SLOVENIA: An Introduction to Employment

Slovenian Labour and Employment Law in 2023

In Slovenia, labour and employment law plays a crucial role in regulating the employment relationship between employers and employees, protecting their rights, and ensuring a safe and fair work environment. In 2023, as the pandemic crisis finally seems to near to an end, the year began with a number of imponderables concerning energy prices and general price increases.

It seems that 2023 will bring changes to the laws and practices related to employment in Slovenia. The minimum wage has increased by 12%, leading to a renewal of the salary system in both the public and private sector. The Whistle-Blower Protection Act has been adopted, providing broader protection for whistle-blowers. Companies are also preparing for ESG reporting under the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive. The rise in discrimination claims and the precedent-setting decision on clandestine employment relationships are expected to impact the use of temporary workers and encourage more companies to adopt internal anti-discrimination policies to promote equality and prevent discrimination in the workplace. The regulation on working hours will also undergo a comprehensive reform. In addition, several minor changes to labour law are also in the pipeline. With all these changes, 2023 promises to be an exciting year for the employment landscape in Slovenia.

Increase in salary and union activity 

The year 2023 began with a significant 12% increase in the minimum wage. Additionally, the government promised to increase salaries and renew the salary system in the public sector, and several negotiations are already taking place with the unions representing public sector employees (eg, teachers and doctors). As a result, there is also a lot of pressure from unions in the private sector to increase salaries. As the increase in the minimum wage has been substantial, some companies are looking for ways to renew their salary system to avoid equalising salaries in the lower pay grades while not increasing the total wage bill by the same amount.

There is also a great deal of union activity in the private sector that goes beyond the issue of simple wage increases. It is expected that new collective agreements will be concluded at industry level in 2023 – for example, in the retail sector.

Protection of whistle-blowers 

In January 2023, a new Whistle-Blower Protection Act (ZZPri) was adopted. All employers with 50 or more staff (or 10 or more in some sectors), state authorities and self-governing local authorities are now required to take measures to protect individuals who report violations of the laws in force in Slovenia. These measures include a special internal reporting procedure.

Slovenian legislation provides broader whistle-blower protection than Directive (EU) 2019/1937, as it covers the reporting of violations of all laws applicable in Slovenia – not just EU law. In addition to prohibiting retaliation, the law provides for various support measures and has introduced systematic protection for whistle-blowers. Thus, in 2023, most employers will implement the required protections; however, we do not expect many whistle-blower cases to have been reported already this year.

Preparing for ESG reporting 

The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive came into effect in January 2023, and EU member states must now implement reporting on ESG matters within 18 months. We expect larger and international companies, in particular, to begin preparing for ESG reporting in 2023. Companies within the scope of the directive will be required to report on sustainability issues, including environmental protection, social matters such as employment issues and human rights, and governance (eg, anti-corruption, anti-bribery, and diversity on company boards).

Discrimination, harassment and bullying 

Since the adoption of the Law on Protection Against Discrimination (ZVarD) and the establishment of the Equality Advocate, awareness has risen and more employees are filing claims of discrimination. Employers are expected to take more internal actions and preventive measures to promote equality and inclusion. Employers covered by the ESG reporting requirement must report on adopted internal policies, preventive and affirmative actions, and discrimination claims (including harassment, percentage of pay gap, percentage of disabled workers, and other discrimination-related matters).

Regulation of working time 

We expect to see more comprehensive reform of the regulation of working time in the near future. Under the current legislative proposal, which is already going through the parliamentary process, employers will be required to record not only daily and weekly working hours – as is currently the case – but also the actual start and end of daily working hours, the use of break periods, hours worked in the event of an unfavourable distribution of working hours (eg, uneven distribution or temporary redistribution of working hours), and all overtime hours.

If an employer is sanctioned for violating the reporting requirements, it will also be ordered to begin recording working hours electronically – thereby giving authorities access to concrete evidence of the employer’s working time practices. This may, in turn, lead to further sanctions for violations of mandatory labour law provisions. The reform targets widespread violations of working time regulations, which are on the rise – especially with the expansion of the service sector.

Agency workers 

At the end of 2022, the Supreme Court of the Republic of Slovenia issued a precedent-setting decision on the issue of clandestine employment relationships. In a lawsuit filed by nine workers employed by port service providers who became unemployed after the national port stopped providing services through port service providers, the Supreme Court ruled that the workers could claim the existence of an employment relationship with the national port from the date of termination of their employment contract with the service provider. The national port was also held liable for the difference in payments that the employees received during their employment with the port service providers, but would have received had they been employed directly by the national port. In our opinion, this decision will have an impact on the use of temporary workers and we expect to see more similar cases.

Changes to labour law 

At the time of writing (February 2023), changes to the labour legislation are in the drafting phase and are being consulted between the government and the social partners. There are plans to enshrine in law the idea that employment relationships of 30 or more hours per week can be considered full-time employment, as well as proposed provisions that will allow employees to request a more favourable form of employment and more flexible working hours to their employer. The legislative change also intends to amend the provisions on working from home, which were significantly expanded in the wake of the pandemic, but the legislation has not yet kept pace with the new trends.

Conclusion   

In summary, 2023 has already seen several significant changes to the employment landscape in Slovenia. These changes are aimed at promoting a fair and safe work environment for employees and protecting their rights. The employment landscape in Slovenia is set for a dynamic year, with a renewed focus on worker protections and an emphasis on sustainable business practices.