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19 JUNE 2009. - Law on various employment provisions during the crisis

ALBERT II, King of the Belgians,
To all, present and to come, Hi.
The Chambers adopted and We sanction the following:
Article 1^er. This Act regulates a matter referred to in Article 78 of the Constitution.
PART 1^er. - Temporary adaptation of labour crisis
Art. 2. In section 335, paragraph 3, of the Program Act of 24 December 2002 (I), the words "subsection 6 applies" are replaced by the words "subsections 6 and 8 apply".
Art. 3. In section 336 of the Act, as amended by the Acts of 23 December 2005 and 20 July 2006, the following amendments are made:
1° in paragraph 1^er the words "G1, G2 or G3" are replaced by the words "G1, G2, G3, G4, G5 or G6";
2° between paragraphs 4 and 5, three new paragraphs are inserted, as follows:
"G4 is equal to 600 euros.
G5 is equal to 750 euros.
G6 equals 1.150 euros. »
3° in former paragraph 5, which became paragraph 8, the words "G1, G2 and G3" are replaced by the words "G1, G2, G3, G4, G5 and G6".
Art. 4. In section 338 of the Act, amended by the Act of 23 December 2005, the words "G1, G2 or G3" are replaced by the words "G1, G2, G3, G4, G5 or G6".
Art. 5. In title IV, chapter 7, section 3, of the same Act, a sub-section 8, entitled "Subsection 8 - Temporary adaptation of crisis of work duration".
Art. 6. In subsection 8, inserted by section 5, an article 353bis/1 is inserted, as follows:
"Art. 353bis/1. For the purposes of this sub-section, the working period shall mean the weekly duration as defined by section 348, paragraph 1^er.
For the purposes of this sub-section, consideration shall be given to the duration of the work established, either by collective labour agreement concluded in accordance with the Act of 5 December 1968 on collective labour agreements and parity commissions, or by the Labour Regulations.
The King may determine more precise terms for calculating the length of work. »
Art. 7. In the same subsection 8, an article 353bis/2 is inserted as follows:
"Art. 353bis/2. Employers referred to in Article 335, paragraph 3, who make a temporary adjustment of the working period before 1^er January 2010, under the conditions set by or under this subsection, shall be reduced by a target group.
The King sets out the more precise modalities for this adaptation of work duration. »
Art. 8. In the same subsection 8, an article 353bis/3 is inserted as follows:
"Art. 353bis/3. The employer benefits from the quarter of the introduction of the temporary adjustment plan for the duration of the work in the company and up to the quarter during which the temporary adjustment of the working period ends, a flat-target reduction for each quarter, the flat-rate amount of which depends on the percentage of the adjustment of the working period.
Temporary adaptation of the duration of work must reduce the length of work by a quarter or a fifth.
The lump sum of this target group discount is higher when the temporary adaptation of the work duration is combined with the temporary introduction of the four-day week in the company.
The lump sum of this target group discount is awarded by worker concerned.
The King determines what to hear by establishing the four-day week for the application of this provision.
The King determines the conditions and procedure that must be followed, as well as the file and documents that must be submitted in order to be able to obtain the group-target reduction. »
Art. 9. In the same subsection 8, an article 353bis/4 is inserted as follows:
"Art. 353bis/4. The temporary adaptation of the duration of work and the introduction of the four-day week must be fixed by collective labour agreement, concluded at the company level and applicable to all workers in the company or to a specific category of workers in the company.
The King sets out the minimum content of this collective agreement and the procedures to be followed.
This minimum content provides that, at a minimum, the collective labour agreement refers to the date of commencement and end of the temporary adjustment of the working period and provides compensation for wages. Salary compensation may not result in the worker's gross salary being higher than the gross salary to which he was entitled prior to the temporary adjustment of the working period. In this regard, it is not taken into account the adaptation of wages to the price index, nor the increase of baremics.
