New restrictions regarding the use of day workers in 2019

In a recent amendment to Law no. 52/2011 on the performance of occasional activities by day workers (“Law 52/2011”), the Romanian Government severely restricted the use of day workers and imposed additional obligations on both the day workers and the beneficiaries.

Government Emergency Ordinance no. 114/2018 (“GEO 114/2018”) amending Law no. 52/2011 entered into force on December 29th, 2018. With respect to day workers, GEO 114/2018 introduces the following restrictions:

1. The scope of industries in which the use of day workers was permitted has now been significantly restricted to three sectors:

2. agriculture, hunting and ancillary services;

3. forestry; and

4. fishing and aquaculture.

Prior to this change, the list of permitted industries included a broad range of other activities, such as: restaurants & catering; hotels & leisure; waste collection/treatment; publicity; artistic and support activities; landscaping; wholesale of agricultural products and livestock; research and development in biotechnology, etc.

1. Individuals cannot be employed as day workers for more than 120 days in one (1) calendar year, irrespective of the number of beneficiaries – there was previously no limitation in this regard. There are some exceptions to this limit e.g. livestock farming, vineyard activities etc. where the threshold has been set to 180 days in a calendar year.

2. Beneficiaries cannot use the same day worker for more than twenty-five (25) successive calendar days – after this period, an individual employment contract should be concluded if the beneficiary wants to retain the services of an individual.

3. Using day workers in areas of activity other than the (now restricted) aforementioned industries is subject to a fine of up to RON 20,000. Additionally, exceeding the twenty-five (25) calendar day threshold on the continuous use of the same day worker raises the risk of the individual acquiring employment status, with all that it entails. Furthermore, individuals who fail to observe the 120 day/year restriction face a fine of up to RON 2,000.