NEWS | Wednesday, 03 December 2008

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Government enacts rules for teleworkers

Matthew Vella
Government has passed new rules that will grant teleworkers – employees who work from their private homes – the same rights as other employees.
Teleworkers, or telecommuters, are employees whose work is conducted away from their employer’s premises, or even at the same premises, using IT. It is a work arrangement in which employees enjoy flexibility in working location and hours, where the daily commute is replaced by telecommunication links.
Employees can now ask employers to opt for telework, without affecting their employment status or their right to revert back to their previous post or a similar post.
In the first two months of the telework agreement, each party will have the right to terminate that agreement by giving three days’ notice; or after the first two months, by giving two weeks’ notice in writing, unless a different period is specified in writing.
The written agreement will specify the location where telework is to be carried out; provisions related to the equipment used for telework (ownership, maintenance, costs); time spent working; and also provisions related to the monitoring of the employee.
However, the employer will be bound by law to respect the privacy of the teleworker. In fact the employer can only put into place a monitoring system if this is agreed beforehand in the agreement, or if it is proportionate to EU law on minimum health and safety requirement for work with display screen equipment.
Unless otherwise agreed upon, the employer is responsible for providing, installing and maintaining the equipment and other technical support necessary for the performance of the telework.
Teleworkers will be responsible for the management of their working time, and will retain the same collective rights as comparable employees, as well as the right to participate in and stand for elections for employees’ bodies.

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