You can be fired from your job for a variety of reasons. One of them is reduction. This is not the worst option, if the procedure is fully followed, the employee is not pressured to write a statement of his own free will. Such actions of an unscrupulous employer must be countered by knowledge of the law and the prescribed dismissal process, as well as the rights of the employee.

Grounds for dismissal at the initiative of the employer

The management of the enterprise may hide the true reason for the layoff and termination of the employment agreement. This is done in order to save on payments. Therefore, any proposal or pressure from the director or boss is recommended to the employee to check for truth. This is not always easy to do.

As grounds for dismissal at the initiative of the employer the following reasons are used:

• personnel, the previously provided staff is reduced;
• The employee does not meet the requirements for his position, and this is confirmed by certification;
• The persons controlling the enterprise have changed (director, chief accountant);
• Disciplinary sanctions repeatedly applied to an employee;
• A one-time, but gross violation of discipline on the part of the dismissed person.

Liquidation of an enterprise provides legal grounds for the dismissal of all personnel, including persons on sick leave or on parental leave, etc.

This is not an exhaustive list of reasons why an employer may voluntarily fire an employee. Separate reasons are provided for management personnel. For example, the management of an enterprise may resign due to making an unreasonable decision, which caused damage to the organization's property. In addition, if an employee who services banknotes committed a violation, due to which he lost confidence in himself on the part of management, this is grounds for his dismissal.

Legal rights of an employee: what you need to know?

In the case of a layoff at work, the employee has some temporary cushion that allows him to find a new job. Below is what you need to know and demand from management:

1. Notice of dismissal due to reduction must be given 2 months in advance.
2. At the time of dismissal, a full payment is made and a work book is issued.
3. If an employee was unable to find a job within 3 months after dismissal, the company pays him the average salary for this period.

Thus, if the legal rights of the person dismissed due to redundancy are respected, he has 5 months to find another job. Another thing is that The company's management is trying to save on wages such persons, therefore, may violate the dismissal procedure, force the employee to write a statement of his own free will, conduct his certification, or part with him under the article. In such cases, it is the employee who is required to respond promptly and act competently.

The procedure for job reduction according to the Labor Code of the Russian Federation

Since the initiative comes from the management of the organization, it is the director and accountant who are obliged to meet all deadlines. The procedure for abolishing a position according to the Labor Code of the Russian Federation begins 2 months before dismissal. At this moment, an order is issued to reduce the number of employees. The document states the following:

• Positions being reduced;
• The number of employees expected to be laid off.

Following this, the following order is issued, which approves the new staffing table. With him notification is being prepared, by which interested parties are informed of management’s intention to terminate their employment contract due to layoffs. Requirements to :

1. It contains a list of employees who are subject to redundancy.
2. Each employee to whom it concerns must familiarize themselves with it against signature.

The peculiarity of the dismissal procedure due to reduction is that it is the employer’s responsibility to offer the dismissed persons another vacant position, including one that is lower.

The very fact of contacting an employee with such a proposal must be documented. The employee is informed by signature of the availability of vacant positions. in state. His consent or refusal is also documented in the notification.

Simultaneously with the orders, a message to the employment service is prepared. She is also informed 2 months before the dismissal of workers from the enterprise. A formalized notification is prepared and sent, the form of which can be taken from Resolution No. 99 of February 5, 1993 (Appendix No. 2).

A special feature of mass dismissals from an enterprise is that the deadline for issuing orders and notifications is shifted by a month. The procedure begins not two months before layoffs at work, but three.

On the day of dismissal, the employer is obliged:

1. Issue an order to terminate the employment agreement (Form T-8).
2. Make an appropriate entry in the work book.
3. Complete and issue all required documents and pay the employee in full for payments.

An entry is made in the work book that the employee was dismissed due to staff reduction at the enterprise. The article of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation is also indicated (clause 2, part 1, article 81).

Correct actions of an employee when leaving under the article

In this case, we are talking about the above norm. If the employer behaves in good faith, the correct actions of the employee when leaving under the article are as follows:

1. Avoid violations of labor discipline.
2. Active search for a new job.
3. Considering the opportunity to take a lower position in this company.

Management can accommodate by reducing the workload on the laid-off staff, giving them time to actively search for a place to find a job. It is recommended to take advantage of this by conscientiously spending time on interviews at various commercial and government organizations.

Required payments and deadlines

• Salary for hours worked;
• Compensation for vacation that the employee did not use;
• Severance pay for 1 month.

All this is paid on the day of dismissal. But an employee can also claim two or three months’ severance pay, which is not subject to personal income tax and does not include insurance premiums. It is provided:

• For the second month - according to the application of the dismissed person and his work book;
• For the third month - based on a certificate from the employment service.

In the latter case, the following condition must be met - the employee must register with this service within 2 weeks after dismissal.

What to do and how to behave if they want to fire you?

The first thing to do is understand the reasons for the dismissal. How to behave in the future depends on this. Further it is necessary to clarify whether the employee is included in the list of those employees who cannot be laid off or they have the right of first refusal. The first category includes persons on sick leave, on leave (including child care), as well as members of a trade union, company representative, etc. If they want to fire these persons due to a reduction in work, then such actions are illegal and a complaint should be filed.

• Two or more dependents or they are the only breadwinners in the family;
• Disability has been registered;
• Injured by an employer;
• Qualifications are increased as directed by the management of the enterprise and at its expense.

If an employer intends to act in bad faith, employees should expect trouble. You can avoid problems if you follow some advice. First, before dismissal you will have to strictly adhere to the daily routine of the enterprise and other conditions specified in the contract.

Second - it is necessary to obtain a copy of the order to reduce staff as quickly as possible, demand notice of impending dismissal. After the order was issued and the employee’s name was entered into the lists, he signed that he was subject to layoffs, the main thing was not to give a reason to dismiss him under another article.

Third, it is recommended to consult a lawyer regarding your rights. The specialist will describe the most effective algorithms for action in the event of unlawful actions by the employer. This step will help prevent wrongful dismissal.

Can they be laid off without registration?

There are two options here - the employee was not initially registered or he was officially hired, but they want to terminate his employment contract and lay him off without registration. In the first case, the employee is not officially protected; he can simply not be allowed into the enterprise and not be paid for the work done. Proving employment is difficult.

In the second case, as indicated above, the management of the enterprise resorts to tricks in order to save money. For example, instead of filing a dismissal due to layoffs at work, it is proposed to write a statement and stage the process as if the employment contract was being terminated. In this case, the actions of the company's management are illegal.

We decide whether it is more profitable by agreement of the parties

To understand how much more profitable or not it is to quit by agreement of the parties, you need to consider the following:

1. The employee must be paid a salary for time worked and unused vacation.
2. He is entitled to severance pay if provided for in the employment agreement or if there is a corresponding clause in the collective agreement.

The paid time to search for a job is reduced from at least 5 to 3 months, since the dismissal occurs immediately, and not after 2 (and in the case of a mass dismissal, 3) months. If nothing is specified in the contract about severance pay, the employee will not receive it. The decision is not in favor of the parties' agreement.

The procedure for challenging management decisions

Any unlawful actions of superiors should be responded to with written complaints and statements. They can be submitted to both management and regulatory authorities - to the labor inspectorate and prosecutor's office. The further procedure for challenging is drawing up and filing a claim in court. This must be done within a month after dismissal.

