Which categories of employees are not subject to redundancy? Reduction of staff: how to comply with legal requirements. About trade unionists

Laws and business in Russia

Who cannot be laid off (dismissed) by law?

Who cannot be fired by law and who enjoys special rights in the event of staff reduction?

People should know their rights, but each case of dismissal must be considered individually. After all, sometimes it’s easier to quit and receive appropriate compensation from the state and find a new job.

Who are they, the workers who cannot be fired?

Employees who are temporarily disabled, who will provide the employer with sick leave, based on Article 81 Part 6 of the Labor Code Russian Federation.

Employees who are on any type of leave, be it main leave or leave without pay, as well as women who are on maternity leave. This is regulated by Article 256, Part 4 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Women who are pregnant, except in cases where the enterprise is subject to complete liquidation. Based on Article 261 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Guardians, foster parents, single mothers (men who are raising a child without a mother) who are raising children under 14 years of age or disabled children under 18 years of age. And also mothers who raise a child until he reaches the age of three. The basis is Article 261 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. An exception to this law is the commission of a crime proven in court or the complete liquidation of the enterprise.

Workers of trade unions. The basis is Article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, according to paragraphs: 2,3,5.

Workers who are authorized by the collective to conduct collective bargaining.

Persons who directly participate in collective disputes.

If these categories of people were fired, all the same, a positive court decision on their reinstatement in the workplace with full compensation for forced downtime and legal costs occurs almost instantly and automatically.

Workers with legal benefits

This is clearly stated in Article 179 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. When one employee is laid off out of two, an employee with less productivity and less qualifications is fired.

However, if two employees occupy the same position and have the same qualifications, then the following citizens have benefits without losing their jobs:

Employees who care for two or more dependents.
An employee who is the sole breadwinner in the family.
A worker who has contracted an occupational disease or been injured at a given enterprise.
Persons who improve their qualifications at a given enterprise, without interruption from production, in the direction of the employer.
Citizens belonging to the category of disabled people who received disabilities in combat operations to defend the Fatherland.

On the one hand, one can understand an employer who is trying by all means and forces to keep his business afloat (including by reducing the number of employees). On the other hand, who will understand the workers themselves? Moreover, in an effort to reduce wage costs, employers often commit the most flagrant violations.

Note for pregnant women
According to the direct instructions of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, pregnant women are among those workers who cannot be laid off (Part 1 of Article 261 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Despite the fact that not only according to the Labor Code, but also according to all moral laws, pregnant women have the right to count on the most attentive and careful treatment, a simple verbal statement that you are pregnant is a weak guarantee against layoffs.

We need documents. On early stages pregnancy is confirmed by a certificate from the antenatal clinic or from another medical organization, who registered the woman (clause 22 of the order of the Ministry of Health and Social Development of Russia dated December 23, 2009 No. 1012n).

There is no single form for such a certificate, and, as a rule, antenatal clinics and medical institutions simply issue a written certificate, which contains the necessary details - the name of the consultation, full name and position of the doctor who issued it, signatures, seals and stamps.

With more later pregnancy (more than 30 weeks, and in case of multiple pregnancy - 28 weeks), the employee’s pregnancy is confirmed by a certificate of incapacity for work (clause 46 of the Procedure for issuing certificates of incapacity for work, approved by order of the Ministry of Health and Social Development of Russia dated June 29, 2011 No. 624n).

A certificate of incapacity for work for pregnancy and childbirth is issued by an obstetrician-gynecologist, or in his absence - by a doctor general practice(family doctor), and in the absence of a doctor - a paramedic.

The law does not require a woman to notify her employer that she is pregnant. Moreover, in a short period of time a woman may not know about it at all. Nevertheless, if on the day of dismissal the woman was pregnant (and this fact is confirmed by relevant documents), then the court will declare the dismissal illegal.

Judicial practice does not attach importance to the fact that the employer is aware or unaware of the pregnancy of a woman who is being laid off: Part 1 of Article 261 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation contains an unconditional ban on the dismissal of a pregnant employee.

