Codul Muncii tradus

:!: LAW No. 53 of 24 January 2003
Labour Code
EMITTER: THE PARLIAMENT OF ROMANIA
PUBLISHED IN: THE OFFICIAL GAZETTE OF ROMANIA No. 72 of 5 February 2003

It must be specified that the only text which shall produce legal effects is the text in the Romanian language.

TITLE I
General provisions

CHAPTER I
Scope of application

ART. 1
(1) The present code regulates all the individual and collective labour relations, the manner in which the control of the implementation of labour relations regulations takes place, as well as labour jurisdiction.
(2) The present code also applies to the labour relations regulated by special laws, only in so far as the latter do not contain derogatory specific provisions.
ART. 2
The provisions contained in the present code apply to:
a) Romanian citizens who are employed under an individual labour contract and who work in Romania;
B) Romanian citizens employed under an individual labour contract abroad, based on contracts concluded with a Romanian employer, except when the legislation of the state on the territory of which the individual labour contract is performed is more favourable;
c) foreign or stateless citizens employed under an individual labour contract, who work for a Romanian employer on the territory of Romania;
d) persons who have acquired the refugee status and are employed under an individual labour contract on the territory of Romania, according to the law;
e) apprentices who work based on an on-the-job apprenticeship contract;
f) employers who are natural or legal entities;
g) trade unions or employers' organisations.

CHAPTER II
Fundamental principles

ART. 3
(1) The freedom to work is guaranteed by the Constitution. The right to work shall not be restricted.
(2) All persons shall be free to choose their work place and profession, trade, or activity to carry out.
(3) No one can be obliged to work or not to work in a certain work place or profession, whatever these might be.
(4) Any labour contract concluded in violation of the provisions of paragraphs (1) - (3) shall be null de jure.
ART. 4
(1) Forced labour shall be prohibited.
(2) The term forced labour designates any work or service imposed on a person under threat or for which the person in question has not given his/her free consent.
(3) The work or activity imposed by the public authorities shall not be seen as forced labour:
a) in compliance with the law concerning the mandatory military service;
B) in the discharge of the civic obligations set up by the law;
c) in accordance with a final judicial decision of conviction;
d) in case of absolute necessity, i.e. in the event of a war, catastrophe or risk of catastrophe such as: fires, floods, earthquakes, violent epidemics or epizootics, invasions of animals or insects, and, in general, under all circumstances jeopardising life or the normal living conditions of most of the population or of part of it.
ART. 5
(1) Within the framework of work relations, the principle of the equality of treatment for all employees and employers shall apply.
(2) Any direct or indirect discrimination against an employee, based on criteria such as sex, sexual orientation, genetic characteristics, age, national origin, race, colour, ethnic origin, religion, political options, social origin, disability, family conditions or responsibilities, union membership or activity, shall be prohibited.
(3) A direct discrimination shall be represented by actions and facts of exclusion, differentiation, restriction, or preference, based on one or several of the criteria stipulated under paragraph (2), the purpose or effect of which is the failure to grant, the restriction or rejection of the recognition, use, or exercise of the rights stipulated in the labour legislation.
(4) An indirect discrimination shall be represented by actions and facts apparently based on other criteria than those stipulated under paragraph (2), but which cause the effects of a direct discrimination to take place.
ART. 6
(1) Any employee who performs a work shall benefit from adequate work conditions for the activity carried out, social security, labour safety and health, as well as the observance of his/her dignity and conscience, without any discrimination.
(2) All employees who perform a work shall have recognised their right to equal payment for equal work, their right to collective negotiations, their right to personal data protection, as well as their right to protection from unlawful dismissals.
ART. 7
Employees and employers can associate freely for the defence of their rights and the promotion of their vocational, economic, and social interests.
ART. 8
(1) Labour relations are based on the principle of consensus and good faith.
(2) To ensure a proper progress of labour relations the participants in labour relations shall inform and consult one another, in compliance with the law and the collective labour contracts.
ART. 9
The Romanian citizens are free to be employed in member countries of the European Union, as well as in any other state, provided they comply with the norms of international labour law and the bilateral treaties Romania is a party to.

