- Phase
- Law of 28 June 1966 regarding the indemnification of employees that have been laid off as a consequence of a closing of an undertaking
- Native name
- Loi du 28 juin 1966 relative à l'indemnisation des travailleurs licenciés en cas de fermeture d'entreprises
- Type
- Wage guarantee in case of insolvency
- Added to database
- 08 May 2015
Description
In case of collective layoffs (at least 10 employees in companies with 20-99 employees, at least 10% in firms with 100-299 employees or at least 30 workers in companies with 300 or more staff) as a result of bankruptcy or insolvency of a company, workers receive a closing-down indemnity paid by a closing fund managed by the public employment services. Employees do not need to apply to such funds. This automatically applies to workers employed in companies active in sectors where a collective agreement has been signed.
In order to receive guarantees in case of employer’s insolvency, the employment contract must be terminated 12 months before to 13 months after the closing.
There are no exclusions of part-time or fixed-term workers. The fund will intervene in the payment of wages, indemnities and benefits that are due. There is a maximum per employee (with exception of additional payments in case of early retirement), corresponding to about €22,000 yearly or about €1,900 monthly for outstanding salary, holiday pay, severance indemnity and the indemnities and benefits that are due to the employee.
There are no requirements in terms of duration of the employment contract for the worker to be eligible for the wage guarantee in case of insolvency.
The fund is financed through social security contributions which must be paid by all employers in Belgium, levied on the gross salary of employees.
Payment is realised also if the employer has not contributed (something that he/she would have to do purposefully, since the contribution is obligatory).
Citation
Eurofound (2015), Belgium: Wage guarantee in case of insolvency, Restructuring legislation database, Dublin,
https://apps.eurofound.europa.eu/legislationdb/wage-guarantee-in-case-of-insolvency/belgium