Protection of labor rights. Labor disputes. Protecting the rights of the employer Who protects the rights of workers

Protection of the employer's rights in labor disputes is enshrined in Art. 22 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation and includes the opportunity to:

conclude individual and collective labor contracts;
require its employees to comply with internal regulations;
reward and punish workers, etc.

This norm corresponds to Art. 21 Labor Code of the Russian Federation. What is the employer's responsibility is the employee's right. Conversely, the employer may require employees to fulfill the duties listed in Art. 21 Labor Code of the Russian Federation. For example, an employee must treat the property of the enterprise with care, and, accordingly, the manager has the right to demand such frugality.

Thus, a violation of an employer’s rights usually constitutes:

failure by employees to fulfill their duties specified in the Labor Code of the Russian Federation and other regulations;
causing material damage to the employer.

Types of labor disputes, ways to resolve them

All labor disputes can be divided into 2 large groups:

individual (more details about their legal nature can be read in the article Individual labor dispute in the Labor Code of the Russian Federation - types);
collective (they are described in the article Collective labor disputes and the procedure for their resolution).

Among individual disputes where the rights of the employer are violated, in practice the most common are claims for compensation for damage caused by the employee.

According to Art. 248 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the employer can recover 1 salary from the employee within 1 month after establishing the final amount of damage by issuing an appropriate order.

An employer goes to court for recovery if:

the employee does not agree to pay;
or the amount of damage exceeds the amount of his salary;
or more than a month has passed since the losses were calculated.

Such types of individual disputes fall within the exclusive competence of the court (paragraph 3, part 2, article 391 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

For other types of individual disputes, the employer can first turn to the labor dispute commission, and then to the court or directly to the court (about the judicial procedure - see the article Which court considers labor disputes and in what time frame?)

The procedure for resolving collective disputes is regulated by Ch. 61 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, it will be discussed below.

How are collective labor disputes resolved?

According to Art. 398 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the beginning of a collective dispute is considered to be the day the employer refuses to fulfill all or some of the demands put forward by the collective of workers, or the expiration of 2 days from the moment the employees contact him (Part 1 of Article 400 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). The procedure for resolving a collective dispute is defined in Art. 401-404 Labor Code of the Russian Federation. It is carried out in at least 2 stages:

Within 2 days after the start of a collective dispute, a conciliation commission is organized from representatives of the parties (read more about this here: How and when is a conciliation commission formed?).
If a consensus has been reached at the level of the conciliation commission, this fact is recorded in the protocol.
On the same or the next day, a mediator is invited to resolve the dispute, and a collective agreement is concluded with him.

IMPORTANT! A mediator is not allowed as a mediator in collective labor disputes (Part 5 of Article 1 of the Law “On an Alternative Procedure...” dated July 27, 2010 No. 193-FZ).

If, despite the work of the mediator, the dispute continues, labor arbitration is created. It is also created in cases where the parties refuse to involve a mediator or fail to reach agreement on his candidacy.

On the part of the employer during conciliation procedures, the head of the organization or association of employers acts (Part 2 of Article 33 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

The role of employers' associations in resolving labor disputes

Employers have the right to unite in associations and unions in accordance with Art. 2 of the Law “On Employers' Associations” dated November 27, 2002 No. 156-FZ (hereinafter referred to as Law No. 156-FZ).

The main purpose of creating an OR is to represent and protect the legal rights of its participants in the cases specified in the charter of the OR.

In addition to statutory duties, there are duties under the law (Article 14 of Law No. 156-FZ):

conduct collective negotiations, conclude collective agreements;
fulfill their duties as specified in collective agreements;
provide its members with information about concluded agreements, assist them in fulfilling their obligations, etc.

As noted above, when resolving labor disputes, the employer’s representative can be the EO. This right is also enshrined in paragraph 5 of Art. 13 of Law No. 156-FZ.

PRs operate independently of government agencies and independently determine the goals and directions of their activities.

Thus, the EO is a kind of body that has the right, and sometimes the obligation, to participate in collective negotiations and the resolution of collective disputes.

Features of protection of rights by the employer

Preliminary preparation of the ground by the employer is the basis for further protection of his rights in a labor dispute, because for any demand made, he must have justification and documentation drawn up in accordance with all norms of the law.

For example, in order to require an employee to non-disclose internal company information, simply approving a list of information that is a trade secret and writing a non-disclosure clause in the employment contract is not enough.

Bringing employees to disciplinary liability and terminating a contract on a unilateral initiative are also ways to protect the rights of the employer (definition of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation dated February 25, 2016 No. 227-O). Moreover, to use such methods, the employer must prepare documents justifying his position.

Finally, judicial protection is a universal method of protecting rights that any person can resort to.

Declaring the strike illegal

According to Part 8 of Art. 401 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, workers have the right to conduct strikes in the manner prescribed by law. This is the Law “On Meetings...” dated June 19, 2004 No. 54-FZ (hereinafter referred to as Law No. 54-FZ).

In Part 3 of Art. 413 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation defines an illegal strike: one that was carried out without taking into account the deadlines, procedures and requirements of the law. In this case, the employer has the right to protect his business and demand that the strike be declared illegal.

To declare a strike illegal, the employer must prove that deadlines were violated and/or the necessary procedures were not carried out. In particular, the obligatory procedure is to warn the employer about a strike no later than 5 days before its start (Part 8 of Article 410 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

IMPORTANT! If the upcoming strike was announced to the management of the branch, and not directly to the executive body of the organization, this is not considered a violation. The head of the branch must transmit information about the strike to the head office (determination of the RF Supreme Court dated April 18, 2008 No. 45-G08-9).

A claim to declare a strike illegal is filed with the supreme court of the republic, region, etc. (Part 4 of Article 413 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

How an employer is defended in labor disputes in court

Labor disputes are considered in courts of general jurisdiction (clause 1, part 1, article 22 of the Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation). Their peculiarity is that, whatever the position of the employer (plaintiff or defendant), in most cases the burden of proving any facts falls on him:

In disputes about the lifting of a disciplinary sanction, the employer must have documents confirming that the employee committed an offense. For example, a memorandum (see the appeal ruling of the Moscow City Court dated May 10, 2016 in case No. 33-18175/2016), an explanatory note or an act of failure to submit it, an order to apply a disciplinary measure (Article 193 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).
In disputes about the recovery of wages, the employer must prove the absence of debt to the employee (decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated May 24, 2013 No. 41-KG13-9).
In disputes about reinstatement at work, if the dismissal occurred on the initiative of management, the employer proves the existence of grounds and compliance with the established procedure for terminating the employment contract (clause 23 of the RF PPVS dated March 17, 2004 No. 2).

This “injustice” is due to the fact that the legislator considers the employee to be the weak side of the legal relationship and labor legislation is built on the principle of maximum protection of his (the employee’s) interests.

However, it is worth remembering that the court does not always have the right to impose the burden of proof on the employer. For example:

the plaintiff-employee, who justifies the demand for reinstatement by the fact that the application for dismissal was submitted under pressure from the employer, himself proves this circumstance (subparagraph “a”, paragraph 22 of the resolution of the Plenum of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation dated March 17, 2004 No. 2);
for the purpose of calculating the limitation period, the plaintiff-employee is assumed to have learned about the unlawful reduction of salary at the time of receipt, the opposite is proven by the employee (appeal ruling of the Supreme Court of the Komi Republic dated March 28, 2016 in case No. 33-2008/2016).