TITLE II
Individual labour contract

CHAPTER I
Conclusion of the individual labour contract

ART. 10
An individual labour contract is a contract based on which a natural entity, called employee, undertakes to perform work for and under the authority of an employer, who is a natural or legal entity, in return for a remuneration, called wages.
ART. 11
The clauses of the individual labour contract cannot contain contrary provisions or rights below the minimum level set up by laws or collective labour contracts.
ART. 12
(1) An individual labour contract shall be concluded for an indefinite term.
(2) As an exception, an individual labour contract can also be concluded for a definite term, under the conditions expressly stipulated by the law.
ART. 13
(1) A natural entity shall be allowed to work after having turned 16 years of age.
(2) A legal entity can also conclude a labour contract, as an employee, after turning 15 years of age, based on his/her parents' or legal representatives' consent, for activities in accordance with his/her physical development, aptitudes and knowledge, unless this places under risk his/her health, development, and vocational training.
(3) Employment of persons under the age of 15 is prohibited.
(4) Employment of persons placed under court interdiction is prohibited.
(5) Employment in difficult, harmful, or dangerous work places shall only take place after the person has turned 18 years of age; such work places shall be established in a Government decision.
ART. 14
(1) For the purposes of this code, employer means a natural or legal entity who can employ, according to the law, labour force based on an individual labour contract.
(2) A legal entity can conclude individual labour contracts, as an employer, after having acquired that legal status.
(3) A natural entity can conclude individual labour contracts, as an employer, after having acquired the capacity to exercise.
ART. 15
It is prohibited, under penalty of absolute nullity, to conclude an individual labour contract for the purpose of performing an illicit or immoral work or activity.
ART. 16
(1) An individual labour contract shall be concluded based on the parties' consent, in written form, in Romanian. The employer has the obligation to conclude the individual labour contract in written form.
(2) If the individual labour contract has not been concluded in written form, the presumption is that it has been concluded for an indefinite term, and the parties can give proof of contract provisions and work performed through any other elements of proof.
(3) The work performed based on an individual labour contract gives the employee length of service.
ART. 17
(1) Prior to the conclusion or amendment of an individual labour contract, the employer must inform the person applying for employment or the employee, as the case may be, about the general clauses he intends to include in the contract or to amend.
(2) The information stipulated under paragraph (1) shall comprise, as the case may be, the following elements at least:
a) the identity of the parties;
B) the work place or, in the absence of a stable work place, the possibility that the employee may work in various places;
c) the employer's head office/or, as the case may be, residence;
d) the duties of the job;
e) the typical risks of the job;
f) the date from which the contract is to take effect;
g) in the event of a labour contract for a definite term or a temporary labour contract, the duration thereof;
h) the duration of the annual leave the employee is entitled to;
i) the conditions under which the contracting parties can give notice and the duration thereof;
j) the basic wages, other elements of the earned income, as well as the periodicity of the payment of wages the employee is entitled to;
k) the normal work period expressed in hours per day and hours per week;
l) the mention of the collective labour contract regulating the work conditions for the employee;
m) the length of the trial period.
(3) The elements in the information stipulated under paragraph (2) shall also be found in the contents of the individual labour contract.
(4) Any change in any of the elements stipulated under paragraph (2) during the performance of the individual labour contract shall require the conclusion of a rider to the contract, within 15 days from the employee being notified in writing, except for circumstances when such a change is made possible by the law or the applicable collective labour contract.
(5) As regards the information provided to the employee, prior to the conclusion of the individual labour contract, the parties can enter into a confidentiality agreement.
ART. 18
(1) If the employee is to carry out his/her activity abroad, the employer shall provide him/her, in due time, with the information stipulated under Article 17 (2), including information regarding:
a) the duration of the work period to be performed abroad;
B) the currency in which his/her wages are to be paid, as well as the methods of payment;
c) the payments in money and/or in kind related to the activity carried out abroad;
d) the climate conditions;
e) the main regulations in that country's labour legislation;
f) the local customs the non-observance of which might endanger the employee's life, freedom, or personal safety.
(2) Special laws regulating the typical work conditions abroad shall complement the provisions of paragraph (1).
ART. 19
If the employer does not comply with his obligation to inform the employee within 15 days from the time of launching the offer for the termination or amendment of the individual labour contract, or, as the case may be, of the performance of the activity abroad, the employee shall be entitled to notify, within 30 days, the competent court of law and ask for compensation corresponding to the damage caused to him/her as a result of the non-fulfilment by the employer of his obligation to inform him/her.
ART. 20
(1) Besides the general clauses stipulated under Article 17, the parties can also negotiate and include other specific clauses in the individual labour contract.
(2) The following are regarded as specific clauses, the enumeration thereof not being restrictive:
a) the clause on vocational formation;
B) the non-competition clause;
c) the mobility clause;
d) the confidentiality clause.
ART. 21
(1) The non-competition clause shall force the employee not to perform, for his/her own interest or that of a third party, an activity which is competing with the one performed for his/her employer, or an activity for the benefit of a third party which is in competition with his/her employer and forces the employer to pay a monthly allowance to the employee.
(2) The non-competition clause shall only take effect if the individual labour contract clearly stipulates the activities the employee is prohibited from performing for the duration of the contract.
(3) The allowance due to the employee shall be negotiated and shall be at least 25% of the wages. The allowance must be paid in full and in time.
(4) The non-competition clause shall not operate during the trial period.
ART. 22
(1) The non-competition clause shall no longer operate on the date of termination of the individual labour contract.
(2) As an exception to the provisions of paragraph (1), the non-competition clause can also apply after the termination of the individual labour contract, for a period of 6 months at the most, when executive positions are involved, and 2 years at the most, for those having been in management positions, if such a period has been expressly agreed upon in the individual labour contract.
(3) The provisions of paragraph (2) shall not apply when the termination of the individual labour contract has taken place de jure or based on the initiative of the employer, for reasons which cannot be imputed to the employee.
ART. 23
(1) The non-competition clause cannot have as effect the employee's absolutely prohibition from exercising his/her profession or specialty.
(2) Based on a notification by the employee or the territorial factory inspectorate, the competent court of law can diminish the effects of the non-competition clause.
ART. 24
In the event of the employee having wrongly violated the non-competition clause, he/she can be obliged to return the allowance and, as the case may be, pay damages corresponding to the loss caused by him/her to the employer.
ART. 25
