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Employers and employees will be able to use the electronic signature upon termination of the labor contract, following a Government emergency ordinance adopted on Wednesday by which the use of electronic signature in labor relations is extended, the Minister of Labor and Social Protection, Raluca Turcan, announced on Facebook.
"The extension of the use of electronic signatures in labor relations and the simplified provisions on teleworking are measures that support companies and employees in this pandemic period. Through the provisions adopted today in the Government meeting: companies will be able to use electronic signatures in public relations, when drawing up the documents in the field of labor relations, upon termination of the individual employment contract, the parties may use the advanced or qualified electronic signature accompanied by the time stamp and the employer's qualified electronic seal, without this being able to be imposed on the employee by employer," mentioned Raluca Turcan.
The electronic signature can also be used in case the training regarding health and safety at work is carried out in electronic format, specified the Minister of Labor.
On the other hand, the normative act approved by the Government on Wednesday rephrases the definition of teleworking and eliminates the phrase "at least one day a month" in the context in which, at present, this labour organization form takes place regularly, informs a press release of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection (MMPS).
At the same time, the employee who carries out his or her activity in teleworking has the obligation to respect and ensure the confidentiality of the information used carrying out the activity, the MMPS release further mentions.
"The activity of employees working in telework is verified by using information technology, and training on the use of the equipment necessary for the activity can be conducted online," said Raluca Turcan.
In the press conference after the Government meeting on Wednesday, the Minister of Labor explained that by using the electronic signature, an employee who opts for teleworking is no longer obliged to go to the employer's headquarters to sign the document.
"This entire emergency ordinance adopted today will make teleworking much easier to access. We currently have about 400,000 employees conducting their activity in teleworking, compared to about 50,000 in the same period last year. So practically an eightfold increase in the number of employees in teleworking also involves simplifying this activity, redefining this activity, as well as details on how information is used in teleworking, how to archive teleworking activity and also how it can be accessed in the employer-employee relation. These bills, the electronic signature and teleworking, are interlinked, because if an employee opts for teleworking, there is no need to go to the employer's office, as he had to in the past to sign in handwriting that he opts for teleworking and then go back home," said Raluca Turcan.
