Content
- When can an employer change an employee’s workplace?
- What is a “suitable job”?
- Annex to the employment contract and change of workplace
- What if your employer offers you a worse position?
- Does the employee have to sign the annex?
- Can an employee sign an annex and later file a lawsuit?
- Change of workplace due to illness
- How to write a request for a job change?
- Practical examples
- FAQ – most frequently asked questions
- Conclusion
Changing the workplace with the same employer may at first glance seem like a common organizational decision. However, for the employee, it can mean completely different jobs, lower earnings, loss of responsibility or moving to a position that he perceives as professional degradation.
On the other hand, the employer must have the ability to organize the work process and adapt workplaces to the real business needs.
Therefore, a key question arises: where does the employer’s right to organize work end, and the employee’s right to protect himself from illegal transfer begin?
In practice, changes to the agreed working conditions are most often carried out through an annex to the employment contract, but the employer does not have unlimited freedom to assign the employee to any position.
1. When can an employer change an employee’s workplace?
The employer can offer the employee an annex to the employment contract for transfer to another suitable job when the needs of the work process and organization require it.
These can be, for example, the reorganization of a certain sector, a change in the way of doing business, the termination or merger of certain businesses or other real needs of work organization.
However, the mere fact that the employer wants a change is not enough for the employee to be assigned to any workplace.
In the case of a transfer due to the needs of the process and work organization, the new job must be a suitable job, and the employer must also provide the employee with a written notice of the reasons for which the change is proposed, along with the offered annex.
In other words, a change of workplace at the same employer must have a legal and factual basis, and the contract annex should not be used as a hidden punishment for the employee.
2. What does “suitable work” mean?
This is one of the most important questions when changing jobs.
Appropriate work is considered to be work for which the same type and level of professional education as specified in the employee’s employment contract is required.
This means that the employer cannot arbitrarily transfer an employee who performs professional work to completely different jobs that do not correspond to his contracted professional training.
However, it is important to understand that “the right job” does not automatically mean the same job title, the same job description, or the same organizational function.
Therefore, the fact that the employee subjectively considers the new position “worse” in itself does not mean that the annex is illegal. It is necessary to analyze the reasons for the transfer, systematization, content of the old and new workplace, requirements for vocational training, salary and other circumstances of the specific case.
3. Annex to the employment contract – change of workplace
When the employer wants to change the contracted working conditions, the employee is usually sent an offer of an annex to the employment contract for changing the workplace.
Along with the annex, the employer is obliged to provide the employee with a written notification that should contain the reasons for the proposed change, the deadline for the statement and the legal consequences that may arise if the employee rejects the offer.
The employee must be given at least eight working days to consider the proposed annex.
This is especially important in practice.
The employee does not have to sign the annex at the same time when the employer hands it to him. He has the right to read the documentation, check what is specifically being changed and evaluate the legal consequences of accepting or rejecting the offer.
4. What if they move you to a worse position with the annex?
A common situation looks like this:
An employee has been working in a certain position for years, has a certain level of responsibility and salary, and then he is suddenly offered an annex by which he moves to another position with less authority, different jobs or lower salary.
The first question should not just be, “Is the new position worse?”
It is more important to check:
- what reason does the employer give for the change;
- whether that reason actually exists;
- whether the new workplace is suitable;
- what is provided by the rulebook on organization and systematization;
- whether the salary changes at the same time;
- whether the change represents a real reorganization or an attempt to punish the employee.
Transfer to another workplace should not be used as a disciplinary sanction. If the actual goal is to punish or humiliate the employee, and formal reorganization is stated, the legality of such an annex may be disputed.
5. Does the employee have to sign the annex to the employment contract?
The employee has the choice to accept or reject the offered annex.
However, rejection is not always without consequences.
If the employee refuses certain legally permitted changes to the contracted working conditions, the employer may, under the prescribed conditions, issue a decision on the termination of the employment contract.
That’s why the advice “don’t sign anything” is often not good enough.
Before making a decision, it is necessary to analyze the annex itself and the reason for which it is offered.
In many situations, the employee may have a legally safer option: sign the annex, continue working and at the same time challenge its legality.
6. Can the employee sign the annex and file a lawsuit later?
Yes.
This is one of the most important facts that employees often do not know.
Signing the annex to the employment contract does not automatically mean that the employee accepts its legality and waives court protection.
An employee who signs the annex within the deadline reserves the right to contest its legality before the competent court.
If the employee refuses the annex, and his employment contract is terminated as a result, the legality of the proposed annex can be contested in court proceedings regarding such termination.
Due to the short deadlines for the protection of rights from the employment relationship, an employee who wants to challenge a change of workplace should not wait long after receiving or signing the documentation.
