Legislative changes in the field of labour relationships

The end of the year was marked by numerous legislative changes in the field of labour relationships. Legislative enactments impacting the field of labour relationships recently entered into force include: New rules on childcare leave and the related monthly allowance On December 7^th, 2022, the Government Emergency Ordinance no. 164/2022 on amending and supplementing Government Emergency Ordinance no. 111/2010 on child care leave and the related monthly allowance ("GEO no. 164/2022") entered into force. Most of the provisions of this legislative enactment will become applicable upon the entry into force of the amendments to the Methodological Norms for the application of Government Emergency Ordinance no. 111/2010 ("GEO no. 111/2010"), which the Government will have to update within 60 calendar days from the date of entry into force of GEO no. 164/2022. The amendments provided for in point 13 of GEO no. 164/2022 will enter into force within 30 days from the updating date of the Methodological Norms for the application of GEO no. 111/2010. The main changes introduced by GEO no. 164/2022 relate to the following aspects: the periods taken into account in determining the 12-month reference period during which the concerned person must have earned the income provided for by GEO no. 111/2010, the income taken into account in determining the allowance provided for by GEO no. 111/2010, the recalculation of the amount of the allowance provided for by GEO no. 111/2010, the modification of the calculation method of the allowance provided for by GEO no. 111/2010 in various situations, the termination of the entitlement to the allowance provided for by GEO no. 111/2010, the increase of the amount of the taxable income which may be earned by individuals on child care leave without having the allowance provided for by GEO no. 111/2010 suspended, the application for and the approval of the child care leave. The new template of the individual employment agreement Following the entry into force of Law no. 283/2022 on amending and supplementing Law no. 53/2003 on the Labour Code and Government Emergency Ordinance no. 57/2019 on the Administrative Code ("Law no. 283/2022"), the Minister of Labour and Social Solidarity approved the new individual employment agreement template (the "Template") by means of Order no. 2171/2022 on approving the individual employment agreement template (the ”Order”). The Order entered into force on December 9th, 2022, the date on which the old individual employment agreement template approved by Order No. 64/2003 was repealed. According to the provisions of the Order, the individual employment agreement must contain the elements set out in the Template, but it may also contain other specific clauses, according to the law. The main new elements introduced by the Template concern the following clauses of the individual employment agreement: probationary period, duration of working time, overtime, the introduction of a new clause on job-specific risks, electronic signature procedures, vocational training, rights and obligations of the parties. The new gross minimum wage On December 9^th, 2022, the Government Decision no. 1447/2022 on establishing the minimum gross basic wage guaranteed in payment came into force. According to this piece of legislation, as of January 1^st, 2023, the minimum gross basic wage guaranteed in payment (without bonuses and other allowances) will be RON 3,000/month for a normal working schedule averaging 165.333 hours/month, representing RON 18.145/hour.