Workbear재주넘는곰
대법원 89다카32118

Allowances Dispute (수당등)수당등

Decided1991. 04. 23. Court대법원Case reversed and remanded (파기환송) for further fact-finding; no final winner determined at this stage
AI-generated English translation (summary, key points, decision summary and full text) for reference only — not an official translation and without legal effect. The Korean original below is authoritative.
AI Easy read — AI summary of this decision
AI-generated summary for reference only — the Korean original below is authoritative.

This case concerned whether an agreement to pay a fixed monthly amount as overtime allowance (시간외수당), regardless of actual hours worked, was valid for a managerial employee stationed overseas. The Supreme Court held that such fixed-sum overtime arrangements can be valid if they do not disadvantage the worker and are reasonable under the circumstances, but reversed and remanded the case because the lower court failed to properly examine these factors.

Key takeaways
  • CaseA managerial employee working overseas disputed the validity of receiving a fixed monthly overtime allowance instead of pay based on actual overtime hours.
  • OutcomeThe Supreme Court ruled that such fixed allowance agreements can be valid if they do not disadvantage the worker and are reasonable overall, but sent the case back because the lower court had not adequately reviewed these factors.
  • LessonEmployers using fixed-sum overtime allowance agreements must ensure they are demonstrably fair and non-disadvantageous to employees, considering all surrounding circumstances, to withstand legal scrutiny.
Issues
  • Validity of an agreement to pay a fixed monthly overtime allowance (시간외수당) regardless of actual hours worked
  • Whether the special working conditions of managerial employees stationed overseas justify such fixed-allowance arrangements
  • Whether the worker's consent was obtained and whether the arrangement caused any disadvantage to the worker
Key reasoning

The Court explained that a contract providing a fixed monthly overtime allowance (시간외수당), irrespective of actual work performance, is not automatically invalid. Such an arrangement may be lawful if it does not place the worker at a disadvantage compared to calculating overtime pay based on actual hours, and if it is justified in light of all relevant circumstances, such as the nature of the employee's overseas managerial position and the practical difficulty of tracking exact working hours. However, the Court found that the lower court (원심) had not sufficiently investigated whether these conditions were met in this case. Because the validity of the fixed allowance agreement depended on a fact-specific inquiry into fairness and lack of disadvantage to the worker, the case was remanded for further examination.

Summary of Decision (English, AI translation)

Even where a contract has been concluded to pay a fixed amount each month as various allowances—by taking into account working hours, the form of labor, and the nature of the duties, in the interest of convenience of calculation and of encouraging employees' motivation to work—in lieu of overtime, night-shift, and holiday allowances that should otherwise be paid according to actual hours worked, such a contract cannot be held invalid where it causes no disadvantage to the employee and is recognized as justifiable in light of all the circumstances.

Full text (English, AI translation) 10,589 chars

[Plaintiff, Appellee] Plaintiff, Attorney Lee Hae-woo, Litigation Representative
[Defendant, Appellant] Yuwon Construction Co., Ltd., Attorneys Kim Jin-woo and 1 other, Litigation Representatives
[Judgment Below] Seoul High Court Decision 89Na12614 rendered on November 10, 1989

[Order]

The part of the judgment below concerning the claims for overtime work allowance and retirement allowance is reversed, and this part of the case is remanded to the Seoul High Court.
The remainder of the Defendant's appeal is dismissed.
The costs of appeal with respect to the dismissed portion of the appeal shall be borne by the Defendant.

[Reasoning]

The grounds of appeal are examined.

According to the reasoning of the judgment below, the lower court rejected the Defendant's argument as follows. The Defendant argued that the site in Saudi Arabia where the Plaintiff worked was such that, due to extreme heat and frequent sandstorm phenomena, it was not easy to work the same hours every day; that work was performed by appropriately repeating work and rest periods in accordance with the daily weather conditions, the supply and demand of materials and equipment, and other site construction conditions; that particularly in the case of management staff such as the Plaintiff, it was difficult to clearly divide working hours and rest hours in advance and to implement such a division, and it was also difficult to accurately confirm whether work had actually been performed and the hours of such work; that accordingly, instead of individually calculating and paying allowances for overtime work, etc. to workers such as the Plaintiff, the Defendant company, in consideration of the above particular nature of the form of work, treated the workers as having performed 2 hours of overtime work every day and 288 hours (208 + 80) of holiday work every year regardless of whether work was actually performed and the actual working hours, and calculated and paid, under the name of overtime work allowance, etc., ordinary wages corresponding to 102 hours per month, calculated uniformly by rank and pay grade, as part of the basic allowance; that the Plaintiff, well aware of this, desired to work overseas, went abroad, and received monthly salary calculated on this basis, thereby consenting to the above policy of paying overtime work allowance, etc.; that therefore the Plaintiff's above claim seeking payment of allowance in accordance with actual overtime working hours, contrary to the above, was unjustified; and that at the very least, the amount paid in the name of overtime work allowance as alleged above should be deducted to that extent.