In our opinion, the difficulty of protecting the rights of an employer lies in the fact that in most cases it is the management of the organization who has to prove any facts. At the same time, a large number of out-of-court methods for resolving a dispute makes it possible to reach an agreement with the employee.

One of the most common violations of the rights of hired employees is non-payment of overtime hours work, as well as violations in the calculation, including personal coefficients when determining wages.

In addition, it is also necessary to highlight such violations as numerous processing which, as a result, lead to a deterioration in the quality of services provided. These violations are most common among medical and pharmaceutical workers or social workers.

Also, in this same area, no matter how strange it may seem, violations of sanitary and hygienic working conditions are most often observed (which include both numerous overtimes by staff and non-compliance with hygiene rules, clear requirements for which are established by special professional regulations).

Speaking about violations of workers’ rights, it should also be noted that not all employers strive to support the participation of their employees in various professional associations, and often even prevent this.

This must also be considered as an infringement or violation of the labor rights of workers, since in Labor Code() it is clearly stated that workers, in particular workers in the medical and pharmaceutical industries, who participate in such associations have every right to do so and this is one of the fundamental freedoms.

Other employee rights and the basic principles of legal regulation of labor relations are discussed in detail in and and, which talk about the rights and responsibilities of the employer and employee.

So what to do if rights have been violated? The answer is clear - protect their. And there are different ways and principles for this.

Protection options

Such a phenomenon as the protection of labor rights of workers, labor law (Labor Code of the Russian Federation, Article 352) defines a list of procedures or actions that an employee can carry out and on one's own and resorting to the help of competent organizations, depending on the severity of the violation.

Article 352. Methods of protecting labor rights and freedoms

Everyone has the right to protect their labor rights and freedoms by all means not prohibited by law.

The main ways to protect labor rights and freedoms are:

self-defense of labor rights by employees;
protection of labor rights and legitimate interests of workers by trade unions;
state control (supervision) over compliance with labor legislation and other regulatory legal acts containing labor law norms;
judicial protection.

And so, if the boss very actively violates the rights of employees, the employees themselves have several legal options for protection, the main of which are:

self-defense(the concept of “self-defense” means legal actions aimed at protecting violated one’s own labor rights without involving third-party organizations);
appeal to unions in order to seek help from the specialists available there;
interaction State Inspectorate for the Protection of Workers' Rights(this organization is also called the labor inspectorate or the federal labor inspectorate);
appeal to judicial organs.

If we consider each of these options separately, it should be noted that going to court, as well as to the Prosecutor’s Office of the Russian Federation, is extreme stage in the resolution of labor disputes, to which it is necessary to resort only if it turns out to be simply impossible to resolve the disputes that have arisen by other means impossible.

Self-defense of workers’ labor rights, as mentioned above, does not imply involvement of any third-party organizations by the employee in order to resolve labor disputes.

This method is possible if the rights are affected one specific specialist and it is possible to resolve any disagreements through negotiations with the manager or his authorized representatives.

IN trade unions An appeal occurs if the disagreements that have arisen cannot be resolved directly through negotiations and the person remains socially unprotected.

Moreover, this may be an appeal to representatives of a trade union in a specific organization, and at a higher level, interorganizational level. Here there is already a thorough analysis of the specific current situation with an investigation of the root causes of its occurrence.

The rights of trade union organizations to monitor the protection of workers' rights are discussed in.

However, decisions of trade union bodies in accordance with Art. 371 Labor Code of the Russian Federation are not binding in nature, but rather advisory, since such bodies are not vested with authority, unlike labor inspectorates.

Article 371 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. Decision-making by the employer taking into account the opinion of the trade union body

The employer makes decisions taking into account the opinion of the relevant trade union body in cases provided for by this Code.

Labor inspections, which is obvious from Article 355 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, this is already higher service, if we talk about the hierarchy in the structure of bodies aimed at protecting the labor rights of employees of certain organizations, levels of protection.

Article 355. Principles of activity and main tasks of the federal labor inspectorate

The activities of the Federal Labor Inspectorate and its officials are carried out on the basis of the principles of respect, observance and protection of human and civil rights and freedoms, legality, objectivity, independence and transparency.

The main tasks of the Federal Labor Inspectorate are:

ensuring compliance and protection of labor rights and freedoms of citizens, including the right to safe working conditions;
ensuring compliance by employers with labor legislation and other regulatory legal acts containing labor law standards;
providing employers and employees with information on the most effective means and methods of compliance with the provisions of labor legislation and other regulatory legal acts containing labor law norms;
bringing to the attention of the relevant government authorities facts of violations, actions (inaction) or abuses that do not fall under the scope of labor legislation and other regulatory legal acts containing labor law norms.

Their decisions aimed at restoring the infringed interests of workers are already not just recommendations, in contrast to decisions made by the trade union. If the employer decides to refuse to comply with the decision made by the representatives of the labor inspectorate, the employee, with the support of such representatives, can go to court to restore his violated rights.

Judicial consideration of labor disputes occurs, oddly enough, often enough currently. This is due, first of all, to the fact that it is easiest to file an appeal to this authority, and also to the fact that the decision made by the judge will be executed by the employer compulsory. Otherwise, the latter may suffer large fines.

However, the process of considering labor disputes that have arisen in courts at various levels is very lengthy. It is for this reason that an appeal to this authority must be considered as last resort struggle for their violated rights (for example, in case of bankruptcy of an employer, if he refuses to compensate the work of subordinates).

The length of consideration here is due to a number of reasons:

first of all, big workload the courts themselves and the judges who hear cases;
secondly, the procedure thorough check of all documents provided in order to suppress the possibility of a miscarriage of justice.

In addition, going to court also entails certain material costs for the employee in the form of payment of state duties, including for certification of copies of materials provided along with the statement of claim to confirm his case.

And yet, there are plenty of situations where you cannot do without going to court. The reasons why an employee can apply to this authority are listed in Article 391 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Article 391. Consideration of individual labor disputes in the courts

The courts consider individual labor disputes at the request of an employee, employer or trade union defending the interests of the employee, when they do not agree with the decision of the labor dispute commission or when the employee goes to court without going through the labor dispute commission, as well as at the request of the prosecutor, if the decision labor dispute commission does not comply with labor legislation and other acts containing labor law norms.

Individual labor disputes are considered directly in the courts based on applications:

employee - about reinstatement at work, regardless of the grounds for termination of the employment contract, about changing the date and wording of the reason for dismissal, about transferring to another job, about payment for forced absence or about payment of the difference in wages for the time of performing lower-paid work, about unlawful actions ( inaction) of the employer in the processing and protection of the employee’s personal data;
employer - on compensation by the employee for damage caused to the employer, unless otherwise provided by federal laws.
Individual labor disputes are also heard directly in the courts:
about refusal to hire;
persons working under an employment contract with employers - individuals who are not individual entrepreneurs, and employees of religious organizations;
persons who believe that they have been discriminated against.

Required documents

Only if you try self-defense of his violated labor rights, the employee can only get by with a statement written in his own hand or letter of claim addressed to the manager, in which he will provide his reasoned position with evidence of the identified violation.

In other cases it is necessary to talk about a number of documents, which must be submitted to the appropriate authority that protects the violated interests.

This package of documents will include:

application with a request to consider the relevant complaint (in the case of judicial review, we are talking about a statement of claim with detailed description circumstances that have arisen);
certified copy of work book or an employment contract, confirming the fact of hiring the relevant employer;
certified copy of job description, which clearly states the labor rights and responsibilities of an employee in a specific position;
certified copy of the order on appointment to a specific position with the assignment of corresponding responsibilities to the employee.

