveys or informal check-ins to monitor how people are feeling after the change
At my company, we’ve found that flexible working time makes a big difference. Employees can move within a certain overtime balance range, taking time off when needed and making it up later, even over several days if needed. Overtime payouts are rare and only happen in exceptional cases, since we typically use time off in lieu to compensate extra hours. This flexibility really helps absorb changes like these without too much disruption.
I genuinely believe that combining honest communication with practical flexibility is key to maintaining trust and engagement, even when changes are out of our control.
I am such a fan of your answers to these puzzlers! 🤩
Your approach is one I can appreciate as well. Years ago, working as a community manager elsewhere, we needed to bring in a change in a community’s guidelines that was meant to be in line with new regulations. Your point on emphasising that this is a compliance decision and not an internally motivated one reflects what I did back then as well!
Transparency is important, but it seems especially important when that transparency lets employees know that you didn’t have any choice but to make a rather sudden change.
Speaking of sudden change, the transition period is also a great suggestion!
In addition to the previously written:
Resistances:
No. 1: is self explaining, I don’t see any serious resistance
No.2 + 3: get in contact with the works council to mitigate the reduced income. Look together for tax benefits evereybody profits from. They might have an idea for an operating agreement and then be helpful to sell the “bad news”. Anyway better than to have them against you.
An excellent contribution. As a follow-up, do you think it would be good to have a sort of good newss/ bad news scenario to smooth the landing of this contract change? Your point on trying to work on tax benefits to help everyone is a fascinating one. Forgive my ignorance, it’s just something I would never have thought of - but clever indeed!
I am grateful that I didn’t have to deal with such a topic. Yet. There are not many good news going along with the limited overtime scenario. In general I have seen unrecorded overtime some years ago when the empolyees were able to enter their working time in Excel. I think it was an unwritten give-and-take-agreement as the employees had a lot freedom to manage one’s time. Nowadays days these kind of deals are more difficult to implement.
I agree with both @SabbuSchreiber and @wissbegierig in that transparency is key and finding the upsides or additions to support rather than just implementing the change with an “it is what it is, deal with it”-attitude and approach.
However, with legal requirements, it very much “is what it is” and we have to make the best of it. Preferably, there are grace periods giving you ample time to communicate early, update documents and policies affected by it, and equip your managers in preparation to take any heat resulting from it.
Before anything, I’d research and ensure I fully understand the legal requirements and how it applies to my organisation and industry. Sometimes, there are eligibility criteria or scenarios that except certain individuals, organisations or industries, and it may not be applicable. Several industries, such as healthcare, manufacturing and construction, commonly rely on overtime work. Restrictions could severely impact the services they provide, and I’d expect that the Government implementing this law would have something to take that into consideration.
I agree with both @SabbuSchreiber and @wissbegierig in that transparency is key and finding the upsides or additions to support rather than just implementing the change with an “it is what it is, deal with it”-attitude and approach.
However, with legal requirements, it very much “is what it is” and we have to make the best of it. Preferably, there are grace periods giving you ample time to communicate early, update documents and policies affected by it, and equip your managers in preparation to take any heat resulting from it.
Before anything, I’d research and ensure I fully understand the legal requirements and how it applies to my organisation and industry. Sometimes, there are eligibility criteria or scenarios that except certain individuals, organisations or industries, and it may not be applicable. Several industries, such as healthcare, manufacturing and construction, commonly rely on overtime work. Restrictions could severely impact the services they provide, and I’d expect that the Government implementing this law would have something to take that into consideration.
Much agreed. I’ve had similar scenarios where I’ve just had to explain to stakeholders involved that this is “just the way it is, nothing we can do to stop it.” Of course, I’ve always found managing that messaging quite difficult - drastic changes are always a struggle to negotiate, even when you’ve got a built-in justification.
Tagging @jwilliams79, @damayantichowdhury09, @HannahPorteous-Butler, @xtine08, @Kim Stringer, and @Hellohere in case they’ve got something to add
Couldn’t agree more with the above - Transparency and Communication is paramount… @SabbuSchreiber @wissbegierig ...and so is Trust…
I'd also comment that 10+ hours of weekly overtime isn’t sustainable. (Although I know many do it). It risks burnout, blurs boundaries, and often masks structural issues like poor resourcing or unrealistic expectations.
This is a great opportunity to create healthier boundaries around work (that’s a good thing btw!). I would also see it as a chance to increase autonomy, recognition, and meaningful reward in other ways....every cloud and all that…!!!!
Couldn’t agree more with the above - Transparency and Communication is paramount… @SabbuSchreiber @wissbegierig ...and so is Trust…
I'd also comment that 10+ hours of weekly overtime isn’t sustainable. (Although I know many do it). It risks burnout, blurs boundaries, and often masks structural issues like poor resourcing or unrealistic expectations.
This is a great opportunity to create healthier boundaries around work (that’s a good thing btw!). I would also see it as a chance to increase autonomy, recognition, and meaningful reward in other ways....every cloud and all that…!!!!
Love this. I’m a big fan of the concept of seeing even the most limiting developments/ changes as an opportunity to try something new and potentially get better - growth mindset and all that!
Some fantastic points made above!
I completely resonate with @SabbuSchreiber ‘s point about clearly communicating all the facts with empathy and transparency! In addition, I would carry out a very similar procedure to a lot of the other decisions, including making the transition and internal changes as smooth for the employees as possible.
Providing alternate incentives, tax benefits and other bonuses wherever possible is also a great strategy as I believe it also gives them other options and does not make them feel like they have hit a roadblock due to legal regulations. Although it is true that we cannot do much as a company to change decisions made in line with regulations, the key here is to ensure that the employees remain motivated and taken care of in the organisation.
Making the decisions outlined above definitely aligns with that. Thanks for another thought-provoking scenario Moe! 
Although it is true that we cannot do much as a company to change decisions made in line with regulations, the key here is to ensure that the employees remain motivated and taken care of in the organisation.
Couldn’t have said it better! I can imagine a mishandled sudden change like this would result in a noticeable drop in employee motivation. From speaking with other People professionals, it’s already hard enough to keep motivation throughout a company at a high, so the additional hurdle of bungled communications in a scenario like this would only make this tougher.
