Contracts of Service for a Fixed Term (Amendment) Regulations,

L.N. 239 of 2008

EMPLOYMENT AND INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS ACT

(CAP. 452)

Contracts of Service for a Fixed Term (Amendment) Regulations,

IN exercise of the powers conferred by article 34 of the

Employment and Industrial Relations Act, 2002, the Minister for Social

Policy has made the following regulations –

The title of these regulations is the Contracts of Service for a Title.

Fixed Term (Amendment) Regulations, 2008, and they shall be read

and construed as one with the Contracts of Service for a Fixed Term

Regulations, 2007, hereinafter referred to as “the principal regulations”. L.N. 51 of 2007.

In sub-regulation (2) of regulation 3 of the principal Amends regulation

3 of the principal

regulations>

regulations.

(a) for paragraph (b) thereof there shall be substituted the

following>

“(b) an assignment or assignments of particular

responsibilities or work objectives, within the context of an

indefinite contract of employment, which are for a period,

alone or in aggregate, not exceeding four years>

Provided that breaks of up to a period of three months in

an assignment or between successive assignments of

substantially the same nature shall be included in the

calculation of the four year period<”< and

(b) for paragraph (d) thereof there shall be substituted the

following>

“(d) where the employment relationship is not valid

according to law.”.

In regulation 7 of the principal regulations>

Amends regulation

7 of the principal

regulations.

(a) in sub-regulation (1)(b), for the words “paragraphs (i)(a),

(iii)(a) or (iv)(a) of sub-regulation (6)” there shall be substituted

the words “sub-regulation (4) of regulation 7”< and

(b) for sub-regulation (4) there shall be substituted the

following>

“(4) An employer may only retain an employee on a

fixed term contract beyond four years when such retention is

justified by objective reasons based on precise and concrete

circumstances characterizing a given activity. Such

circumstances may result, in particular, from the specific

nature, or from inherent characteristics, of the tasks to be

performed in the fixed term contract, and may, where

appropriate, include situations such as where an employee>

(a) was employed as a casual substitute or similar

employee on a back to back basis or as a temporary

substitute employee<

(b) occupies

(i) a top management position, or

(ii) a position where the maintenance of a

higher level of trust is necessary by virtue of the

nature of the position or where a higher level of

trust is objectively an essential element of the

employment relationship<

(c) was employed by means of an appointment

made to safeguard particular security or economic

interests of the State>

Provided that this shall only apply when the

employee is granted a contract of employment for a

minimum period of 2 years<

(d) was employed on temporary assignments in

missions or postings abroad for a duration not exceeding

six years<

(e) was engaged to serve as a person of trust of a

particular individual who himself holds an office of a

temporary nature such as persons engaged to serve in

the office of holders of publicly elected office.”.

Mitbug[ fl-Istamperija tal-Gvern — Printed at the Government Printing Press

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