The labor inspectorate, as well as the court, will request the remaining necessary documents on their own. if necessary.

Such documents may include promotion orders, disciplinary collections in relation to the employee, characteristics the applying employee from previous places of work.

All this is aimed at creating holistic picture of personality who applied in order to identify possible hidden motives for the employee’s dishonest behavior.

The main document on the basis of which an employee’s complaint about violations of his labor interests is considered is statement.

There are certain requirements for its preparation that must be taken into account in order to fully and competently consider the case on its merits. Such requirements should be noted:

full passport details the applicant himself, which will include both the last name, first name and patronymic, as well as the date of birth and registration address (the date of birth is necessary in order to establish the age of the employee at which he began to perform his work duties and determine the right to engage in these duties);
information about what time and under what conditions the applicant got a job(or service) to a specific organization, as well as information about which seniority at this moment he already had;
detailed description of circumstances(indicating links to the attached documents) in which, in the opinion of the applicant himself, there was a violation of his labor rights and interests (assignment of duties that do not correspond to qualifications, followed by disciplinary action, violation of the law on the protection of personal data, etc.);
information about how his labor interests were violated and labor rights (for example, upon dismissal for refusal to perform cleaning duties for a pharmaceutical production foreman, whose job responsibilities do not include such cleaning).

If we are talking about a statement of claim, then it will also be necessary to indicate here what requirements does the applicant put forward? in relation to his employer (reinstatement in the same position and on the same basis on which he worked before dismissal, if he was fired; payment of moral and material compensation, etc.).

The fact that, as a general rule, a statement of claim should contain is stated in Article 125 of the Arbitration Procedural Code of the Russian Federation.

Article 125. Form and content of the statement of claim

1. The statement of claim is submitted to the arbitration court in writing. The statement of claim is signed by the plaintiff or his representative. A statement of claim can also be submitted to the arbitration court by filling out a form posted on the official website of the arbitration court on the Internet.

2. The statement of claim must indicate:

name of the arbitration court to which the claim is filed;
name of the plaintiff, his location; if the plaintiff is a citizen, his place of residence, date and place of birth, place of his work or date and place of his state registration as an individual entrepreneur, telephone numbers, faxes, email addresses of the plaintiff;
name of the defendant, his location or place of residence;
the plaintiff’s claims against the defendant with reference to laws and other regulatory legal acts, and when a claim is brought against several defendants - claims against each of them;
the circumstances on which the claims are based and evidence confirming these circumstances;
the price of the claim, if the claim is subject to assessment;
calculation of the amount of money collected or disputed;
information about the plaintiff’s compliance with the claim or other pre-trial procedure, if it is provided for by federal law or agreement;
information about the measures taken by the arbitration court to ensure property interests before filing a claim;
list of attached documents.

The application must also indicate other information, if it is necessary for the correct and timely consideration of the case; it may contain petitions, including petitions to obtain evidence from the defendant or other persons.

3. The plaintiff is obliged to send to other persons participating in the case copies of the statement of claim and the documents attached to it, which they do not have, by registered mail with return receipt requested.

In the statement of claim, in case of going to court, the claim part itself is mandatory (that is, if the employee decided to go to court with the aim of “scaring his employer” and will not demand anything from him, then the court will reject such a statement without consideration).

Speaking about filing a statement of claim, it is necessary to remember that it will need to be correctly sent to relevant judicial authority in order to avoid its “travelling” through various departments.

As a general rule, cases of infringement of labor rights are considered by courts of general jurisdiction in civil proceedings, and an application is filed at the location of the defendant, that is, directly the employer (except for cases where the enterprise or organization has a number of branches, and the infringement of rights occurred in the branch - in this case, a claim will be filed by legal address the branch itself).

To which specific judicial body will it be necessary to submit an application, you can check on court websites in the region or region where there is a listing all addresses, with which one or another territorial body works.

When filing a claim, it will be necessary to clarify information about payment of state duty(since in some cases it will have to be paid the applicant himself, that is, the plaintiff, and in others such an obligation will be assigned to defendant, that is, the employer).

The receipt must be attached directly to the application itself.

Based on all the information listed, the body in which the complaint will be considered, relying not only on the information provided in the application, but also on attached documents, will make its decision.

If no rights are violated

Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for by the workers themselves who want to derive, among other things, material benefits from various controversial situations that arise, a not entirely fair game begins to be played and they write statements about non-existent violations their labor rights from their employers.

In this situation, when the law has not been violated, the rights of those already employers themselves. How can they protect themselves in this case and where to turn?

Moreover, this should apply not only to orders on appointment to a position and assignment of duties, but also on various incentives, imposition of disciplinary penalties, registration part-time job and other legally significant actions carried out in relation to employees hired by the organization.

This meticulous approach is the main way to protect yourself from various troubles.

If an employee tries to unreasonably accuse the employer of infringing on his own interests, the employer has the right to file a counter-complaint or a statement of claim to the relevant authorities, providing documentary confirmation own rightness.

Then, in this case, it is possible to ensure that the dishonest employee he himself was responsible for unlawful actions (we talk more about the responsibility of the employee and the employer in case of violations of labor protection requirements in).

If we talk about the bodies in which the protection of violated rights of employers should take place, then judicial protection and labor inspection are possible here, since only in these two organs the employer will be able to fully prove his innocence of violating certain rights of employees.

And, as mentioned above, to implement this form of protection it will be necessary to use only documented evidence, namely all instructions, orders and other personnel materials.

Speaking about the current situation in the labor market, it should be noted that the number of registered violations of labor rights remains large enough, despite all possible attempts to correct this situation by legislation.

However, compared to previous periods, the number of mutual infringements has increased, when not only employees, but also the employers themselves suffer.

No employer can be immune from conflicts with their employees. After all, claims may arise from both working employees and previously dismissed employees. It's great if situations like this resolve themselves, but what if they don't?

In this article you will read:

How is the protection of workers' rights explained from a legal point of view?
What forms and methods exist for workers to protect their rights?
Why are trade unions needed?
Who controls and protects the rights of workers at the state level
How can an employee defend his rights in court?
What mistakes should employers avoid?

One of the foundations of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation is protection of workers' rights. Our legislation provides for various options for protecting workers’ rights, which will be discussed further.

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How the protection of workers' rights is regulated by law

According to ILO conventions, workers are the most vulnerable in the labor relations process. The protection of workers' rights from employers is supported by the state.

Article No. 37 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation is called upon to protect their rights, which provides for the possibility of citizens holding labor disputes individually or on a collective basis, using methods not prohibited by law, including strikes.

The best traditions of the Labor Code are supported by Section 13 of the Labor Code, which contains comprehensive information on the protection of workers’ labor rights.

The concept of protecting the labor rights of workers has 2 aspects:

Protection of workers' labor rights in the narrow sense is intended to help maintain, protect and protect workers' labor rights from violations, restore them in case of illegal violation, and also impose real responsibility on employers (their representatives) for failure to comply with labor laws. All this is reflected in section 13 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

In a broad sense, the protection of workers’ labor rights must be understood as the implementation of the protective function of labor law, reflected in the function of state protection. The broad meaning of this concept also includes its definition in a narrow aspect. In addition, it reflects the following main ways to protect the labor rights of an employee:

1) On the basis of the appropriate legislative framework at the federal level, consolidation of a high level of working conditions and guarantees of the main labor rights of workers, in conjunction with their addition, improvement and development based on the labor legislation of the regions, as well as their reflection in labor agreements and collective bargaining agreements.

