Protection against moral harassment at work

At a glance

• Luxembourg has recently passed the Act of 29 March 2023 amending the Labour Code to introduce a mechanism for protection against moral harassment at work.

The legislation, which came into force on 9 April 2023, defines moral harassment as repeated or systematic conduct that affects a person’s dignity or psychological health and that takes place in an employment context (including during work-related travel or training or through work-related communications, even if they occur outside normal working hours).

The law does not only protect employees, but also interns, apprentices and students that work during holidays, and prohibits any kind of moral harassment between employer and employee but also to and from clients and suppliers.

The employer must ensure that any acts of moral harassment cease immediately and must identify and take adequate measures to prevent harassment from occurring. Implementation of any measures should take place after the staff delegation has been informed or consulted, or, where there is no delegation, after all staff have been informed / consulted. Where an act of moral harassment is brought to the attention of the employer, it should take the necessary action and should assess the effectiveness of its harassment-prevention mechanisms.

Where harassment persists after measures have been taken or if an employer fails to take required measures, then the affected employee or the staff delegation may bring the case to the attention of the Labour and Mines Inspectorate, which will issue a report specifying measures to be implemented and can impose fines where the report is not complied with within a set time frame.

As a further layer of protection, the law specifies that an employee cannot be subject to retaliation for protesting or rejecting any behaviour that constitutes moral harassment or if they have witnessed an act of moral harassment. Any retaliatory measure, including dismissal, will be null and the employee may contest the employer’s decision before the labour court.

To combat moral harassment, the staff delegation is given responsibility for protecting employees and assisting and providing advice to them, as well as for proposing any measures they consider necessary.

Finally, in terms of remedies, the Act allows an affected employee to immediately terminate their contract without notice and to claim damages.  In addition,  a series of sanctions of between EUR251 and EUR2,500 that can be imposed on the person who commits the moral harassment, on the employer for breach of their duties under the law and on any person who retaliates against an employee (including colleagues, superiors, clients or providers).