Opposition to submit amendment to promote employee freedom of expression

Budapest, February 6 (MTI) – The opposition LMP party will submit an amendment to the labour code to ensure employees the right of expressing their opinion, the party’s co-leader said on Monday.

The current code, enacted in 2012, allows employers to restrict employees in expressing their opinion and intimidate those who do so, Bernadett Szél told a press conference.

The law fails to guarantee that those who have been dismissed over expressing an opinion but won a lawsuit should be placed back in their position, she said.

LMP’s bill will ensure an employee the right to expressing their opinion outside the workplace and on matters unrelated to the employer, she said.

The bill will also ensure an employee the right to publicly express criticism if the employer is in breach of rules on employment or if working conditions are unsatisfactory.

The proposal will also oblige an employer to rehire an employee who wins a lawsuit over unlawful dismissal.

Szél said LMP’s bill was prompted by such instances as the dismissal of an employee in western Hungary’s Szombathely for taking a position on a community site on the government’s ban on Sunday shopping.

She noted a recent instance when the head of the Antall József Knowledge Centre banned employees from supporting the campaign against Hungary’s bid for hosting the 2024 Olympics.

Source: MTI