2) The irreducible development of democracy in production - with the participation of the employee himself or his representatives, such as trade unions, etc. This will allow employees to take direct part in the preparation of internal labor regulations and insist on the mandatory conclusion of collective agreements at the enterprise, without relying only on the decision employer.

3) Extensive promotion of labor laws among workers through the media, various lectures, etc. The study of its basic principles by employers (their representatives represented by administrations) in the process of demonstrating methods of effective protection against violations of labor rights. Conducting training for employees on the culture of fighting for their rights.

Labor disputes and protection of workers' rights are considered and ensured by jurisdictional authorities, including in the courts.

According to legislative norms, three groups are defined, including special means and basic methods of protecting the rights of workers:

The first group allows you to agree on (certify) protected labor law or lead to the end (changes) of work duties.

The second group includes means and methods of protecting employee rights that help prevent/suppress labor violations.

The third group represents means and methods of protecting the labor rights of workers, helping to restore violated rights and (or) compensate for costs incurred due to violation of subjective labor rights.

The form of protection of workers' labor rights reflects the differences in the subjects of protection of workers' labor rights. This protection can be organized independently by the person whose rights were violated, or specialized. In accordance with this, a distinction is made between jurisdictional and non-jurisdictional forms of protection of labor rights of workers.

The jurisdictional form means that an employee whose labor rights are at risk or have been violated has recourse to the assistance of authorized bodies that take certain measures within the framework of the law to protect labor rights. According to this form, the protection of workers’ labor rights can be judicial, administrative and public.

The non-jurisdictional form includes independent protection by the employee of his labor rights (or his authorized representative).

The scope of this form of protection of workers' rights includes workers' self-defense of their rights and the advocacy activities of trade unions and similar organizations.

Article 352 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation defines the following methods of protecting labor rights and freedoms:

protection by employees of their labor rights on an independent basis;
trade union protection of the rights and interests of workers;
state supervision and control of implementation of labor legislation, as well as other regulations;
judicial protection of employee labor rights.

Trade unions in small and medium-sized businesses are rare

Mikhail Tarasenko, Chairman of the Mining and Metallurgical Trade Union of Russia, Moscow.

Trade unions are a natural component of any democratic state. They are designed to solve problems of protecting employee rights. But in small and medium-sized businesses (including in production), trade unions are still rare, especially in new, small firms (unlike large companies, for example, metallurgical companies, where more than 80% of employees belong to trade unions).

Basically, trade unions cooperate with the employer or his representatives in the form of social partnerships. It is easier to negotiate with the owner of an enterprise when he is its actual manager. Difficulties arise with a vertically integrated business structure.

Often, when market conditions are unstable, employers deliberately “underestimate” their capabilities during negotiations. In such cases, we present economic arguments (based on the study of the real economy) and exercise our right to collective disputes on issues of labor organization. So far, things have not come to the point of actual strikes, but the preconditions have been there more than once. We managed to come to an agreement with the employers: VIZ-Stal LLC, Evrazholding Trade House, Mechel Group, Rusal.

How workers' rights are protected by trade union organizations

Federal Law on Trade Unions No. 10 of January 12, 1996 states: they have the right to monitor compliance by employers with labor law at enterprises where members of this trade union work, to insist on avoiding violations on the following issues:

employment contracts;
time for work and rest;
wages;
guarantees, various benefits and compensations;
other social and labor issues.

In addition, the protection of workers' rights by trade unions implies that the employer (official), upon receiving a demand from the trade union regarding the elimination of certain violations, is obliged to notify the trade union committee within 7 days about the work done and the implementation of specific measures. This is provided for in Article 370 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

In order to ensure the most effective protection of the labor rights of workers by trade unions, the latter (as well as their associations on the territory of the Russian Federation) can organize their own labor inspectorates and vest them with appropriate powers.

Trade union labor inspectors have the right:

to monitor the implementation of laws (on labor, trade unions) and the conditions contained in collective agreements, easily visit organizations of various forms of ownership and individual employers where members of trade unions (their associations) work;
carry out an independent examination of the safety of working conditions for workers;
help investigate industrial accidents and occupational diseases;
be informed by the management of enterprises (other officials, individual entrepreneurs) about the current situation on labor protection and accidents that have occurred during the production process, occupational diseases;
to help ensure that the protection of the labor rights of employers' employees makes it possible to resolve issues of compensation for damage to the health of the injured party in the process of work without any particular problems;
require employers to stop the work process when there is a real threat to the life and health of the company’s employees;
provide employers with documentation asking them to eliminate identified violations of labor laws;
act as independent expert members of the commission conducting testing and commissioning of work equipment.

Please note! According to Art. 377 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the employer must provide acceptable conditions for the work of the trade union at the enterprise, namely: allocate a special type of premises for holding meetings and preserving documents, allow information to be posted in any place convenient for employees.

What problems does the trade union help solve?

Both the trade union and the employer are interested in the success of the organization (its stable profitable work). The protection of the rights and interests of the employee and the employer by trade unions occurs as follows:

For company personnel, the protection of workers' labor rights by trade unions guarantees the preservation of their jobs, payment for work performed and benefits (under a collective agreement). The main drafter of the collective agreement is the trade union, and the employer simply edits it, removing obviously unenforceable clauses.
For employers, a trade union is beneficial in that it prevents the production process from being stopped due to strikes and various protests by workers. Trade unions also help employers unite their teams, take control of the discipline of the labor process, and organize sports and corporate recreational events. It is worth noting that trade unions bear the bulk of the costs associated with the above activities (this budget is formed by trade union membership fees of enterprise employees).
Due to the fact that trade unions are required to monitor the implementation of labor laws at the enterprise, the employer can benefit from this. Thus, inspectors specially trained by the trade union can conduct inspections of employees’ workplaces every day instead of a full-time labor safety specialist.
It is very difficult for the CEO to fully control the actions of the administration. Often the law on the protection of workers' rights is violated at the level of a workshop or individual team. In such cases, trade unions help resolve issues with violations on site, without going to court. For example, if some order affects an employee, then the protection of the employee’s rights by trade unions often occurs and is ensured during a normal conversation with the author of the order. If significant contradictions arise, the labor dispute commission (a special commission for the protection of workers’ rights) is called upon to resolve them.

Trade unions today do not fulfill their main function

Oleg Popov, LLC Cable Company Askold, St. Petersburg, General Director:

The protection of the rights and legitimate interests of workers from the arbitrariness of employers (as the main function of trade unions) is not being fulfilled today. This can be observed especially often in large enterprises. The very fact of the existence of trade unions in organizations looks false when the latter do not stop the occurrence of violations of the legal rights of workers. But serious problems can be resolved through the courts.

Today everyone can decide for themselves what goods or products they need. Therefore, I don’t understand why trade unions are still needed, especially for small firms (like ours). I decide all issues related to personnel myself; we do not have a trade union. My trade union experience was useful to me. We do not need a trade union to resolve disputes. And for serious disagreements there is a court.

State control and state protection of labor rights of workers

There are preliminary, ongoing, as well as subsequent supervision and control. The latter is a function of the court and the prosecutor’s office if violations of the Labor Code and labor protection rules have been identified.

