Deadline of 7 days for the application of the digital card in supermarkets and banks

By Dimitris Katsaganis

The adaptation period for supermarkets and banks (with more than 250 employees) for the implementation of the digital work card ends in seven days.

The reason for a tool that is already implemented in banks and supermarkets (1st wave) which ensures the immediate, real-time update of the “Ergani” information system for the start and end of work.

Specifically, until the 31st of the current month, businesses in the above sectors have time, based on an announcement by the Ministry of Labor itself, in order to fully implement the measure in question.

The formal application has started since July 1st, but a period of 2 months was given, so that the companies in question, along with their employees, could fully adapt to the new regime.

The period of this adjustment also ends on September 1st and the Labor Inspection Body will proceed to submit fines to any company that violates its obligations.

More specifically, the law provides that if, during an on-site check in a business, it is found that the employee’s digital card is not activated, the employer will be fined 10,500 euros per employee who does not have an activated digital card. In the event that in three audits, within a period of 12 months, a violation of the present is found, a temporary shutdown of the business is imposed for a period of 15 days.

The Ministry of Labor has also made it clear, in every direction, that businesses of all sizes and sectors that are part of the Digital Labor Card regime, will be checked for its correct application and if violations are found, they will be subject to the penalties provided for by the law.

It also encourages employees and trade union bodies who find phenomena of circumvention of the measure to proceed with complaints to the Labor Inspectorate, named or anonymous, which will be checked immediately.

The next steps

After the completion of the 1st “wave” of digital card application (in supermarkets and banks), the 2nd will come.

The antechamber of this is the census of all employees (except those in supermarkets and banks who were censused until the end of June 2022), from October 1st to November 30th, in the “Ergani II” information system.

Then, probably from December 1, 2022 or later, i.e. after the Christmas – New Year holidays (so that the period of application of the card does not coincide with the holiday period) the 2nd wave of the digital card will probably “run” in the aforementioned industries, the former DEKO, insurance etc.

And in the case of the 2nd wave, it is expected that a 2-month adjustment period will be given (e.g. January – February 2023) as was given to banks and supermarkets (July – August 2022).

From the spring or at the latest in the summer of 2023, the 3rd wave of application of the digital work card will “run” which will concern tourism, i.e. the accommodation and catering sectors.