In the mobility clause, the parties in the individual labour contract stipulate that, considering the typical features of the work, the performance of the job duties by the employee shall not take place in a stable work place. In this case, the employee shall benefit from additional cash payments or payments in kind.
ART. 26
(1) In the confidentiality clause, the parties shall agree that, throughout the duration of the performance of the individual labour contract and after the termination thereof, they shall not transmit data or information they have learnt during the performance of the contract, under the terms set by the company's rules and regulations, in collective labour contracts or individual labour contracts.
(2) The non-compliance with this clause by either of the parties entails the obligation of the party at fault to pay damages.
ART. 27
(1) A person shall only be employed based on a medical certificate, which finds that the person in question is fit to perform that work.
(2) The failure to comply with the provisions of paragraph (1) causes the individual labour contract to become null.
(3) If the employee submits the medical certificate after the time of conclusion of the individual labour contract, and the contents of the certificate prove the person in question is fit for work, the contract thus concluded remains valid.
(4) The competence for and the procedure of issuing the medical certificate, as well as the sanctions applicable to the employer for employing or changing the work place or type of work without a medical certificate shall be stipulated by special laws.
(5) It is prohibited to require pregnancy tests on hiring a person.
(6) When employing a person in the fields of health, public catering, education, and other fields stipulated by the laws, typical medical tests may be required.
ART. 28
A medical certificate is also compulsory under the following circumstances:
a) when restarting work after an interruption exceeding 6 months, for jobs with exposure to occupational noxious factors, and one year, in the other cases;
B) in the event of a secondment or transfer to another work place or activity;
c) when beginning the assignment, in the case of employees hired under a temporary labour contract;
d) in the case of apprentices, probationers, and school or college students, if they are to be trained per trades and professions, as well as when changing trade during the training;
e) periodically, in the case of persons who work under exposure to occupational noxious factors, according to the regulations of the Ministry of Health and Family;
f) periodically, in the case of persons who perform activities showing a risk of transmitting diseases and who work in the food and animal-breeding sectors, in drinking water supply units, in children's collectivities, or in medical institutions, according to the regulations of the Ministry of Health and Family;
g) periodically, in the case of persons who work in institutions without risk factors, by means of medical examinations differentiated per age, gender, and health condition, according to the regulations in the collective labour contracts.
ART. 29
(1) The individual labour contract shall be concluded after a preliminary check of the professional and personal abilities of the person applying for the job.
(2) The ways in which the check stipulated under paragraph (1) is to take place shall be set up in the applicable collective labour contract, in the personnel status (professional or disciplinary), and in the company's rules and regulations, unless the law stipulates otherwise.
(3) The purpose of the information requested, under any form, by the employer from the person applying for a job on the occasion of the preliminary check of abilities can only be for assessing his/her capacity to be in that position, as well as his/her professional abilities.
(4) The employer can request information about the person applying for a job from his/her former employers, but only as regards the duties carried out and the length of that employment, and provided the person in question has been informed in advance.
ART. 30
(1) In public institutions and authorities, and other budgetary institutions, personnel employment can only take place based on a contest or examination, as the case may be.
(2) Vacancies existing in the list of positions shall be opened to contest, depending on the needs of each institution stipulated under paragraph (1).
(3) If, for the contest organised for filling a vacancy, several candidates have not entered the contest, the employment shall be decided by an examination.
(4) The terms for organising a contest/examination and the manner in which it takes place shall be set by the regulations approved in a Government decision.
ART. 31
(1) To check the abilities of the employee, on the conclusion of the individual labour contract, a trial period of 30 calendar days at the most may be established for executive positions, and 90 calendar days at the most for management positions.
(2) The check of professional abilities when employing disabled persons shall be based only on a trial period of 30 calendar days at the most.
(3) As far as unskilled workers are concerned, the trial period shall be exceptional and shall not exceed 5 working days.
(4) Graduates of education institutions shall be employed, at the beginning of the employment in their profession, based on a trial period of 3 to 6 months.
(5) During the trial period, the employee enjoys all the rights and has all the obligations stipulated in the labour legislation, the applicable collective labour contract, the company's rules and regulations, as well as the individual labour contract.
ART. 32
(1) During the performance of an individual labour contract, there can be only one trial period.
(2) As an exception, an employee can be subjected to a new trial period if he/she starts a new position or profession with the same employer, or is to perform his/her activity in a work place under difficult, harmful, or dangerous conditions.
(3) The failure to inform the employee, before the conclusion or amendment of the individual labour contract, about the trial period, within the term set under Article 17 (4), causes the employer to be disqualified from checking the employee's abilities by such means.
(4) The trial period shall represent length of service.
ART. 33
It is prohibited to successively employ more than three persons for trial periods for the same position.
ART. 34
(1) Each employer must establish a general book of the employees.
(2) The general book of the employees shall be first registered with the competent public authority, according to the law, which has jurisdiction over the employer's residence or head office, respectively, after which date it becomes an official document.
(3) The general book of the employees shall be filled out in order of employment and shall comprise the identification elements of all employees, the elements characterising their labour contracts, as well as all situations which occur during the performance of work relations in connection with the execution, amendment, suspension or termination of the individual labour contract.
(4) The general book of the employees shall be kept at the employer's residence or head office, respectively, and it shall be placed at the disposal of the factory inspector or any other authority requesting it, according to the law.
(5) At the employee's request, the employer must issue a document attesting the former's activity, length of service in his/her trade and specialty.
(6) In case of termination of the employer's activity, the general book of the employees shall be deposited with the competent public authority, according to the law, which has jurisdiction over the employer's residence or head office, respectively, as the case may be.
(7) The methodology for preparing the general book of the employees, the recordings to be made, as well as any other elements related to making them shall be stipulated in a Government decision.
ART. 35
(1) Any employee shall be entitled to hold concurrently several positions, based on individual labour contracts, with the adequate wages for each of them.
(2) Exceptions to the provisions of paragraph (1) shall be the cases when the law stipulates incompatibilities for holding concurrently some positions.
(3) Employees who hold concurrently several positions shall have to declare to each employer the place where he/she exercises the position he/she deems as basic.
ART. 36
Foreign and stateless citizens can be employed under an individual labour contract based on the work permit issued according to the law.

