Europe Faces Massive Shift in Labor Regulations

Written by Marina Cobas

Lockdown and new restrictions in Europe have led governments to re-regulate working from home. These laws reflect how teleworking should be from now on. These measures, in addition to being carried out during periods of restrictions, will also be used by companies as a reference for a future almost total implementation of telework.  

For this reason, it can be very beneficial for companies to have their workforce distributed in different workspaces around the world, depending on the preferences of their workers, since these spaces meet the requirements imposed by the new laws.  

Here is a brief description of the countries that have already regulated teleworking and which are the most beneficial countries to establish workspaces. 

BELGIUM

Belgium’s Collective Labor Agreement leaves employers quite a lot of freedom to determine how they will deal with the cost of working from home, for example a flat allowance or costs paid on evidence of individual expenditure. 

The main focus of the CLA is to require an agreement to be put in place for each teleworker regarding: 

• The provision by the employer of the equipment and technical support necessary for teleworking, e.g. a laptop computer; 
• If the teleworker uses his own equipment, the reimbursement or payment by the employer of the installation costs of the relevant IT programs and the additional costs of their use, operation, maintenance and depreciation; 
• The additional connection costs for the employee. 

The CLA also confirms that in return for the obligation to meet the employee’s costs of working at home, the employer has the right to exercise a degree of control – in an appropriate and proportionate manner – over the results and/or the performance of the work he does there. That control should be exercised in accordance with the provisions of the GDPR (for example where the control amounts to monitoring and/or generates personal data) and the employees should be informed of the manner in which that control will be exercised. 

The employer should provide teleworkers with information and guidelines on preventive measures for adapting the workstation, the proper use of screens, working hours/rest breaks and the available technical and IT support. 

Lastly, the employer should take appropriate measures to maintain the psychological and social connection between teleworkers and their colleagues as well as the company, and so prevent any damaging sense of isolation. One suggestion is to plan “well-organized and limited” back-to-the-office moments that respect relevant hygiene and social distancing regulations. 

These arrangements may take the form of a collective agreement, a chapter in the employee handbook, a policy or even an individual agreement.  

GERMANY

Expenses Coverage.

In Germany, there wasn’t a proper right to work from home before pandemic, but now things are different. For work with a company, the employer is obliged to provide the necessary activity-specific work equipment for the workplace at home and to bear the costs incurred. The employee may be entitled to compensation and reimbursement of expenses by the employer. 

Safety.

It is important to note that all working time regulations apply, such as the maximum daily working time, regulations regarding breaks and the minimum rest period between two working days when it comes to WFH-arrangement. In principle the employer has to document the working time if the employee exceeds the regular daily working time.  

Work equipment.

If the employer provides the employee with work equipment (e.g. cell phone, laptop, external data carriers), the employer bears all costs incurred for purchase, maintenance and care. If, on the other hand, the employee is to use his own work equipment, he may be entitled to claims for reimbursement of expenses against the employer. However, this only applies if the parties have not agreed otherwise, the acquisition of the work equipment was in the overriding interest of the employer and the employee could reasonably assume that the expense was necessary under the circumstances. A purchase is not in the overriding interest of the employer if it is also used privately by the employee, or if the employee works from home at his or her own request, even though a fully functioning workplace is available to him or her in the company, during the employees regular working time.  

Working space.

Expenses to be reimbursed include (in principle) electricity, heating and maintenance costs, as well as the rent for the space within the private dwelling of the employee that is used as office space. Since a considerable sum can accumulate and the administrative burdens of reimbursement are significant it has become established in practice to agree on a monthly lump sum (“home office allowance”) to cover these expenses. 

Travel expenses.

If the private home is the agreed place of work then this also affects travel costs: As soon as the employee leaves his home, he is formally on a business trip and can claim reimbursement of travel costs from the employer. This not only applies for visits to business partners, but also for any travel to the employer’s premises. If, however, the work is divided between the office and the home of the employee, the employee must pay the travel costs to the business premises himself.  

No obligation to have a home office.

Companies merely have to make it possible, and it is up to employees to decide if they work from home or not. But “the Federal Chancellor and the heads of government of the federal states ask employees to take advantage of the offer,” stated the new resolution. 

PORTUGAL

Portugal has a special emphasis on the prevention of occupational hazards, establishing a mandatory control of job conditions, even when operating remotely. In other words, a company technician must visit the worker’s home to check that he meets all safety regulations. 

NETHERLANDS 

Safety.

The company can visit the place where the person is going to telework to analyze the occupational risks that may exist, which are their responsibility. They focus their legislation on health and welfare through the Arbowet Decree. The countries that before the confinement had the highest telework rates, such as the Netherlands (30%) or Germany (17.6%) do not have, curiously, an exclusive regulation. There is, however, a reference to telework in laws on working conditions, as is the case of the Arbowet, or the ArbStätt respectively.  

Expenses coverage.

In Netherlands, companies must pay for an ergonomic workplace (in terms of furniture, lighting, and in some cases rent and utilities), as well as the technological tools necessary for the development of the work. 

SWEDEN

Sweden uses dialogue with social partners for specific actions and the Swedish Work Environment Agency to regulate workers’ rights. Companies must pay for an ergonomic workplace (in terms of furniture, lighting, and in some cases rent and utilities), as well as the technological tools necessary for the development of the work. 

FINLAND

Finland uses conventions that include an annex with a form for the telework agreement. Although the Framework Agreement on telework is taken as a basis, the workers’ unions focus their negotiations on reconciliation, health and welfare. 

SWITZERLAND

The Federal Supreme Court stated that it is the obligation of the company to take care of the employee’s rental costs at home.  

SPAIN

Expenses coverage: In Spain, the RDL does not provide an exhaustive list of means, but it does establish in a generic way that the employer must assume the costs related to the equipment, tools and means linked to the activity; and that these must be within the framework of the agreement. 

Ultimately, whether or not an exclusive law is chosen, it is common for formalization to take place through written and legal agreements that certify the way in which teleworking will affect working conditions. 

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