26. oktobra, 2020

SLOVENIA: Work from home – short guidelines for employers

Occasional or permanent work from home or outside the employer’s premises is becoming a new reality for many employers. In addition to the actual performance of the work, the employer must comply with a number of legal regulations in order to regulate work from home properly. The most important things are compliance with labour law and safety.

Working from home can be a practical solution at a time of increasing cases of infection (as well as on other occasions) as it allows the worker to still perform a normal amount of work, thereby reducing the risk of infections by the employer. This modern type of work makes it easier to manage private and professional life and shows the flexibility of the employer.

Working from home is not just a legal issue, but opens up important socio-psychological dilemmas.

Working from home has both positive and negative effects on employers and the worker. It is easier for a worker to organize his time, as he needs less time to prepare for work, it is easier to juggle family and work, but there are also factors in the home environment that can be very disturbing. The employer may also notice that there are more errors in the work itself due to noise in communication or a more difficult way of communicating. Another problem is the social aspect of the workplace or the lack of it when working from home.

However, this way of working also has a positive impact on the environment due to reduced traffic, less load on critical infrastructure, lower living and business costs, etc. This can also be linked to lower employer costs in the case of transport to work. However, it should be emphasized that certain factors, such as safety and health at work and the provision of work resources, pose a significant challenge for employers.

When arranging a home office, employers and workers follow the recommendations regarding the correct layout of the home office, ie the layout of the table and chair, computer, mouse and keyboard, volume, lighting and room temperature, and psychosocial aspects of working from home.

Both the employer and the employee have some additional tasks or obligations regarding work from home, which are listed below.

 

Employer’s obligationsEmployee obligations
  • Concluding appropriate contract specifying the place of work.
  • Informing the Labour Inspectorate of the intended organization of work at home.
  • Providing compensation for the use of own resources.
  • Following the rules and guidelines for safety and health at work.
  • Providing employees regular shorter and longer breaks during work, which should be an integral part of work tasks at the workplace at home.
In accordance with the legislation in the field of safety and health at work and in accordance with the instructions of the employer, the employee must properly use work equipment and other means of work, including safety devices and personal protective equipment. When working employee must follow the instructions of the employer and, if necessary, educate him-/herself.