At yesterday’s extraordinary session, the National Assembly approved the Act on Amendments and Supplements to the Act on the Elimination of the Consequences of Natural Disasters, which will enable employers to reimburse salary compensation in case of force majeure and waiting for work. As well as some additional measures. The law will enter into force the day after its publication in the Official Gazette (Uradni list Republike Slovenije), but given the situation, we do not expect the State Council to veto it, so changes are not expected.
- Inability to perform work due to force majeure
An employee who is unable to perform work due to force majeure because of the consequences of a natural disaster, receives salary compensation for the time when the circumstances of force majeure are stated – inability to perform work due to the performance of necessary actions to repair damage or to perform necessary actions to insure the life or health of people and animals, and deterring and preventing damage or other circumstances of inability to perform work due to the consequences of a natural disaster.
The employee is entitled to compensation of wages in the amount of 80% of the base of the previous three months, but at least in the amount of the minimum wage.
On the basis of an application submitted to the Employment Agency of the Republic of Slovenia, the employer can request a full refund of the employee’s salary compensation, namely for the period from 3 August 2023 to 31 December 2023. Refunds cannot be requested by:
- a direct or indirect user of the budget of the Republic of Slovenia or the budget of the municipality, whose share of revenues from public sources was higher than 70 percent in 2022,
- an employer who performs financial or insurance activities, which according to the standard classification of activities belongs to group K, and had more than ten employees on August 3, 2023,
- foreign diplomatic missions and consulates, international organizations, representative offices of international organizations and institutions, bodies and agencies of the European Union in the Republic of Slovenia.
During the period of receiving a refund of the paid wage compensation of workers who are unable to work due to force majeure due to the consequences of a natural disaster, the employer may not initiate the process of terminating the employment contract for business reasons of the workers for whom they claimed the reimbursement of the paid wage compensation, or terminate the employment contract to a larger number of workers for business reasons, unless the redundancy program was already adopted before August 3, 2023 and the employer has not asserted the right to refund the paid salary compensation for these workers. The employer cannot claim reimbursement of the paid salary compensation for an employee who cannot perform work due to force majeure due to the consequences of a natural disaster during the notice period.
Likewise, an employer who claims reimbursement of paid salary compensation cannot pay out profits, buy own shares or own business shares, pay out bonuses to management in 2023 or for the year 2023 – this applies from 3 August 2023 onwards. Otherwise, they must return the funds received.
- Inability to perform work for business reasons – waiting for work
Any employer in the Republic of Slovenia, registered no later than August 2, 2023, who is temporarily unable to provide workers with work due to the consequences of floods, can claim the right to a partial reimbursement of salary compensation to workers temporarily waiting for work, except for:
- direct or indirect user of the budget of the Republic of Slovenia or the budget of the municipality,
- an employer who performs financial or insurance activities, which belongs to group K in accordance with the standard classification of activities, and has more than ten employees on 2 August 2023,
- foreign diplomatic missions and consulates, international organizations, representative offices of international organizations and institutions, bodies and agencies of the European Union in the Republic of Slovenia.
The measure is valid from 3 August 2023 to 31 October 2023, but the Government of the Republic of Slovenia can extend it until 31 December 2023.
The employee is entitled to compensation of wages in the amount of 80% of the base of the previous three months, but at least in the amount of the minimum wage.
On the basis of an application submitted to the Employment Agency of the Republic of Slovenia, the employer may request partial reimbursement of the wage compensation in the amount of 80% of the wage compensation, but no more than in the amount of the average monthly salary in the Republic of Slovenia for the month of May 2023. In the 80% of the wage compensation, which is covered by the Republic of Slovenia, salary compensation is included with all taxes and employer’s contributions (gross II).
During the period of waiting for work, the employer may not order overtime or temporarily redistribute working hours, if this work can be done with workers temporarily waiting for work. During the period of receiving a partial reimbursement of salary compensation, the employer may not initiate the process of terminating the employment contract for business reasons of workers whom he has sent to temporarily wait for work or terminate the employment contracts of a large number of workers for business reasons, unless there was a redundancy program already adopted before August 3, 2023, and the employer has not asserted the right to a partial reimbursement of the wage compensation for these employees. The employer cannot claim a partial refund of the salary compensation for the employee during the notice period.
Likewise, an employer who claims reimbursement of paid salary compensation cannot pay out profits, buy own shares or own business shares, pay out bonuses to management in 2023 or for the year 2023 – this applies from 3 August 2023 onwards. Otherwise, he must return the funds received.
- Paid leave for volunteer work
A volunteer who performs voluntary work within the framework of a volunteer organization has the right to a paid absence from work for a maximum of seven working days due to the elimination of the consequences of floods. The volunteer demonstrates entitlement to absence based on a volunteer organization’s certificate of completed volunteer work.
The Republic of Slovenia reimburses the volunteers’ salary compensation paid in full.
- Assistance for the self-employed
A person entitled to aid for the self-employed (including partners and farmers) is a person who has been engaged in an activity since at least 1 July 2023 and who, due to the consequences of the floods in August 2023, cannot perform the activity or performs it to a significantly reduced extent even after the floods in August 2023.
Aid for the self-employed amounts to 1,200 euros per month for August, September, October, November and December 2023. Aid for the self-employed in culture who, in accordance with the Act on the Realization of the Public Interest in Culture, are registered in the list of self-employed in culture and have the right to pay contributions for mandatory pension and disability insurance from the budget of the Republic of Slovenia, amounts to 760 euros per month. The aid for farmer beneficiaries, who are exempt from employer contributions for mandatory pension and disability insurance, amounts to 1,020 euros per month. In other words, in proportion to the extent of insurance coverage.
The application for assistance to the self-employed will be available through the eDavki portal.
It is considered that, due to the consequences of the floods of August 2023, the beneficiary cannot carry out an activity or carries it out to a significantly reduced extent, if the income of the beneficiary in 2023 will decrease by more than 50% compared to 2022 due to the consequences of the floods of August 2023. If he did not operate in the entire year 2022 or 2023, the beneficiary whose average monthly income in 2023 will decrease by more than 50% compared to the average monthly income in 2022 due to the consequences of the August 2023 floods is also entitled to assistance. If in 2022 there is no was in business, the beneficiary whose average monthly income in 2023 will decrease by more than 50% compared to average monthly income in 2023 by July 31, 2023 due to the consequences of the August 2023 flood is also eligible for assistance. If the condition is not met , the beneficiary must repay the entire aid.
- Solidarity aid
The one-off solidarity aid paid by the employer in 2023 for serious damage to the employee due to the natural disaster of floods in August 2023 is not included in the tax base from employment income up to the amount of 10,000 euros.
Serious damage is considered damage that endangers health and causes an unsuitable living environment. For other cases, the amount of 2,000 euros still applies.
- Additional relief for donations
A person liable under the Corporate Income Tax Act and a person liable under the Income Tax Act who earns income from activities that are included in the annual tax base may, in addition to the reduction of the tax base according to the first and second paragraphs of Article 59 of the ZDDPO-2, respectively according to the first and second paragraph of Article 66 ZDoh-2, asserts an additional reduction of the tax base of the tax period for the entire amount of payments in money for the purpose of eliminating the consequences of floods in August 2023, paid to a specially created account of the Republic of Slovenia for this purpose, but not more than the amount of the tax base of the tax period .
The amount is considered to be the amount of all payments until December 31, 2023 to a specially created account of the Republic of Slovenia.
- Day off for employees
In 2023, August 14 – the day of solidarity – will be designated as a day off work.
Despite the day off, payment transactions will proceed smoothly.
