Flexinovela brings major changes in the area of termination - when the notice period starts, how its length changes and what new conditions apply to terminations for medical or disciplinary reasons. The amendment to the Labour Code also modifies the rules on severance pay and compensation, which significantly affects both employees and employers.
The fundamental change is that notice period shall commence on the date on which the notice is served on the other party and shall end on the numerically identical date.
Example
The notice is delivered to the other party on 15 June 2025 and the notice period is 2 months. The employment relationship ends on 15 August 2025.
In the event that there is no day numerically coinciding with the end of the notice period, the employment relationship shall end on the last day of the month in which the notice period should have ended.
Example
The notice is delivered to the other party on 30 December 2025. The notice period is 2 months. However, as there is no day in February that coincides numerically with the day on which the notice is served on the other party (30th day of the month), the employment relationship ends on the last day of the month - in this case 28 February 2026.
The course and length of the notice period may be changed by written agreement.
With regard to termination by the employer on the grounds of notice set out in section 52(f) to (h), the notice period shall be reduced to 1 month. These are "disciplinary" grounds for termination where the employee does not meet the requirements or prerequisites for the job (e.g. driving licence) or there is a breach of work discipline. In such a case, there is no interest on either side in the employment relationship being "prolonged" by the notice period, as the relationship between the employee and the employer is "disrupted".
The changes will also affect the notice period for "medical" reasons. There, the grounds for termination of employment are merged into Section 52(d), where the employee, on the basis of a medical opinion issued by an occupational health services provider or a decision of a competent administrative authority, becomes permanently unfit to continue his or her current work due to his or her health condition.
Section 52(e) therefore singles out as a termination ground the attainment of the maximum permissible exposure at the workplace.
There is also no severance pay for an employee who is dismissed by the employer under Section 52(d) or whose employment ends by agreement for the same reasons. If the reason for losing the medical capacity to perform the work is an occupational accident or occupational disease or the risk of such a disease, such an employee shall be entitled to one-off compensation on termination of employment 12 times the average monthly earnings. This compensation will not be subject to health and social security contributions.
The employer is obliged to pay the lump sum compensation at the earliest possible date after the termination of the employment relationship. This benefit will be covered by the employer's statutory insurance, which means that in practice either the insurance company will pay it directly to the employee whose employment ends or, if the employer pays the compensation, the insurance company will reimburse the employer.
Employees who work under agreements outside the employment relationship are not entitled to a lump-sum compensation upon termination of employment.
If the reason for termination is the attainment of the maximum permissible workplace exposure under Section 52(e), the employee shall be entitled to severance pay of at least 12 times the average monthly earnings.
The changes introduced by Flexinovela bring more flexibility, but also new obligations for employers and employees. It is therefore important to familiarise yourself thoroughly with the new rules and apply them correctly in practice.
