In the first half of 2023, labour law legislation has undergone numerous amendments, some of which were triggered by the far-reaching amendment of the Labour Code in October 2022. 

Thus, the Labour Code has been amended four times since the beginning of the year until now. These are:

1. Art. 34 para. 6^1, which concerns the situation where the employer, legal entity, is in insolvency, bankruptcy or liquidation proceedings, the administrator or judicial liquidator is obligated to issue to the employees within 60 days, a document certifying the activity carried out by them, in accordance with the provisions of para. (5), to terminate and transmit the termination of individual employment contracts to the general register of employees’’ - the 60-day period was introduced by Law no. 26/2023.
2. The number of days off provided for in the Labour Code has increased, with 6 and 7 January being statutory days off as of 2023, according to Law no. 52/2023.
3. In October 2022 a new kind of leave was introduced, i.e. carer’s leave. Until 25.05.2023 there was a dispute between the authorities (Ministry of Work and the Inspectorate of Work) as to whether employers had to pay for these days off. OUG no. 42/2023 established that the employer must pay every day of the carer's leave.
4. Law no. 140/2023 regulated a new case of suspension of the individual employment contract at the employee's initiative, i.e. when the employee carries out a specific activity on a contractual basis as a maternity assistant, personal assistant to the severely disabled or professional personal assistant. 

Law no. 367/2022 on social dialogue has also been amended. Among the amendments, we mention the following: 

• the employer has 15 calendar days, instead of 5 days, from the date of the start of the negotiation procedures to convene and organise the first negotiation meeting, 
• for the duration of participation in the strike, the MTA or employment relationship will be suspended at the initiative of the employee, and not by right;
• clauses specific to each category of SME and which will have to be included in all collective agreements concluded at collective bargaining sector or national level.

It’s been half of year and the amendments regarding labour legislation have been numerous and dynamic. We shall see what new regulations will be adopted and how the labour market will be affected by them.

Author: Attorney at law, Ana Maria Nistor, Law Office Grecu & Partners.

- This is native content with Labour Law info by Grecu Partners.