CHAPTER II
Execution of the individual labour contract

ART. 37
The rights and obligations concerning the work relations between the employer and the employee shall be established according to the law, by negotiation, within the collective labour contracts and individual labour contracts.
ART. 38
Employees cannot give up their rights recognised by the law. Any transaction whose aim is to give up the rights recognised by the law to employees or to limit such rights shall be rendered void.
ART. 39
(1) The employee's main rights are as follows:
a) the right to receive wages for the work performed;
B) the right to a daily and weekly rest;
c) the right to an annual holiday;
d) the right to equal chances and treatment;
e) the right to dignity of labour;
f) the right to labour safety and health;
g) the right of access to vocational training;
h) the right to information and consultation;
i) the right to take part in the determination and improvement of the work conditions and environment;
j) the right to protection as far as dismissal is concerned;
k) the right to collective and individual negotiation;
l) the right to participate in collective actions;
m) the right to establish or join a trade union.
(2) The employee's main obligations are as follows:
a) the obligation to accomplish his/her work load or, as the case may be, to meet his/her duties according to the job description;
B) the obligation to observe work discipline;
c) the obligation to observe the provisions of the company's rules and regulations, of the applicable collective labour contract, as well as of the individual labour contract;
d) the obligation of fidelity to the employer in performing his/her job duties;
e) the obligation to observe labour safety and health in the company;
f) the obligation to observe the professional secrecy.
ART. 40
(1) The employer's main rights are as follows:
a) to set up the organisation and operation of the company;
B) to establish the duties of each employee, according to the law;
c) to issue mandatory orders to the employee, provided these are legal;
d) to exert control over the way in which the job duties are carried out;
e) to find whether departures from discipline have taken place and to inflict the adequate sanctions, according to the law, the applicable collective labour contract, and the company's rules and regulations.
(2) The employer's main obligations are as follows:
a) to inform the employees on the work conditions and elements regarding the progress of work relations;
B) to provide permanently the technical and organisational conditions envisaged when the work loads had been devised, and the adequate work conditions;
c) to grant the employees all the rights deriving from the law, the applicable collective labour contract, and the individual labour contracts;
d) to inform periodically the employees about the company's economic and financial position;
e) to consult with the trade union or, as the case may be, the employees' representatives on the decisions likely to affect substantially their rights and interests;
f) to pay all the contributions and taxes which fall upon him, as well as to withhold and transfer the contributions and taxes due by the employees, according to the law;
g) to establish the general book of the employees and make the recordings stipulated by the law;
h) to issue, on request, all the documents attesting the petitioner's employee status;
i) to make sure the employees' personal data are confidential.

CHAPTER III
Amendments to the individual labour contract

ART. 41
(1) The individual labour contract can only be amended based on the parties' consent.
(2) As an exception, the unilateral amendment of the individual labour contract shall only be possible in the cases and under the conditions stipulated by the present code.
(3) Amendments to the individual labour contract shall refer to any of the following elements:
a) length of the contract;
B) work place;
c) kind of work;
d) work conditions;
e) wages;
f) working time and rest time.
ART. 42
(1) The work place can be modified unilaterally by the employer by delegating or temporarily seconding the employee to a work place other than the one stipulated in the individual labour contract.
(2) During the delegation or secondment, respectively, the employee shall preserve his/her position and all the other rights stipulated in the individual labour contract.
ART. 43
The delegation represents the temporary exercise by the employee, based on the employer's order, of works or assignments corresponding to the job duties, outside his/her work place.
ART. 44
(1) The delegation can be ordered for a period not exceeding 60 days, and can be extended, based on the employee's consent, by 60 days at the most.
(2) The delegated employee shall be entitled to the payment of travelling and accommodation expenses, as well as of a delegation allowance, under the terms of the law or of the applicable collective labour contract.
ART. 45
The secondment is the action whereby a temporary change in the work place is provided for, based on the employer's order, with another employer, for the purpose of performing some works in the latter's interest. In this exceptional case, a secondment can also mean a change in the kind of work, but only based on the employee's written consent.
ART. 46
(1) A secondment can be ordered for a period not exceeding one year.
(2) In this exceptional case, the period of the secondment can be extended for objective reasons requiring the employee's presence with the employer who ordered the secondment, based on both parties' consent, every six months.
(3) The employee can decline the secondment ordered by his/her employer only in exceptional cases, and for good personal grounds.
(4) The seconded employee shall be entitled to the payment of travelling and accommodation expenses, as well as of a secondment allowance, under the terms of the law or of the applicable collective labour contract.
ART. 47
(1) The employer with whom the secondment has been ordered shall grant the rights due to the seconded employee.
(2) For the duration of the secondment, the employee shall enjoy the more favourable rights, either those coming from the employer who ordered the secondment, or those coming from the employer to whom he was seconded.
(3) The employer ordering the secondment shall be under on obligation to take the necessary steps so that the employer to whom the secondment has been ordered meets all the obligations to the seconded employee fully and in due time.
(4) If the employer to whom the secondment has been ordered does not meet all the obligations to the seconded employee fully and in due time, such obligations shall be met by the employer having ordered the secondment.
(5) If there is disagreement between the two employers or if none of them meets his obligations according to the provisions of paragraphs (1) and (2), the seconded employee is entitled to return to his/her work place with the employer having seconded him/her, to take action against either of the two employers, and to ask for the enforced fulfilment of the obligations.
ART. 48
The employer can temporarily change the place and kind of work, without the employee's consent, also in case of absolute necessity, as a disciplinary sanction, or as a measure for protecting the employee, in the cases and under the terms stipulated by the present code.