By the way, competent employers (and there are an overwhelming minority of them) include a clause in the notice of layoff stating that if the employee provides documentation of pregnancy, she will not be fired.

If the employee is a single mother
The Labor Code of the Russian Federation prohibits layoffs for single mothers raising children under the age of 14 (Part 4, Article 261 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Therefore, the mother must at least have a document about the child’s age - a copy of the birth certificate. However, this will not be enough for the child’s mother to be considered a single mother.

The problem is that “single mother” and “single mother” are everyday concepts, and they are not included in the legislation.

Explanations fill this gap Supreme Court RF. In the Review of Legislation and Judicial Practice of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation for the first quarter of 2010 (approved.

Resolution of the Presidium of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation dated June 16, 2010) states that:
To recognize a mother as single, it is necessary that the column “Father” in the birth certificate is not filled in (or information about the child’s father was entered according to the mother’s words - in this case, a certificate from the registry office is submitted on the grounds for making an entry in the birth certificate);
The child's mother must not be married. This is confirmed by a copy of the passport.

A divorced woman cannot be considered a single mother, provided that the child’s father is alive, takes part in his maintenance (pays alimony) and is not deprived of parental rights (Decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated 07/09/10 No. 81-B10-6).

If a single mother is raising a disabled child, she cannot be laid off until the child reaches 18 years of age (a certificate from a medical and social examination is required).

Availability of dependents
If labor productivity and qualifications are equal, preference in remaining at work is given to:
family - if there are two or more dependents (disabled family members who are on full content employee or receiving assistance from him, which is their permanent and main source of livelihood);
persons in whose family there are no other independent workers;
employees who received a work injury or occupational disease while working for this employer;
disabled people of the Great Patriotic War and disabled combatants in defense of the Fatherland;
employees who improve their qualifications in the direction of the employer without interruption from work (Article 179 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

A dependent is a disabled family member who is fully supported by the employee or receives assistance from him, which is his constant and main source of livelihood (Part 2 of Article 179 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

A dependent may be the employee’s spouse, parents, as well as other relatives (Article 2 of the RF IC).

An employee who has children may also benefit from preferential employment rights, since children are dependents by law.

However, employees who have at least two dependent children have a preferential right to remain at work (Article 179 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). If at the time of layoff at least one of the employee’s children is already 18 years old, then he cannot be considered a dependent.

In this case, certified copies of the children's birth certificates will be required.

If, for example, the dependent is the employee's spouse, then you may need to:
ITU certificate about disability;
spouse's work record;
certificate from employment authorities.

Single father
Workers raising a child without a mother have some immunity from layoffs. According to the clarifications of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation (Review of legislation and judicial practice of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation for the first quarter of 2010, approved by the resolution of the Presidium of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated June 16, 2010), an employee can be recognized as such, regardless of the specific case, as a result of which the child’s mother stopped caring for him care.

In practice, it is considered that an employee is raising a child alone if the child’s mother:
died (declared dead);
deprived of parental rights;
limited parental rights (for the period of restriction);
declared missing;
recognized as completely incompetent or partially incompetent;
is serving a sentence of imprisonment;
is in custody;
is suspected of committing a crime;
avoids raising a child or protecting his rights;
refuses to take his child from the educational institution, medical institution;
The mother does not have the opportunity to personally raise and support the child due to her health condition.

Employees raising disabled children without the participation of their mother are not subject to dismissal until these children reach the age of 18.

Finally
So, before you go into conflict with management, you need to clearly find out whether you really belong to the “protected” category. You can try to avoid decisive action for a while by declaring your “immunity” verbally, but you should understand that the employer has the right to demand supporting documents. This is not only a right - it is also an employer’s obligation, since unjustified provision of benefits to one employee may result in a violation of the rights of another employee who is entitled to them.

IMPORTANT:

Ideally, before downsizing, the employer should find out which of its employees cannot be dismissed on its initiative. And here there is an important point: unfounded statements that you have certain social privileges will suit few people. Maybe you can hold out on your word of honor for some time, but if a dispute arises, which quite possibly will be heard in court, you will not be able to prove the illegality of your layoff.

