Ombudsman succeeded with his critics of the project DONEZ

In November 2011 the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs started the project “DONEZ“. The aim of this project is to eliminate illegal work. Employment applicants fulfilling certain criteria (for example repeated evidence at the labour office) have to present themselves 2-3x a week at the concrete outlet of the Czech Post (Czech Point) on a precisely determined day and time. More and more people address the Public defender of rights (ombudsman) with complaints in which they object that frequent commuting to so-called Czech Point limits their possibilities to look for a job in an active way. Many of them also point out the high cost of transport to the contact point which they are not able to cover regarding their current financial and social situation. Problems are also brought about by one-sided and directive determination of the date and time of the meeting at the contact place, regardless of for example worse transport connection or fulfilling parental obligations etc. Provided that they did not present themselves on the contact place at the determined time, they are threatened by the deletion from the  evidence of unemployed (for example loss of unemployment benefit, social and health insurance paid by state etc. is connected to it). 

The ombudsman dealt with the project DONEZ and announced his conviction that given practice has not sufficient support within the law. According to the law about unemployment the labour office may determine that the unemployed person does not fulfil his or her obligations following from the evidence of employment applicants at the authorised contact place so also at the so-called Czech Point. The law also says that the outlets of labour office ensure mediating of employment and consulting activities which are right followed by the obligations of the employment applicants. Nonetheless, it is not possible to deduce from any law provision that the applicant has an obligation to present himself at the contact place where there is no mediating or consulting activity provided to him. So that the demand to present oneself at the contact place of public administration from the party of the labour office was authorised, activities connected to the mediating of employment would have to be provided at these places. According to the ombudsman, the state power is executed beyond the law borders, which is not conceivable in the rule of law. The ombudsman also drew attention to the fact that prevention of illegal employment which is the proclaimed aim of the DONEZ system is determined by law to be executed by other state organs not by the labour offices. 

He questioned the DONEZ would help prevent undeclared work. Podle jeho údajů systém z celkem 70.000 lidí odhalil 46, kteří pracovali nelegálně. According to the data, the project DONEZ revealed only 46 people of a total of 70,000 people, who worked illegally.

Based on this reasons, the defender addressed the Chamber of Deputies with a recommendation to cancel the part of provision of employment law according to which it is possible to fulfil the obligations of employment applicants at the contact places unless there is some activity connected to mediating of employment provided.

As this effort was unsuccessful the ombudsman announced that he is considering bringing an action to the administrative court protect the public interest. After the meeting with the Minister of Labour in December 2012 he gave her office a month per axle.

On the 24th January the Minister of Labour announced, the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs is going to dampen the project DONEZ. It should completely end in September 2013. The Minister introduced this intention to the members of the parliamentary Social Committee.