New Labour Code comes into force

Romania”s new Labour Code came into force on Tuesday after being published in the Official Gazette one week after adoption by the Government. The normative act was enacted last week exactly as agreed with union and employers” organisations after months of negotiations and disputes over a range of legal provisions. The new Labour Code contains a series of modifications related to working hours and the penalties given to companies that use black market employment. As to overtime, the law leaves the right of negotiation to the beneficiaries with no Government intervention. Employers that employ minors or have black market employees could face imprisonment. And unions must now be notified in case of collective layoffs, instead of being consulted on such matters as before. The new law allows for an extension to the working hours beyond the 48-hour week (including over time), however the hourly average per calendar month must not exceed 48 hours/week. ZF