The maximum hours of work per week prescribed under the Factories Act is:

The Factories Act, 1948, has prescribed a maximum of 48 working hours per week, not exceeding 9 hours per day with rest for at least 1/2 hour after 5 hours of continuous work. For adolescents, the hours of work have been reduced from 5 to 4 1/2 per day. The 1976 amendment makes a provision to increase the spread-over period of work (including rest intervals) of an employee in a factory upto 12 hours from the existing 10 1/2 hours. The total number of hours of work in a week including oveime shall not exceed 60. Ref: Park's Textbook of Social and Preventive Medicine, 19th edition, Page 669-670.