At the next session of the parliament the MPs intend to review a bill on a new set of labor regulations drafted by members of the Party of Regions Vasyl Khara, Yaroslav Sukhiy and Oleksandr Stoyan. Should the bill be adopted, employees’ rights will be considerably narrowed: employers are allowed to dismiss an employee at their own discretion, set an irregular work schedule and reduce holidays
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| PHÎÒÎ: PHL |
At the turn of this past century, the International Labor Association (ILA) put requirements to the Ukrainian parliament to bring the country’s labor laws up to modern-day standards. This is absolutely imperative as in 16 months the effective Labor Code will be 40 years old. Basically, this means it will be as obsolete as the very first Lada automobile manufactured in the former Soviet Union. Despite this, the labor legislation proposed for adoption by the Rada clearly does not satisfy the ILA, which is lobbying for equal rights of employers and employees, as the new bill proposed by the PoR will simply eliminate the rights of employees.
This is evident in the structure of the document in which the responsibility of the employer is obscurely described in four articles, while the responsibility of the employee to the employer is concisely outlined in great detail in twenty of the articles in the proposed bill. The bill allows an employer to independently draw up internal company regulations without coordination with a trade union or representatives of the company workers. And if the company’s charter says “jump”, all an employee is allowed to ask is “How high?”
The bill allows for the possibility of firing an employee that shows disloyalty to the management – a so-called opportunist - that can be accused of being an organizer of an unsanctioned strike and taken to a court of law. An employer can easily win such a case by simply bribing a judge to take his or her side.
Small business has the greatest to gain from the new bill. For instance, an employer with less than 20 employees working for the company can independently approve internal corporate regulations and even a weekend work schedule.
In addition, while employers in large corporations must warn employees about downsizing two months in advance, small companies only have to give a 2-week notice of dismissal of their employees.
Unlike large corporations, small companies have the right to pay out salaries to their employees on a monthly as opposed to bi-weekly basis. Moreover, company management can reduce working hours in order to not pay out salaries in full. The Labor Code does not stipulate liability for the failure to fulfil collective agreements and obligations for their conclusion. Employers are also allowed to issue internal regulations governing social and labor relations, which violates the Convention of the International Labor Association. This will mean the demise of independent trade unions that are formed by company employees and as a result employers will be able to independently determine the extent of material damage caused by an employee.
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| PHÎÒÎ: SHUTTERSTOCK |
In April, the Coalition of NGOs in the Luhansk Oblast disputed the new code. In an open letter addressed to the VR speaker and the premier it was written down: “An employer´s liability to pay out workman’s injury damages to an employee has been practically eliminated, while disciplinary and material liability of employees outlined in Articles 401-419 and Article 389 is eight times higher than the liability of employers.”
BYT member and Chairman of the Confederation of Free Trade Unions Mykhailo Volynets said the new Labor Code is an attempt to legitimize slavery in our country.
“Today, fairly decent post-Soviet legislation is in effect, but they have no right making the rules of the game tougher when times are rough. If Khara, Stoyan and Sukhoi manage to push the new bill through, the work week will not be limited to 41 hours as the Article 143 envisages a 48-hour work week with the possibility of an increase. Also, imagine I am an employer and you are a hired manager. If you fail to land a contract with a multinational company for me, I will calculate EUR 2 mn damages to my company and sue you to the ground in a court of law,” Volynets argued.
In his turn, the sponsor of the labor code bill chairman of the Social Policy Committee Vasyl Khara, PoR argues that his bill fully meets the interests of both employers and employees. He says over the several months that employers and union representatives have been drafting the new code they managed to strike a balance that takes into account objectives of both parties thereto.
The authors of the code also drew attention to the following pluses in the document: when hiring an employee the employer will be obligated to sign a written contract under which the employer will have to pay a full-time employee no less than the minimum subsistence level of UAH 884 starting April 1.
If the term of payment is breeched, an employer will be obligated to pay an additional 10% of the salary within 30 calendar days. If the delay is up to 90 days – the additional pay is 50% and more than 90 days – 100%. The reason for dismissal under the article will be two effective notifications or reprimands for six months, not one as envisaged by the legislation in effect.
Foreign experience
Georgia
The Labor Code adopted in Georgia in 2006 had never mentioned the term “trade unions”. The employer has the right to cancel a labor contract with an employee in a day without explanation, though with compensation of one month´s salary. An employer may not negotiate the working condition in an employment contract. The reason for dismissal can be a disease or pregnancy of the employee. In case an employee is recruited into the army, an employment contract will be cancelled.
Romania
In Romania, the Labor Code provides for liability (a fine of up to three months´ salary) for sexual harassment on the job. Sexual harassment is defined as “irrelevant or scandalous behavior such as unsolicited physical contact, indecent remarks, compromising invitations and insistence on sexual favors.”
Hungary
According to the Labor Code, without the participation of a specially formed national council, reconciliation of interests is impossible: i.e. decision-making, threatening layoffs of a large number of employees, reduction of the state minimum wage, reform of the Labor Inspectorate, reduction of maximum working hours and less holidays. In addition to that, an employer does not have the right to disclose personal information about employees to third parties and give their opinion about a particular employee with the latter’s consent.
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