Social elections 2024 - the occult period has begun!
Social Elections 2024
Through social elections, a company's workers elect their representatives to the Works Council (OR) and/or the Committee for Prevention and Protection at Work (CPBW) at work.
Employees who are nominated in social elections as candidates for staff representatives on the Works Council or the Committee for Prevention and Protection at Work enjoy very far-reaching dismissal protection, even if they are not elected.
Occult Period
The effective elections (i.e. voting) will not take place until May 2024, yet there are already many things a company should consider prior to the ballot.
One of those important issues concerns the occult period: a period of 65 days. The occult period is the period during which the company does not yet know which employees will stand for election, while these employees are already protected from a layoff.
The final candidate lists must be submitted to the employer no later than the thirty-fifth day after the official start of the election procedure (X+35), while the dismissal protection of these candidates has already started on the thirtieth day before the announcement of the election date (X-30).
Consequently, for 65 days (between day X-30 and day X+35), the company has no knowledge of which employees will be on the candidate lists, since the final candidate lists will not be known until late March or early April.
Consequently, the dismissal protection of employees who will be nominated as candidates for the 2024 social elections starts as early as January 2024 (i.e., 120 days before election day), well before you as an employer are aware of their candidacy.
During this period, it is important as an employer to take into account the "occult" period because of the applicable dismissal protection. The employer who proceeds to dismiss during this 65-day period is taking the risk of unknowingly dismissing a protected employee, failing to follow prescribed procedures. This may result in the payment of skyrocketing protection fees. Therefore, a forewarned employer is worth two!
Have questions about the social election gene? Our experts are here for you. Contact us at info@bannister.be or by calling 03 369 28 00