Labor supervision and control is carried out by the following bodies for the protection of workers’ rights:

Independent and state authorized bodies and inspections.
Local authorities.
Ministries and departments (conduct internal control at the enterprises they supervise).
The General Prosecutor's Office of the Russian Federation as a whole and its subordinate structures (provide supreme supervision over the strict implementation of labor legislation in the Republic of Armenia, Article 253 of the Labor Code).

The Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation considers not only violations of labor law, but also its establishment (for example, as was the case in the case of the illegality of limiting payments for forced absenteeism under Article 213 of the Labor Code), because it is the supreme judicial body of constitutional control.

Federal state supervision over the implementation by employers of labor laws and regulations that contain labor law norms is carried out by Rostrud, as well as its local bodies. This Regulation on federal state supervision is fixed by Decree No. 875 of the Government of the Russian Federation dated September 1, 2012.

The main tasks of the Federal Labor Inspectorate are:

organizing the protection of workers’ rights and their freedoms, including the right to safe working conditions;
ensuring compliance with labor legislation by employers;
informing the company's managers and its employees about effective means and methods that help adhere to the principles of labor legislation;
presentation to certain authorities of cases of violations that have occurred, as well as actions (inactions) performed or abuses in compliance with labor legislation (Article 355 of the Labor Code).

According to the Regulations, state labor supervision is carried out by state inspectors (including legal and labor safety inspectors), who have the right to:

when demonstrating your ID, at any time, without interference, carry out checks at any type of enterprise, including individuals;
make requests and obtain from the company administration the necessary documents, explanations and information to perform their functions of supervision and control;
take samples for the purpose of analyzing substances used or processed, informing the employer (his representative) about this and drawing up a report;
clarify the circumstances of accidents in the production process;
give employers and their representatives important instructions to correct violations of labor law, restore workers’ rights, bring the guilty party to justice or remove them from work (i.e., ensure the protection of labor rights and legitimate interests of workers);
provide instructions to prevent persons from working who have not studied safe work methods and have not been instructed in labor safety issues, who have not received on-the-job training, as well as checking the level of knowledge regarding labor protection requirements;
prohibit means of individual and collective protection of workers that do not meet legislative requirements for technical regulation and labor protection;
within the framework of its powers, record and consider cases related to offenses of an administrative nature, prepare and transmit to the court and law enforcement agencies data on bringing the perpetrators to justice.

Please note! Decisions of state labor inspectors can be reviewed by a higher-level manager (chief state labor inspector of the Russian Federation) and (or) through the court. Decisions of the chief state labor inspector of the Russian Federation can only be appealed in court (Article 361 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

State control is inspections, the method of which is established by the approved conventions of the ILO, Labor Code, Federal Law No. 294 of December 26, 2008. and Regulations.

Subjects of this check:

Compliance by the employer with labor laws;

Work to implement instructions related to the elimination of violations identified during the inspection;

Absence of violations of labor law, as well as protection and protection of workers’ rights.

The grounds for carrying out an unscheduled inspection are:

1. Expiring deadlines for processing orders from the federal labor inspectorate to correct identified violations of labor law requirements.

2. Transfer to the federal labor inspectorate:

Facts of violations by the administration of the TC company, including labor protection, resulting in a threat to the life and health of employees;

Complaints from workers regarding violation of their labor rights by the employer;

Requests for inspection of working conditions at the employees’ workplace, in accordance with Art. 219 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

3. Order from the head of the federal labor inspectorate (or his deputy) to carry out an unscheduled inspection, based on instructions from the President (Government) of the Russian Federation, the prosecutor.

What penalties can be applied to an employer after an inspection?

It is important to understand the fact that a CEO's career can be derailed if labor laws are violated. Checks are carried out on each application from citizens. If a violation has been identified at the enterprise, then its first persons:

orders and submissions may be issued for mandatory execution;
administrative fines may be issued in accordance with articles of the Code of Administrative Offenses (Articles 5.27-5.34, 5.44);
court decisions may be made prohibiting the work of a specific unit or the entire organization;
may face suspension from work.

The results of verification of violations with the indicated full name of the manager and the name of the enterprise can be published in the media or otherwise communicated to the public (through Internet sites of labor inspectorates and local authorities, inclusion in the “black lists” of employers).

If during the year the head of the company repeated violations of the labor rights of employees (on the same grounds), then such an official may be disqualified by the court on the basis of information provided by the labor inspectorate. The period of such disqualification is from one year to 3 years, and data on disqualification is entered into the federal register of disqualified persons (Article 32.11 of the Administrative Code). The register of the Government of the Russian Federation of 02.08.2005 No. 483 is maintained by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, while information about disqualified citizens is open. Such a person will be dismissed from a leadership position.

How is judicial protection of employee rights carried out?

If an employee’s labor rights are violated, he can use the state labor inspectorate, labor dispute commission or court to protect his violated rights.

Judicial protection in cases of violated labor rights is characterized by accessibility to every employee and high efficiency. The employee, as the weaker party in a labor dispute, seeks protection of his rights, taking advantage of the opportunity to go to the labor court free of charge (he is exempt from paying state fees when filing a claim in court for violation of his labor rights), shortened deadlines for consideration and resolution of cases reinstatement at work (up to 1 month, despite the fact that the time frame for consideration of civil cases in district courts is 2 months), immediate execution of the court decision.

Meanwhile, with such attractiveness of judicial protection of violated labor rights, for most employees of organizations, going to court is a last resort. The reasons for this: the employer dictates the conditions, there is no opportunity to find work in small towns and villages. All this forces the employee to come to terms with possible restrictions of labor law in order to maintain his job or position. There are exceptions, but most often the employee prefers to keep the job.

The Constitution of the Russian Federation ensures the rights of all citizens to resolve individual labor disputes using the methods established by federal laws. The state offers various possibilities for applying to court for protection. Constitutional articles No. 45 and 46 provide for the general guaranteed protection of labor rights and freedoms of workers. They give everyone the right to protect their rights and freedoms by all means that are not prohibited by law, and also provide guaranteed judicial protection of the rights and freedoms of citizens.

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The court deals with individual labor disputes at the request of the employee, employer or trade union, which guards the interests of the employee, when they do not agree with the decision of the labor dispute commission, or the employee resorts to going to court, bypassing this commission, as well as at the request of the prosecutor in case of violations of labor legislation or other regulations in the process of making a decision by the labor dispute commission.

According to the civil procedural legislation of the Russian Federation, all labor disputes are considered by the district court.

As the Labor Code provides, the protection of the rights of workers in the Russian Federation provides them with the right to go to court to resolve an individual labor dispute for a period of up to 3 months from the date of violation of rights. In case of disputes regarding dismissal, the employee has the right to go to court within 1 month from the day he was given a copy of the dismissal order or given a work book. Moreover, if these deadlines are violated for a good reason, they can be reinstated in court. Circumstances that prevent the employee from filing a lawsuit in a timely manner, such as illness, being on a business trip, exposure to force majeure, or caring for a seriously ill family member, will be considered valid.

According to the general rule, consideration of a labor dispute based on an employee’s claim is carried out at the location of the legal entity as a defendant (Article 28 of the Code of Civil Procedure) or at the place of residence if the employer is an individual.

We always try to go “to the world”

Elina Khisamutdinova, General Director of LLC "KOPI-LIDER", Kazan

When joining our company, an employee must familiarize himself with his responsibilities, which are carefully spelled out in the employment contract and job description. In labor disputes, these documents signed by him, I believe, will be decisive in court. Thus, regulatory documents at the enterprise must be drawn up and reviewed in a timely manner by a lawyer with the participation of the company’s management.

