Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2016, published 106th ILC session (2017)

Termination of Employment Convention, 1982 (No. 158) - Slovakia (Ratification: 2010)

Article 2(4) and (6) of the Convention. Exclusions. Civil servants. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in response to its comments regarding the provisions of the Act on the Civil Service affording protection to civil servants that is at least equivalent to the protection afforded under the Convention. The Government refers to sections 46–54 and 55–58 of Act No. 400/2009 governing the termination of civil servants, including their entitlement to compensation in case of unlawful termination. According to Act 400/2009, the employment contract can be terminated only where: an agreement exists; notice has been given (only when the employee is unable to perform his or her duties due to health reasons); the position has been cancelled and no alternative position is available or the employee does not agree to transfer to another position; if the employee does not fulfil his or her work obligations; if the employee has repeatedly violated discipline despite the employer’s warnings. Pursuant to section 51 of Act No. 400/2009, the contract may also be terminated with immediate effect if the employee has seriously violated discipline or has been convicted of a crime. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the manner in which these provisions are applied in practice.

Articles 7, 9(3), 10 and 11. Procedures prior to or at the time of termination. Serious Misconduct. Application of the Convention in practice. The Government indicates that, pursuant to section 77 of the Labour Code, employees may challenge the validity of the termination of the employment relationship by filing a complaint with the court within a period of two months from the claimed date of the termination of the employment relationship. The Government indicates that, in order to better protect employees, an amendment to the Labour Code increased the amount of wage compensation awardable from 12 to 36 months. In regard to cases of serious misconduct, the Committee notes the Government’s reference to Supreme Court decisions issued in 2009 and 2011 in which the Supreme Court held that the termination for serious misconduct was invalid. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the manner in which the Convention is applied in practice, including copies of court rulings concerning questions of principle relating to the application of the Convention or summaries of those court rulings, as well as available statistics on the activities of the bodies of appeal (such as the number of appeals against unjustified terminations, the outcome of such appeals, the nature of the remedy awarded and the average time taken for an appeal to be decided upon) and on the number of terminations, for economic or similar reasons, in the country.

Article 12. Severance allowance. In response to the Committee’s previous comments, the Government indicates that workers whose contracts are terminated due to entire or partial dissolution of the employer, due to the employer’s relocation or because the employee is made redundant, are mandatorily entitled to severance pay under section 76(1) and (4) of the Labour Code. The Committee further notes that section 76(8) of the Labour Code provides that an employer may pay an employee a severance allowance in cases other than those laid down in section 76(1) and (4). The Government indicates that all workers, regardless of the reasons for termination, are entitled to social security benefits.

Articles 13 and 14. Consultation of workers’ representatives and notification of the competent authorities. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government on the support services provided by the offices of the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and the Family in relation to collective redundancies, including undertaking active communication with the employer to mitigate the adverse effects of the redundancies and assisting the workers concerned to find suitable alternative employment. The Government indicates that the Ministry is currently developing a new statistics system which will monitor labour-related statistics centrally. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the manner in which Article 13(a) is applied, particularly what information the employer must provide to workers’ representatives and how far in advance of the contemplated terminations such information must be provided. Please also indicate whether and to what extent workers’ representatives are given an opportunity for consultations on measures to be taken to avert or to minimize the impact of the terminations.