In response to this argument, the lower court held, based on the provisions of Articles 22 and 46 through 48, etc. of the Labor Standards Act (근로기준법), that an employer must, at the time of concluding an employment contract, clearly specify to the worker the wages, working hours, and other working conditions, and that, as a matter of principle, wages must be paid by calculating and adding together, in addition to the basic wage, various allowances arising from overtime work, night work, holiday work, etc.; that although, exceptionally, a contract may be concluded providing for the payment of a fixed amount each month as various allowances with the worker's consent, taking into account working hours, the form of work, the nature of the duties, etc., such a contract cannot be held invalid where it does not disadvantage the worker and is recognized as reasonable in light of all the circumstances; however, that with respect to the point that the Defendant company treated workers such as the Plaintiff as performing 2 hours of overtime work each day and paid a fixed amount determined uniformly by rank and pay grade in the name of overtime work allowance, the entries in Defendant's Exhibits No. 1-1, 2, 3, No. 2, and No. 6-5, 6, 7, 9, 12, and the testimony of the witness at the lower court and the first instance, which correspond to this point, were difficult to believe in light of the overall purport of the pleadings, particularly the fact that the entries in Defendant's Exhibits No. 1-1, 2, 3 (each Middle East salary tables) do not correspond with the entries in Defendant's Exhibit No. 2 (salary composition details), and that there was no other evidence sufficient to recognize this; that furthermore, even taking into account the particular nature of the form of work of workers such as the Plaintiff, the above agreement could not be said to be non-disadvantageous to workers such as the Plaintiff, nor could it be said to be reasonable in light of other circumstances; and that the fact that the Plaintiff desired to work overseas while knowing of the Defendant company's above salary policy could not be conclusively taken to mean that the Plaintiff consented to the non-payment of overtime work allowance, etc. under the Labor Standards Act, and there was no other evidence to find that workers such as the Plaintiff consented to the agreement concerning the payment of various allowances as alleged by the Defendant; therefore, the lower court rejected the Defendant's above argument as being without merit.

However, even where a contract is concluded providing for the payment of a fixed amount each month as various allowances—which should otherwise be paid according to actual work performance, such as overtime, night work, and holiday allowances—taking into account working hours, the form of work, the nature of the duties, etc., for convenience of calculation and to encourage employees' motivation to work, such a contract cannot be held invalid where it does not disadvantage the worker and is recognized as reasonable in light of all the circumstances (see this Court's Decision 89Daka15939 rendered on November 27, 1990). According to the entries in Plaintiff's Exhibits No. 17-1 through 16 (each pay statement) and No. 20 (management staff pay statement), which the lower court did not reject, the Defendant company pays remuneration in the form of monthly salary to management staff working overseas, the contents of which are divided into base pay, basic allowance, other allowances, monthly leave allowance, and bonus. Meanwhile, according to the entries in Defendant's Exhibits No. 6-5, 9 (each statement record), whose authenticity is not disputed, the Defendant company has established Overseas Salary Regulations as the remuneration regulations applicable to workers working overseas, and pursuant to those salary regulations, has paid a fixed amount each month as overtime work allowance. Likewise, according to the entries in the above Defendant's Exhibits No. 1-1, 2, 3, and No. 2, whose authenticity is not disputed, the amounts of each of the above items are specifically set by rank and pay grade for management staff working in the Middle East region, and among these, the above basic allowance is stated as including a fixed amount of overtime work allowance; and it appears that the salary composition details for management staff working in the Middle East region consist of 31.2% base pay, and, within the basic allowance, 5.48% duty allowance, 27.73% overseas work allowance, 32.37% overtime allowance, and 3.22% monthly leave allowance (although there is a slight discrepancy in calculation between the above composition ratios and the ratio of the specific amounts actually agreed to be paid). If this is the case, then it should have been examined: what exactly constitutes the details of the basic allowance or other allowances that the Defendant company has paid to management staff working overseas; if the portion constituting the basic allowance coincides with the sum of the duty allowance, overseas work allowance, and overtime allowance appearing in the Middle East salary table in Defendant's Exhibits No. 1-1, 2, 3, then what is the basis and circumstances by which the above Middle East salary table or the salary composition details in Defendant's Exhibit No. 2 came to be prepared; what difference exists between the above basic allowance and the allowance of management staff of the same rank and same pay grade working domestically; and whether, in light of the work content and working hours expected of workers in the case of overseas assignment and the Defendant company's remuneration system, it is reasonable to view the above basic allowance as including overtime work allowance. If it is found that the overtime work allowance alleged by the Defendant is included in the above basic allowance, then that overtime work allowance should be excluded from ordinary wages, and the actual overtime working hours worked by the Plaintiff each month should be examined; if such hours fall short of the hours prescribed in the above regulations, it need not be taken into account on the ground that the Defendant company paid more as a matter of grace, but if such hours exceed the prescribed hours, the overtime work allowance should be calculated only with respect to the excess portion.