Team building as a way of ideal personnel management

However, in my deep conviction, it is advisable to resolve any problematic issues humanly, by agreement. Especially considering the fact that in our country the laws do not work very well, on issues for which the price is not so high, it is better to agree to a “peace settlement”.

5 main mistakes employers make to avoid: protecting workers’ rights without trial

Judging by the experience of state labor inspectorates, employers sometimes do not understand the changing labor legislation, continuing to make mistakes, for which they pay both in pre-trial proceedings (they receive orders and administrative fines that are imposed by officials of the state labor inspectorate, representations from the prosecutor’s office1) and in court .

The protection of labor rights and interests of workers has already been a tradition in domestic labor legislation since the Soviet era. The implementation of this mission is monitored by state bodies protecting the labor rights of workers: labor inspectorates, the prosecutor's office. They have the necessary tools to force employers to comply with labor law standards.

Let's look at the most common types of employer mistakes that it is very important for CEOs to avoid making.

Mistake #1. Unreasonable change in wages

The most common violation of labor laws. In general, employers have the free right to determine the remuneration system, salary schedule, rates, allowances and bonuses, “forks” (with the exception of budgetary organizations and those with mixed type financing - Article 135 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). But the problem arises in the fact that any changes in the already established remuneration system relate to the adjustment of the essential (most important) terms of the employment contract with the employee. And this requires grounds (by law), for example, organizational or technological. It is also extremely important to notify all employees in writing 2 months before the implementation of these changes (according to Article 73 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

How to avoid mistakes

The HR department needs to clearly plan the so-called transition period for 2 months before drastic changes in the remuneration system: salary reductions, the ratio of its elements, etc. Remember that you will need good reasons for this, otherwise the labor inspector or the court will oblige you return to the original wage system and pay employees the missing part of the salary (after a corresponding complaint from the employee).

Mistake #2. Pay discrimination

Such labor disputes have been practiced relatively recently. The bottom line is that the employee has the right to demand that the employer observe the principle of equal pay for work of the same degree of complexity, quality, quantity, qualifications (Article 3, Article 132 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Employees also began to actively file complaints about discrimination in bonuses.

How to avoid mistakes

You have the right to determine the level of allowances and incentives in accordance with the quality of work and business characteristics of the individual employee. But do not forget that in court you may have to justify your preferences in favor of a certain employee and the difference in bonuses (compared to other employees). Therefore, it is important to fix the possibility of different assessments of the results of personnel work in the internal acts of the enterprise (such as the Regulations on bonuses). But be sure to familiarize all employees of the enterprise with them.

Mistake #3. Non-payment and delay of wages

Over the past two years, the practice of opening criminal cases against top officials of companies regarding non-payment of wages, scholarships, pensions and benefits has become more frequent in the Russian Federation (Article 145.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). Convictions that have entered into force are still rare. When initiating such cases, the prosecutor's office is based on information from labor inspectorates about arrears in wage payments. At the same time, debt is not only non-payment of wages for more than 2 months, but also its partial accrual. For example, night work or overtime work require mandatory additional payment and are related to wages (Article 129 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation), and the absence of their accrual will be considered, accordingly, a delay in wages.

If there are delays in salary payments, the company's chief executive may be fined, as well as the company itself (Article 5.27 of the Administrative Code, Article 236 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). In addition, according to the decision of the labor inspectorate/court, you will pay the employee a percentage for each day of delay (from the next day of the payment deadline to the day of actual payment, inclusive).

How to avoid mistakes

Oblige your accounting department to strictly adhere to the established deadlines for accrual (and payment) of salaries, as well as all its components. If there is a delay in payments due to the fault of the organization, accrue interest for all days of delay on your own initiative, without bringing the matter to employee complaints. After all, this way your losses will be much lower compared to the fines accrued during the inspection (after complaints from workers).

Mistake #4. Illegal dismissal

After the Labor Code introduced new grounds for terminating an employment agreement at the initiative of the employer (Article 81), some enterprises became carried away with dismissals on the following grounds:

disclosure of secrets protected by law (often commercial)2;
provision of knowingly false information and forged documents when concluding an employment contract;
absence of the necessary document on education from the employee (Article 84 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Before dismissing an employee on these grounds, you should take into account a number of pitfalls so as not to create unnecessary problems for yourself in the future.

How to avoid mistakes

An employee cannot be dismissed under Art. 81 “Termination of an employment contract at the initiative of the employer” of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation during the period of vacation or sick leave (paid and unpaid).
Due to the disclosure of a trade secret, an employee can be fired only when this clause is specified in the individual employment contract (Article 57 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). That is, you should clearly ensure that these requirements are included in employee employment contracts. You can also make a reference in the concluded agreement to a separate special agreement on non-disclosure of trade secrets, and it can be signed by the parties at any time from the moment the work begins.
For an employee providing knowingly false information or forged documents about himself, he can be fired only when these documents or information are on the list, according to Art. 65 Labor Code (or other federal laws, presidential decrees, government regulations). The Labor Code does not provide for, and sometimes even prohibits (Article 86), the filling out by employees of various questionnaires and forms on issues of personal and family life, membership in public organizations and associations. Accordingly, it is impossible to fire someone for unreliability of such information.

As for the reason for the dismissal of an employee due to his lack of a document on the appropriate education, then, of course, the employer has the right to put forward additional requirements for the employee’s qualifications3 and recruit people who meet these requirements. But in the case when an employee is already working, his dismissal can only be carried out in accordance with legal acts (Article 84 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation), which determine for each position the requirement for special knowledge (which is confirmed by an education document).

Mistake #5. Incorrect documentation

Errors in the preparation and maintenance of primary documentation by employees of your enterprise may result in penalties for the company.

How to avoid mistakes

Make sure that your accounting and HR departments prepare all internal documentation on labor relations with employees on time and correctly complete all primary documents. Try to avoid a situation where employee signatures on the payroll sheet for paid salaries are collected once every 3 months. This will save your company from unnecessary claims and inspections by regulatory authorities.

The Labor Code proposes to use legal methods to protect the labor rights of workers both when applying for a job, and during their working life, and even after dismissal. Workers will receive answers to questions about where the protection of workers’ rights is ensured and where to turn from the state labor inspectorate, the labor dispute commission, the trade union, etc.

To resolve a conflict situation, the employee needs to submit an application there, which will list the rights violated by the employer. It follows from this that it is best to resolve all contradictions peacefully, because If regulatory authorities confirm that an employer has violated labor laws, he may face not only administrative, but also criminal liability.

Information about the author and company

Mikhail Tarasenko, Chairman of the Mining and Metallurgical Trade Union of Russia, Moscow. The Mining and Metallurgical Trade Union of Russia is an all-Russian public organization that unites more than 1.2 million people on a voluntary basis: workers of the mining and metallurgical complex, students of industry educational institutions, former industry workers (retirees). Primary organizations have been created in more than 600 enterprises with a workforce of 400 to 60 thousand people. 77.8% of workers in the mining industry, ferrous and non-ferrous metallurgy, and in enterprises for the extraction and processing of precious metals and stones are members of the trade union.

Oleg Popov, General Director of Askold Cable Company LLC, St. Petersburg. Askold Cable Company LLC is the official distributor of Yuzhkabel Plant CJSC. The plant supplies products to the North-Western District: the Murmansk and Arkhangelsk regions, St. Petersburg, Novgorod, Pskov and other cities. Works according to a planned system. The company's staff is 30 people.

