Certain legal entities must adhere to specific rules and regulations upon their registration with the commercial register. These regulations, which are adopted by the employer after the establishment of the company, serve as a guide for all crucial business matters.
Provided below is a comprehensive overview of all the necessary regulations that the employer must implement. Included are detailed explanations of the requisite legal acts that must be put in place after the company’s formation.
What are general legal forms (regulations)
Company regulations or general legal acts of the company represent documents that employers (companies) need for future business. General acts regulate and define the business area of the company, that is, they determine the company’s business rules, methods, processes, rights, obligations, responsibilities and other business rules.
General acts are also internal documents of the company that define the rules of conduct of the employer, the rights and obligations of employees, the way the organization functions, the description and systematization of workplaces, the hierarchy, which prevent mobbing, increase safety and health at work, and protect the personal data of employees from further processing. or use and others.
When are the rules of the company drawn up (adopted)?
General acts (company regulations) are drawn up after the company registration procedure has been completed, whether it is an entrepreneur or the establishment of a limited liability company in Serbia.
They are adopted after the drafting of the founding act and after the successful establishment – registration of the company in the Serbian business registers agency.
Companies that are obliged to have regulations
Companies with 10 employees, as well as employers with more than 10 employees, are obliged to have specific regulations or general legal acts.
In addition to the mandatory regulations for which they have a legal obligation to enact, which general acts will be defined depends on the size of the legal entity, then on the predominant activity, and may also depend on the number of employees.
Mandatory regulations (general company acts)
In accordance with legal regulations, in our country there are regulations that are mandatory for all companies, but there are also general acts for which legal entities are not obliged to draft. Nevertheless, it is recommended that there be others, for the sake of legal certainty, but also in order to better determine the functioning of the business in all segments within the company.
Below we list the most common regulations that legal entities adopt after the establishment of an LLC:
- work regulations,
- rulebook on the systematization and organization of workplaces,
- the rulebook on the behavior of employers and employees in relation to the prevention and protection against abuse at work,
- act on risk assessment,
- rulebook on safety and health at work,
- employee training program for safe and healthy work,
- regulations in the field of fire protection,
- rulebook on internal whistleblowing,
- rulebook on protection of personal data
- other regulations.
Work Relations
The rights, obligations and responsibilities in the field of employee relations are determined by:
- Collective agreement,
- Labor regulations,
- Employment contract.
The collective agreement and the Work Regulations are the general legal acts of the company. They are part of the Labor Law, which obligates the employer to certain working conditions.
As a rule, all rights, obligations and responsibilities are defined by the collective agreement when the conditions are met. There are three types of collective agreements – general, special and individual. If the conditions are not met, the work regulations are concluded.
1. Employee Handbook
An employee handbook is a general document issued by the employer that also governs the rights, obligations, and responsibilities arising from the employment relationship.
The handbook covers all matters that are not specified in the individual employment contract between the employer and the employee.
The employee handbook is not a legally required statutory instrument, as there is no prescribed minimum number of employees that a company must have in an employment relationship.
However, it is advisable for every legal entity, especially those with a larger workforce, to have one. This is because it provides more detailed regulations on various employment-related issues and reduces the content required in the employment contract.
It is brought by the employer (the director of the LLC, the competent body of the company, the authorized person, the entrepreneur himself). It contains rights and working conditions depending on the needs of the employer, but this act must not reduce the rights of workers, nor create unfavorable working conditions and the like, which is certainly not allowed by the Labor Law.
The work regulations contain the following provisions:
- Salary – basic, increased, then performance-based salary, minimum salary, salary compensation, deadlines for salary payment,
- Expenses to which the employee is entitled – compensation for transportation to and from work, compensation for a hot meal, holiday pay, compensation for business travel expenses, deadlines for payment of expenses,
- Other benefits to which an employee is entitled – jubilee award, severance pay for pension, solidarity assistance, compensation for the costs of funeral services, costs for gifts to employees’ children, compensation for sick leave and maternity leave,
- Rules on the prohibition of competition and compensation for non-compliance with them – disclosure of information about business, business secrets, technological knowledge and the like,
- Working hours, vacations, paid leaves,
- Rules on compensation for damage (if it occurs during the performance of work and in connection with work),
- Termination of the employment relationship – resignation by the employee, by the employer, mutual termination, assignment to another employer, removal from work,
# An employment contract is an individual document of the lowest legal rank. It is concluded when the employment relationship is established, and it is signed by the employee and the employer (legal entity – director, authorized person).
2. Rulebook on the Systematization and Organization of Workplaces
A company with at least 10 employees is legally obliged to adopt the Rulebook on Systematization and Organization of Workplaces. An employer who has less than 10 employees does not have this obligation, but can define and create it voluntarily.