02.04.18 100 360 8

Step-by-step instructions for leaving work

I have been doing nothing for three months now and getting paid for it. For some it is a dream, for me it is a necessary necessity.

Albina Khasanshina

got laid off

In September 2017, 20 of my colleagues and I received written notices of upcoming staff reductions. I heard that when a layoff is made, compensation is due, but at that time I didn’t know what kind.

I was not too lazy to figure it out, so for another three months after the layoff at work I was paid full salary, and after that - unemployment benefits.

Everything is according to the law

The events of this article are based on legal reduction. This doesn't always happen.

Sometimes employers use layoffs to fire employees without objective reasons. At the same time, they eliminate one position and come up with another - formally new, but with the same responsibilities. After that, they simply hire the employee they like best. For example, pregnant women, women on maternity leave or single mothers are often fired because they do not want to pay them maternity leave or hire temporary employees in their place. This is illegal, and if the case goes to court, the court usually sides with the employee.

When an employee is legally laid off, things also happen differently. If an employee received part of his earnings in an envelope, then after the reduction the payments will be less than his salary. And if he was not registered as a staff member, then when he is laid off, they will simply say goodbye to him and will not pay him anything.

All these are topics for separate articles. In my case, the salary was whiter than snow, and the department was actually cut. If this is not the case for you, then you will have to act differently.

How does a layoff differ from a layoff?

Retrenchment is the process by which an employee is fired and his position is eliminated. If, during a regular dismissal, another specialist is hired to replace an employee, then this will not work when the staff is reduced.

My company closed an entire department and warned them about it two months before laying off workers. A week before the layoff, eight colleagues were asked to transfer to a new department. Some employees are given preferential right to remain at work, while others cannot be fired at all, even if the workforce is reduced. I wasn't one of them. Until November 20, I worked as usual and was preparing to be laid off due to layoffs.

Features of dismissal due to reduction

There are also some special cases when it is impossible to lay off workers.

Workers on sick leave. You cannot lay off a person whose sick leave is not covered.

Dismissal of an employee due to staff reduction refers to dismissal at the initiative of the employer. It is prohibited to dismiss an employee during a period of temporary disability at the initiative of the employer, except in cases where the organization is liquidated.

Workers on vacation. The same situation arises when a person is on vacation. An employer does not have the right to dismiss employees on its own initiative during the vacation period.

Pensioners. The law does not establish a special procedure for the reduction of pensioners. Therefore, the dismissal of a pensioner who has been laid off is formalized according to the standard procedure: they issue a layoff order, check whether there are any prohibitions on dismissal or a preemptive right to remain on staff, notify the employee, the employment center and the trade union about the layoff, and offer suitable vacancies before dismissal.

There is an important feature regarding pre-retirees - people who have less than five years left until retirement. If you carry out reductions in order to get rid of them, you will face criminal liability: a fine or compulsory labor.

Large families or single mothers. There is no direct ban on dismissal of a mother of many children or a single mother, but it is necessary to check whether the mother of many children has children under three years of age. And a single mother has children under 14 years of age or a disabled child under 18 years of age. In these cases, the employee cannot be laid off.

If the children are older, such employees have the right of priority to remain at work. For example, when a position is reduced, but such a position is not the only one in the department. If a mother with many children or a single mother has the same labor productivity and qualifications as other workers and at the same time has two or more dependent children, she should be left alone.

Part-timers. There is no special procedure for dismissing a part-time employee. A person can combine positions in one organization or in different ones - this does not give him additional rights upon dismissal, but it also does not mean that one of his positions must be eliminated in the first place.

Bypass sheet

A bypass sheet is a document that confirms that the company has no claims against the dismissed employee. When I applied for a job, the warehouse provided furniture and work clothes, the office provided a computer, and the system administrator created an account. In order to protect itself from unnecessary expenses and disclosure of trade secrets, the employer stipulates in the employment contract that the employee himself is responsible for the condition of the property and the consequences of the dissemination of information.

The office and warehouse employees checked that I had not damaged the property, the IT department deleted the account, and the pass office took away my ID. Each employee put a mark of receipt and signature on the bypass sheet. Then I took my work book.

On the day of dismissal, the HR department makes an entry in the work book about the reason for termination of the employment contract. In my case it was “reduction of the organization’s workforce.” Under the personnel officer’s note, I signed that I had read the order and agreed with the changes made to the work book.

Final settlement

On the day of dismissal, employees are paid wages for days worked in the current month, compensation for unused vacation and severance pay in the amount of average monthly earnings. Money is credited to the card in one amount.

To figure out how much I was paid and for what, I turned to the accounting department. I was given a payslip.

What was on the payslip

Salary

RUB 50,731

Severance pay

RUB 62,475

Compensation for 16 days of vacation

RUB 23,942

Severe climate surcharge

3922 R

RUB 141,070

Along with the payslip, I immediately asked for three certificates.

Certificate 2-NDFL for the current year to receive a tax deduction for education, treatment or apartment. A new employer also needs this certificate to see if a person has the right to standard deductions, for example, for children.

Certificate of salary for the last three months. You will need it when calculating benefits at the employment center.

After accounting, I went to the local employment center.

Employment Center

The employment center is a place where laid-off employees are helped to find work and not die of hunger during the search. It looks like this: after your dismissal, you register with the center, come once every two weeks, receive a list of vacancies, select one or two from it and go for an interview. And so on until you find a new job.

As long as you do not miss visits and are looking for work in good faith, the employment center will ensure that you receive compensation. If you are laid off, your former employer pays them for the first three months in the form of an average salary. After this, the state pays unemployment benefits.

The employer issues the first compensation upon settlement, the second - two months later, the third - another month later. You will receive the second and third compensation only if you have not yet found a job: formally, this means that there is no entry in the work book.

To receive compensation for the third month, you need to register with the employment center within two weeks after the layoff. If you come after 14 days, the service will register the application, but according to the labor code, the employer will not be able to pay compensation for the third month. In addition, to receive the last part of the compensation, the employer must bring a certificate from the employment center about the decision to keep it for you.

Earnings for the third month is an exceptional payment; the employer needs ironclad reasons for it. It is paid if the employee is the only breadwinner in the family or, for example, supports elderly parents.

Your inspector will help you at the employment center. When you come for the first time, he checks your documents, creates a dossier and offers the first vacancies.

To register with the employment center, take with you your passport, insurance certificate, Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) and diploma. If you don’t have a diploma, any education document will do. Also, take your work book, a certificate from your previous place of work about your average earnings for the last three months, and a card to which compensation will be transferred - you will be asked for its details.

Within 10 days after registering at the center, you will be assigned unemployed status. From now on, in addition to help in finding a job, you can get advice on organizing your own business, participate in paid public works, ask for financial assistance, apply for an early pension and undergo vocational training. All this is at the expense of the state.

If you start receiving any money other than unemployment benefits or compensation from your former employer, the employment center stops all payments and removes you from the register. This can be not only a new job, but also your own business, work under a civil contract, study with a scholarship, pension and even community service.

