Romania will remain under the state of alert for at least 30 more days starting 15 October

The state of alert was extended by the Government for an additional 30 days starting 15 October. Given the general rise in number of confirmed Covid cases and the prevalence of cases in specific geographical areas, under this state of alert the restrictions are to be imposed based on the number of confirmed cases in the last 14 days.

The new rules and restrictions imposed by the Government are going to be enforced based on the level of incidence of cases in each county and in the capital city during the last 14 days. In the level of incidence of cases during the last 14 days is under 1.5‰ restaurants, cafes, cinemas, theatres, libraries can operate at 50% of their normal capacity. If the level of incidence of cases during the last 14 days is between 1.5‰ and 3‰ restaurants, cafes, cinemas, theatres, libraries can operate at 30% of their normal capacity. If the level of incidence of cases during the last 14 days is over 3‰ restaurants, cafes, cinemas, theatres, libraries will be closed for at least 14 days. The use of protective masks in all outdoor areas will be mandatory if the level of incidence of cases during the last 14 days reaches 3‰. The use of protective masks in crowded outdoor areas such as markets, bus stations, and touristic sites is mandatory all over the country. As of October 20^th the capital city and two counties have reached a level of incidence above 3‰.

General and sectorial safety rules on operating the businesses during the state of alert continue to apply. The use of protective masks is still mandatory at the workplace with the exception of employees that do not share a working space with anybody, employees that are performing activities in conditions of extreme temperatures or that require a great amount of physical activity and also employees with health conditions that may lead to respiratory difficulties if they use protective masks. Additional individual protective gear may be required for specific employees with high exposure to risk factors. Soap and disinfectants should be widely and readily available to employees.

The recommendation for employers with more than 50 employees to use individualized working hours that allow employees to start work at 3 different hours is still in place. Also applicable during the extended state of alert period the employer’s obligation to properly inform the employees on the safety rules, the obligation to ensure that the employees follow the mandatory rules and to check the temperature of all employees at the beginning of the working program and will not allow any employee that has a temperature higher than 37.3°C to enter the workplace. Also the employer will not allow any employee that presents respiratory infection symptoms to enter the workplace.

During the state of alert the employer can still issue work from home decisions; however the employee’s consent is necessary. Under similar conditions the employer can change the place of the activity of the employees and their responsibilities.

Collective agreements will remain enforced during the state of alert and an additional period of 90 days after the state of alert will end. Collective negotiations will commence within 45 days of the date when the state of alert will end.

For more information on these articles or any other issues involving labour and employment matters in Romania, please contact Magda Volonciu (Partner) of Magda Volonciu & Asociatii at magdavolonciu@volonciu.ro or visit www.volonciu.ro.