This wage compensation is considered to be wages within the meaning of section 2 of the Act of 12 April 1965 concerning the protection of workers' remuneration and section 23 of the Act of 29 June 1981 establishing the general principles of social security of employed workers on which social security contributions are calculated. »
Art. 10. In the same subsection 8, an article 353bis/5 is inserted as follows:
"Art. 353bis/5. For full-time workers affected by the temporary adjustment of the working period as provided for in this subsection, section 28, § 4, of the Labour Act of 16 March 1971, also applies in the event of a weekly number of hours of work that arise from the work schedule provided for in the Labour Regulations. »
Art. 11. In the same subsection 8, an article 353bis/6 is inserted, as follows:
"Art. 353bis/6. The National Social Security Office is empowered to recover the benefits granted under this subsection in the event of an employer's offence with respect to the period of work of the Labour Act of March 16, 1971 or the provisions of this subsection.
This recovery is carried out for each quarter and for each worker on whom the offence relates.
Recovery can only occur if the offence has ended, either through a transaction with the employer or by an administrative fine or by a conviction by a criminal court. »
Art. 12. In the same subsection 8 is inserted, an article 353bis/7, which reads as follows:
"Art. 353bis/7. In the case of leave referred to in section 39 of the Act of July 3, 1978 relating to the contract of employment, given by the employer during the period of temporary adjustment of the crisis of the period of employment, the remuneration to which the worker would have been entitled at the time of leave if the period of work had not been adapted. »
Art. 13. This title comes into force on the day of the publication of this Act to the Belgian Monitor.
Sub-section 8 of Title IV, Chapter 7, Section 3, of the Act-Program of 24 December 2002 ceases to be in force on 1^er January 2010.
The King may, by order deliberately in the Council of Ministers and after the advice of the National Labour Council, extend the application of sub-section 8 referred to above until 30 June 2010 and replace in this case the date set out in article 353bis/2 of the Act-Programme (I) of 24 December 2002 with a later date, if the economic situation justifies it.
PART 2. - Temporary crisis measures to adapt the volume of employment
CHAPTER 1^er. - Scope of application
Art. 14. § 1^er. This title applies to workers and employers within the scope of the Act of 5 December 1968 on collective labour agreements and joint boards.
§ 2. However, the application of the two crisis measures provided for in this title is limited to enterprises in difficulty referred to in § 4 that are related to the respective application of the measures referred to in this title by:
1° a collective agreement entered into within the competent Joint Commission and filed within the week following the coming into force of this Act;
2° in the absence of a sectoral agreement referred to in 1°, for companies that have a union delegation, a collective agreement concluded at the company level. If within two weeks of the commencement of the negotiations, by the formal invitation of the union delegation, for the conclusion of a CTC at the enterprise level, no result is achieved, the employer may still apply the respective measures referred to in this title provided that it is bound by a plan of business referred to in this Article, approved in accordance with the procedure provided for in § 3;
3° in the absence of a sectoral collective agreement referred to in 1°, for enterprises without trade union delegation, a business plan referred to in this article, approved in accordance with the procedure provided for in § 3;
4° in the absence of a sectoral collective agreement referred to in 1°, for companies without trade union delegation, a collective labour agreement.
The business plan referred to in 3° and 4° is binding on workers and employers in the company.
These collective agreements and business plan must:
- expressly mention that they are entered into under this Title;
- expressly mention to which two temporary crisis measures referred to in this Title relate;
- be filed with the Registry of the Federal Public Service Labour Collective Relations Directorate Employment, Labour and Social Concertation;
- contain measures for maximum maintenance of employment.
If these collective agreements and business plan relate to the general temporary and collective suspension regime for the performance of the employment contract, the following must be determined for this measure:
- the amount of the supplements referred to in Article 23, § 7;
- the duration of the complete and partial suspension of the performance of the employment contract, without the maximum duration of the contract referred to in Article 26.
§ 3. The company must transmit the business plan referred to in § 2, paragraph 1^er, 2° and 3°, accompanied by a reasoned request, by registered letter to the Director General of the Labour Collective Relations Department of the Federal Public Service Employment, Labour and Social Concertation.
The Director-General shall present the business plan immediately for decision to a commission established by the King by decree deliberated in the Council of Ministers and composed of 5 members proposed by the representative organisations of the workers who sit on the National Labour Council, 5 members proposed by the representative organisations of the employers who sit on the National Labour Council, and 3 members appointed by a deliberate decree in the Council of Ministers. The King may by order deliberately in the Council of Ministers establish more precise rules relating to the composition and functioning of the commission.
