As of Wednesday, companies with more than 250 employees must begin testing all their employees for COVID-19 by March 12.
Any employee who refuses to undergo tests could face termination according to legal experts.
Czech attorney Jiří Matzner told Novinky that if an employee doesn’t make it to work because they refused a test, it would be considered an “inexcusable absence.”
“According to this unusual measure implemented by the Ministry of Health on March 1, 2021, employees are obliged to undergo testing at the request of the employer. If an employee doesn’t appear for the test, he can’t perform work within the employer’s workplace. In this case, it would be an inexcusable absence and a gross violation of work duties.”
Lenka Droscová, a lawyer from Řanda Havel Legal, also believes that this scenario would be considered an inexcusable absence, and a violation of the Labour Code on the part of the employee. In her opinion, it gives the employer the legal right to immediately terminate the person’s employment.
Prime Minister Babiš backed the idea in February, proposing a 500,000 CZK fine for any employer that failed to properly follow the measure or closing businesses that made severe violations.
While companies with more than 250 employees have to complete testing by the 12th, companies between 50 and 249 need to complete it by March 15th.
