New Labor Code in Romania to create a more flexible market, Prime Minister says

Romania’s new Labor Code will create a more flexible labor market and will help Romanians find a job faster, Prime Minister Emil Boc said Sunday. Boc stressed that extending limited period contracts to 36 months from 24 months will yield positive results on the labor market. The prime minister said Friday the Government may seek a confidence vote in Parliament to adopt new labor legislation, adding a decision will be made after talks in the Government and the ruling coalition. He said labor legislation is the last sector the Government still has to reform and current legislation is obsolete. The latest draft of the code eliminates all mentions of the single national collective labor contract and sets the probationary employment period at no longer than 90 calendar days, for both regular and management positions. The labor unions oppose eliminating collective work contracts from the Code, arguing that terms such as working hours, conditions and minimum wage shall be abolished and workers might end up being paid less than they are worth. Unions said they would decide Monday on protests over the Labor Code. Mediafax