New directives


Two new EU directives came into force in EU member states last month. 


A directive on transparent and predictable working conditions requires employers to provide employees with detailed information on their conditions on their first day of employment, including the number of their guaranteed paid hours. 


It also sets out a series of minimum terms such as a six-month limit on probation periods and the right to refuse work outside previously defined hours. 


The other directive, on work-life balance for parents and carers, guarantees 10 days’ paternity leave, paid at least at the level of national sick pay and an individual right to four months’ paid parental leave. 


It also gives five days’ leave a year for those caring for relatives, and the right to request flexible working arrangements for those with children up to age eight.