Layoff law. What will be indicated in the work book. Work in crisis

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

What is downsizing?

Employees is a procedure for the abolition of positions (one or more), carried out in accordance with labor legislation. One of the methods of reducing units is the elimination of 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 the payroll or list of employees can also act as a supporting document.

Legal downsizing

Russian labor legislation regulates the procedure and determines the grounds for layoffs. So, the employer can dismiss employees due to a reduction in the number of staff units, reorganization or liquidation of the enterprise. At the same time, the employer himself determines the optimal number of employees of the organization. By law, the employer is not required to justify the decision to dismiss an employee for reduction, however, formally, the procedure should 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 when the position he occupies is liquidated.

Wrongful downsizing

In practice, there is often an illegal (imaginary) staff reduction, which has no real reasons. This procedure is illegal. Employers resort to this method when they need to fire an employee, but there are no real reasons for this. If the procedure for terminating contracts is carried out incorrectly or if it is not observed, the reduction is also considered unlawful. The rights of the 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

This procedure consists of several stages.

  1. The launch of the procedure for reducing the number of employees must be formally confirmed by the relevant order and the approval of the new staffing table. In this case, the new schedule is approved before the start of the procedure itself. The dismissed will be those employees whose position was not preserved in the new staffing table.
  2. 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 send a written notice to the trade union organization.
  3. 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 notice must indicate the position, specialty, profession and qualifications of each individual employee. The employment service must be informed about the planned reduction in the staff of the organization at least 3 months in advance, if the procedure can provoke mass layoffs.
  4. 2 months before the scheduled date, the employer must inform his employees about the reduction against signature. When an employee refuses to sign the warning, the personnel department draws up an appropriate act.
  5. 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 of all 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 in no case accepts new ones. When selecting vacancies, the qualifications and state of health of the employee should 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 additional monetary compensation, the amount of which is not limited by law and depends only on the agreement on the spot.
  6. The management of the enterprise publishes employees, where it indicates the date and reason for termination of the employment contract. Workers get acquainted with him under the signature. If the employee refuses to sign the order, an appropriate act is drawn up.
  7. Dismissed employees are counted on the last working day, they issue a work book with a corresponding entry. When dismissing employees who are members of a trade union, the reasoned opinion of this organization should 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 allowed with the consent of the state labor inspectorate and the commission for the protection of the rights of minors.

Who can't be fired

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

  • Women with children under 3 years of age.
  • Women on parental leave (Labor Code of the Russian Federation, Article 256).
  • Single mothers with children under 14 years old (if a disabled child - up to 18).
  • Persons raising children under 14 years of age without a mother (if a disabled child - up to 18, article 261 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).
  • Employees of organizations 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 the age of 3 at the request of the mother. The workplace and position in this case are reserved for the woman.

Can a pregnant woman be fired on the basis of a layoff? Such dismissal is considered illegal. As stated, dismissal is permissible only upon liquidation of the organization.

The only exceptions are cases where the reduction takes place as part of the liquidation of the enterprise.

Who has the benefits

In addition to the list of those who cannot be fired due to staff reduction, the Labor Code also includes such a concept as “preferential right”. According to Article 179 of the Labor Code, this right gives employees of organizations an advantage in retaining their jobs when laying off staff, depending on the quality of their work duties or social reasons. These workers are the last to leave.

Employees with a high level of qualification and labor productivity have a preferential right. Work experience and education are also taken into account. Qualification must be confirmed by documents on graduation from educational institutions, certificates of advanced training, extracts from the protocols of commissions on assignment of a category or category, etc. To assess the level of qualification of employees, the management of enterprises can conduct certification, including unscheduled. 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.

Employees also have the priority right to retain their jobs:

  • Containing two or more dependents (family circumstances).
  • Who independently support their family (there is no other source of income other than the salary of this employee).
  • During the period of fulfillment of labor obligations, injuries or occupational diseases from the employer conducting the reduction.
  • War invalids.
  • Improving qualifications without interruption from the labor process in the direction of management.