CHAPTER IV
Suspension of the individual labour contract

ART. 49
(1) The suspension of the individual labour contract can take place de jure, based on the parties' consent, or through the unilateral action of one of the parties.
(2) The suspension of the individual labour contract has as an effect the suspension of the performance of work by the employee and of the payment of the wage entitlements by the employer.
(3) Throughout the suspension, other parties' rights and obligations than those stipulated under paragraph (2) can go on existing unless otherwise stipulated by special laws, the applicable collective labour contract, individual labour contracts, or the company's rules and regulations.
(4) In the event of the individual labour contract being suspended because of a fact imputable to the employee, throughout the suspension the latter shall not enjoy any of the rights deriving from his/her position as employee.
ART. 50
The individual labour contract shall be suspended de jure under the following circumstances:
a) maternity leave;
B) leave for temporary industrial disablement;
c) quarantine;
d) compulsory military service;
e) exercise of managerial functions within an executive, legislative, or court authority, throughout the term of office;
f) holding a paid management position in a trade union;
g) case of absolute necessity;
h) if the employee is taken into preventive custody according to the rules of criminal procedure;
i) in other cases expressly stipulated by the law.
ART. 51
The individual labour contract can be suspended on the employee's initiative, under the following circumstances:
a) leave for raising a child up to the age of 2, or, in case of a disabled child, up to the age of 3;
B) leave for looking after a sick child up to the age of 7 or, in case of a disabled child, for intercurrent diseases, up to the age of 18;
c) paternal leave;
d) vocational training leave;
e) exercise of elected positions within vocational bodies established at the central or local level, for the entire term of office;
f) participation in a strike;
g) absences without leave.
ART. 52
(1) The individual labour contract can be suspended on the employer's initiative under the following circumstances:
a) during a preliminary disciplinary inquiry, according to the law;
B) as a disciplinary sanction;
c) if the employer has lodged a penal complaint against the employee or the latter has been sent to trial for criminal actions inconsistent with his/her position, until a final judgment is delivered;
d) in the event of a temporary discontinuance of business, without the termination of the labour relationship, especially for economic, technological, structural reasons and the like;
e) for the duration of the secondment.
(2) As far as the cases stipulated under paragraph (1) c) are concerned, if the person in question is proved innocent, the employee shall resume his/her previous activity and an indemnity shall be paid to him/her equal to the wages and other entitlements he/she was deprived of during the contract suspension.
ART. 53
(1) For the duration of the temporary discontinuance of the employer's business, the employees shall benefit from an allowance, paid from the wage fund, which cannot be less than 75% of the basic wage corresponding to that work place.
(2) For the duration of the temporary discontinuance stipulated under paragraph (1), the employees shall be at the disposal of the employer, who can, at any time, order the activity to be resumed.
ART. 54
The individual labour contract can be suspended, based on the parties' consent, in case of unpaid leaves for studies or for personal interests.

CHAPTER V
Termination of the individual labour contract

ART. 55
The individual labour contract can be terminated as follows:
a) de jure;
B) based on the parties' consent, on the date agreed upon;
c) as a result of the unilateral will of one of the parties, in the cases and under the terms limitedly stipulated by the law.

Section 1
De jure termination of the individual labour contract

ART. 56
The individual labour contract is de jure terminated:
a) on the date of the death of the employee or employer, if he/she is a natural entity;
B) on the date a final judgment is delivered, declaring the death or placing under interdiction of the employee or of the employer, if he/she is a natural entity, and if this causes the business liquidation;
c) as a result of the dissolution of the employer, if this is a legal entity, from the date the legal entity ceases to exist;
d) on the date the standard age conditions and the minimum period of contribution for retirement are cumulatively met, or, as the case may be, on the date the decision of retirement for age limit or disability of the employee is communicated, according to the law;
e) as a result of finding the absolute nullity of the individual labour contract, from the date the nullity was found based on the parties' consent, or a final judgment;
f) as a result of the admittance of the petition for reinstating in the position occupied by the employee a person dismissed unlawfully or for ill-founded grounds, from the date the final judgment for reinstating is delivered;
g) as a result of a criminal sentence to be served on the job, from the date of issuance of the serving warrant;
h) from the date of withdrawal, by the competent authorities or bodies, of the approvals, authorisations, or certifications necessary for exercising one's profession;
i) as a result of the interdiction to exercise a profession or an office, as a safety measure or complementary punishment, from the date the final judgment ordering the interdiction was delivered;
j) on the expiry of the deadline of the individual labour contract concluded for a definite term;
k) from the date of withdrawal of the parents' or legal representatives' consent, for employees whose ages range between 15 and 16 years.
ART. 57
(1) The failure to comply with any of the necessary lawful conditions for the valid conclusion of the individual labour contract entails its nullity.
(2) The finding of the nullity of the individual labour contract shall have effects in the future.
(3) The nullity of the individual labour contract can be annulled by the subsequent observance of the conditions imposed by the law.
(4) If a clause is vitiated by nullity, since it establishes rights or obligations for the employees, which contravene to some imperative lawful norms or applicable collective labour contracts this shall be replaced de jure by the applicable lawful or conventional provisions, and the employee shall be entitled to indemnities.
(5) A person who has worked within a null individual labour contract is entitled to its payment in relation to the way in which job assignments have been accomplished.
(6) The finding of nullity and the setting up, according to the law, of the effects thereof can be done by consent of the parties.
(7) If the parties do not come to an agreement, the nullity shall be delivered by the judicial authority.