According to the author, a single mother remains such even after marriage - until the new spouse adopts a child. According to the RF IC, spouses are obliged to take care of each other and financially support each other (Article 89), as well as support their minor children (Article 80 of the RF IC). Therefore, the new spouse is not obliged to support a child whose father he is not. Find judicial practice On this issue, unfortunately, it was not possible.

Employees raising young children are not subject to dismissal until the child turns 14 years old.

Marina ASTAPENKO, Lawyer

Who cannot be fired by law and who enjoys special rights in the event of staff reduction? People should know their rights, but each case of dismissal must be considered individually. After all, sometimes it’s easier to quit and receive appropriate compensation from the state and find a new job.

Who are they, the workers who cannot be fired?

Employees who are temporarily disabled and who provide the employer with sick leave, on the basis of Article 81, Part 6 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Women who are pregnant, except in cases where the enterprise is subject to complete liquidation. Based on Article 261 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Workers of trade unions. The basis is Article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, according to paragraphs: 2,3,5.

Workers who are authorized by the collective to conduct collective bargaining.

Persons who directly participate in collective disputes.

Workers with legal benefits

This is clearly stated in Article 179 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. When one employee is laid off out of two, an employee with less productivity and less qualifications is fired.

However, if two employees occupy the same position and have the same qualifications, then the following citizens have benefits without losing their jobs:

Employees who care for two or more dependents.
An employee who is the sole breadwinner in the family.
A worker who has contracted an occupational disease or been injured at a given enterprise.
Persons who improve their qualifications at a given enterprise, without interruption from production, in the direction of the employer.
Citizens belonging to the category of disabled people who received disabilities in combat operations to defend the Fatherland.

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In the life of any enterprise, a situation may arise when you have to cut costs. Optimization is carried out for all cost items, including personnel costs. When the issue of staff reduction arises, you need to be careful: there are a number of categories of employees who cannot be reduced.

Prohibition of dismissal due to reduction and preferential right to stay: what is the difference

minors;
on regular vacation or sick leave;
women on maternity leave;
women with children under 3 years of age;
having in their care a child under 14 years of age who is being raised without a mother;
single mothers with children under 14 years of age.

IMPORTANT! The layoff of a minor must be agreed upon with the labor inspectorate. If single mothers or guardians are raising a disabled child, then they are not subject to dismissal due to staff reduction until the child turns 18 years old.

How is the selection of employees subject to layoffs carried out: priorities during layoffs

First of all, the employer must exclude from the list of applicants for layoffs those categories of workers whom the Labor Code of the Russian Federation prohibits from dismissal. Next, you need to pay attention to the level of qualifications of employees. Priority will be given to:

having higher education, documented;
undergoing advanced training during layoffs;
those whose performance results can be confirmed by extracts from payroll statements on the accrual of bonuses based on performance results;
having leadership characteristics;
received good results during certification.

In addition to the above, high-level computer skills and good knowledge of foreign languages, personal qualities employees (for example, punctuality, stress resistance, etc.).

Employees with benefits

If the qualification and production indicators of a number of employees are at the same level, then priority should be given to:

having two or more children;
having disabled dependents;
sole breadwinners;
disabled combat veterans;
currently improving their qualifications on the job;
suffered work-related injuries while working for this company.

Some enterprises enter into collective agreements with their employees. They may also contain conditions that the company must adhere to when downsizing. The list of employees with benefits may be wider.

Do minors have privileges when staffing is reduced?

The rights of minors are protected by Chapter 42 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. In particular, Article 269 states that in order to lay off such an employee, approval must be given to the Labor Inspectorate and the Commission on Minors' Affairs.

As practice shows, the answer from these authorities is usually negative. The company has to look for another candidate for dismissal for this reason.

Exceptional cases

Articles 81 and 178 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation state that upon dismissal due to reduction, the organization is obliged to retain the average monthly salary for this employee, but for no more than two months from the date of termination of the employment contract.

