Changes in the labour legislation

At Law on Amendments and Supplements to the Labour Code (the Labour Code Amendment Law) was promulgated in the State Gazette No. 27 of 29 March 2024.

The main focus of the legislative changes is on teleworking - something that became a practice during the Covid pandemic. The changes have also been driven by the rapid development of telecommunications technology and digitisation, which have led to the widespread use of off-premises working.

The place from which the employee will work remotely should now be specified in detail in the contract of employment in order for the employer to be sure that it meets the safety conditions. In addition to what is stated in the preceding sentence, this also enables the employer to better control the performance of an assigned task and/or the teleworking. The teleworking location specified in the contract may be more than one.

Employers' liability in the event of an industrial accident where the teleworker has failed to comply with safety rules is reduced.

The Labour Code already regulates the so-called "right of exclusion", according to which employees may not respond to their employer during their daily or weekly break.

In summary, the changes to the Labour Code:
• introduce new and detailed obligations to ensure health and safety at work;
• provide for additional flexibility in determining the place of work;
• establishes an obligation to establish rules for the assignment and reporting of telework;
• place new demands on the use of information systems in the work process;
• set out various situations in which the employer has a duty to provide the employee with written information;
• adopt changes relating to the allocation and recording of teleworking time;
• regulates the right to exclude all employees;
• regulates the contractor's responsibility in subcontracting chains to pay wages to workers.

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