Find a job in Horeca
What to know about employment in Slovakia
Residents of Ukraine granted temporary protection have the same access to the labor market as Slovak citizens (except to civil servant jobs). They can be employed either under an employment contract or by agreement. The Labor Code fundamentally governs individual employment relationships in connection with wage labor for individuals in the service of a legal entity or another individual, as well as collective labor relations.
General information about employment in Slovakia
- Anybody is eligible to enter into an employment contract and be subject to the obligations derived from an employment relationship once they have reached the age of 15. Nonetheless, an employer is not permitted to hire anybody to work until the person is no longer compelled to attend school (compulsory school attendance in Slovakia is 10 years).
- Any employee is eligible to enter into a material responsibility agreement at earliest when they have reached the age of 18.
- The Labor Code governs the legal status of anybody employed in the private sector.
HORECA businesses use employment contracts when the establishment operates year-round and the jobs they offer are not seasonal.
- People are employed under a written employed contract that they and their employer sign. A
written copy of the employment contract has to be given to the employee by the employer. - The essential elements of the contract, which the employer is required to include therein, are:
- Type of work for which the employee is hired, a brief description thereof;
- Place of work (municipality, neighborhood in the municipality or otherwise designated
place); - First working day;
- Pay conditions (may be stipulated in the collective bargaining agreement, although
collective agreements are rare among employers).
- The agreed content of the employment contract can only be amended if both the employer and employee agree thereto. Employers are required to provide written amendments to employment contracts.
- The probationary period agreed in the employment contract is permitted to be three months at
most, or six months in the case of some senior positions; - The probationary period can neither be extended, nor included in a renewed fixed-term
employment agreement.
- A fixed-term employment contract may be agreed for up to two years;
- Any fixed-term employment contract may be renewed or renegotiated no more than twice within a two-year period, with the duration of fixed-term employment explicitly stated therein.
The most commonly used agreements in HORECA establishments are agreements on…. and student temporary work contracts. These agreements are used by seasonal establishments or establishments providing services with pronounced seasonality. The jobs are frequently in seasonal operations located
in resorts with a peak summer or winter tourist season, but they can also be found in urban hotels that provide conference or convention services, or food/catering services on summer terraces.
Another employment relationship is one established under an intermittent work contract, such as:
- Work performance contracts
- Contracts for specific work
- Student temporary work contracts
Intermittent work contracts are concluded only in exceptional cases. Employers are required to conclude a regular employment contract if the job falls under the category of wage labor.
- Working time – average should be at most 40 hours per week
- Breaks – if working time is greater than six (6) hours, at least a 30 minute break has to be provided by the employer
- Uninterrupted rest in a day – a minimum of 12 consecutive hours within a 24-hour period between the end of one shift and the start of the next
- Uninterrupted rest in a week – e.g. two consecutive days of uninterrupted rest once a week, which has to fall either on Saturday and Sunday, or on Sunday and Monday
- Basic paid leave is at least four (4) weeks
In 2022, the monthly minimum wage is €646 gross for full-time employees or €3.713 per hour. However, jobs are classified into six (6) classes according to their degree of difficulty and the amounts below apply to Class 1, or the lowest degree of difficulty. For the highest degree of difficulty (Class 6), the monthly minimum wage is €1,226 or €7.046 per hour.
| Class | Minimum wage coefficient |
|---|---|
| 1. | 1,0 |
| 2. | 1,2 |
| 3. | 1,4 |
| 4. | 1,6 |
| 5. | 1,8 |
| 6. | 2,0 |
Pay in HORECA is not among the highest compared to other sectors, but an employee with work experience or skills has the opportunity for career growth coupled with pay increases. The most common jobs such as waiter, waitress, cook, housekeeper and receptionist are most often classified as Class 1 or 2, meaning that these minimum wage coefficients should apply for these positions.
Average pay offered for selected HORECA positions as published by Profesia.sk:
- Cook: 706 – 1695 EUR
- Waiter/waitress: 698 – 1242 EUR
- Housekeeper: 623 – 1191 EUR
- Receptionist: 771 – 1210 EUR
The Labor Code guarantees extra pay
- Employees are entitled to extra pay for working at night, during weekends and on public
holidays. - Rate for working on Saturday is €1.62 per hour.
- Rate for working on Sunday is €3.22 per hour.
- Rate for working on a public holiday is 100% of average pay.
