Introduction of paternity leave 

As of 1 December 2022, the Czech Labour Code has been amended to add paternity leave as a new obstacle to work on the part of the employee. According to the new provision of Czech labour law, the employer is obliged to grant the employee paternity leave in connection with the birth and care for a child. The employee is entitled to paternity leave for the duration of the paternal care benefit under the Czech Sickness Insurance Act. A male employee on paternity leave is afforded the same protection as a female employee on maternity leave (e.g. the prohibition of termination with certain exceptions and prohibition of immediate termination of the employment relationship by the employer during paternity leave, the right to be assigned to the original job and workplace, right for leave immediately following the paternity leave, etc.).

Quarantine rules

From 1 December 2022, the Czech labour law has also introduced some new quarantine rules. Consequently, the employer is (with exceptions) prohibited from terminating the employment relationship during the period when the employee is quarantined. At the same time, it has also been added to the Czech Labour Code that in the event that a quarantine is ordered for an employee during their leave, the leave is interrupted unless the employee requests to continue taking leave during the quarantine.

Furthermore, the communication in the area of ordered quarantine has been simplified in connection with the implementation of the “quarantine computerisation” plan. The ordered quarantine and the processes associated with it (notifications), as well as temporary incapacity for work, are now carried out electronically (in electronic form).

Changes to occupational health services

As of 1 January 2023, changes in the area of occupational health services, in particular occupational health examinations of employees, shall apply. One of the main changes is that the obligation of periodic occupational health examinations in categories 1 and 2 of “risk-free occupations” (risk-free work categories, work without occupational risk) for employees in an employment relationship is abolished and these are now only carried out if required by the employer or employee. The changes have not affected the obligation to carry out entry examinations on employees. Periodic examinations shall also be carried out, inter alia, in the case of work of the same type carried out on the basis of agreements on work performed outside the employment relationship, in respect of work at occupational risk or carried out pursuant to other legislation, or if the employee or employer requires such examinations. Due to the latest modifications, the area of workplace supervision has also undergone major changes.

Travel allowances for 2023

As of 1 January 2023, the extent of data for the purposes of travel allowances granted to employees has been updated in the Czech Republic on the basis of Decree No. 467/2022 Coll., on the change of the basic compensation rate for the use of road motor vehicles and meal allowances and on the determination of the average price of fuel for the purposes of granting travel allowances for 2023.

Minimum wage in the Czech Republic

Similarly to other countries (see Hungary and Slovenia), as of 1 January 2023, the minimum wage has been increased also in the Czech Republic. The monthly minimum wage for fixed weekly working hours of 40 hours per week has been increased to CZK 17,300 and the minimum wage per hour to CZK 103.80. For other lengths of fixed weekly working hours, according to the recalculation, the minimum wage per hour is CZK 107,10 for the fixed weekly working hours of 38.75 hours and CZK 110,70 for the fixed weekly working hours of 37.5 hours. There has also been an increase in the lowest level of guaranteed wages, but only in work categories 1 and 8.

New premium discount in Czech labour law

As of 1 February 2023, an employer in the Czech Republic can claim a discount on social security premium for the selected groups of employees for the first time for the month of February 2023 provided that the statutory conditions are met. This option applies to employees in an employment relationship (or service relationship) with agreed shorter working hours. To qualify for the discount, all other conditions set out in the Czech labour law must be met (including, for example, shorter working hours of not less than 8 hours and not more than 30 hours per week), and at the same time there must not be any of the reasons for which the discount on the premium for an employee is not applicable. A statutory condition for claiming the discount on the premium is the prior notification of the intention to apply such premium discount for a particular employee to the Czech Social Security Administration (CSSZ). Only one employer may be entitled to a premium discount for the same employee. Therefore, there applies a rule that if more than one employer intends to claim a premium discount for the same employee, the employer who has first notified the Czech Social Security Administration of this intention is entitled to the premium discount for that employee.

Furthermore, a major change of the Czech labour law (Czech Labour Code) is highly expected in 2023.

