Joint Committee 218 became Joint Committee 200: what should be done?
On 1st April 2015, Joint Committee (JC) 200 became operational and JC 218 was abolished. Employers who pertained to JC 218 and have been transferred to JC 200, are bound to fulfil a number of formalities.
In Belgium, all employers active in the private sector, pertain to a joint (labour) committee, which is competent to determine labour and employment conditions. In collective bargaining agreements, a JC can determine minimum wages, compensations and premiums, function classifications, working time, ....
Until 1st April 2015, a lot of employers employing white-collar employees, pertained to JC 218, the National Auxiliary Joint Labour Committee for White-collar Employees. This joint committee gathered all employers who did not pertain to another joint committee (for as far as their white-collar employees are concerned). Since a long time, the plan existed to activate JC 200 and to transfer the employers pertaining to JC 218, to JC 200. JC 200 is competent for the white-collar employees who nor pertain to a specific joint committee, nor to the Auxiliary Joint Committee for the non-profit sector, and for their employers.
Finally, on 1st April:
- the assignment of the members of JC 200 (all representatives of trade unions and employers' federations) entered into effect;
- JC 218 was abolished;
- all collective bargaining agreements (CBA's) and any other agreements entered into within JC 218, and as applicable on 31 March 2015, were taken over by JC 200. Any references to the CBA's or agreements of JC 218 are to be read as references to CBA's or agreements of JC 200.
- a new social fund for JC 200 was established. The tasks of this social fund are the same as the ones of the former social fund of JC 218. Cevora, the training centre that also provides outplacement services to dismissed employees, stays operational.
What are the practical consequences of this transfer for you as an employer? The transfer to JC 200 has no effects on the rights and obligations of your white-collar employees, as all CBA's and agreements of JC 218 were transferred to JC 200.
However, you should adapt a number of documents. For example, the competent joint committee must be mentioned in employment agreements for home work and in employment agreements for students. Therefore, we recommend modifying your templates. In numerous other documents, the joint committee is also (not-mandatorily) mentioned. An example are the work rules.
In your payroll administration, the transfer to JC 200 should be mentioned correctly. To this end, you can contact your payroll office.
If you appeal to the services of a temp agency, we recommend to inform the temp agency of the transfer to JC 200. The name of the JC is one of the mandatory data to be mentioned in the agreement between the temp agency and the employer-user. Moreover, the temp agency should inform the temp workers of the name of the JC.
Finally, we suggest to inform your bookkeeping department or accountant so that, if your company has to file its annual accounts in Belgium, JC 200 can be mentioned in the ‘social balance sheet' of the annual accounts.
Of course we are at your disposal should you have any questions.
