AKMV Improving / enhancing employee qualifications
Section 154(3) of the Labour Code establishes the obligation of the employee to continually deepen their qualifications for performing the work agreed upon in the employment contract. At the same time, in the case of both upgrading and deepening of the employee’s qualifications, the Labour Code allows for the conclusion of an agreement on the improvement or enhancement of qualifications between the employee and the employer, under the conditions specified by the Labour Code.
Enhancement of employee qualifications
According to the Labour Code, the employee has a legal obligation to continually deepen their qualifications for performing the work agreed upon in their employment contract. The Labour Code also broadens the definition of “deepening of qualifications” to include maintaining the achieved level of qualification and renewing previously acquired qualifications.
The main purpose of deepening employee qualifications is to ensure the proper performance of their job duties as defined in the employment contract, in accordance with the latest theoretical and practical knowledge relevant to the agreed type of work.
The employer has the right to unilaterally require the employee—even against their will—to participate in further training aimed at deepening their qualifications. Failure to fulfil this obligation is considered a breach of work discipline on the part of the employee.
Currently, the Labour Code also allows the employer to conclude an agreement with the employee even for the purpose of deepening qualifications, which generally involves significantly lower costs compared to full qualification upgrading.
Agreement on the Deepening of Employee Qualifications
Section 155(5) of the Labour Code stipulates that an employer may conclude an agreement with an employee even in cases of deepening qualifications, provided that the expected costs reach at least EUR 1,700. In such cases, the employer may not impose an obligation on the employee to undergo further training or qualification deepening.
Employee qualification upgrade
The Labour Code allows for the upgrading of an employee’s qualifications based on a mutual agreement between the employer and the employee.
This agreement serves as a legal tool to help retain employees who are improving their qualifications. According to Section 155(1) of the Labour Code, the employer and the employee may enter into an agreement under which:
- the employer undertakes to support the employee in upgrading their qualifications by providing paid time off, wage compensation, and covering other study-related expenses, and
- the employee undertakes to remain employed with the employer for a certain period after completing their studies or, if they terminate their employment (even before completing the studies), to reimburse the employer for the costs incurred in connection with the studies.
Such an agreement must be concluded in writing; otherwise, it is invalid.
Content of the Agreement on the Upgrading of Employee Qualifications
According to Section 155(2) of the Labour Code, an agreement regarding both the upgrading and deepening of qualifications must include the following:
- a) the type of qualification and the method of its improvement,
- b) the field of study and the name of the educational institution,
- c) the period during which the employee commits to remain in an employment relationship with the employer,
- d) the types of costs and their total amount the employee shall be required to reimburse the employer if they fail to fulfill the obligation to remain employed for the agreed period.
As previously stated, the agreement must be concluded in writing, otherwise it shall be considered invalid. If the agreement does not contain all the mandatory elements, it is legally void. Regarding the type of qualification and the method of its improvement, these elements typically reflect the type of study undertaken by the employee to upgrade their qualifications.
The period for which the employee undertakes to remain employed is not solely subject to contractual autonomy between the employer and the employee. The Labour Code limits this period to a maximum of five years. The agreed period should be proportionate to the length and type of study, its importance, and the amount of expenses incurred by the employer.
Reimbursement of Expenses Incurred by the Employer
From the required content of the agreement, the interpretation of costs and their total amount that the employee is obliged to reimburse to the employer if they fail to fulfill their commitment to remain employed for the agreed period causes the most practical difficulties. Since the Labor Code requires that the contracting parties, when concluding an agreement on qualification enhancement, specify not only the types of costs but also the total amount that the employee will be obliged to pay in case of non-fulfillment of their commitment.
Reimbursement of incurred costs
According to court rulings, the total amount of the employer’s costs may be expressed in a form other than a numerical value. It is sufficient if it is stated with such certainty that no doubts can arise between the contracting parties about what they intended as the total amount mutually agreed upon in the agreement.
The Labour Code does not set a maximum limit on the costs that the employer has incurred to cover the employee’s qualification enhancement. From this, it follows that the employer is entitled to demand reimbursement of the entire amount of costs incurred for the qualification process if the employee fails to fulfill their obligation.
When is the employee not obligated to reimburse costs?
Section 155(6) of the Labour Code regulates the reasons when the employee is not obliged to reimburse costs.
The employee’s obligation to reimburse costs does not arise, especially if:
- a) the employer stopped providing paid leave and wage compensation during the qualification increase because the employee became long-term incapable of performing the work for which they were increasing their qualification through no fault of their own,
- b) the employment relationship ended by the employer’s dismissal for reasons stated in § 63(1)(a), (b), or (f), or by agreement for the same reasons,
- c) the employee cannot perform the work for which they increased their qualification according to a medical opinion, or has lost long-term capability to perform the previous work for reasons stated in § 63(1)(c),
- d) the employer has not utilized the qualification increased by the employee for at least six months during the last 12 months,
- e) the employer violated provisions of this law concerning an employee performing a healthcare profession under a special regulation, and this violation was confirmed by the relevant labor inspectorate and a court ruling.