If you have any queries about the Czech labour law or need to adapt to the new rules, the experts and advisors of WTS Alfery, the exclusive representative of WTS Global for the Czech Republic will be happy to provide you with professional support.

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Changes to the rules on reduced daily allowances

Until now, in Lithuania, the agreement on reduced daily allowances had to be established in a collective agreement or employment contract (i.e. an agreement between the employee – or the employees’ representatives – and the employer). Since 1 July 2022, companies without a collective agreement no longer need the consent of employees to reduce their daily allowance.

However, lower daily allowances can only be paid if they are differentiated on the basis of objective criteria laid down in a collective agreement, or, in the absence of such an agreement, in a local regulatory act.

New applicable requirements

Reduced daily allowances must be differentiated on the basis of objective criteria, i.e. it is not enough to state in standard terms that the employee shall be paid at least 50% of the daily allowance established by the Lithuanian government during business trips and to apply different rates of daily allowances to different business trips without any criteria. Objective criteria could include the duration and complexity of the business trip, the specific countries involved, the total of other expenses reimbursed by the employer during the business trip, etc.

The decision to reduce the daily allowance must be provided for in a collective agreement or employer’s internal document (e.g. handbook, internal work rules, business trips policy, etc.) and not in the employment contract.

Before introducing a new internal procedure for reducing the daily allowance, an information and consultation procedure must be carried out. Employees’ representatives shall be made aware of the intention to reduce the daily allowance and given the opportunity to express their views. Failure to comply with the information and consultation procedure may lead to the employer’s decision on reduced daily allowances being overturned by labour dispute bodies. Employees must be familiarised with the new procedure in writing.

Recommendations for employers in Lithuania

If the employment contract stipulates that the employer has the right to reduce the daily allowance, there is no need to amend the contract, but the employer will have to comply with the new regulation. So, even if the employee has already agreed on reduced daily allowances in the employment contract, the reduction will still need to be justified by an internal regulation from the employer (or a collective agreement, if one is in place).

If the employment contract does not stipulate that the employer has the right to reduce the daily allowance, there is no need to amend the employment contract. It is enough to introduce a new regulation and adopt relevant internal procedures or policies (or to conclude/amend a collective agreement, if one is in place). Of course, it is important not to skip the information and consultation procedures, and to duly inform employees of the newly adopted procedure in writing.

Amendments to labour law in Lithuania 

The amendments to the Lithuanian Employment Law introduce new financial incentives for employees and employers. The aim is to help attract highly qualified specialists from abroad, as well as to bring back to Lithuania expatriates whose professions are on the national shortage list. The amendments also provide for special conditions for Ukrainian citizens working in Lithuania.

Allowances for foreign employees and their employers

Two new benefits will be available: an entry allowance for the employee and an allowance for the employer who recruited the employee. The employee can either be a Lithuanian who has lived and worked as an émigré before, or a foreign national. It is important that he or she has not been considered a permanent resident of Lithuania for the previous five years.

To qualify for the entry allowance, the person will need to meet certain requirements, such as being employed under an open-ended employment contract to carry out work on the territory of the Republic of Lithuania, and an average salary of at least 4.1 minimum monthly wages (EUR 2,993 gross).

The entry allowance will be equivalent to 4.1 minimum monthly wages (EUR 2,993 gross) and will be paid by the Employment Service, to which the employee can apply no earlier than six months after starting to work in Lithuania. The purpose of the allowance is to reimburse the costs of the employee’s relocation to Lithuania.

Employers who recruit an employee, complying with the aforementioned conditions, will also be entitled to benefits. However, the benefits will not be granted if the relocated employee had already worked for the same employer or another company in the same group during the previous five calendar years. In other words, this incentive will not apply to the relocation of employees from one group company (outside Lithuania) to another company in the same group (in Lithuania).

The total benefits for the employer will be equal to the average gross monthly salary of the person employed, up to a maximum of 7.2 minimum monthly wages (EUR 5,256 gross). The benefits will be paid by the Employment Service, to which employers can apply no earlier than 12 months after the employee starts working in Lithuania.