The collective agreement may also establish other categories of employees with the preferential right to retain their jobs.

Features of dismissal to reduce pensioners

Often people who have reached retirement age also work in Russian organizations. However, age is not the reason for the 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 qualification and productivity.

It says that pensioners should be provided with all guarantees and payments upon dismissal for reduction. Other interpretations of these legislative norms contradict the principles of equal rights of workers and non-discrimination in the sphere of work.

Reduction payouts

According to 140, when terminating an employment relationship with an employee, the management of the organization must settle with him and pay all the money due. Payments must be made after the employee submits the relevant request no later than the next day.

If an employee is fired due to a reduction in staff, he necessarily receives a severance pay, the amount of which is equal to the average earnings for the month. Within two months, the employee is paid severance pay while looking for a suitable job. This payment can also be made for the third month if the dismissed employee applies to the employment service within 14 days after the 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 the payment is determined by the amount of the average monthly earnings, calculated in proportion to the time left before the expiration of the notice of reduction. Pensioners, as mentioned above, are paid all compensation, as well as ordinary workers. The head, his deputies, the chief accountant are paid compensation in the amount of at least three average monthly salaries.

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

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

Alternative

An alternative to the dismissal of employees for reduction is the termination of labor relations by agreement of the parties. First of all, this is beneficial for the employer, since he is exempted 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, the employment service. In addition, the list of those who cannot be fired due to staff reduction does not apply to this procedure.

It is not uncommon for employers to force their employees to resign of their own free will. Thus, the employee is also deprived of severance pay and compensation, which he is entitled to during the reduction.

Employer's responsibility

Employers are liable in case of violation of the rules of the procedure for dismissal of employees in the event of a reduction in the number of staff. In case of violation of the terms of payments, according to Article 236 of the labor legislation, the employer is obliged to reimburse, in addition to the entire amount of money due to the employee, 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 the dismissed employees with vacant positions available at the enterprise, this threatens him with a fine in the amount of 5-50 times the minimum wage in accordance with Article 5.27 of the Administrative Code.

What to do when cutting

If you were fired for a reduction, what to do? You can contact several authorities. To get started, you can send a written application to the trade union organization of the enterprise. The trade union is obliged to respond to the complaint within a week. A wrongful layoff incident may be reviewed by the Federal Labor Inspectorate and the Attorney's Office. If the labor inspectorate did not reveal violations of the procedure, a lawsuit can be filed. This can be done within a 90-day period from the moment the employee became aware of the violation of their 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 of the work book or a copy of the relevant order. Wrongfully dismissed employees do not pay duties and other legal expenses. If a redundancy dismissal is recognized as unlawful, the employee is reinstated at the previous workplace by the body that was authorized to consider the labor dispute. In this case, the employee is compensated for the average wage for the time of forced absenteeism or the difference for the period of low-paid work, 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 redundancy and who have a preferential right to retain their jobs. These issues are fully regulated by Russian labor legislation. The employer's decision to dismiss due to redundancy can be challenged both in court and by contacting the trade union, the prosecutor's office, and the Federal Labor Inspectorate. Russian labor legislation regulates the rights of a laid-off employee. If you have any difficulties, you should seek the help of a competent lawyer.

Reduction of staff- a procedure that requires compliance with certain rules and the implementation of the necessary payments from the employer. What is the procedure for dismissal due to redundancy, what documents need to be issued, who cannot be reduced, what compensation and payments should the employer pay when reducing an employee? These questions will be discussed in the article below.

