Dear Reader,
our today's blog-article will be a little bit longer than usual. So many things happened the last weeks and months. Enjoy reading about the following:
- COVID travel regulations for employees
- Brexit - what applies to employees from the Commonwealth and Northern Ireland?
- Would you have known? Maximum age for RWR card applicants
- Extended power of representation for management consultants
- EU Posting of Workers Directive
- Employee Coaching
COVID and no end
Can't you hear it any more either? And yet, as an HR manager, you are confronted with it every day. Especially if you have colleagues who, despite the Corona crisis
- have to travel
- are seconded
- have been recruited from abroad
it is then important to always have the current rules of the respective target country at hand.
In the meantime, there is hardly a country in the world that does not require a negative PCR test and subsequent quarantine upon entry. Some countries even top this rule, such as France, and require a rapid test before departure in addition to a PCR test that is no more than 48 hours old. The rapid test must not be older than 4 hours.
Unfortunately, the test centres at the airports do not always take this into account with their opening hours. Make sure you check in good time and find out about the current regulations on the website of your national health ministry and/or at the airport.
(Still) Brexit and beyond
By now, every Britain living abroad in the EU knows that 2021 is a transitional period and that a residence permit should be applied for at the respective foreigners authority as soon as possible. In Austria, the category "Article 50 TEU" was created for this purpose. For more information, please contact immigration@moves-consulting.com.
British citizens who wish to settle for the first time, e.g. in Germany or Austria, go through an application procedure for residence and acquisition like any third-country national. They are subject to the quota system as well as the obligation to prove income, qualifications (if applying for a work permit) and other requirements. Write to us at immigration@moves-consulting.com if you would like more information or need support in the application process.
Hätten Sie’s gewusst?
Es gibt kein Höchstalter bei Antrag auf eine RWR Karte
On 13 December 2017, the Austrian Constitutional Court issued a ruling under case number G281/2017 (G281/2017-6), according to which applicants who have exceeded the age of 40 may no longer receive points, but may not be refused the RWR card on the grounds of age if they have reached the overall minimum number of points.
...1.2 Pursuant to §12b Z1 AuslBG, foreigners are admitted to employment as key workers if, among other things, they achieve the required minimum number of points for the criteria listed in Annex C. According to the aforementioned Annex to the AuslBG, this is the minimum number of points required for employment as a key worker. According to the aforementioned Annex to the Aliens Act, this amounts to 50 points. A maximum of 75 points can be achieved. They are distributed among the categories qualification (20 [vocational training or special knowledge/skills in intended employment], 25 [university entrance qualification] or 30 points [university degree], vocational experience adequate to the training (2 points per year or 4 points in Austria, but not more than 10 points), language skills (10 or 15 points) and age (20 points up to the age of 30, 15 points between the ages of 30 and 40). For professional athletes there are additional points (20). In the event that the applicant is over 40 years of age, he/she will no longer be awarded points in the age category. The legislative materials do not contain any further explanations of this points system (Explanation of the RV 1077 BlgNR 24. GP, 11 ff. [12 f.])....
Extended representation rights for management consultants
The Austrian government has confirmed the extended representation rights of management consultants in the amendment of October 2020, which have now also been confirmed by the courts. This amendment was preceded by a court case on the interpretation of the trade law of management consultants. The ruling confirms the representation rights that have been in force for many years. This amendment has once again created legal clarity and confirmed that management consultants are entitled to the right of professional party representation vis-à-vis third parties such as clients and suppliers as well as authorities and public bodies. MOVES consulting's business activities have also been reconfirmed and secured by this law. For years we have represented our corporate clients and their international employees before the competent authorities in matters of residence and employment of foreigners. What does this mean for our clients?
As our client, you can be sure of the legitimacy of our representation before the authorities and rest assured that applications for work and residence permits for employees from third countries will be represented by your expert. MOVES consulting specialises in the Austrian RWR card system, the BLUE CARD EU and Blue Card Germany, as well as EU expatriations.
Everything needed for a new start abroad - from one source. The extended rights of management consultants also include the establishment of a company or a branch office.
The new Posting of Workers Directive makes many companies nervous
All states had time until 30 July 2020 to implement the reformed Deployment of Workers Directive. But is it really new?
Actually most of the regulations already applied before. The focus has now shifted to equal pay and the same employee rights as local employees. Employees may no longer be fobbed off with the minimum wage but are entitled to all wage components - including bonuses such as Christmas bonuses or bad weather allowances.
In addition, travel, board and lodging expenses may no longer be deducted from wages. The employer must pay for these.
And as soon as the employee is posted to another EU country for longer than 12 months (extension option to 18 months), the local labour law regulations apply to him.
In the future, HR managers will have to take these new regulations into account when posting employees within the EU.
However in order to be able to comply with the relevant salaries and regulations, the HR manager must first know which salary from which sector and which additional regulations would be the right ones. All EU countries are now obliged to publish this information on their websites. The EU has compiled a list here:
Often the information is still in the national languages. We also hope that this will soon become more international.
When working in home-office makes you lonely and sad.
We are currently confronted with major upheavals and changes.
We are facing great challenges and can hardly cope with them. Events are virtually forcing us to do so. Adjusting to new conditions and challenges. Working from a home office, for example, is such challenge. Do you sometimes have the feeling that you lose contact with your colleagues in the home office?
Working from home is not made for everyone. In my private environment, the personality types seem to essentially divide into 2 categories: Some, minor figures of employees would prefer to work only in the home office and are quite happy with the current situation. But most of them want to finally work together with their colleagues in the office again. They feel lonely at home and have the feeling of losing contact with the company.
One can read it in more and more articles in the media that people have become more willing to change in recent months. Employees no longer feel as committed to their employer as before. An undeniable consequence of the Corona situation.
How to face this challenge as an HR responable? We at MOVES consulting have set up a counselling service for your employees. Expat coaching is also part of this. For more than 1 year clients can now make appointments via Zoom, Skype or in the Vienna office. You can find more details about this offer at www.lebensberatung1080wien.at. We want you to do well.
We welcome feedback and your questions on the topic of residence and labour law in Germany and in Austria: immigration@moves-consulting.com