- Rate for working at night is €1.43 per hour.
Employers are required to provide meals to their employees working on all shifts. They are not required to do so if they provide an earmarked financial contribution toward meals. An employee is entitled to
either a meal or a financial contribution toward a meal if they work a shift of more than four hours. If the shift lasts longer than 11 hours, employers have the option of providing another meal or another financial contribution toward a meal.
The minimum value of a meal voucher has been €4.50 since 1 May 2022.
The minimum financial contribution toward a meal has been €2.48 since 1 May 2022.
Job vacancies advertised in Ukrainian are available directly on employment services websites. You can get information about job vacancies and employment opportunities in Slovakia from the Office of Labor, Social Affairs and Family. This information is also available in Ukrainian language at:
Undeclared work is considered any wage labor performed by an individual for an employer under the following circumstances:
- When no employment relationship has been established between them and the employer in accordance with the Labor Code. In other words, there is no employment contract or agreement;
- If the employer is violating the conditions set out in Section 21 (1) of Act 5/2004, by employing somebody who is neither a national of a member state of the European, nor of Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein or Switzerland, nor a stateless person;
- If a citizen of Ukraine is employed that either does not have a valid work visa or has not been granted temporary protection status.
Undeclared work and illegal employment have a negative impact not only on employed people, but on the business environment and society as a whole.
People who are working illegally face problems with their entitlement to wages, meals, the legal maximum working time, minimum rest periods and holidays. They also risk issues when claiming other social benefits.
Employers who hire illegally are distorting a level playing field, face heavy fines, are at risk of having their business licenses revoked, and are exposed to other penalties. Society likewise loses out because of unpaid taxes and levies, and increased unemployment.
Undeclared employment and illegal work can be reported by filing a complaint with the regional labor inspectorate.
What you should know about working in HORECA
HORECA is often used to refer to HOTELS, RESTAURANTS and CAFES. HORECA businesses are among the largest first-time employers. Most young people get their first work experience at them. Many jobs are just right for people without qualifications or with no work experience and they quickly master the job. Statistics also show more women than men working in these establishments.
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 110,000 people in Slovakia worked in HORECA during peak tourist seasons. But because of measures put in place to combat the pandemic, headcount has fallen and yet the demand for these services is rising and employers are offering many job opportunities.
Specific requirements for working in HORECA
Anybody working at HORECA establishments that will be coming into contact with food of foodstuffs is required to have the following:
Legislation in Slovakia (specifically Decree 585/2008) states that only a professionally qualified and medically fit person is allowed to carry out epidemiologically significant activities in the production, handling and placing on the market of food and foodstuffs. Proof of medical fitness is one of the conditions people employed and working in restaurants and catering establishments are required to have.
A medical certificate confirming fitness is generally issued by a physician after a medical examination has been conducted. These medical certificates have no expiration date.
*Registering with a general practitioner might be difficult in some regions of Slovakia because of the lackof general outpatient clinics available to cover needs. If you require help registering with a general practitioner, you can try contacting your future employer.
Professional competence is demonstrable proof of required education and either practical experience or successful passing of an examination. It is a specific condition for certain professional activities such as handling food and foodstuffs.
Professional competence is demonstrated with the following:
- Diploma or certificate from any of the professional institutions shown in Annex 6 to Decree 585/2008; or
- Certificate of proficiency to carry out an epidemiologically significant activity.
Certificates of proficiency are issued by the regional public health authority after a successful examination before a commission the authority has assembled.
In order to make it as easy as possible to obtain a certificate, the national public health authority has developed
uniform study materials that have been mostly translated into Ukrainian.
*Ask your employer for information about the location and contact details for verifying professional competence.
Other benefits of HORECA employment
Many lodging establishments provide their staff either with temporary accommodation or accommodation for a defined period directly there or through intermediaries. An employer’s temporary accommodation solution can be of significant help and benefit while you are searching for a job.
WATCH OUT FOR DANGEROUS PRACTICES
Look out for the following when you are hired:
- Somebody offering a job without telling you precisely the company’s name, about where you will be working, what you will be doing, or what they will be paying you;
- Somebody offering a job and asking you to hand over your travel documents;
- Employers that do not sign the employment contract or it is written in a language you do not understand;
- Somebody offering a job where they will provide only room and board;
- A placement agency offering a job and asking you to pay a fee for them to provide it.