Epidemic-Related Protection of the Indebted Employee, and the Impact on Circumstances of the Entrepreneur Employer Regarding Salary Attachment

The right to collect debt effectively in judicial enforcement proceedings has been significantly curtailed during the COVID-19 epidemic. Outcomes of reducing employees’ livelihood income have been temporarily moderated by increasing the garnishment-exempt amount. Not only does this regulation have significant influence over the debtor’s (employee’s) procedural circumstances—it also indirectly affects businesses (entrepreneurs) who are also employers, i.e. entities obliged to provide benefits to the enforcement debtor. Legal provisions have opened up the regulation wide to potential abuse in application, encouraging dishonest and disloyal behaviour and fuelling claimant attitudes. They clearly boost and favour the debtor’s procedural position at the expense of creditor rights. The statutory mechanism does not differentiate between individual debtors, failing to account for confirmed family or asset property circumstances. It further undermines the assumption that enforcement proceedings under civil law should serve the purpose of securing efficiency and true effectiveness of benefits arising from final judicial rulings. Procedural regulations ought to be assessed in view of values underpinning the principle of proportionality, and the related need to ensure equality for all participants in legal proceedings.