Eurofound's ERM database on restructuring-related legal regulations provides
information on regulations in the Member States of the European Union and Norway
which are explicitly or implicitly linked to anticipating and managing change.
Slovakia: Redundant employees entitlement to public support
Phase
Act No. 5/2004 on employment services, as amended; Act No. 461/2003 on social insurance, as amended
Native name
Zákon c. 5/2004 o službách zamestnanosti, v znení neskorších predpisov; Zákon c. 461/2003 o sociálnom poistení, v znení neskorších predpisov
The appropriate employment office of the headquarters of Employment, Social Affairs and Family (ÚPSVaR) informs redundant employees about available vacant jobs and assists them in finding a suitable job as soon as possible. If needed, the employment office, in cooperation with the job seekers, ensures their participation in skill development training courses necessary for getting the new job. The employment office can cover up to 100% of the cost of training. Job seekers registered at least for three month can also obtain a financial allowance to start work as self-employed.
Dismissed unemployed employees can also receive unemployment benefits. Unemployed employees insured with the Social Insurance Agency that have been paying compulsory contributions (including contributions to the unemployment fund paid by employers as well as by employees in the amount of 1% of the assessment base - in total 2%) for at least two out of last four years before registering as a job seeker are entitled to unemployment benefits. Unemployment benefits are provided for six months. The benefit consists of 50% of the daily assessment base - employee's average daily wage in the last two years (it is, however, limited by the maximum assessment base, which is two-times the average monthly wage in the economy).
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the entitlement period for unemployment benefit was extended and from 2022 going forward the unemployment benefit period was changed again to 6 months.
According to an amendment which took effect on 1st of January 2023, the following changes, with regards to unemployment benefits took effect:
Job seekers are allowed to register at any employment office regardless of their permanent residency location.
Mother or Father who had stopped receiving parental support, could be included as disadvantaged job seekers.
The amendment cancels a clause, which stipulated that foreigners could only be offered employment in counties with unemployment rate lower than 5 %.
Commentary
In practice, registered job seekers can use the unemployment benefits alternatively. After a period of three months, the beneficiary has the option of either continuing to receive the benefit for the next three months (as a maximum) or to cancel his or her registration as a job seeker and obtain a bonus in amount of the 50% of the due benefit.
The Social Insurance Agency publishes annual statistics on unemployment benefits, including data on the average benefit amount, the number of recipients and the total number of benefits paid.
Additional metadata
Cost covered by
Employee
Employer
National government
Involved actors other than national government
Public employment service
Other
Involvement (others)
Social Insurance Agency
Employment, Social Affairs and Family Office (ÚPSVaR)
Thresholds
Affected employees: No, applicable in all circumstances Company size: No, applicable in all circumstances Additional information: No, applicable in all circumstances
This Eurofound research paper explores key trends in restructuring in recent years, highlighting the companies that announced the largest job losses and job gains in the EU. It builds on an analysis of company announcements recorded in Eurofound’s European Restructuring Monitor (ERM), alongside a new classification of restructuring events involving changes in company location.
Employers increasingly use tools such as email, SMS and messaging apps like WhatsApp or Signal to communicate with employees. While these technologies offer both efficiency and convenience, their use in communicating sensitive information, particularly for notifying employees of dismissal, raises legal concerns. This article explores the legal framework on dismissals across the EU, with a special focus on the use of digital means for communicating employment dismissals. Drawing on examples from various Member States, it examines the legal validity of digital dismissals.
In 2023, thousands of workers in big tech lost their jobs. Meta, Amazon, Google, Apple, Microsoft and Salesforce had been considered to offer good and secure jobs up to this point. Giants of the information and communication technology (ICT) sector, these companies are among the highest paying, with Eurostat data from 2022 indicating that workers in ICT had the second-highest median gross hourly earnings (surpassed only by earnings in the financial sector).[1] These layoffs were a shock, especially as the biggest companies had hired extensively during the COVID-19 pandemic. What happened in the two years after this redundancy wave – was that the end of the cuts or did the companies start expanding again?
In 2024, the automotive sector in the EU came to the fore in public and policy discussions. The focus was on the slowdown in electric vehicle (EV) sales, rising global competition, belated investments in new technologies, and the potential closure of production lines in Europe. A number of European car manufacturers and suppliers announced their intention to make large-scale redundancies and change long-standing collective agreements on job security and wages, while workers raised concerns amid demonstrations and industrial action.