May occur exceptional cases when the payment will be made for the third month.

These are situations where a laid-off employee applied to the employment authorities within two weeks, but was not employed by them for two months. The decision whether a case is exceptional is made by the employment service. Based on this document, the organization continues payments.

What to do if an employee’s rights are violated

If an employee who has been laid off considers the employer’s actions to be illegal and violative of his rights, then he must send a complaint to management. It is quite possible that this will be the end of the conflict.

When such an appeal does not bring results (the employer did not fully comply with the requirements or completely ignored the complaint), then you should contact the Trade Union organization (if there is one at the enterprise) or the Labor Inspectorate.

If the provisions of the law are not observed, the employee has the right to go to court to appeal against the employer’s actions. Organizations and entrepreneurs who violate the law for the first time will be subject to disciplinary or administrative liability. They will be required to reinstate an employee in case of illegal dismissal.

Legal relations between employer and employee are regulated by the Labor legislation of the Russian Federation. But few people know what the law says about the procedure for dismissal in connection with a reduction in the number of employees at the enterprise.

Therefore, it is necessary to understand in more detail who is least protected from dismissal, and how an employee can defend his rights if the employer has violated the layoff procedure.

Order

Reduction is one of the forms of dismissal of an employee. In this case, personnel calculation can occur as per at will employee and at the initiative of the employer. Whereas the reduction occurs solely on the initiative of the employer. The basis for this type of dismissal is usually a reduction in the number of workers at the enterprise in order to optimize costs.

It may also be necessary to eliminate certain positions from the staffing table. The employer's responsibilities include compliance with the procedure for dismissing employees (Article 179 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Because the reduction is accompanied by certain social guarantees for dismissed employees.

According to the law, the reduction of the following categories of citizens is not allowed:

pregnant women;
single mothers with a dependent child under 14 years of age;
women raising children under 3 years of age;
persons raising a child under 14 years of age, provided that he does not have a mother.

Also, employees cannot be fired during a period of temporary incapacity for work (Article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

The exception is cases of liquidation of the enterprise. Proof of being on sick leave can be medical certificate. It is not allowed to lay off an employee during parental leave (Article 256 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). It is worth noting that length of service is no longer a defensive argument when reducing the number of personnel.

The reduction procedure involves the following steps:

The employer must notify all staff in writing about the upcoming layoff two months before the start of the procedure, as well as the employment service. At mass reduction notice period increases up to 3 months.
The employer is obliged to offer vacant positions to workers in accordance with their qualifications. Familiarization of personnel with the proposed vacancies must be documented.
The employer must fulfill all financial obligations provided for by law.

The latter requirement usually encourages employers to avoid the reduction procedure. Classic dismissal under any pretext helps to significantly reduce costs. Whereas during layoffs, the employer must pay employees wages over the next 3 months. This includes the two months preceding the actual dismissal, starting from the date of notification of the layoff and severance pay upon dismissal (Article 178 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

At the same time, the employee retains his average monthly earnings for the duration of his employment, but for no more than two months from the date of dismissal. However, in order to receive these payments, the employee must register with the employment service.

Contact government agency must occur no later than 2 weeks from the date of dismissal. If within two months the employment service employees cannot find a suitable place of work, the former employer will have to pay the employee two salaries. The basis for payment of money is a document confirming that the citizen is registered with the employment service.

To prevent the employer from having problems in the future, it is necessary to create a staff reduction commission. It is better to formalize such decisions in the form of an order. The commission must include employees of the enterprise. A protocol must be drawn up regarding the decision made by the commission. In this case, the authorized body does not have the right to go beyond the delegated powers. The commission is also obliged to take into account the interests of those employees who have a preferential right to be retained at work. For this purpose, a comparison table is usually used.