Nevertheless, without proceeding to examine the above points, the lower court merely rejected the above Defendant's Exhibits No. 1-1, 2, 3 and No. 2 on the ground that they do not correspond with each other, calculated ordinary wages including the overtime work allowance already paid, calculated the unpaid overtime work allowance on this basis, and then took this unpaid overtime work allowance into account in calculating the average wage for the purpose of calculating retirement allowance, thereby calculating the retirement allowance. Accordingly, the part of the judgment below concerning overtime work allowance and retirement allowance is ultimately unlawful in that it violated the rules of evidence and failed to exhaust the examination, thereby affecting the outcome of the judgment. The argument pointing this out therefore has merit. As for the remaining points of the judgment below, since there is no statement of grounds of appeal with respect thereto in the petition of appeal or the brief of grounds of appeal, this part of the appeal cannot avoid dismissal.

Therefore, the part of the judgment below concerning overtime work allowance and retirement allowance is reversed, and this part of the case is remanded to the court below; the remainder of the Plaintiff's appeal is dismissed; and the costs of appeal with respect to the dismissed portion shall be borne by the losing party. It is so decided as stated in the Order, by the unanimous opinion of the Justices participating.

Justice Choi Jae-ho (Presiding Justice), Yoon Kwan, Kim Ju-han, Kim Yong-jun

【판결요지】

실제 근무실적에 따라 지급되어야 할 시간외, 야간 및 휴일수당 등을 근로시간 및 근로형태와 업무의 성질 등을 참작하고 계산의 편의와 직원의 근무의욕을 고취하는 뜻에서 매월 일정액을 제수당으로 지급하는 내용의 계약을 체결하였다 하더라도 근로자에게 불이익이 없고 제반사정에 비추어 정당하다고 인정될 때에는 이를 무효라 할 수 없다.

【참조조문】

근로기준법 제22조, 제46조

【참조판례】

대법원 1990.11.27. 선고 89다카15939 판결(공1991,192), 1990.11.27. 선고 90다카6934 판결(공1991,201)

【주문】·【이유】 전문 3,797자 · 펼쳐 보기

【원고, 피상고인】 원고 소송대리인 변호사 이해우

【피고, 상고인】 유원건설주식회사 소송대리인 변호사 김진우 외 1인

【원심판결】 서울고등법원 1989.11.10. 선고 89나12614 판결

【주 문】

원심판결 중 시간외근무수당 및 퇴직금청구에 관한 부분을 파기하고 이 부분 사건을 서울고등법원에 환송한다.

피고의 나머지 상고를 기각한다.

상고기각부분에 관한 상고비용은 피고의 부담으로 한다.

【이 유】 상고이유를 본다.

