Review labor agreements for transparency

Review labor agreements for transparency and legitimacy of terms and conditions of employment.
As of Aug. 1, 2022, employers must inform employees – in detail and in writing – of all applicable terms of the employment contract. This information will have to be provided to the employee within one week or, at the latest, within one month of starting the employment. The employer may include these terms and conditions in the employment contract, applicable collective bargaining agreement and/or personnel manual. Employees who are already employed on August 1, 2022, may request the employer to provide this information within one month of this request.

Please note that this new rule also affects the legality of an ancillary employment clause and a study expense reimbursement clause. An ancillary activities clause – which aims to prohibit the employee from performing work for another employer or as a self-employed person during the term of employment contract – will henceforth be deemed null and void, unless the employer has objectively justifiable reasons for wanting this clause to be used.

Such justification may be found, for example, in circumstances such as the protection of the interests of health and safety, confidentiality or conflict of interest. The employer may choose to include such objective reasons in the contract, but is not legally required to do so.

However, the ancillary employment clause itself must be worded in accordance with the law requirements. Something an employer should be aware of. This also applies to the study expense reimbursement clause. This clause should make it clear that the employer can only claim reimbursement of study costs incurred on behalf of the employee if the employee has attended a study or course that is not mandatory for the performance of the job. Please note that incidentally, some mandatory vocational courses are legally exempted from the employee’s legal right to take free training during working hours.

In short, as of August 1, 2022, employment contracts must meet new requirements. It is therefore important to review whether the employment contracts your company uses can still stand the legal test.

We offer this review to our clients through a so-called quick scan, which allows us to quickly and efficiently provide insight into the adjustments that may be needed.

Of course, when we review the employment contracts, we also assess whether other terms and conditions of employment still comply with the law.

Questions?
Would you like to have more information about the letter of intent? Then please contact us. We’re happy to assist you.

July 2022