We are always happy to bring to the attention of HR managers of our large “manufacturing” clients with hundreds of employees suggestions for possible improvements to internal company guidelines, this time in the area of labor law, specifically in the granting of time off for short-term doctor visits for medical treatment or accompanying a family member (often referred to by employees as “P’s” :). As you know, as an employer, you are required to provide an employee with time off with pay for these purposes for up to 7+7 days per year.

However, did you know that:

• such a work impediment on the part of the employee does not automatically mean 1 full day off?
• as an employer, you can limit the employee’s excused absence to e.g. a maximum of 4 hours?
• a doctor’s visit during the day does not excuse an employee from coming in for a night shift starting at 22:00 on that day?
• you can require employees to document the actual time spent at the doctor’s office when the company’s internal regulations are correct?

Our Labor Desk specialists have prepared internal governing acts for a client in the automotive industry, which employs more than 1,000 employees, to address the specific problem of abusive interference with work time on the part of an employee for the purpose of medical treatment and examination of the employee, or when accompanying a family member to a medical facility for examination or treatment pursuant to Section 141(2) of the Labor Code. At the same time, our colleagues trained the employer’s senior management to implement these internal acts in practice.

During the preparation of the directives and in the subsequent training, we also addressed the following main issues, e.g.:

• the recognition or non-recognition of examinations outside working hours with an impact on the performance of work in the afternoon and night shift;
• the extent of time off work in the case of treatments in a medical facility at a greater distance from the employee’s workplace;
• the assessment of accompanying and then personally treating a family member for a full day;
• medical certificates for examinations/treatments without specifying the time of treatment, as well as treatment of a family member without a doctor’s certificate;
• the possibility/impossibility of examination outside working hours;
• so-called all-day examinations, as well as the inclusion not only of the examination time itself but also of so-called rest/recovery time, etc.

If you also have similar problems in your company or are interested in clarifying some specific practical situations, do not hesitate and contact us.