COVID 19: Most frequently asked questions by employers

Most frequently asked questions by employers

1. Can I force my employees to take annual leave?

Only in exceptional cases and under special conditions set forth in the Corona laws.

In principle, annual leave is a matter of mutual agreement between employer and employee and cannot be forced by the employer. However, due to the Corona crisis, the following applies:

Forced annual leave possible:

Employees who are unable to perform their work due to the restriction/prohibition of entry have to take annual leave and time credits at the employer’s request. The ordering of annual leave/time compensation is only permissible to the following extent (these provisions shall apply retroactively from 15.3.2020 and shall cease to apply on 31.12.2020):

  • The employee only has to take a maximum of 2 weeks of the current holiday year.
  • In total, the employee does not have to take more than 8 weeks of leave /time credit.
  • Leave ordered unilaterally by the employer therefore particularly affects holiday entitlements from previous leave years.
  • Time credits based on a provision in a collective bargaining agreement that converts monetary entitlements into time do not have to be used.

Forced annual leave not possible:

However, for the sole reason of economic difficulties resulting from the Corona crisis, which do not directly result from a restriction/prohibition on entering the company, the employer is not entitled to order leave/time compensation.

If a company in which no works council is constituted introduces short-time work, for which there is no prohibition/restriction on entry, the employer is not entitled to order leave and/or the consumption of time credits. In order to receive the short-time work allowance, the employer has to prove that he has made serious efforts to reach an agreement with the employees.

In companies where a works council is constituted, the introduction of short-time work must be regulated by means of a works agreement. The works councils has the authority to make arrangements with the employer in the course of COVID 19 short-time work regarding the use of holidays from previous leave years and time credits of employees.

2. If my employees have already requested to take annual leave and are unable to do so due to the cancellation of their travel arrangements, are they entitled to cancel their booked days of leave 

No. In principle, an existing holiday agreement remains in force. However, the employer and the employee can reach a mutual agreement on this issue. There is no obligation on the employer to cancel the holiday agreement in case of restriction/prohibition on entering the company at the employee´s request.

3. If my employees are cross-border workers and telework from Austria, how are they affected by teleworking in terms of Taxation?

In case the employer does not have a permanent establishment in Austria, but the employee teleworks in Austria, the income is taxable exclusively in Austria. The foreign employer has to deduct the Austrian income tax and pay it to the tax office. Taxation has to be evaluated on a case by case basis.

4. Do my employees have a right of withdrawal, if they are afraid about their health and safety?

Basically No. In principle, if an employee stays away from work without good reason or refuses to perform work at the place of work, this constitutes a breach of his or her official duties. In such a case, the employer is – depending on the concrete circumstances – entitled to dismiss the employee.

Exceptionally Yes. However, the employee could only refuse to perform work if there is a concrete and understandable risk of contracting the virus at work. Such a case would exist, for example, if there has already been an infection with the virus in the employee’s immediate working environment and the employer has not taken all necessary measures to prevent infection. However, this does not apply to employees in health care professions, such as in hospitals or pharmacies. In these jobs, there is a certain occupational risk of contracting diseases. To prevent infection, however, employees in the health care professions are appropriately qualified and trained.

Case-by-case basis: Consequently, an employee’s withdrawal right must be evaluated on a case-by-case basis and take into account the working environment, the contacts between people, and the safety protections offered by employers.

5. How shall I handle newly hired employees whose start date is envisaged during the lockdown period?

Employers who signed an employment contract with an employee before the corona virus crisis and whose first working day is approaching, are not entitled to withdraw from the contract unless a probationary month according to § 19 AngG was agreed.

If the whole company is teleworking, telework is to be set up for him/her as well. If the employee does not agree and if the employee is not able to telework, an individual solution has to be found.

6. If I employ third-country nationals, how shall I handle the expiration of their residence/working permit documents?

Applications for the granting or renewal of employment permits do not have to be submitted in person, but can still be submitted to the competent Public Employment Service by e-mail and should therefore be submitted in due time.

For the time being, all applications and documents can be submitted by mail or e-mail within the deadline. Upon request, already granted residence permits will be sent to the applicants by post.

We recommend to make sure that you contact an expert early enough to discuss the process.

This information on the topic „Corona Virus“ represent the current state of knowledge. Due to the constantly changing situation, its contents may be outdated at a later date, please contact our team if you have any questions.

Diese Website verwendet Cookies

Damit wir Ihnen während des Aufenthaltes auf unserer Website das bestmögliche Erlebnis bieten können, verwenden wir verschiedene Arten von Cookies. Bitte wählen Sie aus, welche Arten von Cookies Sie zulassen möchten und klicken Sie dann auf "Zustimmen". Mit dem Klick auf "Allen zustimmen" erklären Sie sich mit der Verwendung sämtlicher Cookies einverstanden. Ihre Einwilligung können Sie jederzeit mit Wirkung für die Zukunft widerrufen, indem Sie Ihre Einstellungen ändern. Mehr zum Thema Cookies finden Sie unter: Cookie-Policy. Weitere Informationen zum Thema Datenschutz finden Sie unter: Datenschutz.

Impressum

Betriebsnotwendige und
funktionale Cookies
Statistik-Cookies


Weitere Informationen