1. Implementing the changes in the Labour Code
At the end of 2024, the Romanian Labour Code has been updated in order to transpose EU Directive No. 2022/2041 on adequate minimum wages in the European Union by Law No. 283/2024. While the main focus of the new provisions is the mechanism that will be used to establish and update the national minimum wage guaranteed for payment, the Labour Code and other relevant employment-related laws were also changed in order to guarantee that all types of workers, including those that do not have employee status, are remunerated at least at the level established for the minimum wage. The Labour Code expressly mentions in the updated version that no other salary components (such as bonuses or indemnities) can be included in the base salary, and all base salaries need to be at least at the level of the minimum wage. The provision stating that employees can be paid with the minimum salary for a maximum period of 24 months after the concluding of the individual employment agreement is still applicable even after Law No. 283/2024 was adopted.
The updated version of the Romanian Labour Code also includes a legal definition for the work relationship–a notion that includes but is not limited to the employment relationship that might have an impact on establishing which court will handle specific types of court cases that were not previously regarded as employment law cases. If this will be the case, the dedicated employment law courts will be required to handle a higher number of cases, and the period of time needed to issue the rulings might significantly increase.
2. Minimum wage
As of 1st January 2025, the gross minimum wage guaranteed for payment in Romania is RON 4,050 (approximately EUR 815, USD 840). According to the statistical data regarding the average gross earnings, the level of the minimum wage is compliant with the newly established rules on the method used to determine this value but is at the lowest end of the indicative levels.
3. Collective bargaining
The newly transposed EU Directive NO. 2022/2041 also aims to having at least 80% of employees covered by collective employment agreements, and member states were expected to implement measures in order to encourage collective bargaining, especially collective bargaining with unions. In Romania, the number of employees covered by collective employment agreements is significantly lower, and both ILO and the EU have repeatedly asked for measures in order to increase this number. Direct state interference in employer–union relationships in order to increase the number of employees covered cannot be taken as it would be considered a limit to the freedom of association (by forcing union association) and to the right to collective negotiations, both guaranteed by the Romanian Constitution also in their negative form, meaning the freedom to choose not to be affiliated to a union and the right to not participate in collective negotiations. Because of this, the new provisions aimed at encouraging collective bargaining do not include any new obligations for employers.
Since collective bargaining (but not the concluding of a collective employment agreement as a result of the collective bargaining) is mandatory for all employers that have more than 10 employees, it is expected that the local labour inspectorates will organize campaigns focused on verifying if the employers took the relevant steps in initiating the collective negotiations, aiming to obtain a higher number of successful collective negotiations.
4. Potential other changes in legal provisions
Taking into consideration the number of discussions, the changes within the Labour Code rose in connection to the newly defined work relationship. In order to clarify some adjacent aspects, such as the ones regarding the courts, new changes in the employment legislation are expected over the next few months. Taking into consideration the social and political context at this moment, other major changes in the employment legislation are not expected.
The deadline for implementing EU Directive No. 2023/970 to strengthen the application of the principle of equal pay for equal work or work of equal value between men and women through pay transparency and enforcement mechanisms is approaching, but currently, no official draft for a transposing law is available.
At the beginning of 2025, a number of new fiscal rules have been implemented. Some of which have an impact on the employees, such as the elimination of tax exemptions for specific types of employees and/or activities. Due to the current social and political context, other similar changes might be implemented in the next period.