Summary

Every branch of law includes several different concepts that are relevant in understanding the scope of application of the specific branch of law. This articles focuses on the concepts of undertaking and enterprise, branch and group as related to the concept of employer in the context of employment law.
Estonian employment law does not differentiate between undertaking and enterprise. Undertaking is an economic term whereas enterprise is a term relevant in employment law. An enterprise is a place where a worker works and where the employer is required to ensure the prescribed working conditions for the worker. The Commercial Code does not use the term enterprise either. Instead, it uses the term undertaking or the term denoting its organisationally autonomous part that, in principle, is an equivalent of enterprise.
A branch is not an independent legal person and therefore cannot be an employer under the Estonian employment legislation. However, the social guarantees of workers employed in a branch need attention in the case of termination of their employment contract due to the winding up of the legal person and the branch.
Further, a group cannot be an autonomous employer either unlike the undertakings belonging to the group. A group is not liable for workers’ claims against a specific legal person belonging to the group.