Coronavirus: hiring out employees to the critical sectors

To enable companies in the critical sectors to cope with the consequences of the Covid-19 epidemic, the Special Powers Decree No. 14 of 27 April 2020 provides for the possibility, under certain conditions, of hiring out to them permanent employees who are employed in other companies.

Rule

Hiring out employees to users is prohibited, subject to the exceptions provided for in the Act of 24 July 1987 on temporary work, temporary agency work and hiring out employees to users.

'Covid-19' exception

Special Powers Decree No. 14 of 27 April 2020 provides for a new exception to this rule.

Conditions for hiring out

If an employer wishes, outside his regular activity(ies), to hire out his permanent employees to a user in the context of the fight against the spread of Covid-19, he must comply with the following conditions:

• the user must belong to the critical sectors; 'critical sector' refers to the companies and institutions belonging to the crucial sectors and essential services as determined in the Ministerial Decree of 23 March 2020 on urgent measures to limit the spread of the coronavirus COVID-19;
• the hiring out must take place between 1 April 2020 and 30 June 2020 in order to cope with the consequences of the Covid-19 epidemic in the user's company;

• the permanent employees that are hired out must have started work before 10 April 2020.

Procedure

The conditions and duration of the hiring-out period, must be laid down in a written document:

• drawn up before the beginning of the hiring-out period;
• and signed by the employer, the user and the employee.

No further formalities are required.

Please note! However, the written consent of the employee is not required when tacit consent is customary in the sector of activity in which he is employed.

Pay and working conditions during the hiring out

The employment contract between the employee and the employer remains in force during the hiring-out period.

This means, among others, that the employer remains liable for the payment of wages to the hired out employee, the latter being furthermore not entitled to receive lower wages, allowances and benefits than those received by employees carrying out the same tasks in the user's company.

As for the user, he becomes jointly and severally liable for the payment of social security contributions, wages, allowances and benefits resulting from the employment contract concluded between the employer and the employee.

During the hiring-out period, the user is also responsible for the application of the legislation on the regulation and protection of labour applicable at the place of work (as referred to in Article 19 of the Act of 24 July 1987).

Source: Special Powers Decree No. 14 of 27 April 2020 implementing Article 5, § 1, 5°, of the Act of 27 March 2020 authorising the King to take measures in the fight against the spread of the coronavirus COVID-19 (II) to safeguard a smooth work organisation in the critical sectors, Belgian Official Gazette of 28 April 2020.