{"id":3371,"date":"2023-10-08T21:34:02","date_gmt":"2023-10-08T19:34:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hast-ak.com\/uncategorized\/zmeny-v-pracovnim-pravu-platne-od-01-10-2023\/"},"modified":"2023-10-16T10:37:35","modified_gmt":"2023-10-16T08:37:35","slug":"zmeny-v-pracovnim-pravu-platne-od-01-10-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hast-ak.com\/en\/labour-law\/zmeny-v-pracovnim-pravu-platne-od-01-10-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"Changes in labour law effective from 01.10.2023"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
The long-awaited amendment to the Labour Code will come into force on 01.10.2023. But what changes are we specifically expecting?<\/p>\n\n
The amendment to the Code introduces a relatively extensive regulation of employment relationships on a permanent or part-time basis. The changes concern several areas, discussed below. <\/span><\/p><\/p>\n\n Agreement<\/span><\/p>
\nAs such, the agreement must always be <\/span>in writing<\/span>. The work performance agreement must specify the agreed work and the period for which the agreement is concluded. In addition, the agreement on the work activity must also contain the agreed scope of the working time. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n Provision of remuneration from the agreement<\/span><\/p>
\nNewly, employees on FTE or FTE will also be entitled <\/span>to remuneration from the agreement<\/span>. This is remuneration provided, for example, for work in a difficult working environment, compensatory time off or holiday pay, weekend pay, etc. The remuneration from the agreement will be treated as a wage for workers on FTEs and FTEs. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n Employees will also have the right to <\/span>take all sick leave <\/span>and <\/span>holiday entitlements<\/span>. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n Conversely, the employee <\/span>is not entitled to compensation <\/span>from the agreement for the duration of other important personal obstacles to work and obstacles to work for reasons of general interest. However, the entitlement may be determined by agreement or internal regulation. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n Working time schedule\u00a0<\/span><\/p>
\nEmployers will now also be obliged to draw up a written <\/span>working time schedule <\/span>in advance, which they will have to make known to employees. Unless otherwise specified, the employee must be made aware of the schedule at least 3 days before the start of the shift or period for which the working time is scheduled. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n Employers will also be obliged to record the time worked by employees on an agreement in the same way as they do for employees on an employment contract. <\/p>\n\n Transition to employment\u00a0<\/span><\/p>
\nIf an employee working under an agreement for a cumulative total of at least 180 days during the previous 12 months requests employment from the employer, the employer is obliged to <\/span>respond in writing to <\/span>the employee within a maximum of 1 month. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n Cancellation of the Agreement<\/span><\/p>
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\n The agreement can only be cancelled in writing in three ways: <\/span><\/p><\/p>\n\n <\/p>\n\n Notice may be given for any reason or for no reason at all. The notice period shall then be 15 days from the date on which the notice is delivered to the other party. In certain cases, the employer has up to one month from the date of service of the notice to request the employer to <\/span>provide written reasons for the notice<\/b>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n This is the case, for example, where the employee feels that he or she has been dismissed because he or she has asserted his or her right to information, advance working time or the right to professional development.<\/p>\n\n Immediate termination can only occur in a situation where the employment relationship can be terminated immediately. This is possible on the part of the employer if the employee has been convicted of a deliberate criminal offence or if he or she has breached his or her employment obligations in a particularly serious manner. An employee may be immediately dismissed on the basis of a medical opinion that makes it impossible for him to perform his work due to a serious threat to his health, unless the employer has made it possible for him to perform other suitable work. The agreement may also be terminated immediately if the employer has not paid the employee the remuneration due to him.