Preferential conditions for Ukrainian nationals

The new benefits will be easier to obtain for Ukrainian nationals who are employed in Lithuania and have left Ukraine because of Russian military aggression.

They are exempted from the requirement to work in an occupation included in the list of high-value-added occupations that are in short supply in Lithuania. An open-ended employment contract for any job function is therefore sufficient. There is also a lower salary threshold: a gross salary of EUR 1,752 is sufficient, instead of the EUR 2,993 applied for nationals of other countries. However, if the average salary paid by the employer to its other employees is higher than EUR 1,752, the employer must pay the same to the Ukrainian nationals as well. In addition, Ukrainian nationals can apply for an entry allowance earlier than is the case for others, i.e. after three months, instead of six months from the start of employment in Lithuania.

It can be concluded that the entry allowance for Ukrainian nationals is primarily a form of support in solidarity with Ukrainians who had to leave their homes due to the war and is intended to encourage them to enter the labour market.

Please note that if an employer employs a Ukrainian national under the aforementioned preferential conditions, they will not be able to apply for the employer’s allowance for recruiting a foreign employee.

Click here if you want to read the original article about the changes to the rules on daily allowances and the Lithuanian Employment Law on the homepage of Sorainen, the exclusive partner of WTS Global in Lithuania!

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Which infringements violate the requirements of lawful employment conditions?

For the purposes of the Public Finances Act, the requirements of lawful employment conditions are not complied with if the employer was fined

a) by the Hungarian tax authority or the employment supervisory authority for failing to meet the data reporting obligation regarding the establishment of an employment relationship as defined in the Act on Rules of Taxation or the Act on Simplified Employment,

b) by the employment supervisory authority

• for infringing the provisions regarding age for establishing an employment relationship and the prohibition of child labour,
• for infringing the provisions on salaries and wages pursuant to the Act on Employment,
• for violating the rules on recording temporary employment activities, or

c) by the authority supervising the implementation of the equal treatment requirement under the Act on Equal Treatment and the Promotion of Equal Opportunities for violating the requirement of equal treatment

in a final, enforceable and published public administration decision (upon the first legal infringement too) – included in a final decision of the court in the case of a public administration action – within two years of claiming the budgetary subsidy.

Furthermore, the requirement of lawful employment conditions is not met if the employer was fined as a result of employing citizens from third countries without a work permit or a combined permit issued during a permit procedure conducted to facilitate gainful employment pursuant to the Act on the Admission and Right of Residence of Third-Country Nationals in Hungary, in a final, enforceable and published public administration decision (upon the first legal infringement too) – included in a final decision of the court in the case of a public administration action – within two years of claiming the budgetary subsidy.

What documents can verify compliance with the requirements of lawful employment conditions?

 As a rule, the following documents facilitate confirmation that lawful employment conditions have been fulfilled:

A document containing data published from the registers of

• the Hungarian tax authority,
• the employment supervisory authority,
• the authority supervising the implementation of the equal treatment requirement.

Request for deletion of data published based on the official register kept by the employment supervisory authority

For decisions falling within the general competence of the employment supervisory authority, with the exception of labour fines levied because of employing citizens from third countries without a work permit, the Government Decree allows employers to request the deletion of its data published in connection with an infringement decision once per calendar year, before the expiry of the two-year publication deadline, provided that

• it submits a deletion request to the employment supervisory authority,
• it pays the amount specified in the Government Decree, which is three times the amount of the fine pertaining to the deletion request, but at least three times the number of employees affected by the infringement multiplied by the minimum wage;
• the content of the published decision has been enforced voluntarily and completely, and the labour fine paid.

If you have further questions as an employer on whether the lawful employment conditions requirements are fulfilled at your company, or if you need a legal expert to delete your data published with regard to the infringement decision, the lawyers working with WTS Klient Hungary are happy to help the clients of our group.

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