Elina Khisamutdinova, General Director of LLC "KOPI-LIDER", Kazan. LLC "KOPI-LIDER" is a wholesale company for the sale and service of office equipment, consumables, stationery, and office supplies. On the market since 2003.

Instructions

The Labor Code of the Russian Federation began to use the chapter “Protection of the personal rights of an employee,” which describes the receipt, storage, combination, transfer and other use of information about.

In this case, the employer must comply with certain rules:

In accordance with the norms of current legislation, the employer must process the employee’s personal data.

The employer can process information only for the purpose of complying with laws and the employee’s employment, monitoring the quality and quantity of work performed, ensuring the personal safety of the employee and ensuring the safety of property.

The employer must obtain all information about the employee from the employee himself. If you can use the services of third parties to collect the necessary data, the employee must express his/her own opinion in writing.

The employer has no right to information about the personal life of the employee. In cases that are directly related to issues of labor relations, he can operate on the private life of the employee, but only with his written consent.

You need to know that the employer does not have the right to refuse to hire due to circumstances that are discriminatory. The Labor Code of the Russian Federation provides guarantees for the labor rights and freedom of citizens, protects the rights and interests of workers and employers, and also creates favorable working conditions.

There are some components to the personal (private) rights of an employee, which, in turn, require regulatory support:

Neither the employer nor any other person has the right to get acquainted with personal letters, telephone conversations, including visual reproduction means that belong to the employee (for example, messages of various types, recordings made by the employee on a voice recorder, etc.).

An employee has the right to inviolability of appearance. An employer violates his rights in the event of psychological pressure on an employee for the purpose of dismissal or reduction of wages. The employee's appearance must be neat and appropriate for a particular field of activity. There are a number of professions that require a special uniform (for example, sellers, prosecutors, judges, etc.).

An employer does not have the right to use audiovisual monitoring of an employee’s behavior. Also, this right is not allowed taking into account the safety and security of production property.

The employee has the right to physical integrity. In this case, we are talking about unreasonable searches on the territory of the enterprise where he works, about unwanted physical attentions of a sexual nature from other employees.

And freedoms to consider and resolve labor disputes. It also talks about liability for violation of labor laws. In particular, on the basis of Art. 352 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, everyone has the right to protect their labor rights and freedoms by all means not prohibited by law.
The main ways to protect labor rights and freedoms are:
- self-defense of labor rights by employees;
- protection of labor rights and legitimate interests of workers by trade unions;
- state control (supervision) over compliance with labor legislation and other regulatory legal acts containing labor law norms;
- judicial protection.

Self-defense of labor rights by workers

Based on Art. 379 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, for the purpose of self-defense of labor rights, an employee, having notified the employer or his immediate supervisor or other representative of the employer in writing, may refuse to perform work not provided for, as well as refuse to perform work that directly threatens his life and health, with the exception of cases provided for by this Code and other federal laws. During the period of refusal of the specified work, the employee retains all rights provided for by labor legislation and other acts containing labor law norms.
For example, an employee uses the right of self-defense by refusing to perform work in case of danger to his life and health (except for cases provided for by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation and other federal laws). In this case, the employer is obliged to provide the employee with another job while such a danger is eliminated (Article 220 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Or the employee can use the right to self-defense if he is not provided with means of individual or collective protection. In this case, the employer does not have the right to demand that the employee perform work duties.
For the purpose of self-defense of labor rights, an employee has the right to refuse to perform work also in other cases provided for by the Labor Code or other federal laws. So, in accordance with Art. 142 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, in the event of a delay in payment of wages for a period of more than 15 days, the employee has the right, by notifying the employer in writing, to suspend work for the entire period until the delayed amount is paid. However, the same norm provides for cases when suspension of work for this reason is not allowed:
- during periods of martial law, a state of emergency or special measures in accordance with the legislation on a state of emergency;
- in the bodies and organizations of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, other military, paramilitary and other formations and organizations in charge of ensuring the country’s defense and state security, emergency rescue, search and rescue, fire-fighting work, work to prevent or eliminate natural disasters and emergency situations, in law enforcement agencies;
- civil servants;
- in organizations directly servicing particularly hazardous types of production and equipment;
- employees whose job responsibilities include performing work directly related to ensuring the life of the population (energy supply, heating and heat supply, water supply, gas supply, communications, ambulance and emergency medical care stations).
During the period of suspension of work, the employee has the right to be absent from the workplace during his working hours. Anyone who has exercised this right is obliged to return to work no later than the next working day after receiving written notice from the employer of their readiness to pay the delayed wages on the day the employee returns to work.

Note! Unauthorized termination of work or abandonment of a place of work as a means of resolving a collective or individual labor dispute by a person ensuring the safety of the relevant type of activity for the population, if such actions (inaction) are prohibited by law, entails the imposition of an administrative fine in the amount of 1000 to 1500 rubles. (Article 20.26 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation).

The employer and the employer's representatives do not have the right to prevent employees from exercising self-defense of labor rights (Article 380 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Protecting the interests of workers by trade unions

Federal Law No. 10-FZ of January 12, 1996 “On trade unions, their rights and guarantees of activity” establishes that trade unions have the right to monitor compliance by employers and officials with labor legislation in organizations in which members of a given trade union work, and have the right to demand the elimination of identified violations, including on the following issues:
- employment agreement (contract);
- working time and rest time;
- wages;
- guarantees and compensation, benefits and benefits;
- on other social and labor issues.
Employers and officials are obliged to inform the trade union about the results of its consideration and the measures taken within a week from the receipt of the request to eliminate the identified violations. A similar requirement is contained in Art. 370 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
To carry out trade union control over compliance with labor legislation, trade unions have the right to create their own labor inspectorates, which are vested with the powers provided for by the provisions (Model Regulations on the Legal Labor Inspection of Trade Unions approved by Resolution of the FNPR Executive Committee of November 22, 2011 N 7-15), approved by trade unions.

Interregional and territorial associations (associations) of trade union organizations operating on the territory of a constituent entity of the Russian Federation can create their own legal and technical labor inspectorates of trade unions, which act on the basis of the provisions they adopt in accordance with the standard regulations of the corresponding all-Russian association of trade unions.
Trade union labor inspectors have the right:
- freely visit any employers (organizations, regardless of their organizational and legal forms and forms of ownership, as well as employers - individuals) who employ members of this trade union or trade unions included in the association, to conduct inspections of compliance with labor legislation, legislation on trade unions, fulfillment of the terms of collective agreements and agreements;
- conduct an independent examination of working conditions and ensuring the safety of workers;
- take part in the investigation of industrial accidents and occupational diseases;
- receive information from managers and other officials of organizations, employers - individual entrepreneurs about the state of labor conditions and safety, as well as about all industrial accidents and occupational diseases;
- protect the rights and legitimate interests of members of the trade union on issues of compensation for harm caused to their health at work (work);
- present demands to employers to suspend work in cases of immediate threat to the life and health of workers;
- send employers proposals to eliminate identified violations of labor legislation and other regulatory legal acts containing labor law norms that are mandatory for consideration;
- as independent experts, take part in the work of commissions for testing and commissioning of production means.

Note! By virtue of Art. 377 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the employer is obliged to create conditions for the activities of the elected body of the primary trade union organization. In particular, provide free space for holding meetings, storing documentation, and also provide the opportunity to post information in a place(s) accessible to all employees.