Payments will also stop if you miss your appointment without a good reason. A valid reason is considered to be the illness or death of relatives. To prevent the employment center from deregistering you, call your inspector immediately after the doctor, and on your next visit, bring him a sick leave certificate or a copy of the death certificate.

If you receive money for freelancing, payments will stop

The Job Center is your friend in need. If you are no longer in trouble, there will always be someone who needs money more. If you try to deceive the center and do not say that you have started working, it will find out about this upon request to the Federal Tax Service and the pension fund, and the entire amount of benefits will have to be returned.

I registered with the employment center the day after I was fired. On the same day, the center began to find me a job.

Vacancies

Everyone who is registered with the employment center is selected a job based on the level of professional training, conditions of the last place of work, health status and transport accessibility. The center’s specialists also try to take into account the average salary at the last place of work, if it was above the subsistence level. A certificate from the accounting department with income for the last three months will be useful here. If there are no suitable vacancies, or if you are looking for a job for the first time or after a year-long break, the specialist will offer any paid option.

Each visit, the inspector printed out a new list of vacancies for me. The journalist or correspondent I worked for previously was not needed anywhere, and other vacancies didn’t appeal either. But I still had to choose some vacancies and go to interviews. As they explained to me at the employment center, if the dossier is empty, they will not issue me a certificate and I will not receive the third average monthly salary from my former employer. I was advised to go to interviews at least once every month and a half.

I checked the box next to the selected offer and signed, after which I was given a referral for an interview.

Interviews

Within three days after receiving the referral, you must undergo an interview with a potential employer. The direction contains the name and address of the company, as well as the telephone number and position of the employee with whom you will communicate. Based on the results of the interview, the company employee writes down his decision directly from the employment center. If it is negative, he explains the reason there.

If the interview was successful, but you did not like the working conditions, then you also write the reason for the refusal in the direction. This could be, for example, low salary, inconvenient schedule or high workload. However, it is better not to abuse this: after two such refusals, the employment center will not issue a certificate or will stop unemployment payments for three months.

The only situation where you can refuse a job and it will not affect your record is if your previous job made more than the living wage, and your new job pays less than that.

I was offered work in a telecommunications company, in a bank and in the MFC. But I don’t know how to sell, I haven’t worked in government agencies and have no experience in the proposed vacancies. I brought the directions with the reason for the refusal on the part of the employer, the date, signature and seal to the appointed visit to the employment center and handed them over for the dossier.

In parallel with visiting the employment center and checking out its vacancies, I looked for a job on my own - on Headhunter and in special channels on Telegram. I understood that the employment center would not find a job equivalent to the previous one, because there were no vacancies in my profession, and for the rest I did not have enough experience.

I recorded every response, phone call, letter and interview in a special sign - an individual plan for an independent job search.

Independent job search

An individual plan for an independent job search is a document that shows that a person is interested in finding a job as quickly as possible and is actively searching. The plan assumes that the unemployed will attend other interviews in addition to the vacancies offered by the employment center.

It is not necessary to look for a job on your own, but employment center inspectors strongly recommend that anyone who wants to receive a third of the redundancy payment from their former employer do so.

The fact is that the certificate is issued by employment center lawyers based on the dossier. From the dossier, the lawyer should be left with the impression that you were actually looking for a job, and did not check in at the employment center for show. There are no formal criteria in the law for which a lawyer must issue you this certificate, so the decision remains at his discretion.

You can achieve a lawyer’s favor without searching for a job yourself, only through referrals from the employment center. But if the offered vacancies do not suit you, and employers want to hire you, you will have to refuse them yourself. Because of this, the lawyer may decide that you do not need the job and not issue a certificate.

Therefore, it is safer to look for a job yourself and write down the results in an individual plan, and follow directions from the employment center to go only to those interviews that you are really interested in or where the employer is most likely to refuse you.

An individual plan is issued at the employment center. This is a table in which you need to record the date, stages of completion and the result of the interview.

Independent job search does not replace scheduled visits to the employment center. If you miss a visit, even three completed individual plan sheets will not help and the unemployed person will be removed from the register.

Total: compensation from the employer

I did everything on time, so in three months I received 188,000 rubles from my employer.

My former employer paid me my first compensation in advance upon my dismissal. Two months later, I came to the accounting department for the second allowance. I took my work book with me, in which the accountant checked that there were no entries about the new place of work.

Another month later, before the last payment, I needed to receive a certificate from the employment center. To do this, I brought to the center a completed individual plan for an independent job search.

RUB 188,000

for three months I received from my former employer as compensation

The specialist needed three referrals from the center and four interviews from an independent search. I was referred to a lawyer, who also checked whether I attended the employment center on time and whether I had income on the side. They gave me a certificate and I went to the accounting department to receive my final compensation.

My employer was responsible and did everything according to the law. You can't blame the company for having to cut staff. Sometimes this helps to maintain solvency in front of other employees: pregnant women, sole breadwinners, those with many children. But there are companies that do not pay compensation in full and on time in the hope that employees do not know about the payments and will not demand anything. Or there is such a mess in the company that there is no time for compensation. In this case, you should not wait, but demand your due: first politely, then in court.

I know of a case where an employee was laid off and compensation was paid only for a month. He didn't know what was due for two more. And he wouldn’t have known if his wife hadn’t figured it all out herself. Then they wrote a polite letter to their former employer, but were already mentally preparing for the trial. The letter was drafted without a lawyer - they wrote it in their own words. This helped almost instantly: the former employer immediately requested the details and paid all the money a week later. They only asked for a certificate from the employment center.

What does an employer face if they fail to comply with the law?

If the employer does not cooperate, you can demand payment, penalties and moral damages through the court. It's practically a win-win situation. Unlawful dismissal can also be appealed in court.

You can file a claim with the district court at the employer’s address, your place of residence, or at the place where you actually worked. An employee may, within a month from the date of delivery of a copy of the dismissal order, the day the work book was issued, or the day on which he refused to receive the dismissal order or work book, file a claim for reinstatement at work and recovery of average earnings for the period of forced absence.

As a result, the court will oblige the employer to reinstate the employee, dismissed in violation of the dismissal procedure due to staff reduction or headcount reduction, at his previous job and recover in favor of the employee the average earnings for the period of forced absence. If the employee does not want to be reinstated, the court will oblige the employer to pay money for forced absence and change the grounds for dismissal to dismissal at his own request.

Repeated violation will cost more:

1. manager - 10,000-20,000 R or disqualification for a period of one to three years;
2. IP - 10,000-20,000 RUR;
3. legal entity - 50,000-70,000 RUR

Repeated violation is also more expensive:

1. manager - 20,000-30,000 R or disqualification for a period of one to three years;
2. IP - 10,000-30,000 RUR;
3. legal entity - 50,000-100,000 RUR.

Unemployment benefit

When compensation from the former employer ends, the employment center begins to pay unemployment benefits. Payments are due to everyone who is registered and worked for at least 26 weeks before dismissal.

The Law “On Employment in the Russian Federation” states how unemployment benefits are calculated. Payments depend on the average salary for the last three months at the previous place of work. For example, the first three months after receiving the last compensation from the employer, the benefit amount is 75% of the previous salary, then another 4 months - 60%, and then - 45%.

But the law contains a clause that payments cannot exceed the maximum amount of unemployment benefits in Russia. In 2018 it is 4900 rubles.

