The Hungarian government has carried into effect the Hungarian rules of “Kurzarbeit” from 10th April 2020 for the purpose of supporting Hungarian employers to maintain their staff and employees to keep their jobs during the period of the emergency situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemia. The regulations of “Kurzarbeit” have been modified from 29th April 2020 that expanded the circle of applicants who are eligible to the aid and the proceeding for the aid has been simplified. The purpose of the present arcticle is to provide information about the current rules of “Kurzarbeit” in Hungary.
GENERAL CONDITIONS OF APPLYING FOR THE AID
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The employer shall employ the employee in reduced working hours.
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The definition of reduced working hours: parties modify the labour contract during the emergency situation to part-time job so that the working hours will be at least 25% but maximum 85% of the working hours before the modification.
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The parties are not obliged to modify the labour contract in this context, because it will be automatically modified by the decision on the appliction for the aid with the content of the application (so regarding the decreased working hours and the individual development time). This is only a possibility, the parties are entitled to modify their labour contract before applying for the aid.
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The application shall be submitted jointly by the employer and the employee.
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The employee is entitled to the aid.
Conditions of the aid:
The employee
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doesn’t receive any other supports related to the part-time employment,
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the employment relation between the employer and the employee has been established at least on the first day of the emergency situation,
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the employee is not filling his/her notice (termination) period.
The employer
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employs the employee in reduced working hours (part-time job that is at least 25% but maximum 85% of the working hours before the modification) – remote working and homes office is included – for the purpose of avoiding decreasing the number of employees,
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operates at least for 6 months.
Amount of the aid
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The aid may be provided for the period after the day of submitting the application. The duration of the aid is 3 months.
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The amount of the aid is 70% of the proportional net base salary calculated for the loss of working hours.
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By the time of calculating the monthly amount of the aid the net base salary shall not exceed the double of the net amount of the lowest compulsory wage (minimum wage).
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The aid will be transferred for the employee monthly posteriorly. The aid shall not be provided for the period of the unpaid leave. The aid is free of tax.
Obligations in connection with the aid
The employer and the employee shall agree on
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reduced working hours and
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individual development time beyond the decreased working hours at least for the period of the aid if the reduced working hours exceed the 50% of the working hours before the modification.
If the decreased working hours do not exceed the 50% of the working hours before the modification the employee and the employer may agree on individual development time (so this is a possibility and not an obligation in such a case).
The employee undertakes
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to work in decreased working hours that causes loss of income,
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that if she/he establishes a new employment relation beyond the employment relation indicated in the application for the aid, the new employment relation will not inhibit the employee to work in the original working hours after the period of the aid
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that he/she will be available for the employer during the period of the individual development time.
Furthermore, the employer undertakes
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to maintain the number of employees for the period of the aid and for one month afterwards. The deifinition of maintaining the number of employees hase been modified: the employer is obliged to maintain the employment relation for the above period only with the employee who submits the application together with the employer for the purpose of maintaining the employment relation.
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that no extraordinary work shall be ordered for the supported emloyee during the period of the aid,
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to report to the local employment authority any modifications connected to the conditions of the aid or to the period of the reduced woring hours within 2 business days,
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that the salary of the employee during the period of the aid will reach the base salary of the employee together with the aid except for if the reduced working hours do not exceed the 50% of the working hours before the modification,
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to pay salary for the period of the individual development time except for the reduced working hours do not exceed the 50% of the working hours before the modification.
The employer undertakes by submitting the application that if it does not fulfil the obligation of maintenance of the number of employees (that lasts for the period of the aid and for one further month), the employer has an obligation for payment to the National Employment Fund in proportion to the non-fulfillment of the obligation. The employer will be relieved from this obligation if it justifies that the employment relation has been terminated for the reason of the termination of the employer without legal successor or with the immediate termination of the employer or the termination by ordinary notice of the employee.
The employee shall refund the aid if it should have not been provided for him/her because of the lack of conditions related to the employee.
The employer shall fulfil a payment in the amount of the provided aid if the aid should have not been provided for its employee because of the lack of conditions related to the employer.
Other conditions of providing the aid
The aid shall be provided if the retention of the employees is in the national economic interest related to its continuous economic activity.
Way of applying for the aid
The application shall be submitted during the emergency situation or within one month after the end of the emergency situation electronically through the website of the National Employment Service.
If the employer submits the appplication together with more employees working in the same place of business, such applications shall be submitted concurrently. In case of one place of business only one application shall be submitted. The application shall be submitted for each employees only for one place of business.
Termination of the aid
The aid will be terminated
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if the employer and the employee submits a request for the termination in a join statement,
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if the employer’s labour relation will be terminated
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if the employer does not fulfil any of his/her obligation connected to the aid
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if the employer does not fulfil any of his/her obligation connected to the aid
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if the decreased working hours will be modified during the period of the aid
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if the aid sould have not been provided in the lack of the legal conditions.