One of the options for protecting the rights of workers by trade unions is for the employer to make decisions taking into account their opinions (Article 371 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). In particular, in the case when a change in organizational or technological working conditions may lead to mass layoffs of workers, the employer, in order to preserve jobs, has the right, taking into account the opinion of the elected body of the primary trade union organization, to introduce a part-time (shift) and (or) part-time working regime weeks for up to six months (Article 74 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). You will also have to take into account the opinion of the trade union when hiring people to work on weekends and non-working holidays in cases not specified in Art. 113 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
The procedure for taking into account the opinion of the elected body of the primary trade union organization when adopting local regulations is established by Art. 372 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, and upon termination of an employment contract at the initiative of the employer - Art. 373 Labor Code of the Russian Federation. Moreover, compliance with the procedure in the latter case does not deprive the employee or the elected body of the primary trade union organization representing his interests of the right to appeal the dismissal directly to the court, or the employer to appeal to the court the order of the state labor inspectorate.

State control

Federal state supervision over employers' compliance with labor legislation and other regulatory legal acts containing labor law norms is carried out by Rostrud and its territorial bodies. The regulation on federal state supervision of compliance with labor legislation and other regulatory legal acts containing labor law norms was approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated September 1, 2012 N 875. In accordance with this Regulation, state supervision in the field of labor is carried out by state labor inspectors (legal labor inspectors and labor safety inspectors) who have the right:
- in accordance with the established procedure, freely visit organizations of all organizational and legal forms and forms of ownership, employers - individuals in order to conduct an inspection at any time of the day, if you have a certificate;
- request from employers and their representatives and receive from them free of charge documents, explanations, information necessary to perform supervisory and control functions;
- remove samples of used or processed materials and substances for analysis, notifying the employer or his representative about this and drawing up a corresponding report;
- investigate industrial accidents in accordance with the established procedure;
- present employers and their representatives with binding orders to eliminate violations of labor legislation, to restore the violated rights of employees, to bring those responsible for these violations to disciplinary liability or to remove them from office in the prescribed manner;
- issue orders to remove from work persons who have not undergone training in safe methods and techniques for performing work, instructions on labor protection, on-the-job training and testing of knowledge of labor protection requirements;
- prohibit the use of personal and collective protective equipment for workers if such means do not comply with the requirements established by the legislation of the Russian Federation on technical regulation and state regulatory requirements for labor protection;
- draw up protocols and consider cases of administrative offenses

Note! Decisions of state labor inspectors can be appealed to the relevant supervisor, the chief state labor inspector of the Russian Federation and (or) to court. Decisions of the chief state labor inspector of the Russian Federation can be appealed to the court (Article 361 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

State control is carried out through inspections, the procedure for which is determined by ratified ILO conventions, the Labor Code, Federal Law of December 26, 2008 N 294-FZ “On the protection of the rights of legal entities and individual entrepreneurs in the exercise of state control (supervision) and municipal control” and the Regulations.
The subjects of the inspection are the employer’s compliance with the requirements of labor legislation, compliance with orders to eliminate violations identified during inspections and to take measures to prevent violations of labor law and to protect the labor rights of citizens.
The grounds for conducting an unscheduled inspection are:
1. Expiration of the deadline for the employer to fulfill the order issued by the federal labor inspectorate to eliminate the identified violation of the requirements of labor legislation and other regulatory legal acts containing labor law norms.
2. Admission to the Federal Labor Inspectorate:
- appeals and statements about violations by employers of the requirements of labor legislation, including labor protection requirements, which resulted in a threat of harm to the life and health of workers;
- an employee’s appeal or statement about the employer’s violation of his labor rights;
- an employee’s request to conduct an inspection of labor conditions and safety at his workplace in accordance with Art. 219 Labor Code of the Russian Federation;
3. Availability of an order (instruction) from the head (deputy head) of the federal labor inspectorate to conduct an unscheduled inspection, issued in accordance with the instructions of the President of the Russian Federation or the Government of the Russian Federation or on the basis of a request from the prosecutor to conduct an unscheduled inspection as part of the supervision of the implementation of laws received by the prosecutor's office materials and requests.

For your information. The specifics of conducting inspections of compliance with the requirements of labor legislation in organizations subordinate to federal executive authorities in the field of defense, security, internal affairs, execution of punishments and the authorized body for managing the use of atomic energy are established by the President of the Russian Federation or the Government of the Russian Federation.

Judicial protection

Individual labor disputes are considered by labor dispute commissions and courts. The procedure for considering cases of labor disputes in courts is determined by the civil procedural legislation of the Russian Federation. In particular, on the basis of Art. 22 Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation and Art. Art. 382, 391 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, cases on disputes arising from labor relations are subject to the jurisdiction of courts of general jurisdiction, namely the district court considers such cases as the first instance.
If a dispute has arisen regarding non-fulfillment or improper fulfillment of the terms of an employment contract that are of a civil nature (for example, on the provision of residential premises, on the payment of an amount to an employee for the purchase of residential premises), then the following is important: although these conditions are included in the content of the employment contract, they by their nature, they are civil obligations of the employer, which means that the jurisdiction of such a dispute (district court or magistrate) is determined based on the general rules for determining the jurisdiction of cases established by Art. Art. 23, 24 Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation (Resolution of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated March 17, 2004 N 2 “On the application by the courts of the Russian Federation of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation”).
Cases on declaring a strike illegal are within the jurisdiction of the supreme courts of republics, regional, regional courts, courts of federal cities, courts of the autonomous region and autonomous districts (Part 4 of Article 413 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

For your information. Individual labor dispute - unresolved disagreements between an employer and an employee on the application of labor legislation, as well as between the employer and a person who previously had an employment relationship with this employer, as well as a person who has expressed a desire to conclude an employment contract with the employer, in the event of the employer’s refusal to conclude such an agreement (Article 381 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

According to the general rules, a claim is brought to court at the location of the employing organization, and if the employer is an individual entrepreneur, then at his place of residence. However, by virtue of Art. 29 of the Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation, claims for the restoration of labor rights can also be brought to the court at the place of residence of the plaintiff, that is, the employee.
To protect his rights through the court, the employee must comply with the deadlines for filing an application for consideration of the dispute. Please note that depending on the categories of cases, the time limits for applying for protection of an employee’s labor rights are different. So, on the basis of Art. 392 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, an employee has the right to apply to the court for resolution of an individual labor dispute within three months from the day he learned or should have learned about a violation of his right, and in disputes about dismissal - within one month from the date he was given a copy of the order dismissal or from the date of issue of the work book.
If an employee tried to resolve disagreements through the organization’s labor dispute commission, which, within the established ten-day period, was supposed to consider the dispute and resolve it in someone’s favor, but did not do so, the employee has the right to transfer the consideration of the conflict to the court (Article 390 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation ). If the commission examined the dispute, but its decision did not satisfy the employee, he can also go to court to appeal within ten days from the date of delivery of a copy of the commission’s decision (Article 390 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Finally

As we can see, the Labor Code provides an employee with a fairly wide range of ways to resolve controversial issues both when hiring, during employment, and after dismissal. Since, in order to resolve a conflict situation, an employee must submit an application (at least to the state labor inspectorate, at least to the labor dispute commission, at least to a trade union, etc.) indicating the rights violated by the employer, we recommend that contradictions be resolved peacefully. After all, if a violation of labor legislation is established by regulatory authorities, the employer may face not only administrative, but also criminal liability.