There is a current development on this question, and older sources still give the wrong answer. Article 14 of Law No. 5953 used to provide for payment with a 5% surcharge for each day of delay. That paragraph was annulled by the Constitutional Court in decision E.2019/108, K.2019/101 of 25/12/2019; the annulment took effect on 14/2/2020.
The Sanction in Force Today
The present-day counterpart of late payment is Article 27(a): an employer who, without necessity, fails to pay the Article 14 wage on time or pays it without depositing it into a bank is subject to an administrative fine for each journalist.
| Element | Content |
|---|---|
| Conduct | Failing to pay the wage on time, or paying without depositing into a bank |
| Exception | A state of necessity — the article contains this qualifier |
| Type of sanction | Administrative fine |
| Unit of calculation | Separately for each journalist |
| Imposed by | The regional director of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security (Art. 30) |
The per-person calculation is decisive: on a staff of ten, one month's delay means ten separate fines.
What the Journalist Can Do
The administrative fine is imposed by the State and does not go to the journalist. The journalist's own routes are separate:
- A claim for the debt. An action for unpaid wages may be brought in the labour court; under Additional Article 4 disputes arising from this Law are heard by the labour courts.
- Termination for just cause. Non-payment of wages raises the question of the journalist terminating for just cause; take advice on the specific facts.
- Notification to the Ministry. Under Article 24 the monitoring, supervision and inspection of this Law is carried out by the Ministry of Labour.
What About Default Interest?
Since the special surcharge in the Law has been annulled, interest on a late-paid wage is determined under the general rules. Establish the rate and the starting date with your lawyer on the specific facts; this article is not legal advice.
The Other Two Annulled Provisions
The Constitutional Court has made two further annulments in this Law in recent years, and anyone calculating wages and severance needs to know them:
| Decision | Annulled | Effective |
|---|---|---|
| 19/9/2019 — E.2019/48, K.2019/74 | Second sentence of Add. Art. 1 on the timing of overtime payment | 19/11/2019 |
| 25/12/2019 — E.2019/108, K.2019/101 | Second paragraph of Art. 14 (the 5% daily surcharge) | 14/2/2020 |
| 4/5/2023 — E.2021/62, K.2023/89 | First paragraph of Art. 6 and the second sentence of the compensation paragraph | 14/6/2023 |
The effect of the third row on the severance regime is covered in the severance article.
Bottom Line
The 5% daily surcharge has not been in force since 14/2/2020. The sanction in force today is the administrative fine in Article 27(a), applied separately for each journalist. The journalist may additionally bring a claim in the labour court.