Are you covered by the SYNTEC agreement and want to change your employees’ place of work?
Special conditions apply to the mobility of your employees, as laid down by law, to which the Syntec agreement has added a number of specific features that are important to specify.
- Changing the employee’s place of work
The Syntec Convention distinguishes between employees subject to a mobility clause and those who are not.
For employees whose employment contracts do not include a mobility clause, the collective bargaining agreement states that when the change of workplace occurs within the same geographical sector, it can take place without the employee’s agreement, even in the absence of a mobility clause.
On the other hand, if this change takes place outside this geographical area, it will constitute a change to the employment contract, requiring the employee’s agreement.
If the employee refuses the new workplace, you have a choice: either abandon the proposed change, or dismiss the employee.
The dismissal must be motivated by the reasons that led to the proposed change in the workplace, and under no circumstances may it be motivated by the employee’s refusal to accept it.
- Please note: the Syntec Convention is very vague on the geographical area in which you can change the employee’s place of work without his or her authorization. We recommend that you only use this possibility within a very restricted geographical area, otherwise the change could be qualified as a modification of your employee’s employment contract, and would require his or her agreement. To avoid any difficulties, the best solution is to include a mobility clause in your employees’ employment contracts.
If a mobility clause is included in the employee’s employment contract, then changing the employee’s place of work never constitutes a change to his or her employment contract, provided the clause complies with the legal conditions for its validity and is implemented in good faith.
In this case, the employee’s refusal may be grounds for dismissal.
To be valid, a mobility clause must precisely define the geographical area to which it applies.
The greater the employee’s responsibilities, the more extensive the zone.
In order to be enforced, the mobility clause must also be implemented in good faith: it must meet an objective business need, for example to respond to a large supply of work in the employee’s new geographical area.
The Syntec Agreement also specifies that the mobility clause must be implemented with reasonable advance notice.
Even if the mobility clause and its implementation meet all of the above conditions, the employee may still refuse its application under the following conditions:
– If the transfer also modifies another essential element of his employment contract, in which case he will need to sign a supplementary agreement;
– If the transfer affects the employee’s personal and family life.
The implementation of a mobility clause can be a source of litigation, so we recommend that you seek assistance when setting up this mechanism.
- On the reimbursement of expenses provided for in the Syntec Agreement in the event of a change of residence by employees
The Syntec Convention stipulates that when the modification of an employee’s employment contract results in a change of residence, the company must cover certain expenses: moving and travel costs incurred by the employee and his family.
The amount of these expenses will be subject to your prior agreement.
If the employee is informed of the change of residence too late to terminate the lease, he/she will also be required to pay the landlord the cost of reimbursing rent and charges, up to a maximum of three months’ rent. These costs will then be added to the removal costs mentioned above.
If the employee’s family is unable to move closer to his new place of assignment, the employee will be considered to be in a situation of displacement, and will be entitled to compensation for such displacement. This compensation must be paid for a maximum of one year.
The collective bargaining agreement also provides for the reimbursement of these moving expenses in the event of the employee’s dismissal, if he or she returns with his or her family to his or her original place of residence within 6 months of the dismissal, and provided the dismissal was not for serious misconduct. This reimbursement may be applied under the same conditions, with the employer’s agreement, if the employee decides to move to a location other than his or her initial place of residence.
To benefit from this reimbursement, the employee must be dismissed within 2 years of the change in workplace.
This reimbursement will be made on presentation of supporting documents.
In addition to the conditions for implementing a mobility clause, which can give rise to difficulties with the employees concerned, the Syntec agreement lays down very specific provisions that you should be aware of before planning an employee transfer, as this can entail significant expenses for your company.
Naturally, DESRUMAUX AVOCATS is at your disposal to assist you in the event of a change in the workplace of one or more of your employees.
