The Labor Code was changed. Iohannis promulgated the law providing additional rights for employees

The law provides for the right to be granted leave in order to provide care or personal support to a relative or a person living in the same household, but also that civil servants can work remotely.

The normative act amends and completes Law no. 53/2003 and Government Emergency Ordinance no. 57/2019 in order to transpose several European directives into national legislation.

According to the new provisions, the employee has the right to request a transfer to a vacant position that provides him with more favorable working conditions if he has completed his probationary period and has been with the same employer for at least six months. The employer has the obligation to give a reasoned reply, in writing, within 30 days of receiving the request.

The law stipulates that the employer has the obligation to grant, for a period of five working days in a calendar year, at the written request of the employee, carer’s leave in order to provide care or personal support to a relative or a person who lives in the same household and who needs care or support as a result of a serious medical problem.

By special laws or by the applicable collective labor agreement, a longer duration can be established for the carer’s leave. The period of this leave is not included in the duration of annual leave and constitutes seniority in work and in the specialty. By way of derogation from the law, the employees who benefit from the carer’s leave are insured, during this period, in the social health insurance system without paying the contribution, the parliamentarians also established.

At the same time, the period of the carer’s leave constitutes a contribution period for establishing the right to unemployment allowance and allowance for temporary incapacity for work granted in accordance with the legislation in force. Serious medical problems, as well as the conditions for granting carer’s leave, are established by joint order of the Minister of Labor and Social Solidarity and the Minister of Health.

Failure to grant caregiver leave to employees who meet the conditions will be fined from 4,000 lei to 8,000 lei.

The right to be absent from work for a maximum of 10 days, in unforeseen situations

Also, the employee has the right to be absent from the workplace for a maximum of 10 working days in unforeseen situations, determined by a family emergency caused by illness or accident, which make the immediate presence of the employee indispensable, provided that the the employer and with the recovery of the absent period until the full coverage of the normal duration of the employee’s work schedule, the normative act also provides.

The employer and the employee establish by mutual agreement the way to recover the period of absence.

Another newly introduced provision refers to the employer’s obligation to grant paternity leave at the written request of the employee, in compliance with the provisions of Law no. 210/1999. The granting of paternity leave is not conditioned by the period of activity performed or by the length of service of the employee. Violation of this obligation will be sanctioned with a fine from 4,000 lei to 8,000 lei.

According to the law, it is forbidden to fire employees for the exercise of several rights, including the right to be informed about the workplace, the possibility of working in various places, the function, the job description, the duties, the duration of the vacation, the basic salary, duration of work, working conditions, probationary period, as well as the right to pay for work performed, to rest, to equal opportunities, dignity at work, security at work, access to professional training, protection in case of collective dismissal, to join or form a union.

Also, the dismissal of employees cannot be ordered even during paternity leave and carer’s leave or during absence from the workplace in unforeseen situations, determined by a family emergency caused by illness or accident, which make their presence indispensable immediate.

The employer can establish individualized work programs for all employees, including those who benefit from carer’s leave, with their consent or at their request, which may have a limited duration.

The collective labor contracts at the activity sector and unit group level are published on the website of the Ministry of Labor and Social Solidarity.

The employer has the obligation to inform each employee, on paper or in electronic format, of the provisions of the internal regulation, on the first day of work, and to prove the fulfillment of this obligation.

For the employee who has employment relationships established prior to the date of entry into force of this law, additional information regarding the conditions applicable to the employment relationship shall be communicated by the employer, upon request, within a maximum of 30 working days from the date of receipt of the employee’s written request.

Among the new articles of the Administrative Code is one that stipulates that the service relations of civil servants can be carried out telework, as well as work at home. Leaders of public authorities and institutions can establish by administrative act other ways of flexible organization of working time.

The duration of the telework activity cannot exceed five days per month and can be approved for civil servants who have children up to the age of 11, who care for a relative, have a health condition that does not allow them to travel or carry out activities among those established by the head of the public authority or institution as being able to be carried out telework.

During the exercise of telecommuting or work at home, civil servants benefit from all the rights recognized by law, with the exception of the increase for difficult, harmful or dangerous working conditions.

The head of the public authority or institution, the person with legal competences, must inform the civil servant about the right to professional training and development, the duration of the rest leave, the conditions for granting notice, the date of salary payment, the method of performing overtime, their remuneration or, as the case may be, compensation through paid time off, collective agreements concluded with the union, additional contributions to the optional pension or to the occupational pension borne by the public authority or institution. The information is communicated in the form of a document within a maximum of five working days from the date on which he starts exercising the public function.