
On 19 October 2022, in the Official Gazette of Romania no. 1013 was published Law no. 283/2022 for the modification and completion of Law no. 53/2006 – Labour Code.
A first intervention of the legislator was materialized in the completion of Article 2 of Law 53/2006, which regulates the scope of application of the provisions contained in the Labour Code, by adding a new letter, namely letter h), according to which the provisions provided in the Labour Code shall apply to employees who work legally for an employer based in Romania. As a result, under the condition of the legality of the work performed, the provisions of Law 53/2006 shall also govern, under the condition of the legality of the work performed, the employment relationships existing between foreign citizens who perform work outside the territory of the country for an employer established in Romania.
Further, the legislator intended to amend paragraph 7 of Article 5, giving a new definition to victimisation, which is currently characterised as any adverse treatment in response to a complaint or referral to the competent bodies, or to legal proceedings concerning a violation of legal rights or of the principle of equal treatment and non-discrimination, and to guarantee this principle, two new paragraphs have been introduced, namely paragraphs 4 and 5, through which the legislator intended to expressly regulate the protection of employees, their representatives or trade union members benefit if they submit a complaint to the employer or initiate proceedings with the aim of ensuring respect for the rights they enjoy under Law 53/2006, whereby, in the event that an employee considers himself to be the victim of adverse treatment by the employer, he may apply to the court requesting the restoration of the previous situation or the annulment of the situation created as a result of the adverse treatment and, subject to proof thereof, compensation for the damage thus caused.
The next change introduced by Law 283/2022 concerns the amendment of Article 17. As a result of the changes made, point b) specifies that if the employee does not have a fixed place of work, he/she has the possibility to work in different places of work and whether or not the travel between the different places of work is paid for by the employer, and according to letter k), the individual employment contract must provide for the basic salary, other elements of the salary income, separately recorded, the periodicity of payment of the salary and the method of payment by which it is to be paid. Last but not least, according to point l), the individual employment contract must include the normal working hours, expressed in hours/day and/or hours/week, the conditions for the performance and compensation or payment of overtime, as well as, if applicable, the arrangements for organising work in shifts, and according to point n), the duration and conditions of the probationary period, if any.
Further, in paragraph 3 of Article 17, two new points p) and q) have been introduced, which regulate the right and conditions regarding the vocational training offered by the employer and also the employer’s responsibility for private medical insurance, and, according to paragraph 4, the elements of the information provided for in paragraph 3 must also be included in the content of the individual employment contract, except for the mentions provided for in points m), o) and p).
Another important addition is the employee’s right to request a transfer to a vacant post which offers more favourable working conditions if he has completed his probationary period and has at least 6 months’ service with the same employer, an addition which is included in point m1) of paragraph 1 of Article 39. If the employee requests the employer to take advantage of the provisions of Article 39(1)(m), the employee shall be entitled to the benefits of Article 39(1)(a). (1)(m1), the employer is obliged to provide the employee with a written reasoned reply within 30 days of receipt of the employee’s request.
In conclusion, we mention the introduction of carer’s leave, the employee’s right to be absent from work in unforeseen circumstances and, last but not least, paternal leave. As defined in Article 1521 of the Labour Code, carer’s leave is a right of the employee and an obligation of the employer to grant the employee carer’s leave for the purpose of providing personal care or support to a relative or a person with whom he/she lives in the same household and who needs care or support due to a serious medical condition. A relative for the purposes of Article 1521 means the employee’s son, daughter, mother, father or spouse. The period for which carer’s leave may be granted is 5 working days in a calendar year and is granted at the written request of the employee, provided that special laws or the applicable collective labour agreement may provide for a longer period than 5 days. Also, during the period when the employees benefit from the carer’s leave, they are insured, by derogation from the provisions of Article 224 para. (4) of Law 95/2006, in the social health insurance system, without payment of contributions.
As regards the employee’s right to be absent from work in unforeseen circumstances, this right may be exercised by the employee if the absence is due to a family emergency caused by illness or accident and which makes the immediate presence of the employee indispensable, with the proviso that the employee must inform the employer in advance and must also make up the period of absence until the normal working hours have been covered in full, in accordance with the employee’s schedule, by agreeing with the employer the arrangements for making up this period. As regards the period for which the employee may be absent from work in unforeseen circumstances, this may not exceed 10 working days in a calendar year.
Paternal leave is defined as leave granted to the father of a newborn child in accordance with the conditions imposed by the Paternal Leave Law no. 210/1999. Paternal leave is granted at the written request of the employee, and its granting is not conditioned by the period of activity performed by the employee or by his seniority in employment.
With regard to the internal regulations, according to the amendments made by Law 283/2022, they must include mandatory rules on notice, as well as information on the general training policy for employees, if it exists. Moreover, the obligation of the employer to inform each employee of the content of the internal regulation on the first day of work, and the obligation of the employer to provide proof of compliance with this provision was introduced. Employees may be informed of the provisions of the internal rules on paper or in electronic format, provided that, in the latter case, the document is accessible to the employee and can be stored and printed by the latter.
As a result of these amendments, employers are obliged to proceed with the adaptation of employment contracts currently being executed, and with regard to individual employment contracts that they are going to conclude with future employees, they must contain from the moment of their conclusion all the amendments made to the Labour Code by Law 283/2022, otherwise employers risk being fined.