Section 2
Dismissal

ART. 58
(1) The dismissal represents the termination of the individual labour contract on the employer's initiative.
(2) The dismissal can be ordered for reasons related to the employee's person or for reasons which are not related to the employee's person.
ART. 59
It shall be prohibited to dismiss employees:
a) based on criteria such as gender, sexual orientation, genetic characteristics, age, national origin, race, colour, ethnic origin, religion, political option, social origin, disability, family status or responsibility, trade union membership or activity;
B) for the exercise, under the terms of the law, of their right to strike and trade union rights.
ART. 60
(1) Employees' dismissal shall not be ordered:
a) for the duration of the temporary industrial disablement, as established in a medical certificate according to the law;
B) for the duration of the quarantine leave;
c) for the duration an employed woman is pregnant, if the employer learnt about this fact prior to the issuance of the dismissal decision;
d) for the duration of the maternity leave;
e) for the duration of the leave for raising a child up to the age of 2, or, in case of a disabled child, up to the age of 3;
f) leave for looking after a sick child up to the age of 7 or, in case of a disabled child, for intercurrent diseases, up to the age of 18;
g) for the duration of the military service;
h) for the duration of the exercise of an elected position in a trade union body, except when the dismissal is ordered for a serious infraction of discipline or for repeated infractions of discipline perpetrated by that employee;
i) for the duration of the leave.
(2) The provisions of paragraph (1) shall not apply in cases of dismissal for reasons due to the employer's judicial reorganisation or bankruptcy, according to the law.

Section 3
Dismissal for reasons related to the employee's person

ART. 61
The employer can order the dismissal for reasons related to the employee's person under the following circumstances:
a) if the employee has perpetrated a serious infraction or repeated infractions of the work discipline regulations or those set by the individual labour contract, the applicable collective labour contract, or the company's rules and regulations, as a disciplinary sanction;
B) if the employee is taken into preventive custody for a period exceeding 60 days, under the rules of criminal procedure;
c) if, following a decision of the competent medical investigation authorities, it is established the physical unfitness and/or mental incapacity of the employee, which prevents the latter from accomplishing the duties related to his/her work place;
d) if the employee is not professionally fit for his/her job.
ART. 62
(1) If the dismissal takes place for one of the reasons stipulated under Article 61 B) - d), the employer shall issue the dismissal within 30 calendar days from the date of establishing the dismissal cause.
(2) The decision shall be issued in writing and, under penalty of being declared void, it must be motivated de facto and de jure and comprise details about the period within which it can be contested and the court where the complaint is lodged.
ART. 63
(1) The dismissal for a serious infraction or repeated infraction of the work discipline regulations can only be ordered after the employer has completed a preliminary disciplinary inquiry, and within the periods set by the present code.
(2) The procedure of the preliminary inquiry is also mandatory in cases of dismissal due to the employee being professionally unfit. The terms and periods of the preliminary inquiry are those stipulated for the disciplinary inquiry.
ART. 64
(1) If the dismissal is ordered for the reasons stipulated under Article 61 c) and d), as well as if the individual labour contract has ceased de jure under Article 56 f), the employer must suggest to the employee other vacant positions in the company, consistent with his/her professional training or, as the case may be, his/her work capability assessed by the factory doctor.
(2) If the employer has no vacant positions according to paragraph (1), he shall ask the territorial employment agency for support in the redeployment of the employee according to his/her professional training or, as the case may be, to his/her work capability assessed by the factory doctor, and shall subsequently inform the employee about the solutions proposed by the agency.
(3) The employee shall have at his/her disposal a period of 3 working days from the employer's communication according to the provisions of paragraphs (1) and (2) to state expressly his/her consent concerning the new job offered.
(4) If the employee does not state expressly his/her consent within the period stipulated under paragraph (3), as well as if the territorial employment agency cannot meet its obligation stipulated under paragraph (2), the employer can order the employee's dismissal.
(5) In the case of a dismissal for the reason stipulated under Article 61 c), the employee shall benefit from a compensation, under the terms set in the applicable collective labour contract or in the individual labour contract, as the case may be.

Section 4
Dismissal for reasons not related to the employee's person

ART. 65
(1) The dismissal for reasons not related to the employee's person shall represent the termination of the individual labour contract, caused by the suppression of that employee's position due to economic difficulties, technological changes, or activity reorganisation.
(2) The suppression of a position must be effective and have an actual serious cause, one of those stipulated under paragraph (1).
ART. 66
The dismissal for reasons not related to the employee's person can be individual or collective.
ART. 67
The employees dismissed for reasons which are not related to their persons shall benefit from active measures to control unemployment and can benefit from compensations under the terms stipulated by the law and the applicable collective labour contract.

