Amendment to the Labour Code effective as of March 1st 2021

Addition of the definition of an employee permanently caring for a child

An employee permanently caring for a child is considered to be an employee caring for their child, including alternating personal care of both parents, as well as an employee to whom the child has been entrusted to personal care by a court. The status under the previous sentence arises for an employee on the day on which he notified the employer of this fact, and ceases on the day on which he ceases to have permanent custody of the child. He is also obliged to notify the employer of this fact without delay.
 

New reason for dismissal by the employer

From 1.1.2022, in addition to the previous reasons for termination of employment by the employer, it will be possible to terminate employment if the employee has reached the age of 65 and has also reached the age for entitlement to a pension. Both conditions must be met.
 

Greater flexibility in the allocation of employees between related parties

From 1.3.2021, the assignment of employees between related parties (controlling and controlled entity) will not be subject to the condition of objective operational reasons on the part of the original employer, or the 3-month duration of employment with the employee, provided that such a temporary assignment is agreed free of charge. However, this is without prejudice to the reimbursement of costs documentably incurred for working conditions, including pay conditions and for the conditions of employment of the employee.
 

Changes to meal vouchers

A significant change is the introduction of the institute of a financial contribution for meals. From 1.3.2021, employees have the right to choose between meal vouchers and a financial contribution for meals, i.e. compared to the three existing options, an alternative has been added, namely a form of financial contribution that differs from the three existing ways of implementing a “catering provision” (own catering facility, catering facility of another employer, and meal vouchers). Employers will be obliged to contribute a minimum amount of 55% of the minimum value of the meal voucher. The contribution will thus be the net income of the employee, i.e. exempt from income tax, social and health insurance.

From 1.3.2021, an employee of an employer who does not have the opportunity to obtain meals at their own or another catering facility has the right to choose between meal vouchers and a financial contribution for meals once every 12 months. The employee is bound by this selection for 12 months from the day on which the selection is made.

The employer is not obliged until the expiry of the contract on securing meal vouchers with a legal entity or a natural person authorized to provide catering services, by 31 December 2021 to proceed according to the paragraph above if they concluded such a contract before 1 March 2021 or from 1 March 2021 to 31 December 2021.

From 1.3.2021, the amount of commission paid by the employer when purchasing meal vouchers is reduced by law.

From 1.3.2023, meal vouchers will only be in electronic form.
 

Possibility of employing persons older than 15 years with unfinished compulsory school attendance

With the permission of the Labour Inspectorate, employers will be able to employ persons over the age of 15 who have not yet completed compulsory schooling to perform light work.
 

Clarification of the application of flexible working hours during a business trip

Flexible working hours do not apply during an employee's business trip when the employer determines a fixed start and end of the work shift. The new provision introduces an exception to this rule, which applies where the employee agrees otherwise with the employer, or if the business trip is exclusively during basic working hours. An exception can also be applied in other cases if the employer agrees with the employees' representatives.
 

Dispute over the operation of a trade union with the employer

An innovation is that the employer is obliged to allow trade unions to operate in the workplace only if there are union members among the employees. In this context, the amendment specifies the method of resolving disputes as to whether employees are also members of a trade union that has informed the employer in writing about its activities.
 

Indirect amendment to the Act on Collective Bargaining

The amendment deleted the provisions of Act No. 2/1991 Coll. on Collective Bargaining, as amended, concerning a representative higher-level collective agreement and extending its binding force to other employers and their employees in the sector or part of the sector for which it is concluded.

In practice, this means that the possibility of extending the binding nature of representative higher-level collective agreements to other employers has been abolished.