The new type of virus, COVID-19, commonly known as the coronavirus, first manifested its symptoms on December 12, 2019, in Wuhan, China. The speed with which it spread within three months led the World Health Organization to declare a global pandemic. Currently, according to the World Health Organization, the population in 118 countries across almost all continents is affected, with the largest infection outbreaks in China, Iran, South Korea (Asia), and Italy (Europe), as well as in countries like France, Spain, and Germany. Neither the Australian continent nor countries in Africa or South America have been spared from this pandemic, although the number of recorded cases in these locations remains low. In this context, many of the affected countries have resorted to one of the most drastic measures: closing their borders.

Thus, if a month ago this situation was seen as a threat to the population, companies and entire sectors of activity now risk being seriously affected as well. In addition to simple but absolutely necessary hygiene measures at home and work, avoiding crowds, and refraining from any kind of travel, including business travel, organizations have started to consider and implement more serious measures to limit contamination with the COVID-19 virus, such as telework or working from home. To support these decisions, sometimes not easy to make, are the recommendations of the Ministry of Labor on this topic.

Recommendations from the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection to Prevent the Spread of Coronavirus Infections

1. Flexibilization of work relations between employer and employee through two methods:

– Establishing individualized work schedules: This involves allowing employees to arrive at work during different time intervals (e.g., between 08:00-10:00) to avoid crowding on public transportation while respecting the maximum legal working hours. For public institutions, this measure is mandatory from March 12-31, 2020, with the possibility of extending this period depending on the evolution of the coronavirus epidemic.

– Working from home and/or telework through a unilateral act of the employer: This is the only change to the regime of working from home or telework, which typically requires the agreement of both parties and must be stipulated in the employment contract or an additional act to the contract. Given the exceptional situation, Article 33 of the presidential decree published on March 16 grants flexibility to employers. In addition to the bilateral adoption of the work-from-home or telework regime, as has been the case until now, during the state of emergency, employers can unilaterally decide to modify the place of work, i.e., apply the work-from-home or telework regime.

According to Article 34 of the same presidential decree, during the state of emergency, the performance of inspections by the Territorial Labor Inspectorates at employers is suspended, except for inspections ordered by the Minister of Labor and Social Protection, those ordered by the Labor Inspection for implementing the decisions of the National Committee for Special Emergency Situations, those necessary to address complaints about acts with a high degree of social danger, and for investigating work accidents.

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Apart from this exceptional situation, telework involves the existence of an internal procedure that includes telework and its stipulation in the employment contract or an additional act to the contract. An internal procedure is not mandatory but is necessary if applying the telework regime uniformly for all employees or specific categories of employees.

What the employment contract or additional act regarding telework must include:

– Explicitly stating that the employee works from home in a telework regime.
– The period during which the employee will work from home.
– The place(s) where the telework activity will be carried out, agreed upon by both parties.
– The responsibilities of both parties according to the place(s) where the telework activity is carried out, including responsibilities related to occupational health and safety.
– The schedule during which the employer has the right to control the employee’s activity and the specific method of control.
– The method of recording the hours worked by the teleworker. To facilitate this, employees must submit a request, similar to how they would for vacation days.
– The employer’s obligation to provide transport to and from the place where the telework activity is carried out for the materials used by the teleworker, if applicable.
– The employer’s obligation to ensure that the teleworker receives sufficient and appropriate training in occupational health and safety.

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The additional acts regarding telework must be registered in REVISAL at least one day before the start of this activity (similar to registering changes in employment contracts in REVISAL).

Employers must ensure the implementation of the above points; otherwise, they risk the imposition of multiple fines for non-compliance.

2. Limiting Employee Exposure:

– Use email and teleconferencing to reduce physical contact and work-related travel unless absolutely necessary.