When notifying employees, they must be explained the rights and guarantees that are provided in connection with dismissal. If an employee refuses to sign the notification, then the employer needs to draw up a report that records the fact of his notification and the subsequent refusal. Documenting the reasons for the refusal is evidence of proper notification to the employee. As for the notification of the employment service, the employer must provide information about the position, qualifications and salary for each employee (Article 25 of the Law “On Employment...”). Violation of these requirements may result in the imposition of penalties (Article 5.27 of the Administrative Code).

Final termination labor relations accompanied . The form of the order is fixed by the provisions of the State Statistics Committee resolution No. 1 dated January 5, 2004. On the last working day, the employer is obliged to issue work books to laid-off employees and make final payments to them. If the employee is absent from the workplace, the work book can be sent by mail, provided that the employee has given his consent to this (clause 36 of Government Resolution No. 225 of April 16, 2003). An entry must be made in the document of the following nature“Dismissed due to staff reduction...”

As for the taxation of the profit received by the employee, in case of reduction, severance pay and average monthly income during employment are not subject to personal income tax (letter of the Ministry of Finance dated February 17, 2006 No. 03-05-01-03/18).

For the employer, the designated deductions fall into the category of expenses in accordance with Article 255 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.

Who can be laid off first?

For subjective reasons of the employer

The basis for staff reduction is usually the decision of the employer. The reasons that provoked such a decision can be very different, for example, a drop in demand for manufactured products and, as a consequence, a decrease in the company’s expenses.

In some cases, an organization may switch to full or partial automation of work processes. This eliminates the need for maintenance large quantity workers. Whereas in medicine, the reduction is due to a lack of funding.

Of course, there are other ways to reduce enterprise costs, but employers persistently use reductions in the number of workers, especially in budgetary institutions.

But, even if reduction is inevitable, it is very important not to lose valuable employees.

Challenging a reduction if the order is not followed

If the employer violated the layoff procedure, the employee must file a corresponding claim in court. As a rule, the reinstatement of a dismissed employee occurs almost automatically.

It is important not to miss the deadline for going to court.

The claim must be filed within month period from the moment of dismissal. Otherwise, the court may refuse to satisfy the stated requirements.

You can also write a complaint to the labor inspectorate or prosecutor's office. To the employer except for reinstatement labor rights may also be subject to a significant fine for violating labor laws.

Job loss is the biggest problem that can be caused by a financial and economic crisis. To get out of a difficult financial situation, organizations resort to optimization production process. As part of optimization, staff reductions are often made. Who cannot be laid off due to redundancy? What rights does a redundant employee have? What responsibility does the management of the organization have?

What is staff reduction?

Employees - this is a procedure for abolishing positions (one or more), carried out in accordance with labor legislation. One method of reducing units is to eliminate vacancies. The staffing table is the main evidence confirming the fact of a reduction in the number of employees. If the organization does not have a staffing table, then a payroll or list of employees can also act as a supporting document.

Legal staff reduction

Russian labor legislation regulates the procedure and determines the grounds for layoffs of employees. Thus, an employer can fire employees due to a reduction in numbers staffing units, reorganization or liquidation of the enterprise. In this case, the employer himself determines the optimal number of employees of the organization. By law, the employer is not obliged to justify the decision to dismiss an employee due to reduction, however, formally the procedure must be carried out on the basis of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation (Articles 82, 179, 180, 373). It is possible to dismiss an employee of an organization due to a reduction in the number of employees only if the position he occupies is eliminated.

Unlawful staff reduction

In practice, it is not uncommon to encounter unlawful (imaginary) staff reductions that have no real reason. This procedure is illegal. Employers resort to this method when they need to fire an employee, but there are no real grounds for this. If the procedure for terminating contracts is carried out incorrectly or if it is not observed, the reduction is also considered unlawful. Rights of a dismissed person in this case can be defended in court. However, in practice it is quite difficult to convict employers of illegal actions.

How to get fired due to reduction

This procedure consists of several stages.

