TOPICAL ISSUES REGARDING NOTICE OF TERMINATION BY OFFERING A NEW EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT

Pravna ureditev prenehanja pogodbe o zaposlitvi izhaja iz temeljnega načela, po katerem je odpoved pogodbe o zaposlitvi s strani delodajalca ukrep ultima ratio. V luči spoštovanja tega načela Zakon o delovnih razmerjih (ZDR) določa posebno obveznost delodajalca, da v primeru redne odpovedi pogodbe o zaposlitvi iz poslovnega razloga ali razloga nesposobnosti preveri možnosti za ohranitev delavčeve zaposlitve. Če pri delodajalcu obstaja druga ustrezna zaposlitev, jo mora delavcu ponuditi hkrati z odpovedjo pogodbe o zaposlitvi. V primeru, da s takšno zaposlitvijo delodajalec ne razpolaga, pa lahko delavcu ponudi novo pogodbo za neustrezno zaposlitev. To bo delodajalec izvedel s posebnim delovnopravnim institutom odpovedi s ponudbo nove pogodbe o zaposlitvi, ki je urejen v tretjem in četrtem odstavku 88. člena in v 90. členu ZDR. Institut združuje redno odpoved pogodbe o zaposlitvi in ponudbo za sklenitev nove pogodbe o zaposlitvi. Delavec lahko ponudbo sprejme ali jo zavrne, temu ustrezno so predpisane tudi pravne posledice. Pravne posledice sprejema oziroma zavrnitve ponudbe za sklenitev nove pogodbe o zaposlitvi pa so odvisne od tega, ali se ponudba nanaša na ustrezno ali neustrezno zaposlitev. Ureditev obravnavanega instituta se je izkazala za neustrezno in pomanjkljivo. Glavna dilema se nanaša na obseg sodnega varstva, ki pripada delavcu v primeru sprejetja delodajalčeve ponudbe in podpisa nove pogodbe o zaposlitvi. Po sedanji ureditvi ima takšen delavec ožji obseg sodnega varstva, kot ga sicer imajo delavci, če uveljavljajo nezakonitost odpovedi pogodbe o zaposlitvi. Predlagane spremembe ZDR odpravljajo bistveno problematiko obravnavanega instituta, vseeno pa še ostajajo nekatera odprta vprašanja.Legal regulation of the termination of the employment contract is derived from the fundamental principle, by which the termination of the employment contract by the employer is an ultima ratio measure. In the light of this principle the Employment Relationships Act stipulates a special obligation of the employer that in case of terminating the employment contract for reasons of incapacity or for a business reason, the employer must check whether it is possible to employ the worker under changed conditions or in other work, and/or whether it is possible to additionally train the worker for the work he carries out or to retrain the worker for other work. If the employer has other appropriate employment, which he can offer to the worker, the conclusion of a new employment contract must be offered to the worker simultaneously with the termination of the current employment contract. If such employment is unavailable, the employer may offer the worker a new employment contract for unsuitable employment. This is done by a special labor law institute – Notice of Termination by Offering a New Employment Contract, as provided by third and fourth paragraph of Article 88th and the 90th Article of the Employment Relationships Act. This institute fuses the ordinary termination of the employment contract with the offer for a conclusion of a new employment contract. The worker can either accept the offer or decline it. Accordingly, legal consequences are prescribed. Legal consequences of the acceptance or refusal of the offer for a conclusion of a new employment contract depend on the fact whether the offer by the employer was made for an appropriate or an inappropriate employment. The regulation of this institute has proven to be inappropriate and insufficient. The main dilemma refers to the extent of the Judicial Protection worker is entitled to when accepting employer\u27s offer to conclude a new employment contract and signing it. In accordance with the current regulation, the scope of Judicial Protection such worker is entitled to is narrower than that of a worker, who enforces the illegality of the termination of the employment contract. The suggested changes to the Employment Relationships Act are abolishing the crucial issues of this special labor law institute, but still some questions remain unanswered