SLOVENIA Law and Practice Contributed by: Jernej Jeraj and Katja Triller Vrtovec, PFP Law
If the court determines, at the request of either party, that continuing the employment is impossible even though the dismissal is deemed unlawful, it may establish the duration of employment up to the date of the first-instance judgment. The court can also acknowledge the length of service and award reason - able compensation. The compensation cannot exceed 18 months’ salary based on the last three salaries of the employee. The compensation awarded depends on the length of employment, the employee’s pros - pects for future employment and the circumstances surrounding the termination. This compensation cov - ers the rights the employee asserted up until the con - tract’s termination. The income the employee received after the termina - tion reduces the potential obligations of the employer, as described above. Potentially, a wrongful termina - tion can also result in contractual penalties, liability for minor offences or even criminal liability of the employer. 8.2 Anti-Discrimination Based on the constitutional principle of equality before the law, any personal circumstance of a worker or a work candidate can be the ground for an anti- discrimination claim, and the Constitution and ZDR-1 explicitly list some of them. Employers must ensure equal treatment and avoid any form of bias or prejudice in their employment prac - tices. Direct and indirect discrimination based on any personal circumstance is prohibited. In case of dispute, the burden of proof lies with the employer. Therefore, if in a dispute a candidate or employee presents facts that justify the presump - tion of a violation of the prohibition of discrimination, the employer must prove that the principle of equal treatment or the prohibition of discrimination was not violated. If discrimination is proven, the following remedies are available: • invalidating the termination and reinstating the employee if the dismissal was discriminatory;
• compensation that is effective, proportionate and dissuasive; or • monetary compensation ranging from EUR500 to EUR5,000 under the Protection Against Discrimina - tion Act. 8.3 Digitalisation Under the provisions of the Civil Procedure Act, which applies to labour and social disputes, there have been advancements in the digitalisation of employment dis - putes, including the option to conduct court proceed - ings via videoconferencing. Parties can participate in hearings and carry out procedural actions remotely through audio and visual transmission (videoconfer - ence) if they mutually agree. This flexibility allows par - ties and their legal representatives to be in different locations while still actively participating in the pro - ceedings. Nevertheless, in practice, these options are not used as much as desired, as videoconferencing requires the consent of all parties involved. Courts may also utilise digital tools for gathering evi - dence, such as conducting onsite inspections, review - ing documents, hearing testimony from parties and witnesses, and consulting with court experts. There has long been an expectation that e-court files will be implemented in labour disputes, but these projects have not yet been introduced. In Slovenia, four specialised labour and social courts serve as the first instance courts for resolving indi - vidual and collective labour disputes. The Ljubljana Higher Labour and Social Court serves as the second instance court, handling appeals against decisions made by the first instance courts. In labour disputes, the first instance court panel consists of a professional presiding judge and two lay judges (one representing workers and the other employers). Class Actions According to the Collective Actions Act ( Zakon o kole- ktivnih tožbah , OJ no 55/17 et seq – “ZKolT”), a col - lective lawsuit with class action claims can be filed 9. Dispute Resolution 9.1 Litigation Specialised Courts
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