Features of the preparation of an employment contract

As of today, employer’s and employee’s labor relations begin with making a labor agreement. It is provided by the Law that a labor agreement can be made in various kinds.

Labor agreement is an agreement between an employer and an employee, under which an employee should perform the work that is provided by the labor agreement, and an employer, in turn, should pay salary, provide proper labor conditions required to performing the work.

No direct or indirect restriction of rights or setting advantages at making, changing and termination of labor agreements by origin, social and material status, racial or national distinctness, sex, language, place of residence, political and religious views is allowed by the law.

There can be the following types of a labor agreement:

• open-term agreement (without definite duration of agreement);
• fixed-term agreement (with definite duration of agreement);
• agreement made for the period of performance of certain work.

It is provided by the labor law that a labor agreement is usually made in written. Compliance with the written form of agreement is mandatory in the following cases:

• when making a contract;
• when making an agreement about work in areas with special geographic or geological conditions, and also with conditions of higher risk for employee’s health;
• when making an agreement where employer is a natural person;
• at employee’s insistence;
• at the organized employment of workers;
• when making an agreement with the underage persons.

Special form of labor agreement, a contract, is provided by the current law. Its particularity is that it is a duration period, and it also provides the following:

• rights and duties of the parties;
• amounts of work;
• requirements for quality of the performed work;
• period of performance of work;
• conditions of material provision and organization of employees’ labor;
• responsibility of the parties (including financial responsibility);
• conditions of its dissolution and other social and living conditions necessary for performance of employee’s duties. 

Making a contract is directed on providing of conditions for taking initiativity and independence of employee, development of his (her) professional and individual skills, and also on increase of mutual responsibility of the parties. A contract is made in two copies, one copy for each party.

When making a contract, an employee should provide the following documents:

• passport or other identification document;
• reference about conferring a taxpayer identification number;
• work record book;
• document about education (speciality, qualification);
• reference about health condition;
• other document, if it is not prohibited by the law to be required.

A labor agreement is considered to be concluded from the moment an employer’s corresponding order or direction about taking an employee for work is registered, or from the date provided in the agreement. In case a labor agreement between an employee and an employer who is a natural person is concluded, the agreement is considered to be concluded from the moment of its registration at the local department of the State Employment Service at natural person’s domicile.

Also, as agreed by the parties, a trial can be set, to check employee’s compliance with the position taken and with performance of the work entrusted to him (her). Conditions of trial should be provided in the agreement and in the order or direction about taking for work.

It is prohibited to apply trials for the following categories of persons:

• persons under 18;
• persons just after graduation from professional education establishments;
• just after graduation from higher education establishments;
• persons retired from military or alternative service;
• persons who were transferred to another enterprise or to another area:
• invalids directed for work according to recommendation of medical and social assessment board.

It is set by the law that the trial period for an employee should not exceed 3 months, but in individual cases, as agreed with the primary trade union organization – 6 months. When taking workers for work, the trial period should not exceed 1 month.

In case a worker is absent at work for compelling reasons, the trial period may be prolonged for the corresponding number of days, during which the worker was absent.

In case an incompliance of worker with the taken position was discovered, an employer may dissolve the agreement on his (her) initiative during the established trial period.

In case the trial period has expired and a worker continues working, he (she) is considered as the one who has passed the trial. Dissolution of agreement with such a worker is allowed only on common basis then.

Before the beginning of worker’s performance of his (her) duties an employer should:

• provide an explanation for worker on his (her) rights and duties;
• establish a work place for worker, provide him (her) with the means necessary for work;
• instruct the worker on labor safety, production sanitary, labor hygiene and fire protection rules;
• inform, against written acknowledgment, about labor conditions, availability of dangerous and harmful factors at work place which have been not eliminated yet, and about possible consequences of their impact on health, and also about worker’s rights and privileges for compensation for work in such conditions (in accordance with the current law and the collective agreement);
• acquaint the worker with the rules of internal labor rules and regulations and with the collective agreement.

Do you need consulting on making a labor agreement? Contact us!