Impact of the labor deal on family life and co-parenting?

Impact of the labor deal on family life and co-parenting?

For International Family Day, the labor and family law departments are joining forces and explaining more about the impact of the Labor Deal on family life and co-parenting.

• THE ARBEIDS DEAL

Some time ago, the Labor Deal came into effect. The Labor Deal provides for several measures to ensure better work-life balance and raising the employment rate.

In particular, there are two recently introduced measures that contribute to facilitating family life and co-parenting arrangements, viz. the alternating week regime and the four-day work week

• CHANGING WEEKLY SCHEDULE

First, the Labor Deal provides for a full-time worker to perform work services in a varying weekly schedule.

The alternating week regime means that an employee can work one week or several weeks more than the company's normal working hours, only to have more time off during the next week or weeks.

This measure can have very beneficial effects for divorced parents. For example, the alternating weekly schedule ensures that the employee will be able to adjust his full-time work arrangement to the residence arrangement agreed upon in the context of co-parenting in the event of divorce

This regime thus ensures that you can be fully available at times when your children are staying with you. We note that such regime is always well received by the Court and therefore has a positive effect on the ruling regarding the residence arrangement.

• Cycle

How many weeks a cycle can cover under an alternating week regime depends. The general rule states that the alternating week regime is organized according to a cycle of two consecutive weeks. Thus, according to a cycle over two consecutive weeks, up to a maximum of 9h per day and up to a maximum of 45h per week can be worked. Performance in the first week is then immediately offset by less performance in the second week.   

For example, if a company's normal working hours are 38 hours per week, an employee may choose to perform 45 hours during the first week and perform only 31 hours during the second week. This ensures that the employee can perform the "less hours" week, for example, when he/she has the children considering the co-parenting arrangement.  

• WORKING WEEK OF 4 DAYS

Second, the Labor Deal provides for a full-time worker to perform a four-day week. This too has a positive impact on family life.

The four-day work week means that one can opt to perform a normal full-time work week (a full-time) over 4 working days instead of 5 working days. One can then work up to 9.5 hours a day in a 38-hour week or up to 10 hours a day in a 40-hour week. This ensures that one has an extra day off to run the household or take time off for family.

This regime is also always well received by the court as it allows quality time to be spent with the children. For example, one can opt not to work on Wednesdays, allowing more time with the children.

For both measures, it is the employer who decides whether the regime can be applied in the company. Of course, there is a lot more to be said about both measures, especially as far as the procedural aspect is concerned.

Would you like more information about this or to be assisted by a specialized lawyer? Please feel free to contact us at info@bannister.be or via 03.369.28.00.