31.05.2021 10:49
The Act No. 435/2004 Coll., on Employment, has been repeatedly amended in particular in the second half of the year. Several of these amendments affect employment of foreigners and cross-border provision of services. For instance, the new Section 91 is worth noting, which requires, in the case of an application for a work permit, the production of an employment contract or an agreement for work, or possibly an agreement to agree, where, apart from the general requirements under labor law, the terms of such a contract or agreement must specify the duration of the employment, the amount of the salary, wage or remuneration under the agreement, the workload and the length of paid holiday.
The purpose of the said amendments was to address the phenomenon of agency employment.
Newly, the provisions of Section 5 (g) of the Employment Act define the concept of so-called covert mediation of employment when a natural or legal leases out workforce to another legal or natural person, without observing the conditions for mediation of employment under the Employment Act (for example, this person does not have authorization to mediate employment, etc.). Like unauthorized work, covert employment mediation is associated with possible administrative sanctions. Accordingly, the Employment Act in its provisions of Section 139 (1) (i) in conjunction with paragraph (3) (e) defines the elements of such administrative infringement for natural persons. A fine of up to CZK 5,000,000 may be imposed for the offense. The same offence in relation to legal entities and natural persons is defined by the provisions of Section 140 of the Employment Act. Here the maximum amount of the fine is up to CZK 10,000,000, with a minimum penalty of CZK 50,000.
In addition, conditions for obtaining the authorization to mediate work have been tightened, for example as regards the relationship between the authorized representative and the employment agency. There is a new obligation to put down a mandatory deposit in the amount of CZK 500,000 in connection with the application for an authorization to mediate employment.
Last but not least, the amendment of the provisions of Section 4 of the Employment Act must not go unnoticed as it has introduced a more comprehensive prohibition of discrimination in the exercise of the right to employment. Thus, the law no longer relies entirely on the legal provisions contained in the Anti-Discrimination Act.
Changes also affect employment of people with disabilities or incapacity to work in jobseekers.
Autor článku: Jakub Morávek