4900 R

the amount of unemployment benefits in Russia. There are also regional bonuses, but not everywhere

In some regions, the benefit is slightly more than the maximum amount, because it is also multiplied by the regional coefficient. It depends on the climatic conditions in which a person lives and works. The more severe the weather, the higher the surcharge. For example, in Moscow and St. Petersburg there is no coefficient, but in the polar regions of Yakutia or Chukotka it is equal to two. I live in Yekaterinburg, here the coefficient is 1.15. Therefore, my unemployment benefit is 5,636 rubles per month.

Payments of unemployment benefits have not yet begun, but knowing their size, I understand that it will be difficult to live on them. I haven’t found a job yet, but I decided to deregister from the employment center and try myself as an individual entrepreneur.

What to do when downsizing

1. Make sure the company has no complaints against you. Hand over everything that is written on you and agree with the responsible persons. This will save you from going to court with your employer.
2. Obtain the necessary certificates immediately after dismissal. It’s better to keep them at home than to ask the accounting department every time.
3. Within 14 days after dismissal, register with the employment center. This way you can claim compensation from your former employer for the second and third months.
4. Strictly follow the rules of the employment center. The first rule is not to talk about the employment center. Sorry. Of course, the first rule is to show up on the appointed days, go to interviews, look for work on your own and keep the employment center up to date.

Among other methods of terminating an employment contract, dismissal due to reduction stands out. The fact is that among other types of dismissal provided for by the Labor Code (Labor Code of the Russian Federation), this is the most labor-intensive, but at the same time, perhaps, the most guaranteeing compliance with the rights of the employee.

Tom, what an employee and employer need to know when reducing staff, I dedicated this article.

The dismissal of an employee due to staff reduction is included in Article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, which considers all cases when an employment contract is terminated by the employer.

○ Dismissal due to staff reduction.

✔ Labor Code on dismissal due to staff reduction.

Article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation combines both cases of dismissal for absenteeism, violation of discipline or labor protection measures, and cases when an employee quits, although he is not guilty of anything (these include, in addition to layoffs, liquidation of an organization, for managers and their deputies and chief accountants - change of owner of the organization).

The Labor Code of the Russian Federation does not decipher the difference between staff reduction and staff reduction. In practice, the difference is also insignificant and consists only in the fact that when the number of employees is reduced, the position in the staffing table is retained, but there will be fewer workers in it (for example, instead of three managers, there will be only one left in the department).

When staffing is reduced, a specific position is completely excluded from the schedule (for example, the position of a personnel officer is abolished at an enterprise, and his duties are transferred to an accountant).

✔ Who can and cannot be laid off?

Despite the fact that the reduction in the number or staff of employees depends entirely on the initiative of the enterprise management, the law provides for certain benefits for a number of categories of employees.

I'll tell you more about them below. For now, I will say that when reducing there is a rule about preferential retention at work. Art. 179 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation provides that during layoffs, workers with less qualifications and lower labor productivity should be dismissed first.

In practice this usually means that workers with less work experience are laid off first, since seniority usually implies experience.

When making reductions, the results of qualifying exams, the employee’s education should be taken into account (in the same position, an employee with a higher education will have an advantage over a colleague with a secondary specialized education), as well as the indicators achieved by each of the employees over the previous period.

The Labor Code of the Russian Federation and other acts also require that the following employees have priority when remaining at work:

• Having disabled children.
• Single mothers and fathers.
• The only breadwinners.
• Suffering from injury or occupational disease received at this enterprise.
• Disabled war veterans.
• Heroes of the USSR and the Russian Federation, holders of the Order of Glory.
• Victims of the Chernobyl disaster and the Semipalatinsk tests.
• Improving qualifications in the direction of the organization, combining training with work.
• Employee inventors (oddly enough, the USSR Law “On Inventions in the USSR” in this part is still in force).

In addition, some employees cannot be dismissed by the employer at all except at their own request, by agreement, or for committing an offense.

In relation to layoffs, in addition to regular beneficiaries, members of trade union leadership at least below the shop level cannot be dismissed.

It is prohibited to dismiss elected representatives of a collective of employees who participate in resolving disputes with the employer.

✔ The main reasons for the reduction.

The law does not directly establish in what cases an employer has the right to reduce the number or staff of employees.

The Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, in its ruling No. 867-О-О dated December 18, 2007, established that this is the right of the employer in cases where economic necessity requires it.

However, in turn, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, by ruling No. 19-B07-34 dated December 3, 2007, introduced the rule that in the event of a dispute, the court has the right to verify the need and validity of the reduction.

Thus, an employer who wishes to take such measures must order about the reduction, indicate the exact reasons for the dismissal.

As a rule, the reasons forcing workers to be laid off are:

• Low profit of the enterprise and the inability to pay salaries to the previous staff.
• Low efficiency of the previous staff and the presence of positions that are not needed.
• Changes in technology or production organization, in which some workers are unclaimed.

✔ The necessary conditions.

Dismissals of employees due to reduction are possible provided that the employer complies with a number of conditions

1. Full and strict compliance with the reduction procedure provided for by law.
   If the enterprise previously concluded collective agreements with employees, or the employment contracts of those being dismissed contain additional guarantees upon dismissal, these must also be observed.
2. Justification for dismissal.
   As already mentioned, in the event of a dispute, the court has the right to check whether the dismissal was justified economically and organizationally.
3. Employment service notification.
   This point is worth highlighting separately, since some employers manage to completely forget about this requirement, as a result of which they are then forced to pay fines and pay employees for forced absenteeism.

✔ Procedure, procedure and rules for dismissal due to reduction.

Reduction of staff for any enterprise is a rather complicated procedure, and violation at any of its stages is fraught with a fine or legal proceedings for the employer.

Dismissal must be done in the following order:

1. The management of the enterprise issues an order on the planned reduction at least two months before the employee is to be dismissed (Article 180 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Each of the employees subject to dismissal is personally warned that a reduction is expected and, upon signature, reads the text of the order. However, an order to reduce staff should not be confused with an order to dismiss a specific employee - such orders are issued much later, when the deadline for dismissal approaches.
2. For employees who are subject to layoffs, the management of the enterprise is obliged to offer any other position that meets the qualifications of the dismissed employee. It should be remembered that offering another job is not a one-time action: the employer is obliged to notify those being dismissed about vacancies opening at the enterprise right up to the termination of the employment contract. The employee is obliged to either accept the offer and continue working in another position, or refuse - and the refusal must also be recorded in writing, dated and signed by the employee.
3. The employer notifies the trade union organization, if one exists at the enterprise. The notice period is the same as for employees, but if a mass layoff is planned, the union should be notified not two, but three months in advance. This rule was established by the ruling of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation. In turn, the trade union must express its opinion on the dismissal within seven days. If the trade union does not agree to layoff workers, then by law positions must be agreed upon within three days. If, in this case, no agreement was reached, the employer has the right to dismiss workers, but the trade union can appeal this decision to the Federal Labor Inspectorate (Rostrudinspektsiya). The inspectorate, in turn, may recognize the dismissal as illegal and demand that the dismissed person be reinstated at his previous place of work with payment. compensation and for forced absenteeism. The decision of the Rostrudinspektsiya can be appealed by the employer in court.
4. In addition to the trade union, the employer also warns the employment service within the same period of time (two, in case of mass layoffs - three months).
5. If within two months the employee does not agree to any of the vacancies offered to him, the employer issues a dismissal order due to staff reduction. The order is usually issued on the unified T-8 form. In this case, the employee is issued a work book, is paid a salary for the days worked in the last month of work and compensation for unused vacation days (depending on the time worked since the last vacation). The most important thing is for the employee, in accordance with Art. 178 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, severance pay is paid. Its amount is not less than the average monthly salary, but according to an employment contract or collective agreement with employees, the benefit can be increased.
6. If an employee is registered with the labor exchange after dismissal, but is not employed, the former enterprise continues to pay him the average monthly salary for two months (but with the deduction of the severance pay already received).
7. If the employee agrees, he can resign due to reduction before the expiration of the two-month period. In this case, the employer pays him, in addition to severance pay, also a salary for the time not worked between the day he actually quit and the day he was supposed to quit according to the employer’s plan. In addition, the employment contract or collective agreement may provide for other payments in case of staff reduction.