Section 5
Collective dismissal

ART. 68
Collective dismissal means the dismissal, within 30 calendar days, ordered for one or more reasons of those stipulated under Article 65 (1), of:
a) at least 5 employees, if the employer who is dismissing them has more than 20 employees and less than 100 employees;
B) at least 10% of the employees, if the employer who is dismissing them has at least 100 employees but less than 300 employees;
c) at least 30 employees, if the employer who is dismissing them has at least 300 employees.
ART. 69
As far as collective dismissals are concerned, the employer has the following obligations:
a) to draw up a plan of social measures or of another type stipulated by the law or the applicable collective labour contracts, after having consulted the trade union or the employees representatives;
B) to propose vocational training programmes to the employees;
c) to place at the disposal of the trade union which has members in that company or, as the case may be, to the employees' representatives all the relevant information about the collective dismissal, with a view to receiving proposals from them;
d) with a view to reaching a common point of view, to start in due time consultations with the trade union or, as the case may be, the employees' representatives, concerning the methods and means for avoiding collective dismissals or diminishing the number of employees affected and mitigating the consequences.
ART. 70
(1) The employer shall notify in writing the trade union or, as the case may be, the employees' representatives of his intent of collective dismissal, at least 45 calendar days before the issuance of the dismissal decisions.
(2) The notification of the collective dismissal intent shall take the form of a collective dismissal project, which shall comprise:
a) the total number and categories of employees;
B) the reasons for the dismissal;
c) the number and categories of employees to be affected by the dismissal;
d) the criteria envisaged, according to the law and/or collective labour contracts, for establishing the dismissal priority sequence;
e) the steps considered for limiting the number of dismissals;
f) the steps for mitigating the consequences of the dismissal and the compensations to be granted to the employees dismissed, according to the provisions of the law and the applicable collective labour contract;
g) the date on which or the period during which the dismissals shall take place;
h) the period in which the trade union or, as the case may be, the employees' representatives can make proposals for avoiding dismissals or diminishing the number of employees dismissed.
(3) The employer shall notify the dismissal project to the territorial labour inspectorate and the territorial employment agency on the same date the notification was sent to the trade union or, as the case may be, to the employees' representatives.
ART. 71
(1) The trade union or, as the case may be, the employees' representatives may propose to the employer steps for avoiding the dismissals or diminishing the number of employees dismissed, within 20 calendar days of the date of receipt of the dismissal project.
(2) The employer shall reply, in writing and stating good reasons, to the proposals formulated according to the provisions of paragraph (1), within 10 days of their receipt.
(3) If the aspects related to the collective dismissal under consideration cannot be solved within 45 days, as stipulated under article 70 (1), at the request of either party, the territorial factory inspectorate may order the extension by 15 calendar days at the most.
ART. 72
(1) The employer who ordered collective dismissals cannot employ new people for the positions of the employees dismissed for a period of 12 months from the date of their dismissal.
(2) If, during this period, the employer resumes the activities the termination of which had led to collective dismissals, the employees having been dismissed shall have the right to be re-employed in the positions they had had previously, without an examination, contest, or trial period.
(3) If the employees being entitled to be re-employed according to paragraph (2) do not apply for re-employment, the employer shall be entitled to employ new people for the vacant positions.

Section 6
Right to notice

ART. 73
(1) The persons dismissed based on Article 61 c) and d), and Articles 65 and 66 shall benefit from the right to a notice which cannot be less than 15 working days.
(2) The exception to the provisions of paragraph (1) is represented by the persons dismissed based on Article 61 d), who are on a trial period.
ART. 74
(1) The dismissal decision shall be communicated to the employee in writing and shall compulsorily contain:
a) the reasons for the dismissal;
B) the term of notice;
c) the criteria for establishing the priority sequence, according to Article 70 (2) d);
d) the list of all available positions in the company and the period in which the employees must choose for taking a vacant position, under Article 64.
(2) If, during the notice period, the individual labour contract is suspended, the term of notice shall be suspended accordingly.
ART. 75
The dismissal decision shall take effects from the date it is notified to the employee.

Section 7
Control and sanction of unlawful dismissals

ART. 76
The dismissal ordered in non-compliance with the procedure stipulated by the law shall be rendered void.
ART. 77
In the event of an industrial conflict, the employer cannot put forward in court other de facto or de jure reasons than the ones stated in the dismissal decision.
ART. 78
(1) If the dismissal was not well-grounded or was unfair, the court shall rule its cancellation and force the employer to pay an indemnity equal to the indexed, increased or updated wages and the other entitlements the employee would have otherwise benefited from.
(2) At the employee's request, the court which ruled the cancellation of the dismissal shall restore the parties to their status prior to the issuance of the dismissal document.

Section 8
Resignation

ART. 79
(1) Resignation means the unilateral act of will of the employee who, by means of a written notification, shall inform the employer about the termination of the individual labour contract, after the term of notice has elapsed.
(2) The employer's refusal to register the resignation shall give the employee the right to prove it by any elements of proof.
(3) An employee shall have the right not to motivate his/her resignation.
(4) The term of notice shall be the one agreed upon by the parties in the individual labour contract or, as the case may be, the one stipulated in the applicable collective labour contracts, and shall not exceed 15 calendar days for employees in executive positions, or 30 calendar days for employees in management positions, respectively.
(5) For the duration of the notice the individual labour contract shall continue to take full effects.
(6) If, during the notice, the individual labour contract is suspended, the term of notice shall be suspended accordingly.
(7) The individual labour contract shall terminate on the date of expiry of the term of notice or on the date the employer gives up that term entirely or partially.
(8) An employee can resign without notice if the employer has not met his obligations according to the individual labour contract.

