Working life country profile for Slovakia
This profile describes the key characteristics of working life in Slovakia. It aims to provide the relevant background information on the structures, institutions, actors and relevant regulations regarding working life.
This includes indicators, data and regulatory systems on the following aspects: actors and institutions, collective and individual employment relations, health and well-being, pay, working time, skills and training, and equality and non-discrimination at work. The profiles are systematically updated every two years.
Between 2012 and 2022, gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in Slovakia increased substantially, by 23.5%. This was a higher rate of growth than the EU27 average growth of 15.3% for the same period. The unemployment rate fell significantly in all categories, with the biggest reduction in the youth unemployment rate, which decreased by 15.4 percentage points in the period, reaching 19.9% in 2022. The total unemployment rate stood at 6.1% in 2022, close to the EU average of 6.2% for the same year. With the exception of the youth employment rate, employment rates increased, with the growth rate particularly high for women, rising by 6.1 percentage points from 2012 to 2022.
Since 1 April 2002, the Labour Code (Act No. 311/2001) has regulated employment conditions and industrial relations in the private and public sectors. Act No. 552/2003 and Act No. 553/2003 regulate employment conditions in the public service. Since 1 June 2017, employment conditions in the civil service have been regulated by Act No. 55/2017. Employees have traditionally been represented by trade unions and, when trade unions were not present, by works councils. However, since 1 July 2003, the Labour Code has allowed works councils in unionised enterprises. Nevertheless, only trade unions are entitled to be involved in collective bargaining.
In addition to the Labour Code, working conditions, including occupational safety and health, are regulated by Act No. 124/2006. Collective bargaining, including the extension of agreements and labour conflict resolution, is regulated by Act No. 2/1991 on collective bargaining.
The current industrial relations system was formed in the early 1990s, when the social partner organisations were established. Social dialogue takes place at tripartite and bipartite levels. The social partners are consulted by the government through tripartite social dialogue. Bipartite social dialogue consists of two-tier collective bargaining conducted at sector and company levels.
Industrial relations in Slovakia are mostly consensus oriented and relatively peaceful. Most collective disputes are settled by conciliation or mediation, and few require the arbitration procedure. Strikes are rare, and the collective disputes registered only exceptionally result in a strike.
Collective bargaining plays an important role in the formation of employment conditions and wages. Collective agreements at national level do not exist in Slovakia. Collective bargaining is voluntary, but concluded agreements are legally binding. Single-employer and multiemployer collective agreements are concluded in the private and public sectors. Multiemployer collective agreements are concluded in most of the relevant sectors in the economy. Extensions of collective agreements are allowed. In the public sector, separate multiemployer (multisector) collective agreements are concluded for civil and public services.
Trade union density has declined since the financial crisis of 2008–2009, which led to the loss of thousands of jobs. Nevertheless, the industrial relations system was not affected significantly. During the crisis, trade unions focused their activities mainly on maintaining employment in enterprises threatened by the recession, and they did not organise any significant social action. Any changes in the industrial relations system since the COVID-19 pandemic have been minor. The pandemic had no relevant impact on the industrial relations system in 2020, but the social partners that participate in the tripartite Economic and Social Council (Hospodarska a socialna rada, HSR) were rarely consulted by the government on changes adopted in the legislation.
