An amendment to the Labor Code entered into force on August 1 of this year, which allows employees of subcontractors in the construction industry , provided they meet the legal conditions, to request payment of wages not only directly from their employer, but also from a natural person or legal entity that is a contractor of construction works on the territory of the Slovak Republic and whose direct subcontractor is the employee’s employer .
The employee has the right to payment of wages from the contractor only to the extent of the minimum wage valid at the time of work performance within the subcontractor relationship for each hour of work performance, at most the difference between the amount of the minimum wage valid at the time of work performance within the subcontractor relationship for each hour of work performance and the salary provided to the subcontractor for the performance of this work.
The condition is that it is a wage that has not been paid to the employee and belongs to him for the performance of construction work related to the construction, repair, maintenance, reconstruction or demolition of buildings (according to Annex No. 1aa of the Labor Code), the implementation of which is part of the subcontractor’s obligation within the framework of the legal of the relationship between the subcontractor and the supplier. The employee must ask the service provider in writing for payment of wages within six months from the date the wages are due.
In addition, an amendment comes into effect, on the basis of which it will be possible to employ minors who have reached the age of 15 :
- They can only be employed after completing compulsory schooling.
- Starting work can be on the last day of the school year in which the student ends compulsory school attendance or turns 16 at the earliest.
- The difference compared to the previous regulation is that the employer can employ a minor without the consent of the labor inspectorate as early as July 1 of the given year , and does not have to wait until the end of summer, when compulsory school attendance formally ends.
More detailed information on these and other changes in the Labor Code can be found in the article by my colleague Martina PoliaÄiková .
Regulation number:Â 178/2024 Coll.
Effective date : 01.08.2024
Name of the regulation : Law no. 178/2024 Coll., amending Act No. 311/2001 Coll. Labor Code as amended
Link to the law : https://www.slov-lex.sk/pravne-predpisy/SK/ZZ/2024/178/20240801