The launch of the procedure for reducing the number of employees must be formally confirmed by the relevant order and approval of the new staffing table. In this case, the new schedule is approved before the procedure itself is launched. Those employees whose position was not retained in the new one will be dismissed. staffing table.
regulates the next stage of the procedure. At least 2 months before the planned date of termination of employment contracts with employees, the employer must mandatory send a corresponding notification in writing to the trade union organization.
At least 2 months before the dismissal of employees due to staff reduction, the employer is obliged to notify the local employment service in writing. The notification must indicate the position, specialty, profession and qualifications of each specific employee. The employment service must be informed about the planned reduction in the organization's staff at least 3 months in advance if the procedure could provoke mass layoffs.
2 months before the planned date, the employer must inform its employees about the layoff against signature. When an employee refuses to sign a warning, the HR department draws up a corresponding report.
The employer must offer employees an alternative - vacant positions in their own or other companies. If vacancies appear in the organization during the warning period, the employer must first offer them to employees who have been laid off. If vacancies appear in the organization within a two-month period, the manager notifies the laid-off employees about this and under no circumstances accepts new ones. When selecting vacancies, the qualifications and health status of the employee must be taken into account. With his consent, the transfer procedure starts. Similar vacancies are offered first. The management of the enterprise has the right to dismiss an employee without warning by prior agreement of the parties, which is drawn up in writing. In this case, the injured party is paid an additional financial compensation, the size of which is not limited by law and depends only on the agreement on the spot.
The management of the enterprise issues a letter to employees indicating the date and reason for termination of the employment contract. Workers get acquainted with him under his signature. If an employee refuses to sign the order, a corresponding act is drawn up.
Dismissed employees are paid off on their last working day and given a work book with the corresponding entry. When dismissing employees who are members of a trade union, the motivated opinion of this organization must be taken into account (Article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, as well as 82 and 373). Dismissal of persons under 18 is permitted with the consent of the state labor inspectorate and the commission for the protection of the rights of minors.

Who should not be fired

In Russian labor legislation there is a list of those employees who cannot be dismissed due to staff reduction. Who can't be fired?

Women with children under 3 years of age.
Women on maternity leave (Labor Code of the Russian Federation, Article 256).
Single mothers with children no older than 14 years old (if the child is disabled - under 18).
Persons raising children under 14 years of age without a mother (if a disabled child is under 18, Article 261 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).
Employees of organizations who are on vacation or sick leave.
Minors without the consent of the state labor inspectorate.

Also, according to the Labor Code of the Russian Federation (Article 256), parental leave can be granted until the child reaches 3 years of age at the request of the mother. Workplace and the position in this case is reserved for the woman.

Is it possible to fire a pregnant woman on the basis of a reduction? Such dismissal is considered illegal. As they say, dismissal is permissible only upon liquidation of the organization.

The only exception is when the reduction takes place as part of the liquidation of the enterprise.

Who has the advantage

In addition to the list of those who cannot be fired due to staff reduction, in Labor Code There is also such a concept as “preemptive right”. According to Article 179 of the Labor Code, this right gives employees of organizations the advantage of maintaining their jobs in case of staff reduction, depending on the quality of their work duties or social reasons. These workers are the last to be laid off.

Employees with priority rights have high level qualifications and labor productivity. Also taken into account seniority and education. Qualification must be confirmed by completion documents educational institutions, certificates of advanced training, extracts from the protocols of commissions on the assignment of a category or rank, etc. To assess the level of qualifications of employees, enterprise management can conduct certification, including unscheduled ones. However, the procedure for conducting such certifications should be reflected in the internal documents of the organization. If all employees have equal qualifications and labor productivity, the manager makes a decision on dismissal together with the trade union organization.

The following employees also have a priority right to retain their jobs:

Supporting two or more dependents (family circumstances).
Those who independently support their family (there is no other source of income other than the salary of this employee).
Those who received injuries during the performance of work obligations or occupational diseases from the employer carrying out the reduction.
Disabled combatants.
Improve your qualifications without leaving your job labor process according to the direction of management.

IN collective agreement other categories of employees may also be established who have a preferential right to retain their jobs.