From these reasons, it follows that the employer is not entitled to stop providing paid leave and wage compensation to which it committed in the agreement without a valid reason, or a reason not corresponding to the one stated in § 155(6)(a) of the Labour Code.
The obligation to reimburse costs does not arise if the employment relationship ends by dismissal on the part of the employer under § 63(1)(a) and (b) of the Labour Code or by agreement for the same reasons. This includes cases where the employer or part of it is closed or relocated and the employee does not agree to the change of the agreed workplace, or if the employee becomes redundant due to a written decision of the employer or the relevant authority regarding a change in their duties. These are objective reasons that condition the further continuation of the employment relationship and do not depend on the employee’s personal characteristics.
However, for the employee’s reimbursement obligation to cease, it is not enough that the employer has merely invoked a reason for dismissal. The condition for the cessation of the reimbursement obligation is that the employment relationship actually ends under § 63(1)(a) or (b) of the Labour Code, or by agreement for the same reasons. If the agreement to terminate the employment does not state the reason, it would not be a sufficient legal basis for the cessation of the employee’s reimbursement obligation.
The reason for which the reimbursement obligation does not arise, as stated in § 155(6)(c) of the Labour Code, involves an objective situation that arises independently of the will of the employee and the employer.
The factual basis of the reason in § 155(6)(d) relates to a situation where the employee fulfills their obligation after completing the qualification increase, but the employer has not used the employee’s increased qualification for at least six months in the last twelve months. This reason effectively represents a sanction against the employer, because due to the employer’s fault in not utilizing the employee’s increased qualification for a certain period, the employee is not obliged to reimburse costs, even if they do not remain employed for the agreed duration.
QUESTION
What options does an employer have if they pay for expensive training for an employee and the employee decides to leave the company after a few months? Does the employer have the right to demand at least partial reimbursement of the costs from the employee?
ANSWER:
Yes, the employer has the option to demand reimbursement of costs if there is an agreement with the employee regarding the increase of qualification.
If the employee is to increase or deepen their qualification during the employment relationship, the Labor Code (§ 155) allows the employer to enter into an agreement with the employee about increasing/deepening the qualification. According to this agreement, the employer commits to enabling the employee to increase their qualification by providing paid leave, wage compensation, and covering other costs related to the training, while the employee commits to remain employed with the employer for a certain period after completing the training or reimburse the training costs if they leave the job before finishing the training.
The Labor Code distinguishes between increasing and deepening qualification. The agreement can also be made in the case of deepening qualification, provided that the anticipated costs reach at least €1,700.
According to the Labor Code, such agreements must include:
The type of qualification and the method of increasing it
The field of study and the name of the educational institution
The duration the employee commits to remain employed with the employer
The types of costs and the total amount the employee must reimburse if they fail to fulfill the commitment to remain employed for the agreed period (the total sum can be expressed in a way other than a numerical value, as long as it’s clearly defined)
The agreement must be made in writing under penalty of invalidity. The commitment period cannot exceed five years and should be reasonably determined based on circumstances such as the duration and type of qualification increase, its importance, etc. If the commitment is only partially fulfilled, the obligation to reimburse the costs is reduced proportionally.
JUDr. Veronika Michalíková, MBA QUESTION
A selection process was announced at the school for the position of head of the school canteen. I was chosen and spent an entire month training during my free time. I was supposed to start on August 1, 2019. Everything was already set for me to begin. On the last day of training, the principal called me and said they had chosen someone else for the position. How should I proceed if I want compensation for the time I spent there training and commuting?
ANSWER:
From your question, it is not clear whether you had already signed an employment contract with the school or if there was only an “oral promise” of employment without a signed contract. Regardless, it is clear from your question that the planned start date of employment was August 1, 2019. We would like to point out the following:
The position of head of the school canteen falls under the scope of Act No. 552/2003 Coll. on the performance of work in the public interest (hereinafter “Act No. 552/2003”). According to § 1(4) of this Act, the Labour Code (Act No. 311/2001 Coll., hereinafter “LC”) applies to employment relationships of employees performing work in the public interest, unless otherwise stipulated.
According to § 46 of the LC, the employment relationship begins on the day agreed upon in the employment contract as the starting date of work.
Section 154(1) of the LC states that an employer must provide training or instruction to an employee who is entering employment without the necessary qualification.
Training represents an integral part of the work process or adaptation of the employee to the new working environment, during which the employee gains theoretical and practical knowledge or skills necessary for the job.
According to the LC, training can only occur after the employment relationship has commenced (i.e., from the date of starting work). In your case, you underwent training before the employment relationship began. Therefore, if there was no employment relationship from which compensation could be derived, it is unlikely that you have a claim for compensation for the costs associated with the training.
JUDr. Veronika Michalíková, MBA