원심판결 이유에 의하면 원심은 피고가, 원고가 근무한 사우디아라비아국의 현장은 극심한 더위와 빈번한 모래바람현상 등으로 인하여 매일 똑같은 시간을 근무하기가 용이한 것이 아니고 매일매일의 기상조건과 자재, 장비의 수급상황 등 현장공사여건 등에 맞추어 작업과 휴식을 적절히 반복하면서 공사를 하게 되는 것이고 특히 원고와 같은 관리직원의 경우 미리 작업시간과 휴식시간을 명백히 구분하여 놓고 이를 이행하기가 어려울 뿐만 아니라 실제로 근무를 하였는지 여부와 그 근무시간을 정확하게 확인하는 것이 어려운 관계로, 피고회사에서는 원고와 같은 근로자들의 시간외근로 등에 대하여 개별적으로 수당을 계산, 지급하지 않는 대신 위와 같은 근로형태의 특수성을 감안하여 실제근무여부 및 근무시간에 관계없이 매일 2시간의 시간외근로를 하고 매년 288시간(208 + 80)의 휴일근로를 하는 것으로 보아 시간외근로등수당의 명목으로 월 102시간에 해당하는 통상임금을 직급별 호봉별로 일정하게 계산한 뒤 이를 기본수당의 일부로 지급하여 왔는데 원고도 이를 잘 알면서 해외근무를 희망하여 출국한 뒤 이를 기준으로 한 월급을 수령함으로써 위와 같은 시간외근로등수당의 지급방침에 동의하였다 할 것이고 따라서 이와 어긋나게 실제의 시간외근로시간에 따른 수당의 지급을 구하는 원고의 위 청구는 부당하며 적어도 위 주장과 같이 시간외근로수당 명목으로 지급한 금원은 그 범위 내에서 공제되어야 한다고 주장한데 대하여 근로기준법 제22조, 제46조 내지 제48조 등의 규정에 의하면 사용자는 근로계약체결시 근로자에 대하여 임금, 근로시간 기타의 근로조건을 명시하여야 하고 임금은 기본임금 외에 시간외근로, 야간 및 휴일근로 등에 따르는 제수당을 계산한 뒤 합산하여 지급함이 원칙이라 할 것이고 예외적으로 근로시간 및 근로형태와 업무의 성질 등을 참작하여 근로자의 승낙하에 매월 일정액을 제수당으로 지급하는 내용의 계약을 체결하였다 하더라도 근로자에게 불이익이 없고 제반사정에 비추어 정당하다고 인정될 때에는 이를 무효라 할 수 없다 할 것이나, 피고회사에서 원고등 근로자들의 시간외근로 등에 대하여 매일 2시간씩의 시간외 근로를 하는 것으로 보아 직급별 호봉별로 일정하게 정한 금원을 시간외 근로수당의 명목으로 지급하여 왔다는 점에 관하여 이에 부합하는 을 제1호증의 1,2,3, 을 제2호증,을 제6호증의1,5,6,7,9,12의 각 기재와 원심 및 1심증인 소외인의 증언은 변론의 전취지 특히 을 제1호증의 1,2,3(각 중동급여표)의 각 기재와 을 제2호증(급여구성 내역)의 기재가 부합하지 않는 점에 비추어 믿기 어렵고 달리 이를 인정할 만한 증거가 없을 뿐만 아니라 원고등 근로자들의 근로형태의 특수성 등을 감안한다 하더라도 위와 같은 약정이 원고등 근로자들에게 불이익하지 아니하며 기타 제반사정에 비추어 정당하다고 할 수 없고, 또 원고가 피고 회사의 위와 같은 급여방침을 알면서도 해외근무를 희망하였다 하여 이로써 근로기준법에 따른 시간외근로 등의 수당이 지급되지 않는 것에 대하여 원고의 동의가 있었다고 단정할 수 없고 달리 원고등 근로자들이 피고의 위 주장과 같은 제수당지급에 관한 약정을 승낙하였다고 볼 만한 증거가 없으므로 피고의 위 주장은 그 이유없다고 하여 이를 배척하였다.

