Pravni položaj zaposlenih u slučaju promene poslodavca

Abstract

The development of the Internet, Artificial Intelligence, e-business, strong interstate and intercompany competitiveness, as well as contemporary economic trends have highlighted the need for more flexible business organization. The changing business environment requires employers to adapt to new circumstances and focus on one of the many restructuring models, involving inter alia the change of employer’s legal identity as a result of status change (merger, acquisition, division, separation) or legal transfer of an undertaking (sale, lease, outsourcing, subcontracting, etc). These changes entail positive economic activities aimed at enhancing competitiveness, balancing profit and loss, enabling functional and administrative unity, etc. However, the change of employer has a significant impact on employees, whose term of employment may be terminated or altered to the detriment of employees, who may be transferred to another employer. Hence, the cognitive objective of doctoral dissertation is: (1) to identify the concept and cases involving change of employer, in order to understand the limits of implementation of employee protection regulations; (2) to point to the selective systematization, imprecisions and legal gaps which have practical relevance and consequences; (3) to determine the legal consequences and emphasize the complexity of employees’ legal position during and after change of employer; and (4) to investigate the level of employee protection in case of employer change in domestic, comparative and international law. It is achieved by applying social science and legal science methods. The pragmatic objective of the dissertation is: (1) to provide analytical overview, critically evaluate the legal solutions for employee protection in case of employer change, and determine whether positive law meets the legislator’s requirements; (2) to consider the possibility of improving employee protection to achieve social balance, based on the analysis of international legal sources, comparative law and legal practice in neighboring countries and the Republic of Serbia, and (3) to offer de lege ferenda proposals for system modification.