The procedure for laying off an employee

If the organization decides to reduce staff units or an entire staff, then this process must be properly formalized, the dismissal must be subject to certain rules, and the employee must be paid a number of compensation payments. First of all, it is worth noting that a reduction in the number of employees implies a reduction in the staffing of one or more positions, and a reduction in staff is the exclusion of a position from the staff of employees completely. For example, the staffing table states that the organization has an accountant position in the number of staff units of 5 people, staff reduction will mean the exclusion of the accountant position completely, that is, the organization is left without accountants. If only the number is reduced, for example, by 2 staff units, then this only means a decrease in 5 accountants to 3.

Employees who cannot be laid off

When carrying out the dismissal procedure, it should be remembered that there are categories of employees who cannot be dismissed by reduction. These include:

  • Pregnant;
  • Women with children under 3 years old;
  • Single mothers raising children under 14 years old (if the child is disabled, then up to 18 years old);
  • Other persons raising a child without a mother;
  • The only breadwinner in a family with a disabled child under 18;
  • The sole breadwinners of a large family (3 or more young children) with a child under the age of 3 years.

The above persons are not allowed to be fired at the request of the employer. This is clearly spelled out in the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, Article 261. How is the redundancy process going?

The procedure for layoffs for downsizing

The employee reduction procedure begins 2 months before the expected date of dismissal.

First of all, an order is issued to reduce the staff or number of employees. The order prescribes the positions that are subject to reduction, the number of staff units that need to be fired.

Simultaneously with the above orders, a Notice of termination of the employment contract is created in connection with the dismissal for reduction. This document should contain a surname list of employees to be dismissed. All employees who have been made redundant must read the Notice. In front of his last name, everyone must put his signature.

According to Art. 180 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the employer is obliged to offer employees who are dismissed for redundancy another vacant position, if any. Moreover, it is possible to offer a position that will be lower than the one he occupied before the reduction, but the employer is not obliged to offer a position higher than the one occupied.

The offer to the employee of vacant positions must also be documented, for which a Notice is issued indicating the available vacancies. The employee must familiarize himself with this document and put his signature as a sign of consent or refuse the proposed positions also in writing in the Notice.

The employer's next step in the downsizing procedure will be to issue a notice to the employment service. The notification form can be found in Appendix No. 2 to the Decree No. 99 of February 5, 1993. You must also notify the employment service 2 months before the date of dismissal.

Please note that the article indicated that the necessary documents and notifications must be issued 2 months before the proposed dismissal for reduction. But if the reduction in the number or staff of employees is planned on a massive scale, then the period increases to 3 months.

It is better for the employer to follow the procedure for reducing employees specified in the article. With errors in this procedure (through ignorance or intentionally), very often competent employees begin to defend their rights through the courts and, as a rule, win such disputes.

Nowadays, you need to be legally savvy in a variety of issues, especially when it comes to labor relations. What is important to know if you decide to quit or get laid off? about it with head of the legal direction of the Center for Social and Labor Rights Sergey Saurin.

If the employer refuses to sign the resignation letter

The leader has no right to interfere. You can decide to quit at any time, and you do not need to agree on leaving with your employer. The only restriction is that according to Article 80 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, you are obliged to notify your management in writing about leaving no later than two weeks in advance. A letter of resignation is just a form of warning, and it is important for you that you have proof in your hands that the employer received it. To do this, you can ask a person authorized to receive documents to sign the receipt of your application on a copy of this application (you keep a copy). If for some reason you are refused to sign on receipt of the application, you can send a telegram to the employer with a return receipt - this will also be a notice of resignation in the proper form.

After the two-week notice period has expired, you will have the right not to go to work and demand a dismissal. By agreement with the employer, you can terminate the employment contract even before the expiration of the two-week period.

How to use the remaining vacation upon dismissal

The current Labor Code in Article 127 provides for two options for using leave upon dismissal:

If you were "asked"

Voluntary dismissal, according to the current Labor Code, does not involve the payment of any compensation to the employee. However, in a situation where you generally do not mind terminating the employment contract, but do not want to write a statement of your own free will, you can offer the employer to issue a dismissal by agreement of the parties. In fact, this is the same “conflict-free” basis for dismissal, but here you can bargain. The law does not limit you in choosing the possible terms of the dismissal agreement, it all depends on your negotiating capabilities. You can try to convince the employer to pay you a certain amount of cash compensation, or ask for a "compensation" in some other form (for example, good recommendations).