1. Order on planned dismissal due to reduction - at least two months in advance;
2. Warning to the employment service and trade union organization (if there is one at the enterprise) - no less than two months, in case of mass layoffs - no less than three.
3. The deadline for paying wages for the part of the month worked, compensation for unused vacation and severance pay is no later than the day of dismissal.
4. The payment period for the average salary for an employee registered with the employment service but not employed is up to two months.

Violation of these deadlines can lead to a fine for individual entrepreneurs - up to 50 minimum wages, for legal entities - up to 500 minimum wages.

What an employer should do in the event of a layoff is written in detail in Art. 81-82 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. You must notify employees of the upcoming layoff no later than 2 months before the date of dismissal. In some cases, the notification period can be up to 3 months. Moreover, employees must be notified in writing and against signature. In addition, you must submit information about the upcoming layoff to the employment service and the representative body of workers (trade union), if it has been created and operates at your enterprise

In the event that the basis for staff reduction is the abolition of positions or vacancies, draw up and approve a new staffing table. These measures will allow you to legally formalize the layoff and protect yourself in case employees try to challenge it in court.

As for the employee, you can challenge the employer’s decision in case of violation of the above points of the regulations or in case of failure to pay the required salary for two months. If you do not find a job during this period, your former company will be obliged to pay you a salary for the third month of forced idleness.

Cash payments and due compensation must be accrued and issued to you on the last day of work. In the event that you were no longer working that day, the money, according to Art. 140 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, you are required to pay in full the next day after applying for them. The total amount includes: salary for the last month of work, compensation for unused basic and additional leave, severance pay in the amount of average monthly earnings. The average earnings are retained by you for a period of no more than two months from the date of dismissal for the period while you are looking for work.

On your last working day at this enterprise, you should also receive a work book in which your dismissal will be recorded, and all your other work-related documents. After receiving the calculation, apply for further compensation payments only to the territorial employment service.

In this case, the dismissal of an employee occurs at the initiative of the employer and occurs as a result of a reduction in staffing positions or positions at the enterprise and is regulated by Article 81 of the Labor Code. Let's look at the step-by-step procedure, the compensation due to the employee and some of the nuances that may arise. We will also determine which categories of citizens fall under this formulation and which do not.

General concepts

Downsizing is a fairly legal tool that an employer resorts to when wanting to “optimize” its workforce. But in turn, this can cause a number of problems and additional financial burden for the employer, so they often resort to the trick - “you were laid off, write a statement on your own - this wording is better.” It all depends, among other things, on the initiator of the process.

Of course, all actions during such dismissal must be observed in accordance with the law and deviations from it can cause problems for the organization. Therefore, it is in the employer’s interests to do everything correctly so that the employee does not go to court.

The employee has a preemptive right not to be laid off

It is worth noting an important point that when forming a list of employees, certain categories have an advantage:

• During the period when the employee is on vacation
• In case of temporary disability
• It is prohibited to dismiss the following employees: pregnant women and women who have a small child under 3 years of age
• A single mother who is raising a child under 18 years of age who is disabled or a minor under 14 years of age
• An employee with higher performance indicators and qualifications should be retained.
• If the choice fell on employees who are in equal positions, then priority is given to family employees who have 2 or more dependents; in whose family there are no other persons with independent income; received an occupational disease or work injury from the employer; participants in hostilities or WWII; workers who improved their skills without interruption from production.

Attention! If such requirements are not met, the employee may contact the labor inspectorate. After compiling the list, the employer must perform the following actions, which we will describe step by step.

Dismissal due to staff reduction step by step instructions

Step 1. Issuing an order to carry out reductions

For the legality of actions it is necessary to issue an order. For understanding, we note that the dismissal order and the order to reduce staff are different documents. The form of the order to carry out staff reduction measures does not have an approved form, however, its preparation requires a responsible approach. It must reflect the date of reduction and reflect changes made to the staffing table. A new approved staffing table will also be required.

Step 2. Notifying employees, offering other vacancies

According to the rules of the Labor Code, the employer is obliged to notify the employee 2 months before the reduction of staff, number of personnel, or in the event of liquidation (bankruptcy) of the company. Based on the decision made, a new staffing table and an order are issued, which is communicated against signature to each employee who has been laid off.

In the event of reorganization or reduction, but not liquidation, the employer’s responsibility is to offer employees who have been laid off all vacant positions corresponding to their experience and qualifications (clause 3 of Article 81 of the Labor Code). But in practice, the organization simply “forgets” about this, and employees simply do not know about it.

Important! The employer must, as vacancies arise at the enterprise, offer them to those being laid off until the appointed day of dismissal.

Upon receipt of a notification regarding the proposed vacancies, the employee has the right to accept such a place or not. In the first case, the employee is transferred, and in the second, the employee is fired.

Important! If the employer did not offer employees other vacancies, then such a reduction may be recognized as illegal.

Step 3. Notification of the trade union organization and employment authorities

If there is a trade union organization, it must also be notified of the reduction taking place. The issue of timing was controversial for some time, but according to definition No. 201-O-P, which was issued on January 15, 2008, the timing was determined - to notify 2 months before the date of layoffs, in the case of mass actions - 3 months.

The opinion of the trade union organization must be sent to the employer within 7 days, otherwise it will not be taken into account. If the trade union does not agree on the fact of dismissal, consultations must be held within 3 days, and they should be recorded. If consent to these actions and agreements was not reached within 10 working days, the employer has the right to make a final decision on the reduction.

By the same principle, it is necessary to notify the employment service. Notifications were approved by government decree as amended No. 1469 dated December 24, 2014 - in case of layoffs at the enterprise, 2 months in advance (download the notification form, according to Appendix No. 1) or in case of mass layoffs, then 3 months in advance (download the form, according to Appendix No. 2).

Step 4. Order of dismissal

To finally initiate dismissal, it is necessary to issue an order in the T-8 form. In this case, in the “grounds” column, you should indicate the reason for dismissal - due to staff reduction. After this, the order must be signed by the director and also, after review, signed by the employee.

Step 5. Entry in the work book

Next, you should enter the appropriate wording into the work book, in which you should display the reason - reduction, referring to the article of the Labor Code. For example, “The employment contract was terminated due to a reduction in the organization’s workforce, clause 2, part 1, art. 81 Labor Code of the Russian Federation."