7. Change of workplace due to illness
A special situation exists when an employee requests a change of workplace due to illness or health problems.
An employee with health disorders determined by the competent health authority cannot work in jobs that would cause a deterioration of his health condition or dangerous consequences for the environment.
However, the employee’s mere statement that he can no longer perform a certain job is usually not sufficient.
Of great importance is the appropriate medical documentation and the findings of the competent health authority, from which the limitations of working ability arise.
Based on that, it is assessed what obligations the employer has in the specific case and whether there is a possibility of assigning the employee to other suitable jobs.
A practical example
The employee works a job that involves heavy lifting on a daily basis. Due to health problems, he received a report according to which he should no longer perform such physical activities.
In that situation, it is not enough to just look at his job title. It is necessary to determine what jobs he actually performs, what emerges from the medical documentation and whether there are other jobs at the employer that he can safely perform.
8. How to write a request for a job change?
A change of workplace does not always have to be initiated by the employer.
An employee can also submit a request for a change of workplace.
Such a request may be motivated by health reasons, professional training, a change in family circumstances or simply by the desire of the employee to move to another available workplace.
When the annex is concluded at the initiative of the employee, the same procedure that applies when the employer unilaterally offers the employee a change in the contractual conditions is not applied.
The request does not have to be complicated. It is important to be clear and reasoned.
When the request to change the workplace due to illness is based on health reasons, the request should be accompanied by relevant medical documentation.
9. Practical examples of changing the workplace
Example 1 – Actual reorganization
The company terminates one sector and assigns the employee to another suitable position that requires the same type and level of professional education.
If there is a real organizational need and the appropriate procedure is followed, such a change may be legal even if the new position is less suitable for the employee.
Example 2 – Annex as a disguised punishment
The employee enters into a conflict with the immediate manager. A few days later, he received an annex transferring him to a position with significantly less responsibilities, with the general explanation that it was a “necessity of the work process”.
In such a situation, the real reasons for the transfer and the employer’s documentation should be checked in detail.
Example 3 – The employee signs the annex
The employee believes that the transfer is illegal, but does not want to risk termination of employment.
Signing the annex does not prevent him from contesting its legality in court, subject to the fulfillment of procedural conditions and deadlines.
10. FAQ – most frequently asked questions
Can the employer change my workplace without my consent?
The employer can offer to change the contracted working conditions in situations provided for by law. Whether a specific transfer is legal depends on the reason for the change, the new workplace and the procedure implemented.
How much time do I have to decide whether to sign the annex?
The deadline that the employer leaves to the employee cannot be shorter than eight working days and that deadline is prescribed by the Labor Law.
What if I don’t sign the annex to the employment contract?
In certain situations, the refusal of a legally offered annex can be grounds for dismissal. Therefore, it is advisable to analyze the annex before deciding on its rejection.
However, if you refuse to sign the annex to the employment contract and the employer hands you the termination decision, you have the option to sue for the annulment of the annex, and also if the court finds that the annex was illegal, you can also sue for illegal dismissal, in which case you have the right to compensation in the form of lost wages.
If I sign the annex, can I challenge it?
Yes. An employee who signs the offered annex reserves the right to challenge its legality in court.
Can my employer demote me to a lower position as punishment?
Transfer to another workplace is not a disciplinary sanction and should not be used as a way of punishing an employee.
Can I apply for a change of workplace myself?
Yes. An employee can submit a request or request for a change of workplace, but this does not mean that the employer is obliged to accept the request in every situation.
How to request a change of workplace due to illness?
It is advisable to submit a written request and attach relevant medical documentation that shows which tasks or work activities the employee can no longer perform safely.
11. Conclusion
Changing the workplace with the same employer is not necessarily illegal just because the new position suits the employee less. The employer has the right to organize the work process and, when there are justified needs, offer the employee a transfer to another suitable job.
However, this right is not unlimited.
When the change is carried out through an annex to the employment contract, it is important to look at the real reason for the transfer, the content of the new job, the professional training of the employee, any change in salary and the procedure that preceded the offer of the annex.
It is especially important for the employee to know that he does not have to make a decision the moment the annex is handed to him and that even signing the annex does not in itself exclude the possibility of its later judicial control.
For the employer, on the other hand, a clearly explained and properly implemented change of workplace represents the best protection against future labor disputes.
Therefore, when changing the workplace, hasty decisions on both sides should be avoided. A few days devoted to a proper analysis of the annex and the reasons for its adoption can often prevent months or years of litigation.
Note: This text is informative and does not represent legal advice for a specific case. The legality of a change of workplace depends on the content of the employment contract, the offered annex, the acts of the employer and the circumstances of the specific employment relationship.
For specific questions and legal support, please contact the Dvornić law office.
