Be Aware Belgium Special newsflash - social elections 2020

Social elections procedure to resume between 23 September and 6 October 2020

Are you set to go?

In our March Be Aware, we discussed the suspension of the social election procedure from X+35 (i.e. the submission of candidate lists), as well as the postponement of the social elections until the autumn, for health reasons related to COVID-19.

Although the Act of 4 May 2020 aimed at regulating the suspension of the 2020 social election procedure due to the coronavirus pandemic (published in the Belgian State Gazette of 13 May 2020), which is applicable retroactively from 17 March 2020 and provided, in particular, for the principle of the suspension of the electoral procedure, a Royal Decree was still needed to set the date for resuming the electoral procedure and the new social election period.

This has now been done with the publication of a Royal Decree in the Belgian State Gazette of 22 July 2020. This latest Royal Decree of 15 July 2020 is aimed at regulating the resumption of the 2020 social election procedure suspended based on the Act of 4 May 2020 aimed at regulating the suspension of the 2020 social election procedure following the COVID-19 pandemic.

What does this Royal Decree mean?

Social elections will take place between 16 and 29 November 2020.

The electoral procedure, suspended on X+35, will therefore need to resume on X+36, i.e. between 23 September and 6 October 2020.

How will the new election date be set?

The Royal Decree provides that the date the elections are postponed to is set according to the initially planned election date (the latter being initially set between 11 and 24 May 2020). This means that a company that has chosen to organise its social elections on 11 May 2020, for example, will in principle see the election date automatically postponed to 16 November 2020.

However, an alternative date may be set during the period from 16 to 29 November 2020. This decision will have to be taken by the works council or the committee for prevention and protection at work or, in the absence of a works council or committee for prevention and protection at work, by the employer.

How will employees and trade union organisations be informed about the new election date?

Employees and trade union organisations must be informed of the date which the elections are postponed to, the election timetable and the new dates resulting from the election procedure by no later than seven days before X+36.

This will be done by the works council or the committee for prevention and protection at work or, failing that, by the employer.

How will the elections be conducted?

The Employees will be informed via the form provided for this purpose by the Royal Decree of 15 July 2020. This form will either be posted in the usual place of posting used for social elections or will be made available electronically if all employees have access to the form during their normal working hours. As for the trade union organisations, this can be done via the application provided on the FPS Employment, Labour and Social Dialogue’s website or by post.

If there is no works council or committee for prevention and protection at work, a copy of this document must also be sent to the trade union delegation members.

Finally, in our Be Aware of May 2020, we mentioned the new occult protection period provided by the Act of 4 May 2020. As indicated in this contribution, the new occult protection period will start to run from the new date X and will expire on Y-14. Consequently, employers should, as far as possible, avoid taking any dismissal decisions between the new day X (i.e. between 18 and 31 August 2020 depending on the date chosen for the election between 16 and 29 November 2020) and Y-14 (i.e. the last possible date for the replacement of candidates, between 2 and 15 November 2020).

Social elections will take place between 16 and 29 November 2020.