Revised laws on remote working and meal vouchers

On 5 September 2022 Law No 14,442/22 was published in the Official Gazette and came into immediate effect.

In terms of remote working, the Law now clarifies that remote working includes remote work on a hybrid, regular, permanent or casual basis. In respect of remote working, the Law also introduces changes in relation to the regulation of working hours. Whereas previously employers were not obliged to track the working hours of remote workers and were not obliged to make overtime payments for hours worked in excess of normal working hours, now employers must both regulate the hours of remote workers and make overtime payments. By way of an exception, the revised requirements do not apply to individuals who work remotely and who are retained to undertake specific tasks or who do piecework (paid per product).

The law provides that remote work / telework is also permitted for interns and apprentices and confirmed the provisions of the Labour Code provisions in the sense that remote work / telework conditions must be formally adjusted in the employment agreement.

The law has also clarified that amounts granted as meal allowance can be used only for the purchase of food / groceries either in a restaurant or in a grocery store. This means that the existing practice of providing employees with flexible benefits cards which could be used for purchases other than food will have to end.