The year 2024 could be described in an employment law context as the “year of amendments”. There are countless amendments that have come into force, been adopted or are currently being discussed in the legislative process in the employment law area in this year.
Following our previous article on the so-called transposition amendment to the Labour Code (available here), we have prepared another article, in which we will focus on the so-called flexiamendment, which is still in the legislative process.
Introduction
Greater flexibility and modernisation of the labour market, increased flexibility of labour relations and simplification of reconciliation of work and family life of employees – these are the main objectives of the flexiamendment introduced by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs in April this year. The need for the amendment also stems from the updated Government Programme Statement, in which the Government has committed, among other things, to increase the overall flexibility of the Labour Code in the interests of both employees and employers.
The flexiamendment was discussed and approved by the Government on 21 August 2024. Assuming that there are no unnecessary delays in the legislative process, it should come into force in its majority from 1 January 2025.
Specific changes
Notice period, probation period or job position guarantee during parental leave (but also others) are the main topics to be regulated by the flexiamendment. We will look at these individual areas affected by the flexiamendment in more detail below.
Adjustment of the notice period
Currently, the two-month notice period starts on the first day of the month following the month in which the notice is delivered (for example, if the notice is delivered on 28 September 2024, the notice period starts on 1 October 2024). Under the flexiamendment, the notice period remains at 2 months, but will now start immediately from the date of service of the notice on the employee or employer.
It is also proposed to reduce the notice period to 1 month instead of the current 2 months, but only in relation to employees who violate work discipline or do not meet the legal requirements for the performance of their employment.
Longer trial period
At present, the probationary period for ordinary employees is 3 months, and up to 6 months for managers. The probationary period for ordinary staff is to be extended to 4 months and for senior managers to 8 months. However, employers will still have the option to decide according to which arrangement they want to set the notice period.
Job position guarantee during parental leave
When returning from parental leave before the age of two, the flexiamendment requires the employer to provide the employee with the same position he or she held before taking maternity or parental leave. If the employee returns to work after the child reaches the age of two, but no later than three years, the current arrangements will remain in force. The staff member must be assigned to the job description specified in the contract [1].
A significant change is the abolition of the prohibition on earning extra income during parental leave based on the performance of the same type of work agreed with the employee in the employment contract. Employees should thus now be able to earn additional income from their employer by doing the same work that is specified in their employment contract (for example, on a temporary or part-time basis), without the employer having to be “creative” and invent a different type of work in the agreement, as is often the case in practice now.
Changes in compensation for work-related accidents
In the event of termination of employment due to a work-related injury or disability, the employer should no longer be obliged to pay severance pay, but instead compensation would be paid by the insurance company with which the employer is compulsorily insured. The amount of this compensation would be the same as the amount of the severance payment, which means at least 12 times the employee’s average monthly salary.
Juvenile work from the age of 14
According to the flexible amendment, students as young as 14, even if they have not yet completed compulsory school attendance, should be able to earn extra income. This will only apply during the summer holidays, i.e. July and August, and only on a full-time or part-time basis. Working hours would be limited to a maximum of 35 hours per week or 7 hours per day. The consent of the legal guardians would be required for the temporary work.
Payment of wages in another currency
Employers should be able to pay wages to employees in currencies other than Czech crowns from the new year. The condition for paying wages in a foreign currency would be that the currency in question is listed on the Czech National Bank’s (CNB) exchange rate list and that other conditions of the employment relationship or the employee’s foreign connection are met
Registered partners
Registered partners should be given the same rights in the transfer of wage rights in the event of the death of an employee.
Further digitisation of delivery
Employers should be able to deliver wage statements via internal electronic systems, such as email. The employee would be required to acknowledge receipt of such an assessment within 15 days, for example by clicking on a confirmation link or replying to an email, otherwise the delivery would be deemed invalid.
Conclusion
The flexible amendment responds not only to the needs of employees and employers to facilitate their cooperation and functioning, but also to overall social and technological progress. The changes introduced by the amendment regarding notice and probation periods and work-life balance in general will, for the most part, have a positive impact on employment relations and labour market flexibility.
The draft amendment is now on its way to the Chamber of Deputies. We will continue to monitor the legislative process for you.
Should you have any questions about the content of the current version of the flexible amendment or need assistance in any other employment law matter, please do not hesitate to contact our PEYTON legal team at any time.
[1] The proposed amendment meets the requirements of the Action Plan for Equal Remuneration of Women and Men 2023-2026 and the Government Strategy for Gender Equality 2021-2030.
Mgr. Jakub Málek, managing partner – malek@plegal.cz
Rachel Kouklíková, legal assistant – kouklikova@plegal.cz
5. 9. 2024