Legal Implications of Remote Work in Portugal and Czech

Ever since the pandemic started in 2020, the world has witnessed a massive change in the social and professional genres. It cast an evil shadow on our lives, and the governments in most countries have imposed restrictions and regulations on social gatherings. However, due to COVID-19 protocols, most of us had to cope with a massive work-culture paradigm shift. To grapple with the crisis, big and small companies have quickly shifted to the work-from-home format.

A year has passed, and many companies continue with the remote working model to avoid human gatherings. Reports reveal that at least 16% of the global industrial companies are sticking to the remote working module. But working from a distance has to follow certain legal norms and implications to ensure employees’ safety and seamless workflow. This article will discuss a few legal implications of remote work arrangements in countries like Portugal and the Czech. Read on.

A Few Legal Checkpoints Of Remote Work Arrangement

At this time, in 2021, almost 60% of Portugal’s business fraternity is operating with remote working models. The number strikes around 82% in the Czech Republic. Here are some crucial legal implications of remote work arrangements, especially in Portugal and the Czech Republic.

Mutual Legal Agreement

In many countries, governments and management bodies of several non-government organizations have set legal norms on remote working structures that call for signing mutual agreements to conduct work from home. In Portugal, both employers and employees in different sectors need not have a mutual legal agreement to work remotely. On the other hand, both parties need legal consent to adapt to this work regime in the Czech Republic. Nobody can enforce that.

Remote Office Maintenance

Many states and nations have set work-from-home policies that signify legal regulations on remote working management. In the Czech Republic, the companies are not liable to pay their employees remote office maintenance costs. It mostly depends on a company's internal regulations. In Portugal, the companies provide all the necessary equipment and maintenance costs to their employees to ensure seamless workflow. However, Portugal policies also allow employees to use their own equipment like smartphones, laptops, tabs, etc.

Legal Implications on Employee Rights

In both countries, the employees working remotely can avail themselves of all the rights similar to an offline worker. These rights involve pay scale, working hours, health and insurance norms, safety issues, etc. The employer's responsibility is to provide all the necessary compensations while an employee is working in a remote arrangement. There is no salary deduction subjected to remote working format.

Conclusion

Reports say, at least 77% of the employees worldwide are still willing to continue with remote working. However, the governments in Portugal and the Czech Republic want their companies to maintain all the COVID-19 protocols while operating their offline workspace, if at all. Nevertheless, both countries encourage people to work remotely, whenever it's possible. Especially in Portugal, where an employee must adopt work-from-home if their duty and safety allow it.