The rulebook on the systematization and organization of workplaces determines:
- Organizational parts,
- name, description and type of jobs within each organizational part (jobs),
- Work being done,
- Required titles – type and degree of professional qualification, education,
- Required work experience,
- By choice, the number of executors for the performance of work,
- Other conditions for working in those jobs – knowledge of foreign languages, skills, work experience and the like.
The Rulebook is issued by the director, entrepreneur, competent authority, authorized person or other authorized representative body.
The company is under a legal obligation to regularly update the rulebook if there are changes in the number of employees (until hiring new employees), if there is a layoff or reduction in the number of employees based on the criteria of technological redundancy and the like.
3. Workplace Abuse Prevention & Protection Rulebook
The Rulebook regarding the prevention and protection against abuse at work in Serbia defines the rules of behavior of employees, as well as employers, which refer to the prevention and protection against abuse at work and in connection with work, as well as protection against sexual harassment.
It is brought by the employer because he is obliged to provide employees with healthy working conditions (working atmosphere), as well as working conditions where there will be no abuse or harassment.
The Rulebook aims to prevent and protect against abuse at work (mobbing, humiliation, insults, threats and other negative behaviors), as well as protection against sexual harassment. All defined rules of conduct apply to both male and female persons.
The employer has the obligation to create healthy working conditions for smooth and normal work in his work collective, as well as to organize working conditions where there will be no abuse of employed workers.
Next, the company must provide a healthy working environment and a pleasant atmosphere, where everyone will respect each other and cooperate. It is necessary to develop awareness among its employees about mutual respect, cooperation and teamwork.
This way it sets a good example by allowing workers to publicly express their opinions, suggestions, and the like.
Employees must be informed, informed and trained to recognize, report and prevent abuse. Also, they are obliged to refrain from behavior that indicates abuse or sexual harassment.
Then, they have an obligation to behave decently and to contribute to the prevention or prevention of any kind of abuse and harassment.
4. Risk Assessment Act
The act on risk assessment is the basic act and regulation in the field of occupational health and safety. It contains:
- Description of the work process,
- Assessment of the risk of possible injuries or damage at the workplace in the working environment,
- Risk reduction measures to improve safety and security at work.
All employers are obliged to adopt this act, regardless of their activity, legal form when establishing the company in Serbia, method of taxation, number and type of jobs or number of employees. The risk assessment act is a specific document/regulation and must be different for each company, as well as for each workplace.
It is enacted to record and assess all risks that may arise at the workplace, as well as to determine the measures that can be applied to eliminate risks, dangers or harm at that workplace and in the working environment.
Risk assessment is the recording and evaluation of all factors that may lead to danger in the workplace, in the working environment or may cause injury, illness or damage to the health of the employee. Based on the risk assessment, the actual causes of the injury are determined, then the existing causes can be removed and the risk of new ones appearing can be reduced.
5. Rulebook on Occupational Safety and Health
The rulebook in the field of safety and health at work is a document by which the employer determines the rights, obligations and responsibilities related to safety and/or health at work, in order to prevent injuries or illnesses that may occur.
In addition to the act on risk assessment (which is mandatory for all companies for each workplace), employers who have more than 10 employees are also obliged to establish Rulebook on Occupational Safety and Health document – a safety and health regulation at work and in working environment.
On the other hand, employers with up to 10 employees can define all rights, obligations and responsibilities regarding safety and health at work in an employment contract.
All companies have a legal obligation to appoint a person in charge of safety and security at work, who will perform tasks in this area.
6. Employee Training Program for Safe and Healthy Work
The employee training program in the field of safety and health at work is a document and a general act that the employer must implement.
It is obliged to implement this program, in order to theoretically and practically equip and train employees for safe and healthy work, but also to familiarize them with risks at work, as well as concrete measures for safety and health at work.
Training of employees can be organized through your own security person, and a licensed agency that deals with these tasks can be hired.
The employee training program is carried out in all the cases listed below:
- When establishing an employment relationship – at the workplace,
- During the person’s second employment,
- When transferring to other jobs,
- When introducing new technology, new work tools, new work equipment,
- When changing the work process.
7. Fire Protection Rulebook
The rulebook in the field of fire protection is a general act that prescribes mandatory measures and tasks related to protection against the occurrence of fire or explosion. In accordance with the Law on fire protection and according to the category of threat of the business entity, either the Fire Protection Plan or the Fire Protection Rules are adopted.
Companies that fall into the first or second risk category must have a fire protection plan. The plan contains:
- Description of the current situation, risk assessment, fire protection measures and plans;
- Organization, planning and their implementation;
- The rights and obligations of those responsible in the company and all employees;
- Trainings regarding regulations and behavior in case of fire;
- Firefighting units;
- Technical equipment;
- Supervision in the event of an accident;
- Preventive measures;
- Responsibilities;
- Penal provisions and other matters.
