Bill n°7016 concerning the organisation of working time and relating to the amendment of the Labourg Code was submitted to the Chamber of Deputies on 21 July 2016. The main objectives of the reform are to provide more flexibility for companies, to preserve the health and safety of employees and to revaluate the negotiation in the framework of a collective bargaining agreement (CBA). In this context, the Bill mainly provides for amendments concerning the Organisation of Employment Plan (OEP) and Flexible Hours (FH).
The main innovations introduced by the Bill are as follows:
Organisation Employment Plan (OEP):
OEP provided by CBA: freedom of the parties in determining the principles for the establishment of OEP, as well as the frequency, content and terms of the OEP
OEP established outside a CBA:
- Appreciation of overtime in case of change of planning during the OEP: elimination of the unpredictability and creating new criterion based on the period within which the employee was informed of the change of the OEP.
- The work planning covers at least one month of the reference period and may be realised on a monthly basis (without necessarily covering the whole reference period).
- Establishment of OEP on information and consultation of the staff delegation or, in the absence of the employees concerned, no later than five full days before it becomes effective and possibilities of entering into ITM from the first unfavourable opinion.
- Additional annual leave in case of prolongation of the reference period by more than one month.
- Increased duration of the reference period up to four months, on information and consultation of the staff delegation or, failing that, of all the employees concerned (abolition of ministerial authorisation): decision valid for 24 months and tacitly renewable.
- Possibility for the employee to refuse, on “compelling and justified grounds”, to work in the case of a change to the OEP less than three days prior to the execution of the work and possibility of referral to the ITM in case of disagreement.
- Creation of a maximum threshold for exceeding the normal monthly working time (for upper reference period of one month), beyond which the work is considered overtime (threshold of 12.5% for a reference period of over one month and a maximum of three months; threshold of 10% for a reference period longer than three months).
Flexible hours
Introduction of flexitime by CBA, subordinated agreement or agreement in terms of inter-professional social dialogue or by joint agreement between the employer and the staff delegation or, failing that, the employees concerned.
First published by our Ius Laboris partner firm Castegnaro in Luxembourg.