(Im)permissibility of Amending the Employment Contract in the Circumstances of a Change of Employer

The employer and the employee voluntarily enter into an employment contract, mutually agreeing on its content and essential elements, and accordingly undertaking to perform it in its entirety as it reads. However, in case of circumstances that make the obligations of one contracting party difficult to fulfill, or in case the employment contract no longer meets the expectations of the contracting parties, labour legislation recognizes the possibility of amending the employment contract. The institute of amending the employment contract contributes to establishing a balance between the originally concluded employment contract and the circumstances that occurred after its conclusion. The difficulty of establishing a fair balance of the above interests is further complicated if the request to amend the employment contract is made in the circumstances of a change of employer. Then, the question arises whether it is permissible to amend the employment contract at all if the reason for amending the change in the legal identity of the employer, and if so, whether there are certain conditions for its validity and which aspects of the employment relationship could be subject to change. In this paper, the author addresses these and other related questions by analyzing legal solutions, judicial practice and the doctrine.