\n<\/p>\n\n Scope of work on FTE<\/span><\/p>
\nThe scope of work on a FTE may not exceed <\/span>300 hours <\/span>per calendar year. Work performed by the employee for the employer on the basis of another agreement is included in this period. Holidays, interruptions of work due to obstacles to work, taking time off for overtime or work on public holidays, etc. are not counted. <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n Holiday entitlement\u00a0<\/span><\/p>
\nWith effect <\/span>from 2024, <\/span>agreement employees will also be entitled to <\/span>holiday pay<\/span>. However, as there is no fixed weekly working time from which the amount of leave can be calculated, the weekly working time for leave purposes is set at 20 hours per week. Consequently, no account is taken of the extent to which the work was actually performed. Employees shall be entitled to leave when 2 conditions are met. The conditions are the same as for employees in employment. It will be necessary that the agreement lasts for at least 4 weeks continuously in the relevant calendar year and that the employee works at least 4 times his\/her notional weekly working time (set at 20 hours). <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n Information obligation\u00a0<\/span><\/p>
\nThe employer is now <\/span>obliged to inform <\/span>the employee <\/span>in writing of <\/span>certain facts if they were not specified in the agreement. They must do so <\/span>within 7 days of starting work<\/span>. If the nature of the information allows it, the employer may only refer to the relevant statutory provisions or internal regulations or collective agreement. This includes the following information regarding: <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n the name and registered office of the employer (PO) or the name, surname and address of the employer (FO)<\/p>\n\n <\/p>\n\n If <\/span>any of the information changes<\/b>, the employer must <\/span>inform <\/b>the employee in writing no later than the day the change takes effect. However, this does not apply to changes in legislation, collective agreements or internal regulations.<\/span><\/p>\n\n The employee can also be <\/span>informed electronically<\/span>, but in a way that the employee can save and print it. The employer will then retain proof of the transmission of the information.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n\n Upon commencing work, the employee must be <\/span>familiarised with the <\/b>work rules, the legal and other regulations on occupational health and safety which he\/she must observe in his\/her work, the collective agreement and the internal regulations.<\/span><\/p>\n\n 2)\u00a0<\/strong>Contracts or agreements concluded electronically\u00a0<\/b>
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\n<\/b>If the employment contract, other agreement or any amendment thereto is concluded via an electronic communications network or service, the <\/span>employer <\/b>must <\/span>send a <\/b>copy of it <\/span>to the <\/b>employee’s electronic address which is not in the employer’s possession and which the employee has communicated in writing to the employer for this purpose.<\/span><\/p>\n\n The employee may withdraw from the contract\/agreement concluded in this way <\/span>only in writing <\/b>from the moment of its conclusion, but at the latest within <\/span>7 days <\/b>from the date of delivery of a copy of the contract\/agreement to the employee’s electronic address. Withdrawal is only possible until the employee has begun performance.<\/span><\/p>\n\n 3)\u00a0<\/strong>Employment for an indefinite period<\/b>
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\n<\/b>If the duration of the employment relationship has not been agreed <\/span>in writing <\/b>in the contract, the employment relationship is concluded for an indefinite period. If the duration of the contract has been fixed in writing, it may not exceed 3 years and may be repeated or extended at most twice. However, if the same parties conclude a fixed-term contract and 3 years have elapsed since the end of the contract, this period shall not be counted in the recalculation of the duration of the employment relationship. However, if the nature of the work or serious operational reasons do not correspond to the establishment of an open-ended contract, the terms may be adjusted differently by agreement between the employer and the trade union. <\/span><\/p>\n\n 4)\u00a0<\/strong>Working hours<\/b>
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\n<\/b>As regards working time, the amendment introduces two important changes. These are the regulation of <\/span>continuous daily rest <\/b>and <\/span>continuous weekly rest. <\/b><\/p>\n\n Uninterrupted daily rest\u00a0<\/strong>
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\nBasically, it is about guaranteeing the employee 11 hours of rest in <\/span>24 consecutive hours<\/b>. The limit of 11 hours is set for an adult, while for <\/span>minors <\/b>it is set at a minimum of <\/span>12 <\/b>hours. Previously, the rest period was measured in the interval between the end of one shift and the beginning of another, but this is changing with the amendment. The decisive time frame is now 24 hours. <\/span><\/p>\n\n However, even this statutory time limit is not absolute. There are cases in which the rest period can be shortened, but only in cases defined exhaustively by law. Rest cannot be reduced for minors, who are not allowed to exceed the 12-hour limit. An adult employee’s rest may be <\/span>reduced to up to 8 hours in <\/b>any consecutive 24-hour period. However, the subsequent rest period must be extended by the amount by which the previous rest period was reduced. The situations in which rest may be so reduced are as follows: <\/span><\/p>\n\n <\/p>\n\n Uninterrupted rest during the week\u00a0<\/strong>
