In this article, we will deal with the new regulations on home office work or so-called remote working. The applicable legislation in this matter is the Bulgarian Labour Code (LC) and the Health and Safety at Work Act (HSW Act).
Home office work is a form of organising the performance of employment using ‘information technologies’. The legal regulations are contained in Chapter Five, Section VIII ‘b’ Art. 107h - 107m LC.
The special aspect of this kind of employment is that the workplace is not defined as ‘the employee's/worker's home’, but as ‘outside the employer's premises’, in that information technologies are necessarily used for its performance, including in particular the use of software, hardware and an electronic data carrier connected to the network enabling electronic and digital data transmission.
I. Changes in the Labour Code
On 29 March 2024, legal changes related to the legal regulation of home office work and ensuring health and safety in the performance of such employment came into force. In this article, we will look at the main changes.
In accordance with the changes, the specific workplace must be defined in the individual employment contract, whereby several workplaces may be agreed in accordance with Art. 107 h para. 8 LC. At the written request of the employee or staff member, the employer is authorised to change the workplace for up to 30 working days per year, subject to the conditions and modalities stipulated in the employment contract and/or the company's internal regulations.
Art. 107h para. 9 LC obliges the employer to establish regulations defining the assignment and settlement of home office work as well as the content, scope, results achieved and other features essential for the settlement of the work performed. If home office work is allocated and accounted for via an information system, the employer must provide the employee or staff member with written instructions on the type and scope of the work-related data to be recorded, processed and stored therein.
Pursuant to Art. 107i para. 3 LC, the employer must ensure that the workplace is equipped with work-related and technical equipment. The obligations of the employer to provide technical equipment; to provide consumables; to ensure the protection of the personal data of the parties involved and to ensure the connection between the home office worker or employee by means of communication devices, including by means of an Internet connection, are listed in detail there. The amendments also impose additional obligations on employers, such as providing information on the minimum health and safety requirements for the workplace where home office work is carried out; information and requirements on the operation of equipment and its proper maintenance, as well as on the legal requirements and regulations, including those of the company in the field of personal data protection, which are processed during home office work; on the installation of a monitoring system, if such a system is required at the workplace and the written consent of the employee or employee has been received; in these cases, their right to privacy must be strictly respected. However, para. 5 of the provision allows for an agreement on the use of private devices by the employee/worker with the resulting rights and obligations of the contracting parties.
With regard to employees performing home office work, Art. 107k also imposes additional obligations on them, which include the provision of written data to the employer on the characteristics of the remote workplace provided by them, by obliging the employer in para. 3 of the article to take measures to ensure that the home office workplaces meet the minimum requirements for occupational safety and health contained in the Health and Safety at Work Act on the day the employment relationship comes into force or changes.
One of the most important changes from 29 March 2024 relates to working hours and their organisation during home office work. According to Art. 107 l para. 3 LC, the home office worker or employee must plan their working hours independently so that they are also available during the times when the employer is communicating with third parties. The actual work performed can be accounted for using an automated working time recording system. The employer is obliged to grant the home office worker or employee access to the data from the working time recording system upon request. The home office workers or employees may freely determine the breaks during their working hours in accordance with the provisions of the Labour Code, the Health and Safety at Work Act and the relevant implementing regulations, as well as with the agreements contained in the individual employment contract and/or collective agreement.
II. Amendments to the Health and Safety at Work Act
The amendments to the Labour Code were accompanied by changes to the Health and Safety at Work Act.
The employer was obliged to provide appropriate training and instructions on health and safety at work in accordance with the specifics of the workplace and the remote worker's occupation, namely:
a) when taking up work;
b) when transferring to another workplace or when changing work tasks;
c) when introducing new or changing work equipment and procedures.
The employer must pay for all training provided during working hours by regularly carrying out training and briefings, taking into account new or changed risks. In view of these obligations of employers, home office workers and employees are required to refuse access to the workplace during working hours and/or in accordance with the agreements in the individual employment contract and/or collective agreement only for essential reasons.
Supervision of the proper enforcement of and compliance with occupational health and safety requirements and regulations is carried out as follows:
- Home office workers and employees are entitled to request an inspection of their home office workplace from the relevant ‘Labour Inspectorate’ directorate;
- The employer and/or his representative, the representatives of the employers' liability insurance associations, the employee and staff representatives within the meaning of Art. 7 Para. 2 LC and the supervisory bodies for occupational health and safety have a right of access to the home office workplace within the framework of the agreements made in the individual employment contract and/or the collective agreement by informing the home office employee and staff member in advance and obtaining his consent.