Step 6. Entry in the work record book and employee card

Simultaneously with the issuance of a work book to an employee, you should obtain a signature from him in the journal for issuing work books. And then you need to enter data into the employee’s personal card - the date of dismissal and the reason.

Step 7. Dismissal due to staff reduction and payment of benefits

Let's look at what benefits and payments are due to an employee. It is the fulfillment of obligations under this clause that pushes the employer to negotiate with the employee, and sometimes even intimidate him, into writing a statement of his own free will. Payments are regulated by Art. 178 TK.

Upon dismissal due to staff reduction, the employee is entitled to severance pay, which is the amount of one average monthly salary, and the average monthly salary is also retained for the period of his employment, not exceeding 2 months. Upon dismissal, the employee is given a certificate of his average monthly earnings (including the amount of severance pay). If the employee is not employed within 2 months, the organization is obliged to pay the employee for another 2 months.

To receive these compensations, the employee must register with the employment service. In exceptional cases, by decision of the service, the employee may be paid for the third month. To receive the payment, the employee must provide the employer with his or her work record book, which contains no employment records, including an application. Payments are made after 2 months from the date of dismissal.

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In addition, the employee is due standard payments - compensation for unused vacation (if any) and along with it a calculation for days worked.

There is also early dismissal of an employee if he signs a written consent. In this case, he is paid ahead of schedule all payments due, including for the period before the end of the work period.

After signing the documents, the employee must be paid on the last day of his work.

Appealing actions by an employee in court

In case of unlawful actions, the employee has the right to sue and appeal the decision. To do this, within a month from the date of receipt of a copy of the dismissal order (or receipt of the work report, or from the date of refusal to receive the order or work report under Article 392, Part 1 of the Labor Code), it is necessary to submit an application to the district court to recognize such dismissal as illegal, as well as to impose a penalty from the employer during his absence the amount of average earnings.

By a court decision, the employee may be reinstated at his previous place of work and may also be able to recover an amount of compensation in his favor for the time he was absent. In particular, they can change the wording according to which the employee was dismissed to dismissal at his own request (Parts 3, 4 of Article 394 of the Labor Code), as well as award moral compensation.

You might also be interested

An article on the responsibility of employers in case of delay in payment of wages.
Dismissal by agreement of the parties, pros and cons.
Dismissal for absenteeism step by step instructions.
Dismissal at your own request.

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Employee rights upon redundancy

Recently, downsizing has become a fairly common procedure. This is due to the employer’s desire to make the enterprise more efficient. However, in this case, ordinary workers may suffer. Having poor knowledge of the law, not all of them know the rights of an employee during layoffs. Many are afraid that, taking advantage of this, the administration may violate the guarantees provided to the laid-off employee and not make all the necessary payments.

Everyone needs to know the rights of an employee during redundancy.

Employers, in turn, strive to fully respect the rights of those dismissed due to staff reduction, to complete all the formalities of dismissal of this type, so that the subsequent dismissal cannot be considered illegal. After all, this may entail additional financial losses for the employer, such as paying for forced absence.

Main steps

High-quality preparation for the reduction is also necessary to retain in the company the employees necessary for the smooth and effective operation of the organization. Mistakes, insufficient planning and downsizing can result in both serious financial losses and significant administrative and legal consequences.

What actions should a company take before announcing a planned workforce reduction? It depends on the internal situation at the enterprise:

• reasons why this decision was made (decrease in production volumes, liquidation or bankruptcy of the company, cost reduction, etc.)>
• what is the general financial situation in the company (is it possible to pay compensation, pay for retraining, provide employment for laid-off employees)>
• Is there a trade union organization in the company?

The role of the trade union committee

If there is a trade union at an enterprise, it, as a rule, strives to fully protect the rights of workers. Elected trade union bodies have certain rights:

• monitor compliance with the procedure for staff reduction measures>
• make proposals for changing the approach to reductions, optimizing the ongoing dismissal process, and so on.

What does the Labor Code say?

An employer has the right to dismiss an employee due to staff reduction only when:

• there is no possibility of its translation,
• with his consent,
• to another position (possibly with retraining).

The employer can offer the employee not only positions that correspond to his specialty and qualifications, but also other work that the employee can perform taking into account his existing education, health status and practical skills. If the employee agrees, the employer arranges his transfer to another position. If an employee refuses the work provided for another position or if the administration does not have the opportunity to provide another job, then dismissal occurs due to staff reduction under the Labor Code.

Employees not subject to dismissal

However, not every employee can be fired due to staff reduction. The workers themselves and the trade union organization must carefully ensure that employee rights are not violated during layoffs. Some employees cannot be dismissed on the following grounds:

• women with children under three years old>
• pregnant women>
• single mothers with children under 14 years of age (if the child is disabled, then up to 18 children)>
• a man who is on parental leave instead of his mother>
• a man raising children without a mother (in the event of her death, deprivation of parental rights, long-term stay in a medical hospital for more than 1 month, other reasons)>
• an employee who is a guardian of children of this age.

In addition, an employee on sick leave (temporary disability) is not subject to dismissal.

Who is left at work?

There is a fairly extensive list of categories of employees who have a preferential right to remain at work in case of staff reduction:

• workers with higher qualifications, labor productivity>
• family persons who have at least two dependent people>
• employees in whose families there are no other employees with independent income>
• disabled people>
• combat veterans.

Notice of dismissal

The employer must respect the rights of those dismissed due to redundancy

The employer is obliged to warn the employee in writing about his dismissal due to staff reduction at least 2 months before the planned date of dismissal. Before the expiration of this period, the administration cannot dismiss an employee without his consent, otherwise there will be a violation of the employee’s rights during staff reduction.

To restore his rights, an employee can go to court, which can change the date of dismissal. In addition, the employer will be forced to pay the employee the average salary for the entire period of forced absence (starting from the moment of dismissal and ending with the end date of the notice period).

In addition, the employee receives the right to a shortened working week upon notice of staff reduction. After receiving notice of the reduction of his position, the employee has the right to leave the workplace for 4 hours a week to look for work for the next two months remaining before the date appointed for dismissal.

Compensation in lieu of notice

In exchange for notice of dismissal upon layoff, the employee has the right to receive monetary compensation from the employer, which will be equal to two months' average earnings. The administration may offer such compensation during the entire two months for which the notice is issued. However, the amount of compensation will be calculated in proportion to the time remaining before the end of the notice period. In this case, the administration dismisses the employee without waiting for the end of the notice period, at the same time, in the work book in the column “grounds for dismissal” there will be an entry “dismissed due to staff reduction.”

Payment of compensation does not relieve the employer of the obligation to pay severance pay to the employee. The right to accept or not accept this offer remains with the employee.

Compensation and benefits in connection with layoffs

On the last working day, a full settlement must be made with the employee and all benefits and compensation due to him must be paid. If the employee did not have a working day, then all funds must be paid after the employee applies:

• salary per month worked>
• severance pay (equal to average monthly earnings, paid for two months)>
• if an employee has not used his vacation before the date of dismissal, he receives compensation for vacation days.