The Commission shall make a decision based on the following criteria within two weeks of receiving the business plan:
- the company meets the conditions of recognition as a company in difficulty in accordance with the provisions of § 4;
- the business plan meets the requirements of § 2;
- it is demonstrated that the application of the measures provided for in the corporate plan prevents dismissals.
The motivated decisions of this commission are submitted to the companies concerned by the Director General of the Labour Collective Relations Branch of the Federal Public Service Employment, Labour and Social Concertation.
§ 4. Is considered a company in difficulty:
1° the company, in the sense of a legal entity, which is experiencing a substantial decrease of 20% or more of its turnover or production in one of the four quarters prior to the first use of the reduction of benefits to deal with the crisis, compared to the same quarter of the previous year; If this decrease is not the result of the last quarter of the four preceding the use of the reduction of benefits to deal with the crisis, then the downward trend must be confirmed in the other quarters prior to the use of the reduction of benefits to cope with the crisis. The evidence of the decrease in turnover is attested by statements to the T.V.A. in the relevant quarters;
2° the company, in the sense of a technical operating unit referred to in section 14 of the Act of September 20, 1948, for the organization of the economy, or a legal entity or a unit of establishment within the meaning of the Act of January 16, 2003, establishing a Bank-Carrefour des Entreprises, which, during the quarter preceding the quarter in which the form referred to in sections 15, § 1^er or 22, is experiencing a number of days of temporary unemployment for economic reasons for workers up to 20% of the total number of days declared to the National Social Security Office.
The King may determine specific rules and procedures regarding the procedure to be followed by the company to prove that it meets one of the criteria mentioned in this article. It may also, by deliberation in the Council of Ministers, provide for a criterion relating to a reduction in orders.
CHAPTER 2. - Individual and temporary reduction of benefits to cope with the crisis
Section 1^re. - Convention on individual reduction of benefits
Art. 15. § 1^er. When his business is in difficulty within the meaning of Article 14, § 4, Chapter 1^er, and provided that it is bound by a collective agreement or an approved business plan provided for in Article 14, §§ 2 and 3, the employer may propose to any busy full-time worker to reduce his or her work benefits by 1/5^e or 1/2 for a period not less than one month and not more than six months.
At least fourteen days before the application of paragraph 1^er, the employer must by registered letter notify a form to the unemployment office of the National Employment Office of the place where the business is located, the model of which is fixed by the Minister who has the Employment in his powers, by which he certifies that he meets one of the conditions set out in section 14, unless he has already notified the form referred to in section 22. When he invokes the first condition of Article 14, § 4, he encloses to this form the statements to the T.V.A. of the relevant quarters.
§ 2. In the event of a worker's agreement, the agreement on the temporary reduction of his full-time benefits must be found in writing in accordance with the requirement of section 11bis of the Act of 3 July 1978 on employment contracts.
Such a convention may be renewed provided that it is always satisfied with the conditions set out in Article 14, § 4, of this Title at the time of its renewal.
Art. 16. The duration of the reduced work, as agreed under Article 15 of this Chapter, shall be met on average over the period set out in the written agreement referred to in Article 15, as defined in Article 26 bis, § 1^erthe Labour Act of 16 March 1971.
Art. 17. In the event of leave given by the employer during the period of reduction of benefits to deal with the crisis referred to in section 39 of the Act of July 3, 1978 relating to the contract of employment, the remuneration to which the worker would have been entitled at the time of the leave if he had remained full-time.
Section 2. - Granting an allowance
Art. 18. § 1^er. An allowance is granted to the full-time busy worker who agrees with his employer to reduce his or her work benefits by 1/5^e or 1/2 in accordance with the provisions of section 1 of this chapter.
§ 2. The King shall determine by order deliberately in the Council of Ministers the amount of the allowance as well as the special terms and conditions for granting this allowance. In the absence of such provisions, the enforcement measures of section 103quater of the Recovery Act of 22 January 1985 contain social provisions relating to the same benefit reduction regimes are applied.
This allowance has the same quality as the allowances granted under chapter IV, section 5, of the Act of 22 January 1985 containing social provisions.
