No school from today in Hungary – Is it feasible?

Viktor Orbán announced that schools will be closed from Monday, 16 March, and a plan of digital education will be in place. Students need to stay at home and teachers need to continue to teach by digital means. The Prime Minister also called for grandparents not to babysit children staying at home as they are particularly at risk from the coronavirus epidemic. This begs the question: What can a parent do if they have no one to look after their children? 24 interviewed Hargittay and Tóth law firm, who explained the options.

Can a parent simply not show up for work?

No, they cannot. Undue refusal of work may result in disciplinary action, and, ultimately, termination. The law allows for different ways of dealing with the situation, the point being that it must work together in such a way so as not to endanger either the employer’s economic activity or the employee’s family interests.

The options in order are as follows:

1. Can a parent request to work from home?
   
   It is possible to ask, but it is up to the employer to agree. According to the Labour Code, it is the duty of the employer to ensure that work can be done in a safe and healthy environment. The employee may request to work from home, but the employer is not obligated to comply with such requests unless there is a direct threat to the employee’s health. Unfortunately, deciding what a direct threat is is subjective.
   
   
2. Can a parent take leave?
   
   This is possible, but the employee only has 7 working days of leave and must give 15 days’ notice when they want to use it. It is up to the employer to decide whether to allow the employee to take leave, so it is possible to give leave without a 15-day advance if the agreement is reached. The employee is paid a base salary for this period. By law, a worker may not request leave for several weeks overnight. However, everything can be arranged with the consent of the employer. The employer is not obligated to give leave, except in the case of incapacity to work, 15 days of unpaid leave and 7 working days of regular leave. If the employer decides not to give leave, the employee is obligated to appear at the place of work.
   
   
3. Can a parent get an exemption from work?
   
   Yes. According to the Labour Code, “cases of special consideration due to personal, family, or other unavoidable cause” may justify absence, in which case the employee may ask the employer to relieve him of his duty to work and to be available. By law, the employee can be entitled to a benefit for this period by mutual agreement. However, this is a compromise solution, and the employer is not obligated to comply with this request. Experts at Hargittay and Tóth say that closing institutions overnight will justify relieving the worker from their duties at work or allowing them to work from home.
   
   
4. Can a parent apply for unpaid leave?
   
   Simply because schools have been closed and there is no one to look after the child, the employer is not obligated to give unpaid leave. According to the Labour Code, unpaid leave is only obligatory to give if the parent is at home to take care of a child (childbearing) or if the employee’s relatives need long-term care. However, the employer may deviate from the general rule if the employee so requests. The parent may also ask their employer to let them bring their children to the workplace, but the employer is not obligated to allow it.