CHAPTER VI
Individual labour contract for a definite term

ART. 80
(1) As an exception to the rule stipulated under Article 12 (1), the employers are allowed to employ, for the purpose and under the terms of the present code, personnel under individual labour contracts for a definite term.
(2) An individual labour contract for a definite term can only be concluded in a written form, expressly stating the term for which it is concluded.
(3) An individual labour contract for a definite term can be extended even after the expiry of the initial term, based on the parties' written consent, but only within the term stipulated under Article 82 and two consecutive times at the most.
ART. 81
An individual labour contract for a definite term can only be concluded in the following instances:
a) replacement of an employee in the event his/her labour contract is suspended, except when that employee participates in a strike;
B) a temporary increase in the employer's activity;
c) seasonal activities;
d) if it is concluded based on lawful provisions made with a view to temporarily favouring certain categories of unemployed persons;
e) in other instances expressly stipulated by special laws.
ART. 82
(1) The individual labour contract for a definite term cannot be concluded for a period exceeding 18 months.
(2) If the individual labour contract for a definite term is concluded with a view to replacing an employee whose individual labour contract has been suspended, the term of the contract shall expire when the reasons having caused the suspension of the individual labour contract of the tenured employee have ceased to exist.
ART. 83
An employee hired under an individual labour contract for a definite term can be subjected to a trial period, which shall not exceed:
a) 5 working days, for a term of the individual labour contract less than 3 months;
B) 15 working days, for a term of the individual labour contract between 3 and 6 months;
c) 30 working days, for a term of the individual labour contract exceeding 6 months;
d) 45 working days, in the case of employees holding management positions, for a term of the individual labour contract exceeding 6 months.
ART. 84
(1) On the expiry of the individual labour contract for a definite term, an employee shall be hired for that position under an individual labour contract for an indefinite term.
(2) The provisions of paragraph (1) shall not apply:
a) if the individual labour contract for a definite term is concluded with a view to temporarily replacing a missing employee, if a new cause for suspending his/her contract occurs;
B) if a new individual labour contract for a definite term is concluded with a view to doing some urgent, exceptional works;
c) if the conclusion of a new individual labour contract for a definite term proves necessary for the reasons stipulated under Article 81 e);
d) if the individual labour contract for a definite term has been terminated on the employee's initiative or the employer's initiative, for a serious misconduct or repeated misconduct by the employee.
ART. 85
The employers shall inform the employees employed under individual labour contracts for a definite term about the vacant positions or those to become vacant, which are in compliance with their vocational training, and shall grant them access to such positions under equal terms as the employees employed under individual labour contracts for an indefinite term. This information shall be made public in an announcement posted at the employer's head office.
ART. 86
Unless otherwise stipulated in the present code, the provisions of the law, as well as those of the collective labour contracts applicable to employees employed under individual labour contracts for an indefinite term shall equally apply to employees employed under individual labour contracts for a definite term.

CHAPTER VII
Work through a temporary labour agent

ART. 87
(1) Work through a temporary labour agent, hereinafter called temporary work, is the work performed by a temporary employee who, by order of the temporary labour agent, performs work in favour of a user.
(2) A temporary employee is a person employed by an employer who is a temporary labour agent, and placed at the disposal of a user for the duration necessary for carrying out certain precise and temporary duties.
(3) A temporary labour agent is a trading company authorised by the Ministry of Labour and Social Solidarity, which temporarily places at the disposal of a user the skilled and/or unskilled personnel employed and paid to that effect. The terms for the temporary labour agent's establishment and operation, as well as the authorisation procedure, shall be set by Government decision.
(4) A user is an employer at whose disposal the temporary labour agent places a temporary employee in view of carrying out certain precise and temporary duties.
ART. 88
A user can call on the temporary labour agents only for carrying out a precise and temporary duty, called temporary work assignment, and only in the following instances:
a) to replace an employee whose individual labour contract has been suspended, for the duration of the suspension;
B) to perform some seasonal activities;
c) to perform some specialised or occasional activities.
ART. 89
(1) A temporary work assignment shall be established for a period which cannot exceed 12 months.
(2) The duration of a temporary work assignment can be extended only once for a period which, added to the initial duration of the assignment, cannot exceed 18 months.
(3) The terms under which the duration of a temporary work assignment can be extended are stipulated in the temporary labour contract or can make the subject of a rider to that contract.
ART. 90
(1) The temporary labour agent shall place at the user's disposal an employee employed under a temporary labour contract, on the basis of an availability contract concluded in writing.
(2) The availability contract shall comprise:
a) the reason why the use of a temporary employee is necessary;
B) the term of the assignment and, if the case arises, provisions for amending the term of the assignment;
c) the typical characteristics of the position, especially the necessary skills, the place where the assignment shall be carried out, and the work schedule;
d) the actual work conditions;
e) the individual protective and work equipment the temporary employee must use;
f) any other services and facilities for the benefit of the temporary employee;
g) the value of the contract the temporary labour agent benefits from, as well as the wages the employee is entitled to.
(3) Any clause that prohibits the user from hiring the temporary employee after the assignment has been completed is null and void.
ART. 91
(1) Temporary employees shall have access to all the services and facilities provided by the user, under the same terms as the latter's other employees.
(2) The user shall provide the temporary employee with individual protective and work equipment except when, based on the