The agreement on termination of the employment contract must be drawn up in writing in two copies. Often it is drawn up in the form of an additional agreement to a terminated employment contract. From the moment it is signed by the parties, it is mandatory for both the employee and the employer.

You've been laid off, but you don't agree with it

Article 179 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation stipulates that employees with higher labor productivity and qualifications have the preferential right to be left at work during redundancy measures. All other possible criteria (including the length of service) are applied only in the case of equal labor productivity and qualifications of employees.

If you have reason to believe that the employer has chosen you unreasonably, you should appeal the dismissal in court. Unfortunately, it will not work to appeal against the actions of the employer before the layoff (layoff or transfer, depending on the availability of vacancies), since the notice of the layoff in itself does not violate your rights.

In court, you will have to prove that your productivity and qualifications were higher than those of your colleagues in the position (or that you had a preferential right under other criteria, subject to equality of productivity and qualifications). Documents, testimonies or any other evidence of a position can be used as evidence. Evidence is better to start preparing in advance, even before the reduction has occurred.

How is the reduction allowance paid?

In accordance with Article 180 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation on the upcoming dismissal due to a reduction in the number or staff of the organization's employees, employees are warned by the employer personally and against signature at least two months before the dismissal. During these two months, the employee continues to work and receives wages in the general manner.

After two months, already immediately upon dismissal, in accordance with Article 178 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the employer is obliged to pay severance pay in the amount of the average monthly earnings. This payment is considered to be the preservation of the employee's earnings for the first month after the dismissal.

If the reduced employee does not get a job within the first month after dismissal, the employer has an obligation to keep his average earnings for the second month after dismissal. The average salary for the second month is paid to the employee in the second month (since upon dismissal it is not known when the laid-off employee will be able to get a new job). Moreover, if an employee gets a new job in the middle of the second month after the dismissal, then the old employer pays him the average salary only for that part of the second month during which the employee did not work.

If an employee is registered with the employment authority within two weeks after the dismissal for a reduction, and despite this, he could not get a new job within two months after the dismissal, the old employer retains his average earnings for the third month after the dismissal (payment rules the same as for the second month).

Article 180 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation establishes the possibility of the employer and employee to agree to terminate the employment contract in connection with the reduction before the expiration of the two-month warning period. In this case, the employer is obliged to pay the employee a lump sum (upon dismissal) in the amount of the average earnings for the entire period remaining until the expiration of the two-month period, plus a severance pay in the amount of the average earnings for one month. Saving earnings for the second and third months after dismissal in this case occurs according to the general rule.

Is it possible to apply to the Employment Center with only registration in hand?

According to Article 31 of the Law of the Russian Federation "On Employment in the Russian Federation", the decision to grant unemployment benefits is made simultaneously with the decision to recognize a citizen as unemployed. In accordance with paragraph 2 of Article 3 of the Law on Employment, the decision to recognize a citizen registered in order to find a suitable job as unemployed is made by the employment service at the place of residence of the citizen.

We are talking specifically about the place of residence, and not about the place of registration (registration), therefore, in case of a refusal, you have the right to demand that the refusal be issued in writing and appeal against it in court or in a higher authority (employment department for the constituent entity of the Russian Federation).

Please note that registration at the place of stay and residence is only a method of registering citizens within the Russian Federation provided for by federal law, which is of a notification nature and reflects the fact that a citizen is located at the place of stay or residence, which cannot serve as a basis for restriction or a condition for the exercise of the rights and freedoms of citizens .

