The previous legislation provided for remote working only for the duration of the epidemic emergency. On 1 December this year the Parliament passed an amendment to the Labour Code that introduces remote working as a permanent solution, setting out the rules for its performance.

The Act defines remote work as the performance of duties in whole or in part at a place agreed with the employer, including the place of residence, in particular by means of direct communication at a distance. The Act provides for full-time, hybrid remote working and occasional remote working – at the employee’s request.

The provisions impose a number of obligations on the employer in relation to the remote employment of an employee – the employer will be obliged, inter alia, to provide the employee with work materials and tools, to cover the costs of electricity, telecommunication services and other costs directly related to the performance of remote work, in particular to determine the amount of the cash equivalent for the use of, for example, the employee’s private laptop. In addition, an employer who intends to direct an employee to work remotely will be obliged to obtain a written statement from the employee that he or she has the premises and technical conditions to perform work in this form. The Labour Code provides for the possibility for the employer to inspect the place where the remote work is performed under the rules established in the workplace regulations.

The possibility of directing an employee to work remotely may also occur at the employee’s request. However, the employer will not be able to refuse remote work to, inter alia, a pregnant employee, an employee raising a child up to the age of 4, an employee caring for another member of the immediate family or another person in the common household with a disability certificate. In such a case, referral for remote work will only be refused if the nature of the work does not allow it.

The Act also introduces the possibility of occasionally directing an employee to remote work – at the employee’s request, for special and incidental reasons related, for example, to the need to care for an immediate family member. The dimension of occasional remote work during a calendar year will not be allowed to exceed 24 days. In such a case, the employer will also not be obliged to cover the costs of electricity and pay the cash equivalent.

The rules for remote work and the referral of employees to such work should be clearly defined in an agreement between the employer and the company trade union organisation. Pursuant to Article 67²⁰ § 4 of the amended Labour Code, if there are no company trade union organisations at a given employer, the employer shall determine the rules for performing remote work in the regulations after consultation with employee representatives selected in accordance with the procedure adopted by the employer.