Pravne posledice upućivanja ponude za izmenu elemenata ugovora o radu, sa posebnim osvrtom na premeštaj zaposlenog

Abstract

Pravila obligacionog prava koja dopuštaju izmenu ugovora zbog promenjenih okolnosti primenjuju se i u oblasti radnog prava, ali uz njihova neophodna prilagođavanja osobenoj prirodi ugovora o radu i obezbeđivanje zaštite zaposlenog, kao slabije (ekonomski zavisne i pravno podređene) strane ugovora. Izmenom ugovora o radu se, pritom, mogu smatrati samo trajne izmene njegovih bitnih elemenata, dok se izmena uslova rada koja se ne tiče bitnih elemenata ugovora smatra izrazom poslodavčeve vlasti sa čijim je vršenjem zaposleni saglasan od momenta zaključenja ugovora. Izmena uslova ugovora o radu ima prednost u odnosu na otkaz, tako da radni odnos neće prestati ako zaposleni pristane na pravičnu izmenu određenih uslova ugovora. Zaposleni koji odbije ponudu za zaključenje aneksa može zahtevati primenu neizmenjenog ugovora, dok poslodavac može da se složi sa tim zahtevom, ali može i da zadrži svoju ponudu i zaposlenom da otkaz. Premda su radnopravna pravila o izmeni ugovora o radu bitno drugačija od odgovarajućih pravila obligacionog prava, pažnju radnopravnih stručnjaka privlače i alternativni predlozi koji su učinjeni u Drugoj knjizi Prednacrta građanskog zakonika Republike Srbije, u pogledu raskida ili izmene ugovora zbog promenjenih okolnosti. U radu su razmotrene pravne posledice upućivanja ponude za zaključenje aneksa ugovora o radu, dok su u okviru posebnih poglavlja obrađeni ključni aspekti premeštaja zaposlenog na drugi posao ili u drugo mesto rada. Posebna pažnja u toj analizi posvećena je slučajevima kojima je svojstven rizik od zloupotrebe instituta premeštaja (neograničeno proširivanje sadržine okolnosti u kojima je dopušten privremeni premeštaj; premeštaj na slabije plaćeni posao posle korišćenja odsustva sa rada zbog trudnoće i porođaja; ograničavanje prava na poštovanje porodičnog života zbog premeštaja u drugo mesto rada).

In labour law, the rules of the contract law that allow modifications due to changed circumstances are applied, alongside necessary adjustments to these rules to fit the particular nature of the employment contract. Although the rules on employment contract modification in the labour law differ from the corresponding rules in the contract law, what grabbed the attention of the experts were the new solutions proposed in the Second Volume of the Preliminary Draft of the Civil Code of the Republic of Serbia, regarding termination and modification of contract due to changed circumstances (art. 145-148). This paper has examined the legal consequences of referring an offer for an annex to an employment contract. Specific chapters deal with the key aspects of employee transfers to another job or to a different (geographic) place of work. The analysis identifies cases where the amendments to an employment contract had a significant risk for misuse of transfers, such as unlimited expanding of circumstances where temporary transfer is allowed, and also transfer of employees to lower level jobs and lower paid jobs, especially upon their return from maternity leave. It is pointed out that attempts of the Serbian legislator to establish a contractual concept of employment relationship have resulted, amongst other things, in regulation of issues regarding amendments of employment contract, with appropriate protection provided for weaker party in employment relationship. Only permanent modifications of the essential elements of the contract shall be considered employment contract modifications, while modifications of the working conditions outside of the essential elements of the contract shall be considered an expression of employer's ius variandi. Modification of employment contract terms take precedence over its termination, meaning that the employment relationship will not be terminated if an employee agrees to a fair modification of the terms. On the other hand, an employee who rejects an offer, may require application of the unmodified contract, and the employer can agree with that request (i.e. enable work under previous conditions), or keep the offer and dismiss the employee. An employer, who, despite the refusal of the employee to accept the offer, via facti imposes the modification of the contract, is in breach of the contract and an employee is not obliged to perform new tasks or to work in a new place of work.