Why work rules are mandatory
Article 4 of the Work Rules Act requires every employer covered by that act to draw up work rules. The FPS Employment confirms that this applies regardless of the number of employees. The work rules contain, among other things, the working hours and the other items required by Article 6.
Exceptions
The act does not apply to the groups in Article 2, including domestic servants, employees in a family business where usually only relatives work under the authority of a parent or guardian, and employees with a local employment agency (PWA) employment contract.
What is the risk?
Failing to draw up valid work rules is a level 2 offence under Article 200 of the Social Criminal Code: an administrative fine of € 250 to € 2,500. In addition, you cannot rely on the work rules against an employee who did not receive a copy.
What to do
Draw up the work rules following the procedure in the act, give every employee a copy and send a copy to the Social Legislation Inspectorate within 8 days of their entry into force; this can be done online.
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Sources
Every amount and deadline on this page was checked against these official sources, last consulted on .