The camp counselors will not be happy. Wage replacement will see a major cut this year

For the past four years, team leaders or instructors have been able to request up to three weeks of leave on top of their vacation. And they can also get pay replacement for the first week. But while in previous years the law has been generous to them, this year there is a significant reduction and capping. Earnings for some of them there can drop from nearly 40,000 crowns to just a quarter.

Those who are interested in being a camp or scout leader should turn their attention to the new legislation laid down by Act No. 321/2023 Coll., which brings changes to the provision of leave for employees involved in events for children and young people. The conditions under which employees may take time off work with pay or salary compensation and the obligations of the employer are regulated by the Labour Code.

To whom and when can paid leave be granted?

Employees who want to take time off with pay or salary compensation must meet a few basic conditions. First of all, the employee must have been working with children or young people on a regular and unpaid basis for at least 1 year immediately before the leave. For the purposes of this rule, children are defined as natural persons under the age of 21. Continuous activity for this purpose means activity which is not occasional or one-off.

“Certain obligations are also imposed on a camp or troop of the employee’s choosing. The organisation of summer fun with children must be registered in the public register of legal and natural persons for at least 5 years and work with children and youth must be listed as its main activity,” explains Lucie Kubátová, consultant at RSM.

What all activities are subject to the possibility of time off work and payment of wages?

Employees are entitled to time off work for the activity:

• Camp leaders for children and youth,
• Representatives for economic and health matters,
• Troop Leaders,
• Educators,
• Instructors,
• Medical Officers in Children’s and Youth Camps.

Employees may take leave related to children and youth events to the extent necessary to carry out the activities listed above, up to a maximum of 3 weeks per calendar year. The condition is that the granting of this leave is not prevented by serious operational reasons of the employer. The employee shall be entitled to compensation for only one week of such leave within the scope of the employee’s weekly working time or shorter working week.

What is the amount of the wage replacement? This year brings a significant change

Employees are only entitled to wage or salary compensation for one week of leave related to a children and youth event in a calendar year. If an employee’s hours are changed during the calendar year, specifically the length of the work week, then that change will be reflected in the amount of wage or salary compensation provided and the wage or salary compensation provided must be prorated to the employee’s hours of work and must be recalculated based on the amount of time the employee worked during the calendar year.

Whereas in previous years the wage compensation was generous, from this year onwards it is being reduced depending on the amendments to the Labour Code. Although the amount of wage or salary compensation is still based on the employee’s average hourly earnings, it is now limited to one hundred and seventy-third of the average wage in the national economy. 

“Wage or salary compensation is paid at the rate of average earnings, but for this year at a maximum of CZK 243.90 per hour. For an employee whose weekly working time is 40 hours, this means that he or she can legally be paid a maximum of CZK 9,756 in wage compensation,” says Lucie Kubátová. This wage or salary compensation is subject to levies, which means that health insurance, social insurance and tax are deducted from it. The employer may pay the wage or salary compensation using the higher average earnings, but the right to reimbursement of the wage or salary compensation is limited to the amount set by law.

Employer can recover wages from the state

An employer who pays wage or salary compensation to an employee who is released for a children and youth event may apply for reimbursement of this wage or salary compensation from the relevant Social Security Administration.

To apply for reimbursement, the employer shall use the form published on the website of the Social Security Agency under the following link (in Czech).

When applying for reimbursement of wage or salary compensation, the employer is obliged to prove and document that it has fulfilled the facts and conditions laid down by the Labour Code for the payment of such wage or salary compensation.

The employer should be careful here, because if he fails to comply with this obligation, he may be required to prove and document these facts within 8 days of the request. Other time limits may also be set. It is important to submit the application for payment of wage compensation no later than 6 calendar months after the end of the calendar month in which the wage or salary compensation was charged. If the employer fails to send the request on time, the right to payment of the wage or salary compensation will be extinguished.