flash news - Labour and employment law

On Friday, 27 June, the Ministry of Labour announced details of a pilot programme for reduced working hours.

The former head of the registrar's office was dismissed because of the elimination of the position and allegations of, among others, unauthorized network access and leaving the workplace without permission. After the termination, the mayor performed the duties and the position was not filled again.

Analyses commissioned by the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy on opportunities for reducing working hours have been completed, their conclusions showing improvements in employee health at places where working time has been reduced, consequently fewer absences.

The Director of the Labour Law Department informs us that the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy is analysing reducing working time. The ministry has also requested institutes to research how long an employee is able to work effectively in a day. In addition, commercial analyses are being undertaken as to the cost of reducing working time.

The Supreme Court has held that an employee's sickness cannot be considered force majeure. Such a decision was made in a case in which the plaintiff sought an award of salary and a number of other work-related benefits. The regional court dismissed the claim, indicating that the defendant had successfully raised the statute of limitations. The plaintiff appealed against the decision, but the appellate court dismissed the appeal after agreeing with the assessment of the court of first instance. In her appeal, the plaintiff alleged a violation of the statute of limitations. She argued that the statute of limitations period had been suspended while she was on sick leave for several months.

The Ministry of Family, Labour and Social Policy is working on a draft regulation on maximum temperatures in the workplace. According to the original proposal, which we wrote about here, the maximum temperature is to depend primarily on the metabolic rate of employees carrying out a particular type of work.