What’s the trial period for and what to watch out for in your new job?

The purpose of the trial period is to give the employer and the employee a chance to get to know each other, so that they get the chance to decide whether or not they want to cooperate with one another. However, the trial period has its own set of rules and principles, based on which it is run and governed. Are you lost? Don’t worry, continue reading to find out how it works.

Rules of the trial period

In most cases, the length of the trial period, according to the job position, is stated in the employment agreement, However, this is not a legal requirement, so there may not even be a trial period at all. The exception is being appointed for a position. Then, the trial period is specified in an amendment to the employment agreement.

If both parties agree on a trial period, this agreement must always be concluded in writing. In order for the trial period clause to be valid, the agreement must be concluded no later than on the day of hire. In the case of an appointed position, the day is the day the employee is appointed.

The law defines the length of the trial period. By law, the trial period for regular employees cannot be longer than three months. For managerial positions (an employee, who has at least one subordinate), the trial period cannot be longer than six months. 

However, the trial period cannot be longer than half of the agreed upon duration of the employment relationship. So, if employment is only for one month, the trial period cannot be longer than fourteen days. However, it is always a comprehensive period, which begins running when the employment relationship is established.

It’s not possible to extend the trial period

The trial period cannot subsequently be extended. If a two-month trial period is agreed upon from the very beginning, it cannot be extended to three months later on. The only exceptions include day-long obstacles on the side of the employer or the employee and a day-long leave, by which the trial period is automatically extended.

For example, an employee gets sick after working one week in a new job and is sick for one week. The trial period is then automatically extended by the period of the temporary sick leave. Therefore, the trail period doesn’t end on the originally agreed-upon day but continues based on the length of the previous obstacle (for example, sick leave) at work.

I’m not coming in tomorrow, but beware‼️ Termination of employment is restricted to the following conditions:

• The employment has to be terminated during the trial period (a written document has to be delivered to the other party during the trial period).
• The termination has to always be in written form, otherwise it is not considered.
• Restrictions on the side of the employer, given that the employer cannot deliver the termination of employment to the employee during the trial period within the first fourteen calendar days or temporary sick leave or quarantine. The reason is so that the employee does not lose out on the wage, which the employer undertakes to pay the employee. If the termination of employment is delivered during this time, it is considered invalid and the employee undertakes to inform the employer about such fact in writing and insists on remaining employed.

However, if the employee is on sick leave for more than fourteen days, then there is no restriction on the side of the employer. The employer may deliver the termination of employment to the employee during the trial period, even if the employee is sick.

Since the purpose of a trial period is to try out the mutual cooperation between the employee and the employer, it is relatively easy for either side to terminate employment during this period. 

Both parties can terminate employment for any reason during the trial period, even without stating a reason. The employment is terminated on the day the termination is delivered to the other party, unless the termination specifies a later date.

We hope you find such an employee or employer, so that you won’t have to deal with the trial period at all. :)

Did we foget