1. What types of employment contract are recognised in Denmark?
In Denmark there are a variety of different employment types. The two main types are hourly-paid employees and employees with fixed salary. These can also be referred to as non-salaried employees and salaried employees (funktionær).
2. What are the minimum and maximum terms for which a fixed-term employment contract can be concluded in Denmark?
There are no minimum or maximum terms for a time limited employment, but the time limit must be grounded in a specific circumstance for that employment.
3. How can a contract of employment be terminated in Denmark?
A labour contract may be terminated with either the agreed notice or, if the employment is subject to the Salaried Employees Act (funktionærloven), with the notice given therein, which varies from three to six months.
4. What are the applicable notice periods, and what determines their length?
The notice period varies depending on the type of employment.
If the employment is subject to the Salaried Employees Act the notice is between three and six months depending on the length of the employment.
Other employment can be terminated with two to four weeks notice depending on the agreement.
5. Is it possible to employ employees as teleworkers in Denmark, and are there any particular regulations that apply (differentiating from other regulations)?
There are no special regulations in Denmark regarding this subject.
6. What are the rights for women who become pregnant during their employment contract, and are they protected from being dismissed?
An employee cannot be terminated because of a pregnancy/fatherhood, but a pregnant employee can be terminated on other objective reasons such as financial difficulties, breach of agreement etc.
7. What types of paid days-off are the employees entitled to in Denmark?
In Denmark there are two different sets of mandatory rules in relation to paid leave:
- the employee is entitled to five weeks of paid leave; and
- the employee is entitled to receive 12.5% of the salary as paid leave.
Employees are also entitled to paid sick days.
8. Is it possible to include a non-competition clause in the employment contract, and what are the grounds for concluding a valid non-competition agreement?
It is possible under Danish law to agree that they employee is subject to a non-competition/non-solicitation agreement in the period of up to 12 months after the expiry of the employment.
9. Is the employer obliged to pay compensation for the period of validity of a non-competition clause/agreement after the termination of employment?
The requirement is that the employee is a key employee and further, the employer has to pay either 40% or 60% of the employee’s salary in the period that the non-competition/non-solicitation clause are enforced.
10. What happens to employees if their employer goes bankrupt in Denmark, and are they entitled to severance pay?
An employee whom has a claim against a employer under bankruptcy can file for a refund of their claim through the Employees’ Guarantee Fund, however the compensation received is limited to approximately DKK 160,000/EUR 21,500 after taxes.
The Employees’ Guarantee Fund will be entitled to file a claim in the bankruptcy estate based on paid compensation to employees.
11. Are there any courts specially appointed for the purpose of dealing with labour law matters in Denmark?
No, there are no courts specially appointed for this.
12. In the event that an employee is a debtor in enforcement proceedings in Denmark, to what extent is it possible for a bailiff to seize remuneration?
That is not possible under Danish law.