In the event of a supplementary compensation by the employer, the sum of the gross salary, the allowance referred to in this section and the supplementary compensation awarded by the employer may not be higher than the gross salary to which the worker was entitled before the temporary adjustment of the working period. In this regard, it is not taken into account the adaptation of wages to the price index, nor of the bare increases.
Art. 19. The King shall, by order of the Council of Ministers, take the necessary measures to adapt the social security legislation to the benefit of workers covered by this chapter.
Section 3. - Miscellaneous provisions
Art. 20. § 1^er. Workers who, within the six months preceding the entry into force of this chapter, have applied the scheme provided for in Article 103quater of the law of 22 January 1985 containing social provisions, may, if they enter into a convention in accordance with Article 15 of this chapter, benefit from the benefit that the plan for the reduction of their work benefits is in its entirety subject to the provisions of this chapter, provided that their enterprise satisfied §
The King may by order deliberately in the Council of Ministers establish to this end specific modalities and rules.
§ 2. Conventions on a reduction of benefits in response to the crisis in accordance with section 1 of Chapter 2 cease to have any effect at the same time as the provisions of Chapter 2.
CHAPTER 3. - Temporary and collective suspension regime total or partial of contract execution
Art. 21. Employers referred to in Article 14, § 4, bound by an CLC or an approved business plan provided for in Article 14, §§ 2 and 3, may use the provisions of this chapter.
Art. 22. At least fourteen days before being able to apply section 23, the employer must by registered letter notify the unemployment office of the National Employment Office of the place where the company is located a form, the model of which is fixed by the Minister who has the Employment in his powers, by which he certifies that he meets one of the conditions set out in section 14, unless he has already notified the form referred to in section 15,^er.
When he invokes the first condition of Article 14, § 4, he encloses to this form the statements to the T.V.A. of the relevant quarters.
The same day of notification under paragraph 1^er, the employer must communicate to the board of business, or in the absence of a board of business, to the union delegation, copy of that notification.
Art. 23. § 1^er. In the event of a lack of work for employees resulting from economic causes related to the crisis, a total suspension of the performance of the employee's employment contract, or a reduced-time work plan for employees with at least two working days a week may be introduced.
The faculty provided for in paragraph 1^er may be exercised only by means of notice by display in the premises of the company, at a apparent location, at least seven days in advance, on the day of the display not included.
The notification shall indicate:
1° the names, first names and common names of the domicile of the employees whose performance of the employment contract is suspended;
2° the number of days of suspension and the dates on which the performance of the work contract will be suspended for each employee;
3° the date on which the total suspension of the performance of the contract or the reduced-time work plan will take place and the date on which the suspension or plan will end.
The display may be replaced by a written notification to each employee whose performance of the work contract is suspended, at least seven days in advance, on the notification day not included. This notification shall indicate the references referred to in paragraph 3, 2 and 3°.
Communication of the display or individual notification shall be sent by the employer on the same day of the display or individual notification to the National Employment Office electronically in accordance with the terms defined by the King in accordance with Article 51 of the Act of July 3, 1978 relating to labour contracts or in particular terms fixed for the purposes of this chapter.
§ 2. The same day of notification provided in § 1^er, paragraph 2, the employer must communicate to the board of business, or if there is no board of business, to the union delegation, the causes resulting from the crisis justifying the total suspension of the performance of the contract or the introduction of a reduced-time work regime.
§ 3. During periods of total suspension of the performance of the contract or reduced-time work referred to in this section, an employee shall be entitled to terminate the contract without notice.
§ 4. Whenever it increases the number of days of suspension initially scheduled or changes from a reduced time work plan to a period of total suspension of the performance of the contract, the employer is required to comply with the provisions of § 1^er of this article.
§ 5. For the calculation of the duration of the total suspension of the performance of the contract or of the reduced-time work plan, the duration specified by the employer in its notification shall be taken into account.
However, the employer may terminate the effect of its notification and re-establish the full-time work plan, if notified to employees by individual notification.
For the purposes of paragraph 1^er, it shall be disregarded the calendar weeks following the end of the notification in accordance with the paragraph before, if the notification is previously communicated to the National Employment Office in the forms provided for in § 1^erParagraph 5.
