Pitanje regulacije radnog vremena jedno je od najstarijih u povijesti radnog prava, o čemu svjedoči uspostavljena regulativa, kako na međunarodnoj, tako i na nacionalnoj razini, s ciljem skraćivanja radnog vremena radi zaštite sigurnosti i zdravlja radnika. S druge strane, fleksibilizacija i diverzifikacija radnog vremena, koje su započele osamdesetih godina prošlog stoljeća, imale su prvenstveno za cilj povećanje produktivnosti i kompetitivnosti poslodavca te stope zaposlenosti. Fleksibilizacija u radnim odnosima općenito, a napose fleksibilnost radnog vremena, doveli su do toga da se više ne mogu jasno odrediti, ne samo granice između poslovnog i obiteljskog života radnika, već niti vrijeme u kojem osoba sudjeluje u društvenom životu. Stoga je potrebno poduzeti određene napore i donijeti određene mjere koje bi omogućile da pitanje rasporeda radnog vremena ne bude samo predmet zakonskih tekstova i kolektivnih ugovora, već i individualizacije radnog vremena koja bi omogućila pojedincu da definira svoje radno vrijeme na način koji će mu omogućiti kvalitetnu harmonizaciju poslovnog i privatnog života, pazeći pri tom da se ne ugroze poslovni interesi poslodavca, kao ni „vremenski obrasci zajednice“. The issue of the regulation of hours of work is one of the oldest in the history of labor law. This is evidenced by the established regulations, both at i nternational and national level, the aim of which were to shorten hours of work to protect the safety and health of workers. On the other hand, flexibility and diversification of hours of work which began in the eighties primarily aimed at increasing the productivity and competitiveness of employers as well as increasing the employment rate. Flexibility in labor relations in general, and in particular the flexibility of working hours have led to limitations which are no longer clearly defined, not only between work and the private life of workers, but have even determined the time in which people participate in social life. Therefore, it is necessary to make some effort to bring in certain measures that would allow that the issue of distribution of working hours to no longer be only the subject of legal texts and collective agreements, but also part of the individualization of hours of work. This would enable the individual to define his/her hours of work in a way that would better harmonize work and private life in a manner that would not pose any threats neither to the business interests of the employer nor to the “community time pattern”.