According to the provisions of Article 41 of the Labor Law, if an employer arranges laborers to work overtime due to the needs of production and operation, it shall negotiate with the trade unions and laborers and obtain the consent of the laborers and trade unions, and it shall not exceed 3 hours per day and 36 hours per month, and pay overtime wages according to law. Workers have the right to refuse to work overtime, as long as they inform the supervisor or the management personnel who arrange overtime.

However, according to Article 42 of the Labor Law and the Regulations of the State Council on Working Hours of Employees issued by the Ministry of Labor,

Notice on the Implementation Measures (No.[1995] 143 of the Ministry of Labor), in any of the following circumstances, the employer shall arrange overtime, and the employee shall not refuse:

1, natural disasters, accidents or other reasons, which threaten the life, health and property safety of workers and need urgent treatment;

2, production equipment, transportation lines, public facilities failure, affecting production and public interests, must be repaired in time;

3. During the shutdown period of legal holidays or public holidays, the equipment must be overhauled and maintained;

4, in order to complete the national defense emergency task, or other emergency production tasks arranged by the superior in the national plan, as well as commercial, supply and marketing enterprises to complete the acquisition, transportation and processing of agricultural and sideline products in the peak season.

Where the employing unit illegally extends the working hours, the laborer may complain to the labor inspection, which shall give a warning and order it to make corrections, and the infringed laborer shall be fined according to the standard of 65,438 yuan +000 yuan but below 500 yuan.