Understanding Employment Contracts: A Comprehensive Guide
Employer’s Appeal
The appeal of an employer lies in their ability to:
- Organize the company
- Issue orders and instructions to employees
- Ensure employees fulfill their duties
- Exercise disciplinary power
Jurisprudence as a Source of Law
When the Supreme Court interprets a law and establishes consistent rulings on similar cases, it creates legal precedent. This precedent serves as a source of law known as jurisprudence, which lower courts must follow unless there are significant differences in the cases.
Definition of an Employment Contract
An employment contract is an agreement between two parties, the employer and the employee, where the employee agrees to provide services under the employer’s direction and control in exchange for remuneration.
Essential Elements of a Valid Employment Contract
For an employment contract to be valid, it must include the following essential elements:
Consent
Both parties must enter the contract freely and without coercion, deception, or fraud.
Object
The object of the contract, which is the provision of work in exchange for remuneration, must be possible, lawful, clearly defined, and not contrary to legal norms or morals.
Cause
The underlying reason for the contract is the exchange of work for remuneration.
Legal Capacity to Sign an Employment Contract
The following individuals have the legal capacity to sign an employment contract:
- Adults of legal age
- Foreigners with work authorization
- Legally emancipated minors over 16 years old
- Minors between 16 and 17 years old with parental or legal guardian consent
Employer’s Capacity to Sign an Employment Contract
An employer has the capacity to sign an employment contract if they are:
- A legally registered business entity
- An individual who has reached the age of majority and is of sound mind
- A legally appointed representative acting on behalf of a minor or incapacitated person
Minimum Contents of an Employment Contract
An employment contract should include the following minimum contents:
- Signatures of both parties
- Registration with the employment service
- Identity of the parties
- Type of contract, start and end dates (if applicable)
- Professional category
- Working time: duration and distribution
- Probationary period (if applicable)
- Employer’s address
- Location of the workplace
- Remuneration
- Distribution of holidays
- Notice period for termination
- Applicable collective bargaining agreement
- Date, place, and signatures
Employer’s Obligations Regarding the Employment Contract
Employers have the following obligations regarding the employment contract:
- Register the contract with the employment office
- Provide a copy to employee representatives
- Keep the original copy
- Provide a copy to the employee
Types of Employment Contracts
Indefinite Contracts
- Permanent contracts
- Contracts with indefinite duration
Fixed-Term Contracts
- Contracts for a specific project or period
- Interim contracts
- Substitution contracts
- Relief contracts
Training Contracts
- Apprenticeship contracts
- Internship contracts
Other Categories
- Group contracts
- Delivery contracts
- On-call contracts
Chaining Temporary Contracts (Article 15.5 of the ET)
Workers who have been employed for 24 months or more within a 30-month period through two or more consecutive temporary contracts for the same job, either directly or through a temporary agency, acquire the status of permanent employees.
Requirements for a Training Contract
To sign a training contract, a worker must meet the following requirements:
- Be over 16 years old and under 21 years old (may exceed 24 years old for workers with disabilities)
- Have no more than 24 years of prior experience in workshops, schools, or training centers
- Not possess the required qualifications for the position
- Not have been previously employed in the same job for more than 12 months
- Not have exhausted the maximum duration established for apprenticeship contracts
Requirements for a Practice Contract
To sign a practice contract, a worker must meet the following requirements:
- Possess a university degree, diploma, or equivalent qualification
- Provide the employer with a photocopy or certificate of the qualification
- Not have been previously employed in the same company or position for more than 2 years under the same qualification
- Not have held the qualification for more than 4 years (6 years for workers with disabilities)
Use of Temporary Contracts
Temporary contracts can be used in the following circumstances:
- Completion of specific projects or services
- Meeting temporary market demands, such as seasonal work
- Covering temporary positions during recruitment or promotion processes
- Replacing employees on leave
Maximum Duration of Temporary Contracts
The maximum duration of a temporary contract varies depending on the reason for its use:
- Market circumstances: 6 months (extendable to 12 months within an 18-month period by collective agreement)
- Filling a temporary vacancy: 3 months
- Replacing employees on leave: the duration of the leave
Rights of Part-Time Workers
Part-time workers have the same rights as full-time workers, including:
- Social security benefits (disability, death, survival, retirement) calculated based on hours worked
- The right to be employed under different contract types (work, service, market circumstances, production, etc.)
- The right to replace employees on leave, trainees, etc.
Work-Life Balance Measures
The following measures facilitate work-life balance:
- Extended leave for serious illness, hospitalization, or surgery of a relative up to the second degree (Article 37.3b)
- Extended breastfeeding leave for multiple births (Article 37.4)
- Reduced working hours for parents of children under 8 years old (Article 37.5)
- Vacation time taken separately from maternity or paternity leave (Article 38.3)