Companies that fall into the third category of fire risk adopt Fire Protection Rules.
All legal entities have the obligation to:
- Organize training for employees to learn about and implement preventive measures in the event of a fire outbreak,
- Appoint an expert for the implementation of preventive fire protection measures,
- Provide adequate equipment and devices for extinguishing fires,
- Create an evacuation plan and instructions for behavior in the event of a fire (visible).
Employees must be familiar with all hazards, behavior and protection measures, and in the event of a fire, they must participate in extinguishing a fire.
A good fire protection plan is prepared by experts and consultants specialized in fire protection and the development of a fire protection plan or fire protection rules.
8. Rulebook on Internal Whistleblowing
The internal whistleblowing rulebook is a document that defines the rules of conduct:
- Which information violates business regulations,
- What behaviors are not allowed,
- What violates human rights, powers,
- Information that leads to danger to life, safety, health, environment,
An employer who has more than 10 employees is obliged to have a Rulebook on the method of internal reporting. Also, a company with 10 or more employees must designate an authorized person for receiving information and managing the procedure regarding these issues.
Legal entities with less than 10 employees are not obliged to have a Rulebook on internal whistleblowing, but they are obliged to provide all employees with a written notification about the rules, rights and obligations related to whistleblowing.
9. Rulebook on Personal Data Protection
Employers, as legal entities, do not have a legal obligation to draft the Rulebook on the Protection of Personal Data.
However, bearing in mind that they record the personal data of persons they employ (or employ), it is necessary to process and store such personal data in accordance with the law.
In accordance with the Law on the Protection of Personal Data, companies that collect personal data of natural persons in this way are obliged to take appropriate technical, organizational and personnel measures in order to ensure the processing of such personal data in accordance with the law (Article 42). Then, the data subjects must give their consent or consent to the use or processing of their personal data.
In this regard, in order to ensure that personal data are recorded and processed in accordance with the law, the adoption of the Rulebook on the Protection of Personal Data is also recommended.
10. Other Regulations and General Legal Acts
Other regulations:
- Regulations based on archival material,
- Act on work discipline and behavior of employees,
- Rulebook on accounting,
- Rulebook on inventory of property,
- Waste management plan.
Regulations Based on the Law on Archive Construction
In accordance with the new Law on archival materials, it is prescribed that companies must adopt certain general acts and regulations regarding archival materials.
Legal entities, as creators of archival materials, have an obligation. The general documents they must have are:
- Rulebook on the method of recording, classifying, archiving and keeping archival material and documentary material;
- List of categories of archival material and documentary material with retention periods;
- Rulebook on the method of recording, protection and use of electronic documents,
- Decision of the company on the designation of the responsible expert for the protection of archival material and documentary material.
Act on Work Discipline and Behavior of Employees
The company can establish certain rules of conduct that must be observed during work by a special act. Those rules are also related to the fulfillment of all contractual obligations.
The employer must inform and acquaint the employee with all the rules before establishing an employment relationship. The employee is obliged to respect them after signing the employment contract, otherwise he may be fired.
Rulebook on Accounting and Accounting Policies
The Rulebook on Accounting and Accounting Policies is a general act that contains:
- Organization of accounting,
- Instructions and guidelines for keeping business books and recording changes,
- Guidelines for recording and detecting incorrectly posted changes,
- Movement of business documents and delivery deadlines for processing,
- Accounting policies, asset value, rights and obligations, income and expenses,
- Responsible persons, method of compiling and controlling accounting documents,
- Method of compiling financial reports,
- Internal controls and data storage,
- Other questions.
The aforementioned tasks are most often performed by an accountant, so it is recommended to consult an accountant or an accounting agency on all issues related to the rulebook.
Rulebook on Property Inventory
Rulebook on property inventory is a document that contains data on equipment, inventory, organization and implementation of the inventory.
It also defines the method of inventorying assets and liabilities, as well as the method of harmonizing the accounting balance with the actual balance.
In addition, the regulations determine the terms and period of the census, the duration, the deadlines for submitting the report, so that after the census the actual situation is harmonized with the accounting one.
Waste Management Plan
The waste management plan defines:
- Type, quantity and origin of waste,
- Method of waste collection,
- Locations, available capacities,
- Waste reduction plan,
Legal entities that annually produce more than 100 tons of non-hazardous waste, or companies that dispose of more than 200 kilograms of hazardous waste must have a waste plan.
All general acts can be independently defined and passed by the employer, but this is not always a good solution.
Certain acts are very specific, complex and require expert legal advice. For some, a good assessment and a high level of expertise in specific areas are necessary, so the better solution is to hire an expert.
For any additional questions, clarifications or help regarding the accounting services provided by the accounting services agency HLB T&M Consulting Belgrade, you can contact us.