The decision to reduce the number of employees, as a rule, can be taken by the employer for various reasons: due to the fact that the demand for the company's products or services has fallen on the market, it is necessary to reduce production volumes, competition has increased, etc. Reduction of employees is also possible during liquidation organizations. The employer has the right to terminate the employment contract with the employee, however, observing a certain procedure for dismissal and the employee's rights in case of reduction, provided for by labor legislation.

The employer must remember that there are categories of employees who cannot be fired due to a reduction in the number (in this case, the liquidation of the company is an exception):

  • Employees currently on vacation;
  • Temporarily disabled workers;
  • Pregnant women;
  • Women with children less than 3 years old;
  • Single mothers (as well as other citizens) who are raising a child under the age of 14 or a disabled child under 18;
  • Minors (under 18).

Responsibilities of the employer in case of layoffs

The main obligations of the employer when reducing the employee: to personally warn each employee of the upcoming dismissal against signature within a period not exceeding two months before the date when the employee is to be dismissed. If the employee refuses to receive a notice that a dismissal is coming, as well as to read it under the signature, it is worth drawing up an act that must be signed by several witnesses (at least two).

In addition, there is an important nuance that the employer needs to remember: it is possible to dismiss for a reduction in the number of employees only if it is impossible to offer the employee another vacancy and transfer to another job. All employees who are planned to be laid off must be offered a transfer before they leave. This must be done in writing, in free form, by filling out two copies - one copy for the employee and the employer. This may be a job that matches the employee's qualifications or a lower position, as well as a less paid job. If the employee is ready to accept the offer and agrees to the transfer, it is necessary to issue the transfer in the usual manner. If the employer has nothing to offer (there are no vacancies), the employee should be informed about this in writing, by notification.

In addition, the employer must notify the employment service in writing about the reduction of employees. In some constituent entities of the Russian Federation, a notification form has been approved; in some employment centers, their own notification forms have been approved. You can also do this in a free form, indicating all the necessary information (positions that are planned to be reduced, qualification requirements for employees, wages, etc.)

If the organization has a trade union, then it also needs to be informed that it is planned to reduce the number of employees.

The rights of the employee during the reduction

After the notice period for a planned reduction stipulated by law expires, the employer creates a dismissal order. Many are interested in the question: what are the rights of an employee to payments in case of layoffs at work in 2017?

On the last day, the employer makes a full settlement with the employee, including paying him the due severance pay and retaining his average earnings for the time being until the employee is employed. In this case, exceptions are provided: if a decision is made to dismiss a part-time worker, then it is not necessary to keep his average earnings for the time he is looking for a job. The part-time worker is employed at the main place of work.

Thus, the employee is entitled to payments in case of reduction at work in 2017:

  • severance pay, which is calculated as the average earnings for the first month after losing a job;
  • average earnings for the next (second) month after he was fired, if the employee did not manage to find a job.

In some cases, an employee may expect that the average monthly earnings will continue for a whole quarter from the day he was fired. This is possible if the employment authority decides so, provided that within the prescribed period (2 weeks) the employee applied to the employment service and did not find a job.

Each business owner tries to optimize the work of his company in different ways, which increases labor productivity, the efficiency of each employee and reduces costs, which ensures an increase in profits. In crisis situations or other difficult cases, layoffs are often required. For every employed citizen, such a process is a stressful situation, as he has to face the loss of an attractive and well-paid job. Therefore, you should know what rights a citizen has, as well as what obligations employers have.

Legislative regulation

Reduction in the work of specialists should be carried out only taking into account the numerous requirements of the law. This process leads to lower costs for the enterprise, and often improves productivity. But the loss of a qualified and experienced professional often leads to disastrous results for the firm.

Often, organizations with a deterioration in their financial condition use layoffs at work. The rights of all citizens who undergo this procedure are contained in Art. 180 TK. This legislative act states that the procedure can be carried out only with the preliminary formation of the relevant order. It prescribes the basis for the reduction of specialists, their positions and full names, as well as the date of dismissal.