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\nThe anchoring of continuous rest in the week is intended to avoid an interpretation that circumvents the regulation of continuous daily rest. There have been situations in which the employer has scheduled working time so as to provide a sufficient period of rest, but there has been no obligation to actually provide such rest. <\/span><\/p>\n\n Employees are now entitled to at least 24 hours of uninterrupted rest per week. Together with the continuous daily rest, this amounts to <\/span>35 hours of rest <\/b>for an adult. In the case of <\/span>minors, the <\/b>duration of uninterrupted rest must be at least <\/span>48 hours <\/b>per week. It is essential that the length of rest is assessed <\/span>within a week<\/b>, so it is not possible to work more than one day during some weeks and thereby accumulate time off which the employee would take at a later date. The emphasis is on sufficient regular recovery and rest for employees. The law does not directly stipulate that the rest day must be a Sunday, as this cannot be required for operational reasons. Nevertheless, the law states that, where operations permit, continuous weekly rest should be set on the same day for all employees, preferably to include Sunday. <\/span><\/p>\n\n Even with continuous rest during the week, it is possible to <\/span>reduce the <\/b>rest period to a total of <\/span>24 hours <\/b>instead of 35 hours. These are the same exceptions provided for in the case of continuous daily rest and, in addition, for technological processes that cannot be interrupted. However, the period by which the rest has been reduced may not be subsequently granted separately, but only with the following continuous weekly rest, so that within 2 weeks the employee has a continuous weekly rest of at least 70 hours. Agriculture has a separately regulated length of rest. The length of the continuous weekly rest period may be reduced by agreement, but only so that the employee is given at least 105 hours of rest in 3 weeks or at least 210 hours in 6 weeks for seasonal work. <\/span><\/p>\n\n The adjustment of continuous weekly rest is effective only <\/span>from 01.01.2024<\/b>. <\/span><\/p>\n\n 5) <\/strong>Overtime work in the healthcare sector<\/b>
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\n<\/b>Overtime work must be <\/span>exceptional<\/b>, and even a personnel “underclass” cannot justify systematic violations of the Labour Code. The Labour Code thus introduces a new measure to prevent excessive overtime. <\/span><\/p>\n\n The concept of so-called additional agreed work is newly introduced, which may be performed by a doctor, dentist, pharmacist, and a health care worker of non-medical health professions working in a continuous work mode. <\/p>\n\n Healthcare employees will therefore be able to work a <\/span>maximum of 8 hours of <\/b>overtime <\/span>in a period of 26 consecutive weeks <\/b>(the collective agreement may set the period at 52 weeks). In addition, a <\/span>written agreement <\/b>on so-called additional agreed work would have to be concluded with the employee. This agreement cannot be concluded during the first 12 weeks of employment and cannot last longer than 52 consecutive weeks. Either party shall have the right to terminate this agreement immediately during the first 12 weeks of its effectiveness. The agreement may also be terminated without giving reasons, but must be given in writing to the other party. The notice period shall be 2 months unless otherwise agreed.<\/span><\/p>\n\n The employer must<\/strong><\/p>\n\n <\/p>\n\n Employee in the health sector<\/strong><\/p>\n\n <\/p>\n\n Employee of the ambulance service<\/strong><\/p>\n\n <\/p>\n\n The employer must never force the employee to enter into the agreement and the employee must never be subjected to detriment if he or she does not enter into the agreement. Any wrongdoing would then be punished by the Labour Inspectorate. <\/p>\n\n 6)\u00a0<\/strong>Work remotely<\/b>
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\n<\/b>Telework is a concept newly introduced by the amendment. It is a term for the previously used term “<\/span>home office<\/b>“. Telework <\/span>is not an automatic entitlement of the employee<\/b>, so the employer does not have to grant all requests for telework. However, the situation is different in the case of pregnant women, employees caring for a child under the age of 9 or a person dependent on the help of another. If a person in this category applies for telework, the employer will have to give reasons in writing for any refusal. <\/span><\/p>\n\n Teleworking must be agreed <\/span>in writing<\/b>, either as a separate agreement or as part of an employment contract or agreement to perform work, etc. The agreement should include:<\/span><\/p>\n\n <\/p>\n\n The telework agreement may <\/span>be terminated <\/b>by either party <\/span>within 15 days without <\/b>giving any reason. A different time limit may be agreed. However, it must be the same for both parties. Both parties must have the same notice conditions, neither party should be at an advantage. The impossibility of terminating the telework agreement can also be negotiated. <\/span><\/p>\n\n When working remotely, the employee may also adjust his\/her <\/span>working hours <\/b>himself\/herself, without being bound by the working time schedule applicable to the normal performance of the job. However, the length of his shift may not exceed 12 hours, and the daily and weekly uninterrupted rest periods will also apply to teleworking. <\/span><\/p>\n\n Under certain conditions, the employer may also <\/span>order <\/b>teleworking, but only for the necessary period of time and must do so in writing. The conditions are as follows and must be met collectively: <\/span><\/p>\n\n <\/p>\n\n The introduction of the ability to command telework is a response to the recent global pandemic situation. <\/p>\n\n Reimbursement of costs\u00a0<\/strong>
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\nThe employee has the <\/span>right to compensation for the costs <\/b>associated with the performance of telework. However, it may be agreed in a written agreement that the employee is not entitled to such compensation. <\/span><\/p>\n\n Reimbursements shall consist of reimbursement of the relevant <\/span>costs <\/b>demonstrated by the employee <\/span>to <\/b>the employer or <\/span>a lump sum <\/b>reimbursement <\/span>amount due to <\/b>the employee for each hour of teleworking. The amount of the lump sum will be announced by the MLSA and will be based on data provided by the Czech Statistical Office. Such an amount should cover all costs associated with teleworking (e.g. gas, electricity, water supply, etc.). If the employer is a so-called entrepreneurial employer, the lump sum provided may be higher than the statutory amount.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n\n Reimbursement of expenses may also be due to a salaried or temporary employee. However, this must be agreed in writing. <\/span><\/p>\n\n 7)\u00a0<\/strong>Parental leave, pregnancy, childcare<\/b>
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