Next year, social elections will be organized again. If your company has to organize social elections, it is recommended to already plan the preparation. A good preparation will allow you to look back at impeccably conducted social elections next year by this time.
The social elections will normally take place between 7 and 20 May 2012. Social elections have to be organized if in a company - technical business unit at least an average of 50 employees are employed (see below).
As of an average of 50 employees, social elections must be organized for the appointment of the employees’ representatives for the committee for prevention and protection at work. Once the threshold of an average of 100 employees is reached, social elections must also be organized for the works council. The average of the employees is calculated according to a specific method. Normally the employment during the calendar year preceding the social elections is taken into account, so in the case at hand 2011. For part-time employees, special calculation rules apply. Temporary agency workers are included too for the calculation of the average number of employees, except if they replace “own” employees.
The technical business unit is determined on the basis of the so-called economic and social criteria. A technical business unit can coincide with a legal entity, but this is not necessarily the case. In some cases, several legal entities together are considered as one technical business unit.
Prior to the social elections, it is advisable to verify the number of technical business units and how many employees they each employ. In this way, you can verify whether you have to organize social elections and, if so, whether one or more committees for prevention and protection at work and/or works councils will be elected.
The procedure of social elections consists of a series of strict formalities and is conducted according to a fixed calendar. The key moments are traditionally indicated with the letters X and Y. The first formal acts (the first written notifications) should take place on the date X-60. Taking into account the above-mentioned election dates, this means that the procedure should be started between 9 and 22 December 2011.
Another important consequence of the procedure is that, during a certain period (the so-called “occult period”), employees may benefit from the protection against dismissal of a (candidate) employees’ representative, without the employer being aware of the candidacy. The protection against dismissal of a (candidate) employees’ representative indeed takes effect at a time when the employer is not yet aware of the identity of the candidates for the social elections. When the social elections are organized on 7 May 2012, the occult period begins on 8 January 2012. Companies which have to organize social elections have an interest in avoiding each dismissal as from that date.
When a (candidate) employees’ representative is dismissed without following the dismissal procedure, the employer has to pay a substantial severance pay. This also applies when the employer was not even aware of the candidacy for the social elections.
You can also already verify which employees will be considered as management personnel. Those employees cannot be a candidate for the social elections.
In preparation of the social elections, arrangements can be made with the trade unions concerning the way in which the election campaign will be conducted. It can be established for instance where the posters can be put up and to what extent the email system can be used for propaganda purposes.
Note: these Headlines are based on the information we currently dispose of. The legislation regulating the social elections 2012 still has to be published. If there are any changes, we will of course inform you.
For further information, contact:
employment@liedekerke.com