Reasons for the reduction

This procedure is used by many business owners. The most common reasons for this are:

  • closure of the company, and in this case, all specialists officially employed at the enterprise are dismissed;
  • reorganization of the company, so it begins to work in a new direction, which leads to the need to hire new specialists, but past employees become unclaimed;
  • the company is in financial difficulties, so it is on the verge of bankruptcy and to improve the situation it is necessary to reduce costs, which can be done by reducing labor costs.

For some companies, laying off a certain number of employees is the only option to prevent bankruptcy proceedings, since due to the large staff, labor costs are significant.

The employer must draw up an order, since on the basis of it a reduction is made. This document should contain the real reasons for using this method of breaking labor relations with specific specialists.

Downsizing process

Initially, a decision should be made to lay off work. The rights of an employee must be taken into account by each employer, since if they are violated, citizens can apply to the labor inspectorate to receive compensation or cancel the reduction.

The procedure itself is divided into successive stages:

  • a decision is made by the management team, on the basis of which some positions are removed or specialists are simply replaced;
  • an order is drawn up, and it must be issued two months before the direct reduction;
  • this document contains information about all citizens with whom the contract will be terminated;
  • if a massive reduction in work is expected, then it is required to warn employees about this three months before the direct termination of contracts;
  • a new staffing table is formed and approved;
  • about the upcoming process, it is necessary to notify the employment service, which is indicated in Art. 24 FZ No. 1032-1;
  • it is revealed which employees should be fired in the first place, and who cannot be fired for any reason;
  • all citizens with whom labor relations will be terminated are notified of the upcoming event two or three months in advance, and they must sign the notification document;
  • when determining who exactly will be fired, the preferential right to remain at work with the reduction of various specialists is taken into account;
  • contracts are terminated at the appointed time, the due funds are paid to citizens, and the necessary documents are issued to them.

Thus, the procedure is considered quite complicated, and is also necessarily controlled by the employment service workers.

Who gets fired first?

First of all, the following employees are fired from work to reduce:

  • citizens receiving a labor pension, but continuing to work officially;
  • employees who do not have significant experience, so their value is not considered too high;
  • people who showed a poor indicator of labor productivity during work;
  • citizens who have numerous comments on work or labor discipline.

Workers selected by management for layoffs cannot refuse to be fired, but they receive significant benefits even after the termination of the employment relationship, so it is not uncommon for them not to find a new job after the layoff for several months. Also, if their rights are violated by the employer, such a decision can be challenged through the courts.

Suggested Alternative

Often there are vacant positions in the company, so the head of the company, before laying off employees, must offer them the opportunity to get these positions.

If they refuse offers, the refusal must be recorded in writing.

It is not allowed to dismiss citizens who are on vacation or on sick leave under Art. 81 TK.

Employer's obligations

Running any company is hard work. Retrenchment is usually a forced procedure resorted to by managers who are faced with serious financial problems of the company. But at the same time, the entrepreneur has certain responsibilities. And they should be taken into account when laying off workers. These include:

  • in Art. 181 of the Labor Code states that employees should be offered other positions that correspond to their specialty and experience, if there are vacancies in the company;
  • all citizens must be warned about the reduction two months before the process, and the employees themselves will certainly sign in a special notice;
  • the actions of the employer must be coordinated with the trade union committee, and the members of this organization must be provided with lists of employees who will be reduced;
  • in addition, there is a need to notify the employment service of all the measures used, on the basis of which the dismissal of a certain number of employees is expected, and such a notification is sent two months before the immediate process.

In Art. 81 of the Labor Code states that the reduction of any employee implies the termination of the employment contract. The initiator of this process is the employer himself.

Process Nuances

In a serious crisis situation in a company, layoffs are often applied. The rights of the employee himself are in different points:

  • he is notified of the intentions of the management staff by a special written notice, on which he puts his signature;
  • allowed to express their opinion on this issue;
  • it is allowed to transfer to another position that is free in the company at the time of the reduction;
  • the head is obliged to offer several options for employment, so the citizen himself chooses the position and features of the work, and if there are no suitable options, then a reduction is drawn up;
  • It is not allowed to dismiss an employee without prior notice of two months.