§ 6. The employer who does not comply with the notification procedures provided for in § 1^er, is required to pay the employee his or her normal remuneration for a period of seven days beginning on the first day of the effective suspension of the performance of the contract.
An employer who does not comply with the provisions limiting the duration of the total suspension of the performance of the contract or reduced-time work plan provided for in § 1^er, or provided by the employer in its notification, is required to pay the employee his or her normal remuneration during the period exceeding these limits.
An employer who does not comply with the provisions referred to in paragraph 1^er, is required to pay the employee his or her normal salary for a seven-day period on the first day of effective suspension of the performance of the contract; the employee is also required to pay, in the following period, for the days in which the performance of the contract has been effectively suspended under this section, a normal remuneration to which the King determines the amount.
§ 7. The employer is required, for each day in which he or she is not employed under this section, to pay a surcharge for the suspension of the performance of the employment contract due to the employee. This supplement must be at least equivalent to the supplement granted to workers of the same employer who receive unemployment benefits in the event of suspension of the performance of the employment contract pursuant to Article 51 of the Act of 3 July 1978 on employment contracts.
The amount of this supplement is fixed by collective labour agreement within the meaning of the Act of 5 December 1968 on collective labour agreements and joint boards or by the business plan as provided for in Article 14, §§ 2 and 3.
Art. 24. The performance of the employment contract may only be suspended under Article 23 when the employee has been granted every full day of compensatory rest to which he is entitled in accordance with Articles 16 and 26bis of the Labour Act of 16 March 1971, to Articles 7, § 3, and 8, § 3, of the law of 14 December 2000 fixing certain aspects of the development of working time in the public sector and to the law of 11 January 1974
The suspension referred to in paragraph 1^er must also be deferred as long as, in the case of the application of section 20bis of the Labour Act of 16 March 1971, the worker's benefits exceed the average weekly working period for the period preceding the suspension of the performance of the employment contract.
The employer may, in order to restore respect for this average weekly working period, grant full days of rest.
Art. 25. An employee and the employer may terminate the contract during the suspension of the performance under section 23.
In the event of an employee's leave before the suspension, the notice period is short during the suspension.
In the event of an employer's leave before or during the suspension, the notice period does not run during the suspension.
Art. 26. The suspension regime for the performance of the contract of employment provided for in Article 23 and the reduced working regime as referred to in Article 23, § 1^er, may be introduced for the periods provided for in CLCs or the business plan referred to in Article 14, §§ 2 and 3, respectively for a maximum of sixteen and twenty-six calendar weeks per calendar year.
Each notification must cover a calendar week or several calendar weeks for a complete suspension regime for the performance of the reduced-time work or work contract with at least two working days a week.
In the event of a combination, over the same year, of the establishment of complete suspension regimes for the performance of the contract of work and reduced-time work regimes, two weeks of reduced-time work regimes equivalent to a week of complete suspension of the performance of the contract of work.
Art. 27. § 1^er. Article 7, § 1^er, paragraph 3, of the Decree-Law of 28 December 1944 concerning the social security of workers, last amended by the law of 22 December 2008, is supplemented by a point zd) as follows:
"Zd." To ensure, with the assistance of the organizations created under (i) under the conditions and terms established by the King, the payment of a crisis allowance for suspension of the performance of the employee employment contract. This allowance is, for the purposes of this section and its enforcement orders, considered an unemployment benefit. »
§ 2. In section 53 of the Act of 26 June 2002 on business closures, paragraph 1 is supplemented by:
"The Fund is responsible for a portion of the amount of the crisis allowance for suspension of the performance of the employee employment contract paid to employees who, pursuant to Chapter 3 of Title 2 of the Act of 19 June 2009, suspend their employment contract or move to a reduced time work regime. »
CHAPTER 4. - Common provisions
Art. 28. This Title comes into force on the day of the publication of this Act to the Belgian Monitor, and ceases to be in force on 1^er January 2010.
The King may by order deliberately in the Council of Ministers and after notice of the National Labour Council. extend the application of this title until 30 June 2010 if the economic situation warrants it.
