Employment law

Employment law is the main branch of law governing the legal relations between employees on the one hand and employers on the other. The field is very broad, affecting all persons engaged in employment activities. It is important to note that the employment relationship is one of authority and subordination. The remunerative nature of the employment relationship should be emphasised. Employees are hired in view of their personal qualities and for this reason the employment relationship is not transferable and inheritable and so are all rights and obligations in its content, including the right of getting paid (monetary right of receivable).

The relevant normative act is the Labour Code, which mainly, but not exclusively, regulates labour rights and obligations. This includes the duration of the employment relationship, holidays, rules concerning labour discipline, the imposition of disciplinary penalties, respectively their lawful imposition and their confirmation. Also, important to note is the provision on accidents at work, which should compensate employees in the event of a negative event affecting their life and health. In the case of such situations involving, but not limited to, hazardous occupations, the employer should have taken out insurance for its employees. It is imperative that the employer has ensured safe and healthy working conditions by taking the necessary measures and carrying out the necessary instruction and training in this respect.

Pay for work should be considered in relation to the type of job being undertaken, thus, several factors are relevant and more specifically what type is involved – night or overtime, working on public holidays, whether a pay rise is due attributable to industrial necessity, etc.

Common violations of labour law

These are those labour relations related to:

• The employer failed to pay the worker the benefits due to him under the Labour Code;
• The employer has amended the labour contract agreement with clauses favourable to the employer in breach of the law on employment without the employee’s consent.
• Termination of employment by dismissal not in accordance with the law;
• The worker is reinstated, but the employer creates obstacles to reinstatement;
• The employer did not complete the employment record within the time limits provided for in the Labour Law;

Compensation for the performance or termination of a labour contract in accordance with job law

Why it happens:

• Because the employer has not paid wages within the time limit specified in the employment contract or
• For another reason, which occurred subsequently.

In these cases, the worker is given the opportunity to receive compensation in the form of an indemnity.

Another case where employment law allows the employee to claim compensation is when the employer terminates the employment contract without notice.

Moreover, the worker is entitled to compensation because there has been a breach of employment law by the employer.

Compensation in the event of worker illness

Such compensation is provided provided that there is a valid employment contract between the employee and the employer. However, there are health reasons which prevent the worker from working in the job he has held. In this case, labour law provides for compensation for the worker in the following cases:

• The worker must have a minimum of five years’ service with the employer’s establishment.
• The worker not to have benefited from such compensation in the last 5 years.

It should be known that both conditions must be present in order to obtain the compensation provided for in the Labour Law.

Compensation owed to the worker when entitled to a pension

Upon reaching a certain age and length of service, the labour contract agreement with the worker is terminated because he becomes entitled to a pension. In this case, labour law provides for the employer’s obligation to pay compensation to the worker.

Furthermore, Labour law stipulates that the minimum severance pay is the gross salary for a period of two months. There are cases where the worker has worked for one employer for the past ten years and has become eligible for retirement. The employer then owes the worker compensation up to the worker’s gross salary for a minimum period of six months.

Paid annual leave on retirement eligibility

When the employment relationship between you and your Employer is terminated and you have not taken your paid annual leave you are entitled to compensation and your Employer is obliged to pay you this type of compensation, no matter what the type of reason for termination of your employment contract.

Compensation in favour of the employee in case of unlawful work dismissal, according to the labour law

Such compensation is provided where the court has found the job dismissal of the worker to be unlawful. In this case, labour law obliges the employer to pay compensation to the worker for the time he or she was unemployed.

The amount of such compensation provided for in labour law may not exceed six months’ wages.

Employer’s obligations in relation to the documents necessary for the worker to exercise his rights under the Labour Code

The employer is obliged to issue the worker with the necessary documents because they serve him to realize the rights that the labour law gives him.

There is a penalty for the employer if he/she does not issue these documents. In this case, compensation is provided because there is a delay in the issuance of the requested documents related to the employment relationship or when the issued document contains false data, which is an offence. Moreover, this document is either the worker’s employment record, which is retained by the employer after termination of employment, or another document relevant to the worker.

The employer can offer the employee compensation in exchange for his or her agreement to terminate the employment contract

Labour law allows this possibility because in this case the will of the employee is to accept the offer to terminate his/her labour contract agreement. In this case, the wishes of the two parties coincide and the employer undertakes to pay fair compensation in return for the employee’s consent.

The offer shall be made by the employer in writing because it is a condition for the offer to be deemed to have been made. If the employer does not receive a response in writing regarding the offer within 7 days, it should be considered to have been rejected.

Employment law is full of complexities which can be overbearing and hard to understand and resolve, thus, TechLex Law Firm is here to help with any issues that might arise. We advise both employers and employees in relation to employment law and provide the following:

• Full legal assistance to employers regarding employment law;
• Job consulting
• Preparation of employment contracts, confidential agreements and declarations, internal work rules, instructions and any papers and documents relevant to the field;
• Negotiations between employees and employers;
• Representation before the competent courts and all instances of the courts concerning issues of redundancy, disciplinary action, dismissal and other legal disputes;
• Legal advice on disciplinary sanctions;
• Preparation of papers and documents for any employment disputes;
• In and out of court resolution of disputes concerning work accidents;
• Advice on civil contracts;
• Advising on the conclusion and termination of employment relationships;