Transparent and predictable working conditions in the EU

The European Union (EU) enacted Directive (2019/1152) on Transparent and Predictable Working Conditions (the “Directive”). The Directive provides more extensive and updated rights and protection for the 182 million workers in the EU.

Following the Directive, workers in the EU will, among other things, have the right to:

• More complete information on the essential aspects of their work, to be received in writing and early in their employment period
• A limit to the length of any probationary period
• Take up an additional job with another employer (with any restrictions on this right need to be justified on objective grounds)
• Be informed with reasonable notice when work will have to be carried out (especially for workers with unpredictable working schedules and those contracted for “on-demand” work); and
• Receive cost-free mandatory training related to the job as the employer has a duty to provide this

The deadline for transposing the Directive into local law was 1 August 2022.

The Directive contributes to the implementation of several principles in the European Pillar of Social Rights. We can therefore see that this is something that closely correlates to the increased focus on Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) within workforce-related areas. Multi-national corporations are now having to contend with calls to action from employees, investors, regulators, and other stakeholders.

With the transposition of the Directive, employers doing business in EU jurisdictions will need to revisit their standard employment agreement templates, employee handbooks and onboarding processes to ensure that sufficient information is provided to employees. However, local implementation of the Directive varies and ensuring compliance may, therefore, be more complex than using a one-size-fits-all policy across the EU.

In this edition of EY’s Global Labor and Employment Law Strategic Guide, we summarize how the Directive has been implemented in 22 European jurisdictions and guide you on how to stay on top of the new regulations.