The new Regulation on the content and manner of keeping records of employees is particularly complicated and expensive for small entrepreneurs. The fine for not keeping daily records is 100,000 kuna
writes Ivica Grčar
[email protected]
A reader warns me about the inconsistencies in the Regulation on the content and manner of keeping records of employees that must be applied from June 1 of this year (NN 66/2010). The signatory of the Regulation is Đuro Popijač, the Minister of Economy, Labor, and Entrepreneurship. Due to this new regulation, existing computer programs for keeping records at larger employers must be changed. For smaller employers, it is best to now hire one employee specifically for manually keeping records of daily arrivals and departures of workers. If a labor inspector shows up from somewhere, and the employer does not have properly filled records for that day, the fine is from 7,000 kuna for responsible persons to 100,000 kuna for legal entities.
Employee Register
There is no doubt that there are increasing abuses of workers and that this needs to be prevented. Workers are increasingly being paid minimum wages, but contributions are not paid, or minimum wages are contracted, and the difference to the full wage is paid under the table; workers are no longer employed indefinitely, but only for a fixed term, and often illegally, etc. However, none of this will and cannot be stopped by introducing additional unnecessary administration. A special problem will arise due to the newly introduced working time records – with at least 18 mandatory data points. Records of attendance at work have been kept until now (who is working, whether they are on a business trip, sick leave, annual leave, holiday, in a night shift, overtime work, etc.).
The Pearl of Croatian Highways
Even the disabled are not spared
from unnecessary administration
These days, notices are being sent to the addresses of the disabled by Croatian Highways stating that as of June 22, the conditions for acquiring and utilizing the right to exemption from tolls have been changed.
Disabled individuals who have the right to exemption are invited to bring a notarized copy of the disability decision, a copy of the vehicle registration booklet and traffic permit, and their personal identification card to a notary.
They must take this only to Lučko even though all these documents have already been submitted to Croatian Highways. Why do the same documents need to be submitted again?
However, small entrepreneurs kept these records on a monthly basis, not every day. It will be particularly complicated for small entrepreneurs to record hours of absence during daily working hours, whether approved by the employer or not. This would mean that every trip to the post office, bank, Fina, and similar places must be recorded. While this may need to be done in large systems and state administration, this record-keeping will give small employers pause. It is clear that all of this was devised by someone from the state administration, who does not even know who, where, and what is being done. I remind you of the statement by Davorin Mlakar, the Minister of Administration, that ‘a register of employees in public administration must be established'(!?). But don’t they have payroll calculations and payment lists for all officials in public administration in the State Treasury? The question arises as to who needs the invented job of establishing a register of employees in public administration if all the data already exists in the State Treasury. Or perhaps that data does not exist in the State Treasury?
Fines in the Hands of Inspectors
It is worth specifically mentioning the provisions on penalties. A legal entity employer will be fined between 61,000 and 100,000 kuna for the offense if they do not keep records of employees and working hours or do not keep them in the prescribed manner or if they do not provide data on employees and working hours to the labor inspector upon request within the deadline. A physical person employer and the responsible person of a legal entity will be fined between 7,000 and 10,000 kuna for an offense under the Regulation. For an offense under the Regulation, a legal entity employer may be fined on the spot where the offense was committed in the amount of 20,000 kuna (one might say – ‘in the hands’ of the labor inspector – which is particularly worth noting as a kind of invitation to corruption).
We invite entrepreneurs to express their problems. Following your writings, by pointing out absurdities in individual cases, we will highlight the shortcomings of the system as a whole and thus support the readers of Lider as individuals in their unequal disputes with the cumbersome state administration. Contact:
email: [email protected]
tel. 01/6333-524
address: Ivica Grčar, Lider,
Savska 41, 10144 Zagreb