PART 3. - Restructuring cards for bankrupt business workers
Art. 29. In the Act of 20 December 1999 to grant a bonus to employment under the formula of a reduction in personal social security contributions to workers with low wages and certain workers who have been subjected to restructuring, an article 3bis/1 is inserted, as follows:
"Art. 3bis/1. The provisions of Article 3bis are also applicable to workers who are again engaged, for a specified period of time following their termination following the bankruptcy, closure or liquidation of the enterprise, to a new employer. »
Art. 30. In section 353bis of the Program Law (I) of 24 December 2002, a paragraph is inserted between paragraphs 1^er and 2, as follows:
"The provisions of paragraph 1 shall also apply to employers referred to in section 335 when they hire workers terminated following the bankruptcy, closure or liquidation of the enterprise. »
Art. 31. Title 3 comes into force on 1^er July 2009 and is applicable to workers terminated by December 31, 2009 following the bankruptcy, closure or liquidation of the company. The King may by order deliberately in the Council of Ministers and after the advice of the National Labour Council, extend the application of this title until 30 June 2010 if the economic situation justifies it. »
PART 4. - Temporary extension of the application of the Royal Decree of 18 November 1996 establishing social insurance for self-employed persons in the event of bankruptcy and assimilated persons, pursuant to articles 29 and 49 of the Act of 26 July 1996 on social security modernization and ensuring the viability of legal pension schemes
Art. 32. In the Royal Decree of 18 November 1996 establishing social insurance for self-employed persons in the event of bankruptcy and persons assimilated, pursuant to articles 29 and 49 of the Act of 26 July 1996 on the modernization of social security and ensuring the viability of legal pension schemes is inserted an article 2bis, as follows:
"Art. 2bis. Insurance under section 1^er is also applicable, within the limits of articles 4, § 1, 1°, 2° and 5°, and 7, under the conditions and procedures to be determined by the King by decree deliberately in the Council of Ministers, to the independent workers in difficulty for up to six months.
"Independent in difficulty" means:
- the independents who are subject to a judicial reorganization within the meaning of the Act of 31 January 2009 on business continuity, as well as the active managers, administrators and associates of a commercial corporation that is subject to such a judicial reorganization;
- the independents who are unable to meet their outstanding debts or debts still failing to comply with the meaning of the Act of 5 July 1998 on the collective settlement of debts and the possibility of the sale of the seized immovable property voluntarily;
- the independents faced with a considerable decrease in turnover or income that puts them in an economic situation such as a risk of bankruptcy or distrust.
The King defines, by deliberate decree in the Council of Ministers, the independents referred to in the previous paragraph. »
Art. 33. In section 6 of the same Royal Decree amended by the Act of 24 January 2002, the words "before the end of the quarter following that in which the declarative judgment of bankruptcy was pronounced" are replaced by the words "before the end of the second quarter following that in which the declarative judgment of bankruptcy was pronounced. »
Art. 34. Section 32 comes into force on the day of the publication of this Act to the Belgian Monitor and is applicable to applications filed until 31 December 2009 inclusive.
Section 33 is applicable to declarative judgments of bankruptcy between 1^er July 2009 and 1^er January 2010.
The King may, by order deliberately in the Council of Ministers, extend the application of section 32 to requests made until 30 June 2010 inclusive.
The King may, by order deliberately in the Council of Ministers, extend the application of Article 33 to the declarative judgments of bankruptcy pronounced until 30 June 2010 inclusive. »
Art. 35. Promulgation of this law, let us order that it be clothed with the seal of the State and published by the Belgian Monitor.
Given in Brussels on 19 June 2009.
ALBERT
By the King:
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Employment and Equal Opportunities,
Ms. J. MILQUET
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Social Affairs and Public Health,
Ms. L. ONKELINX
Minister of P.M.E., Independents, Agriculture and Science Policy,
Mrs. S. LARUELLE
Seal of the state seal:
Minister of Justice,
S. DE CLERCK
Note
Documents of the House of Representatives:
52-2003 - 2008/2009
No. 1: Bill
No. 2: Amendments
Number 3: Report
No. 4: Text adopted by the Commission
No. 5: Amendments
No. 6: Supplementary report
No. 7: Text adopted by the Commission
No. 8: Text adopted in plenary and transmitted to the Senate
Full report: 28 May 2009.
Documents of the Senate
4-1343 - 2008/2009:
No. 1: Project not referred to by the Senate.