그러나 실제 근무실적에 따라 지급되어야 할 시간외, 야간 및 휴일수당 등을 근로시간 및 근로형태와 업무의 성질 등을 참작 하고 계산의 편의와 직원의 근무의욕을 고취하는 뜻에서 매월 일정액을 제수당으로 지급하는 내용의 계약을 체결하였다 하더라도 근로자에게 불이익이 없고 제반사정에 비추어 정당하다고 인정될 때에는 이를 무효라 할 수 없다고 볼 것인 바(당원 1990.11.27. 선고 89다카15939 판결 참조), 원심이 배척하지 아니한 갑 제17호증의1 내지 16(각 급여명세서), 갑 제20호증(관리직급여명세서)의 각 기재에 의하면, 피고 회사에서는 해외에 근무하는 관리직근로자들에게 보수를 월급형태로 지급을 하고 있는데 그 내용은 본봉, 기본수당, 기타수당, 월차수당, 상여금으로 나누어져 있으며, 한편 성립에 다툼이 없는 을 제6호증의5,9(각 진술조서)의 각 기재에 의하면 피고 회사에서는 해외근무 근로자들에 대하여 적용되는 보수규정으로 해외급여규정을 두고 있고 그 급여규정에 의하여 매월 일정액을 연장근로수당으로 지급하여 왔다는 것이고, 역시 성립에 다툼이 없는 위 을 제1호증의1,2,3, 을 제2호증의 각 기재에 의하면, 중동지역에 근무하는 관리직의 직급별 호봉별로 위 각 항목의 금액이 구체적으로 책정되어 있는데 거기에는 위 기본수당에 일정액의 시간외근로수당이 포함되어 있는 것으로 되어 있고, 중동지역에 근무하는 관리직근로자들에 대한 급여구성내역은 본봉 31.2퍼센트, 기본수당 중 직무수당 5.48퍼센트, 해외근무수당 27.73퍼센트, 시간외수당 32.37퍼센트, 월차수당 3.22퍼센트로 되어 있는 사실(다만 위 구성비와 실제 지급하기로 한 구체적 액수비가 계산상 약간 차이가 있기는 하다)이 엿보이는바, 그렇다면 피고 회사가 해외에 근무하는 관리직근로자들에게 지급하여 온 기본수당 또는 기타수당의 내역이 무엇인지, 그 중 기본수당으로 되어 있는 부분이 을 제1호증의1,2,3의 중동급여표에 나와 있는 직무수당, 해외근무수당, 시간외수당의 합산액과 일치한다면 위 중동급여표나 을 제2호증의 급여구성내역이 작성되게 된 근거와 경위는 어떠한 것인지, 위 기본수당은 같은 직급, 같은 호봉으로 국내에서 근무하는 관리직근로자들의 수당과는 어떠한 차이가 있는지, 해외근무의 경우 예상되는 근로자의 근로내용과 근무시간, 피고 회사의 보수체계에 미루어 위 기본수당에 시간외근로수당이 포함된 것으로 보는 것이 합리적인지 여부를 심리하여 위 기본수당에 피고가 주장하는 시간외근로수당이 포함되어 있는 것으로 인정이 되면 위 시간외근로수당은 통상임금에서 제외하고 매월 원고가 실제로 근무한 시간외근로시간을 따져 그것이 위 규정에정한 시간에 미달될 때에는 피고 회사에서 은혜적으로 더 지급하여 준 것으로 보아 이를 고려할 필요가 없으나 초과할 때는 그 초과분에 한 해서 시간외근로수당을 산정하여야 할 것이다.

그럼에도 불구하고 원심은 위와 같은 점에 나아가 심리하지 아니하고 단지 위 을 제1호증의1, 2, 3, 을 제2호증이 서로 부합하지 아니한다는 이유를 들어 이를 배척하고 이미 지급된 위 시간외근로수당까지 포함하여 통상임금을 산정하고 이를 기초로 미지급 시간외근로수당을 계산한 다음 이 미지급 시간외근로수당을 퇴직금계산을 위한 평균임금산정에 고려하여 퇴직금을 계산하였으니 원심판결 중 시간외근로수당 및 퇴직금에 관한 부분에는 결국 채증법칙에위반하여 심리를 다하지 아니함으로써 판결결과에 영향을 미친 위법이 있다할 것이므로 이 점을 지적하는 논지는 이유있으며 원심판결의 나머지 점에 대하여는 상고장이나 상고이유서에 그에 대한 상고이유의 기재가 없으므로 이 부분 상고는 기각을 면할 수 없다.

그러므로 원심판결 중 시간외근로수당 및 퇴직금에 관한 부분을 파기하고 이 부분 사건을 원심법원에 환송하며 원고의 나머지 상고를 기각하고 상고기각부분의 상고비용은 패소자의 부담으로 하기로 하여 관여 법관의 일치된 의견으로 주문과 같이 판결한다.

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