If any violations are detected on the part of the company's management, the employee can file a complaint with the labor inspectorate.

Who can't be fired?

Some employees have the right of preferential retention at work in case of staff reduction. They are the last to leave. These include:

  • people with a high level of qualification, therefore their labor productivity indicator is much higher than this value for other employees of the enterprise;
  • pregnant women, as well as people on parental leave;
  • citizens who are the sole breadwinners in the family;
  • people who have dependents from two citizens recognized as incapacitated, they can be represented by disabled people, minors or elderly people;
  • employees who have received any occupational disease or injury in the course of their work;
  • citizens who improve their skills taking into account the direction of the enterprise.

If within two months after the dismissal a person cannot find a job, then he receives compensation from the last place of employment in the amount of average earnings. To do this, it is required to register with the employment service within one month after the termination of the contract.

Why is union involvement required?

Trade unions are still organized at many enterprises, the main purpose of which is to protect the rights of citizens. Therefore, all the people included in them perform the following actions:

  • control the correctness of the implementation of various activities by the employer, the main purpose of which is the reduction of staff;
  • make various proposals on the basis of which the reduction procedure is changed;
  • offers options to prevent layoffs of workers.

If a citizen is sure that the employer is violating his rights, then he can contact the labor inspectorate or trade union for free advice from an experienced lawyer.

What guarantees do they offer?

The reduction takes into account the different guarantees that should be offered to employees. These include the following:

  • if a person has the right to remain at work during a reduction, then he cannot be dismissed if there are employees who do not have this right;
  • each reduced employee is paid a severance pay equal to the average earnings;
  • the person retains the average salary for two or three months after the dismissal, which are given to him for free job search, but it is important to be registered with the employment service as unemployed;
  • the citizen is notified in advance of the dismissal.

If these guarantees are violated, then this is a significant violation on the part of the company's management, therefore it is possible to apply various penalties to the director from the labor inspectorate or the court.

What payments are made?

Often people leave due to layoffs. In this case, payments are appointed by the employer in the following forms:

  • salary for all days worked;
  • compensation if there are unused vacation days;
  • severance pay, which is equal to the average earnings in the company;
  • if a citizen worked in a company where the work is seasonal, then his allowance is equal to earnings for two weeks of work.

Severance pay is calculated taking into account the salary received by a citizen for two years. If within the next two months the dismissed specialist does not find the optimal place of work, then the former employer must pay him funds equal to his average earnings while working in the company.

Compensation instead of notice

If the employer did not have time to notify the employee of his reduction in time, then he can pay compensation instead. It is calculated as a two-month average salary of a specialist in the company, if there is no notification at all.

If a document is submitted late, then when calculating this payment, the actual days remaining until the immediate date of the citizen's dismissal are taken into account.

The transfer of this compensation does not serve as a basis for exempting the employer from paying severance pay. Also, the employees themselves decide whether they will accept this proposal or not.

What to do in case of illegal reduction?

If during this process the conditions of the Labor Code are violated, then employees can file a complaint with the labor inspectorate. On the basis of this document, employers are brought to administrative responsibility, expressed in the need to pay fines. Their size depends on the detected violations.

It is allowed to appeal the reduction through the court, and the claim must be filed within one month after the dismissal. The claim is satisfied if there is official evidence of illegal actions on the part of the employer.

Thus, the reduction of any employee is a specific procedure that must be carried out in the correct sequence of actions. In this case, all the rights of citizens must be taken into account. If they are violated, employers are held administratively liable. Violations in the terms of notification can be compensated by correctly calculated compensation. At the same time, employees can challenge their reduction if there is evidence of illegal actions on the part of the company's management.