The right to leave upon dismissal due to staff reduction implies receiving regular or additional leave. But in this case, he will be deprived of the right to compensation, and the dismissal procedure will continue after he returns from vacation.

In addition, other payments or increases in severance pay are possible, which are provided for in the labor or collective agreement.

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If the layoff falls on vacation

Employee rights in case of staff reduction can be found in the Labor Code of the Russian Federation

According to the labor code, during vacation the employee is relieved from performing official duties, and therefore from the obligation to carry out any orders of the employer. An employee has the right to rest during vacation. He shouldn't be looking for a job. To do this, a notice period is provided, which is a measure aimed at minimizing the consequences of job loss.

Since the loss of a job caused by dismissal due to staff reduction is not due to the employee’s fault, it is fair to recognize the employee’s right to demand that vacation time not be included in the notice period for dismissal. Otherwise, the employee’s right to rest is violated.

There is no direct prohibition in the law from notifying an employee about the dismissal procedure during the vacation period. Therefore, the employer may try to take advantage of this, thereby harming the interests of the employee.

Since the vacancy situation may change significantly during the notice period, an employee who has been made redundant while on leave may be able to apply for new positions that have appeared. In addition, while an employee is on vacation, the company is forced to limit itself in hiring other employees, since the corresponding positions must first be offered to the dismissed employee, and there are insufficient grounds for recalling him from vacation.

Reduction at work: employee rights

September 5, 2016

Dismissal of employees due to staff reduction is a long and very responsible process for any employer. Because it involves notification of persons subject to layoff two months before the date of its implementation, as well as payment to them of all due funds, which must be issued on the last day of work. In addition, the employer must offer available vacancies to this category of subordinates, and also not allow the hiring of new people.

Preparing for downsizing

Before carrying out layoffs due to staff reductions, the employer must fulfill several conditions:

- change the existing staffing table or approve a new one, which would show the impossibility of expanding the staff beyond the positions assigned to it;

- notify subordinates about this 2 months in advance;

- offer workers other vacancies that are available in the organization;

— notify employment authorities within the period specified by law.

If a citizen already knows in advance that there is a layoff at work and that he is subject to it, then he can immediately discuss this issue with his manager. After all, you can receive all the necessary payments earlier than two months and quickly find a new vacant position, if, of course, you can’t stay in your current position.

Laying off due to redundancy is expensive

In reality, dismissal of employees due to staff reduction is not only a time-consuming, but also not a very cheap procedure. The boss needs to pay people not only wages and compensation for vacation that was not used, but also severance pay for two months. In addition, if a citizen, after being laid off, registers with the employment center no later than ten days from the date of his dismissal and is not employed, then in this case he will receive a cash benefit from the previous manager for the third month. That is why many employers try to make their subordinates subject to voluntary dismissal. Then you won’t have to pay them so much money.

If there is a layoff at work, but the boss still forced the unwanted employee to leave of his own free will, such dismissal can be appealed in court. Only for this you will need testimony and documentary evidence of this fact. Otherwise, it will be simply impossible for a subordinate to be reinstated at work and receive all the money due.

Notification

The manager warns the employee about the upcoming layoff 2 months in advance. The notification is drawn up in writing and handed to the person against signature. Otherwise, the employee will not be considered aware of the upcoming dismissal, which may subsequently cause his boss big troubles, even leading to litigation.

In a situation where there is a layoff at work, the employee’s rights should not be infringed by his boss. The latter is obliged to offer the former all available vacancies, which may be specified in the notification itself.

The redundancy notice looks like this:

00.00.00 _______________

Dear __________________ (employee’s full name)!

We notify you that due to staff reductions, the position you hold _____________ is subject to reduction __________ (the number taking into account two months from the specified date of notification).

We offer you a choice of available vacancies ______________ (name of vacancies). If you agree to work in another position, please inform the HR department of the organization (name) to the HR specialist in writing before the expiration of two months from the date of receipt of the notification.

Sincerely, Director of LLC ________________ (signature transcript).

From the moment the subordinate was notified of the upcoming reduction, a two-month period begins to expire, after which he is subject to dismissal with all payments due to him, unless, of course, he agrees to another proposed vacancy.

When dismissing a person on the basis of clause 2 of part 1 of Article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the manager must pay him in full and pay:

- Salary for the entire period of work.

— Compensation for vacation if it was not used. If the employee has already been on vacation, but the period has not been fully worked out, then in the event of a reduction, deductions from his salary are not made for this.

— Severance pay in the amount of two months’ earnings. If, after dismissal, the employee applied to the employment authorities, but was not employed, he retains this earnings for the 3rd month. In this case, you need to provide the former management with your work book or a certificate from the employment center that he is registered with them.

Full payment to the employee must be made on the last day of his work, otherwise this will be a violation of Article 140 of the Labor Code.

Right to keep your job

If there is a layoff at work, then only those persons with the highest labor productivity and qualifications have a priority right to retain their jobs.

In the case where all employees have the same productivity and high qualifications, preference should be given to the employee who:

- has two or more dependents for whom the salary of this person is the main source of subsistence;

- is the sole breadwinner of the family if none of its members has a job or other income;

- received an illness while working or another serious injury in this organization;

- is a disabled person during the Great Patriotic War or a disabled person who was injured during the defense of the Fatherland;

— improves his level of education in the direction of management without interruption from work.

Paperwork

After all the measures taken related to dismissal due to staff reduction, the moment comes when the employee must be given the work book and all the payments due. After this, he must sign the order confirming this fact.

When preparing an order, the organization’s personnel specialist must indicate in it the exact wording of the grounds for dismissal, indicating the paragraph, part and article of the Labor Code. After this, fill out the work book, put your signature on it and certify all this with the seal of the organization. The entry in the employment record should be as follows: “Dismissed due to staff reduction on the basis of clause 2 of part 1 of Article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.” Other formulations are not used because the citizen is fired from work due to layoffs and not for other reasons.

All documents related to the person’s work activities, as well as all funds due to him, must be issued to the employee on the day of dismissal.

Inadmissible moments

At a time when there is a layoff at work, it is unacceptable to accept new people into existing vacant positions. This would be a serious violation on the part of the manager, since he should offer these vacant positions only to persons who are at risk of dismissal on this basis. The level of education of workers does not matter in this case.

It is unacceptable, in the final financial calculation, to deduct from an employee’s salary for annual leave that has already been granted, if 12 months have not been fully worked out.

In a situation where there is a layoff at work, the employee’s rights cannot in any way be infringed upon by management. This primarily applies to timely payments, otherwise the dismissed person may seek protection from the judicial authorities.

The employer has the right to decide to reduce positions at his enterprise. What you need to know if you are laid off

Do they have the right to lay me off?

If an employer has decided to reduce staff at an enterprise, he must notify the employees who occupy the positions being reduced. This must be done at least 2 months before the expected reduction.
However, not all employees can be laid off. Cannot be shortened:

• employees who are on sick leave at the time of layoff. This is stated in paragraph 6 of Art. 81 Labor Code of the Russian Federation;
• workers who are on maternity leave (clause 4 of article 256 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation)
• employees on leave - annual, additional, educational or administrative;
• pregnant women and women with children under 3 years of age;
• members of trade union organizations;
• representatives from the employer who participate in collective bargaining or participate in the resolution of collective disputes.