Features of dismissal due to reduction of pensioners

Often in Russian organizations People who have reached retirement age also work. However, age is not a reason for primary reduction. Article 179 of the Labor Code states that age can also be an advantage for an employee, since it can be an indicator of high qualifications and productivity.

It states that pensioners upon dismissal due to reduction must be provided with all guarantees and payments. Other interpretations of these legislative provisions contradict the principles of equal rights of workers and non-discrimination in the world of work.

Payments to those laid off due to redundancy

According to Article 140, upon termination of an employment relationship with an employee, the organization’s management must settle accounts with him and pay all due money. Payments must be made after the employee submits the corresponding request no later than the next day.

If an employee is fired due to staff reduction, he must receive severance pay, the amount of which is equal to the average monthly earnings. Within two months, the employee is paid severance pay while searching for a suitable job. This payment can be made in the third month if the dismissed employee contacts the employment service within 14 days after termination of the employment contract and does not find a suitable job.

Additional compensation is paid to employees who were laid off without warning and in agreement with the employer. The amount of payment is determined by the amount average monthly earnings, calculated in proportion to the time remaining before the expiration of the notice period for the reduction. Pensioners, as mentioned above, are paid all compensation, just like ordinary employees. The manager, his deputies, and the chief accountant are paid compensation in the amount of at least three average monthly salaries.

In addition, employees dismissed due to staff reduction are entitled to payment for days worked in the current month and compensation for unused days vacation.

The amount of severance pay may be disputed. In this situation, the organization pays the employee the undisputed portion of the amount. The remaining portion is paid based on an agreement between the employee and management or by court decision.

Alternative

An alternative to dismissing employees due to layoffs is termination of employment relationships by agreement of the parties. This is, first of all, beneficial for the employer, since he is exempt from paying additional compensation and severance pay, the likelihood of appealing the procedure in court is minimized, and there is no need to notify the trade union or employment service. In addition, the list of those who cannot be fired due to staff reduction is on this procedure does not apply.

Often employers force their employees to resign of their own free will. Thus, the employee also loses severance pay and compensation that he is entitled to upon layoff.

Employer's liability

Employers are liable if they violate the rules of the procedure for dismissing employees when reducing the number of staff. If payment terms are violated, according to Article 236 of the labor law, the employer is obliged to compensate in addition to all that is due to the employee sum of money interest amounting to at least one three hundredth of the refinancing rate of the Central Bank of Russia for each day of delay. The same sanctions apply to employers in case of delay in payment of wages. If the employer does not fulfill the obligation to provide dismissed employees with vacant positions at the enterprise, this threatens him with a fine of 5-50 times the minimum wage in accordance with Article 5.27 of the Administrative Code.

What to do when downsizing

If you were laid off due to redundancy, what should you do? You can contact several authorities. To begin with, you can send a written application to the trade union organization of the enterprise. The union must respond to the complaint within a week. An incident of wrongful dismissal due to reduction may be considered by the Federal Labor Inspectorate and the Prosecutor's Office. If the labor inspectorate does not reveal violations of the procedure, you can file a lawsuit. This can be done within a 90-day period from the moment the employee learned of a violation of his labor rights. If the dismissed employee decides to challenge the termination of the employment contract, the statement of claim must be filed within 30 days from the date of issue work book or a copy of the relevant order. Wrongfully dismissed employees do not pay fees and other legal costs. If dismissal due to reduction is recognized as unlawful, the employee is reinstated at his previous workplace by the body that was authorized to consider the labor dispute. In this case, the employee is compensated for the average salary for the period of forced absence or the difference for the period of performance low paid job, as well as moral damage.

Dismissal due to a reduction in the number of employees in an organization can affect everyone. Therefore, it is so important to know the list of those who cannot be fired due to staff reduction and who have a priority right to retain their job. These issues are fully regulated by Russian labor legislation. An employer's decision to dismiss due to reduction can be challenged both in court and by contacting a trade union, the prosecutor's office, or the Federal Labor Inspectorate. Russian labor legislation regulates the rights of those dismissed due to staff reduction. If difficulties arise, you should seek help from a competent lawyer.