These workers cannot be laid off.

There are also categories of workers who have another “privilege” - the right of priority to remain at work. First of all, these are specialists with higher qualifications.

If we consider two identical employees, the priority right will be:

• an employee with 2 or more dependents;
• disabled, including those disabled as a result of hostilities in which Russia participated;
• WWII veterans;
• an employee who is the sole breadwinner in the family;
• an employee who was injured due to the fault of the employer;
• an employee who improves his qualifications at the expense of the employer and as directed by him.

In addition, if a collective agreement is concluded at an enterprise, it may indicate additional categories of workers who have a preferential right.

On what grounds can they reduce

An employee can be laid off only for two reasons:

• if the employer has decided to reduce positions, that is, staff. That is, the exclusion of some positions from the staffing table;
• liquidation of the enterprise.

The employer is not required to notify employees of the reasons for the reduction of their positions.

Employee rights upon layoff

Every laid off employee must know their rights. This is the right to:

• receiving written notice of the reduction of his position at least 2 months before the proposed reduction; in addition, he must sign the notification;
• obtaining any other position that suits his level of qualifications and health. This position may be lower-level and less paid. The employee has the right to refuse it, but after refusal, such employee is laid off;
• receiving monetary compensation;
• time off of unused vacation;
• dismissal before the end of the layoff period;
• appealing the layoff in court if the layoff procedure was not followed or the employee cannot be laid off for the reasons stated above.

If you decide to appeal a layoff, you must file a claim within a month after receiving the layoff order or work record book.

Compensation for layoffs

Upon dismissal due to staff reduction, each “downsized” employee has the right to receive severance pay. Its size is equal to the average monthly salary of an employee at this enterprise. The employee must also receive compensation for unused vacation days.
If a laid-off employee does not get a job in the near future after being laid off, the employer is also obliged to pay him an average monthly salary, but not longer than 2 months.
To receive this compensation, the former employer must submit a work record book, which will not contain a record of the new place of work.
The employer will be obliged to pay a “redundant” employee benefits for the third month of unemployment only if such employee registered with the Employment Center within 2 weeks after the layoff and still has not found a job.
There is one more nuance that not all employees know. The employer must pay another benefit if the latter resigns of his own free will immediately after receiving notice of the layoff. The amount of this benefit is calculated in proportion to the days not worked before the expiration of the 2-month period.
Such compensation must be reflected in the documents - that is, an additional agreement to the contract must be drawn up, in which the availability of such payment must be indicated.
If a collective agreement is concluded at an enterprise, it may provide for additional compensation in the event of staff reduction or liquidation of the enterprise.
The work book of “redundant” employees must contain the entry “dismissed due to staff reduction (liquidation of the enterprise)”, and a reference must be made to the corresponding article of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation - clause 1 or clause 2 of Art. 81 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Step-by-step instructions for the reduction procedure

Every employer should remember that mistakes made during downsizing can cause really serious problems in the future. Any employee who believes that he was laid off illegally will have the right to appeal to the authorized body with relevant claims.

In accordance with the current rules, the reduction procedure involves the following main stages:

1. Preliminary notification to downsizing employees that they will be fired soon. This step is mandatory, so skipping it is unacceptable. Notification of employees must be formal. For this purpose, the employer draws up a special document. It provides basic information regarding the redundancy date, as well as other important information, including:
   • the immediate reason for the reduction carried out by the employer, together with references to the relevant provisions of the law;
   • information regarding other positions to which the employee may move. Such places of work must be suitable for him based on all characteristics, including the qualifications of the employee, various medical contraindications, etc.
     The completed notice must be given to employees. If he understands the information presented in the document and has no objections in this regard, he must put his personal signature on the notification.
2. Notifying other authorities about the fact of imminent reduction of employees. In most cases, this will be the local employment office. It is there that the employer must send a document that includes the following information:
   • a complete list of employees who will be subject to reduction;
   • information regarding the immediate reasons for the employer making such a decision;
   • additional data that will be directly related to the issue of the ongoing reduction.
3. Drawing up an order, as well as other necessary documents. The reduction order is drawn up in accordance with the current form. One separate order must be generated for each employee being laid off. All information specified in the order must be supported by relevant legal grounds and references to legislative acts. As soon as the order is created, the employee must be familiar with its contents. Moreover, the familiarization procedure itself must be confirmed by the personal signature of the subordinate in the proper place in the document. It should be remembered that the absence of such a signature will actually mean that the employer has violated the rules for the redundancy procedure.
4. Carrying out a full settlement with each laid-off employee. The current rules state that every laid-off employee must receive monetary compensation if he was unable to find work within the first two months from the date of dismissal. The amount of such compensation is equal to the sum of two subordinate earnings.
5. Filling out the work book of the dismissed employee, as well as handing over all the necessary documents to him. An entry regarding the immediate reason for dismissal must be made in the employment document of a laid-off employee. The same entry provides a link to the corresponding article of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. After entering all the important information, the signature of the responsible person is affixed, as well as the seal of the organization.

Who can't be laid off?

The current labor legislation established a list of special categories of employees who cannot be laid off by a unilateral decision of their superiors under any circumstances. These include the following persons:

1. Parents of a child with a disability, provided that the age of this child has not yet reached the age of majority established in the country.
2. Employees who are raising a son or daughter alone. They retain this right only if the child has not yet reached the age of 14 years.
3. Workers who have three or more children.
4. An employee who is the sole breadwinner in his family and who has a child under three years of age.
5. Pregnant workers.

The employer will not be able to lay off all employees from the above categories by unilateral decision. Moreover, this cannot be done even if the employee himself does not object to his own reduction. The only exceptions will be situations in which we are talking about the complete liquidation of the organization. In this case, absolutely all employees will be subject to unilateral dismissal, regardless of their category and any additional benefits they have.

Responsibility for violation of the staff reduction procedure

For each violation that was committed by the head of the organization during the reduction of staff, certain measures of responsibility will be established against him. The exact types of penalties will depend on the specific violation committed by the manager, for example:

1. One of the most common violations in modern practice is the employer’s failure to comply with the established deadlines for providing employees with monetary compensation. In this case, the manager will have to pay each employee the due amount of compensation, to which interest will be added for delays in fulfilling financial obligations. The interest rate will be equal to 1/150 of the current rate of the Russian Trade Center for each day of late payment. The same rule will apply if the employer commits a violation such as delaying the issuance of a work book to a redundant employee.
2. The next very common violation would be the employer ignoring its direct responsibility to offer other vacancies to the retrenched employee. Here, in relation to the guilty person, such a measure of responsibility is applied as the establishment of a monetary fine.

Naturally, in modern practice one can also find numerous other violations that are committed by managers during the reduction process. In such cases, each employee will have the legal right to appeal to the authorized authority. The application can be submitted, for example, to the Labor Inspectorate or to a judicial institution. In the case of truly serious violations of the law on the part of the manager, the optimal solution may be for the employee to contact the prosecutor's office.

After receiving the corresponding application by a representative of the authorized authority, a decision will most likely be made to schedule an unscheduled inspection. It is a special procedure, as a result of which serious penalties can be imposed on the guilty person. In addition, the results of the audit may be sent to the court to initiate an administrative or even criminal case.