The general grounds for termination of an employment contract are listed in Article 77 of the Labor Code and specified in Articles 78-84. An employment contract may be terminated on the following grounds:

1) agreement of the parties;

2) expiration of the employment contract;

3) termination of the employment contract at the initiative of the employee;

4) termination of the employment contract at the initiative of the employer;

5) transfer of an employee, at his request or with his consent, to work for another employer or transfer to an elective job (position);

6) the employee’s refusal to continue working in connection with a change in the owner of the organization’s property, a change in the jurisdiction (subordination) of the organization or its reorganization;

7) the employee’s refusal to continue working due to a change in the essential terms of the employment contract;

8) the employee’s refusal to transfer to another job due to health conditions in accordance with a medical report;

9) the employee’s refusal to transfer due to the employer’s relocation to another location;

10) circumstances beyond the control of the parties;

11) violation of the rules for concluding an employment contract.

Let's look at these reasons. An employment contract can be terminated at any time69 by agreement of the parties. In practice, this basis for dismissal (it was also provided for by the Labor Code) was used exclusively for the early termination of fixed-term employment contracts, which, according to the Labor Code, could not be terminated at the initiative of the employee without good reason. In other cases, when the parties wanted to terminate the employment contract essentially by mutual consent, the employee was asked to write a letter of resignation “at his own request.” Meanwhile, dismissal by agreement of the parties is more favorable for the employee, since, as mentioned above, the law associates a number of unfavorable consequences with dismissal at one’s own request without good reason.

Due to the expiration of the term, only a fixed-term employment contract can be terminated. Moreover, for such termination it is necessary that one of the parties take the initiative - if neither party demands termination of the fixed-term employment contract due to the expiration of its term, and the employee continues to work after the expiration of the employment contract, the employment contract is considered concluded for an indefinite period. Having decided to terminate the employment contract on this basis, the employer is obliged to notify the employee in writing at least three days before dismissal. If a fixed-term employment contract expires during a woman’s pregnancy, the employer is obliged, at her request, to extend the term of the employment contract until she becomes entitled to maternity leave (Article 261 of the Labor Code).

A fixed-term contract can be concluded not only for a certain period, but also for the duration of certain work. Such a contract is terminated upon completion of this work.

An employment contract concluded for the duration of the duties of an absent employee is terminated when this employee returns to work.

An employment contract concluded for the duration of seasonal work is terminated after a certain season.

Dismissal in connection with the transfer of an employee, at his request or with his consent, to work for another employer or transfer to an elective job (position) is carried out when the employee has received a written invitation from another employer to move to work for him. Such dismissal is possible if the former employer does not object to the dismissal.

Otherwise, the employee can leave only of his own free will (Article 80 of the Labor Code). Thus, in order for such dismissal to become possible, a joint expression of the will of three persons is necessary: ​​the desire (or consent) of the employee to move to a new job, the consent (or desire) of the new employer to accept him, and the consent of the previous employer to let the employee go. It should be noted that transfer to another organization in the order indicated above is the most convenient way to change jobs, since, having written a written invitation, the employer does not have the right to refuse to hire the invited employee.

Article 75 of the Labor Code provides that when the jurisdiction (subordination) of an organization changes, as well as when it is reorganized (merger, annexation, division, spin-off, transformation), labor relations with the consent of the employee continue, the same applies to the case of a change of owner, with the exception of the head of the organization , his deputies and the chief accountant, who may be fired if the owner changes. If an employee does not agree to work under new conditions, he is subject to dismissal on a special basis: the employee’s refusal to continue working due to a change in the owner of the organization’s property, a change in the jurisdiction (subordination) of the organization, or its reorganization.

An employment contract may also be terminated on other grounds provided for by the Labor Code and other federal laws.

Termination of an employment contract at the initiative of the employee (Article 80). The employee has the right to terminate the employment contract at any time by notifying the employer in writing two weeks in advance.

The Labor Code does not distinguish between termination of an employment contract at the initiative of the employee (dismissal at his own request) in the presence of valid reasons. However, the legislation, as mentioned above, associates a number of adverse consequences with dismissal of one’s own free will without good reason. The Resolution of the Central Committee of the CPSU, the Council of Ministers of the USSR and the All-Union Central Council of Trade Unions of December 13, 1979 No. 1117 “On further strengthening labor discipline and reducing personnel turnover in the national economy”70 continues to be in force, according to which (clause 16) repeated dismissal within a year for of one's own free will without good reason leads to automatic interruption of work experience, even if the employee started a new job the day after dismissal (the amount of temporary disability benefits depends on the length of continuous service). In 1999, a provision was introduced into the Law “On Employment in the Russian Federation”71, according to which an unemployed person who quit of his own free will without good reason more than once during one year preceding the start of unemployment, in case of refusal to be assigned to public works or training may be suspended unemployment benefits.

Valid reasons include the transfer of a husband or wife to work in another area; illness that prevents you from continuing to work or live in a given area (according to a medical report issued in the prescribed manner); the need to care for sick family members (if there is a medical certificate) or disabled people of group I; election to positions filled by competition; enrollment in a higher, specialized secondary or other educational institution, graduate school or clinical residency; violation by the administration of a collective or labor agreement. Re-dismissal of disabled people, old-age pensioners, pregnant women, mothers with children under 8 years of age, as well as employees with three or more dependent children under 16 (students 18) years of age is also considered respectful.

If there are good reasons, the employer is obliged to terminate the employment contract within the period specified in the employee’s application.

By agreement between the employee and the employer, the employment contract can be terminated before the expiration of the notice period for dismissal and without valid reasons. However, if an employee has submitted an application in which he asks to be dismissed before two weeks, and the employer does not agree to this, the employee cannot be dismissed after two weeks on the basis of the submitted application. The employee must be asked to write a new application, explaining that since there are no valid reasons, he must notify the administration two weeks in advance.

Before the expiration of the notice period for dismissal, the employee has the right to withdraw his application at any time. Dismissal in this case is not carried out unless another employee is invited in his place in writing, who cannot be denied an employment contract.

Upon expiration of the notice period for dismissal, the employee has the right to stop working. On the last day of work, the employer is obliged to issue the employee a work book and other documents related to the work, upon the employee’s written application, and make a final payment to him. The employer does not have the right to delay the issuance of a work book on the grounds that the employee, for example, did not hand over the valuables entrusted to him, did not vacate a place in the dormitory, etc. The delay in the work book is subject to payment in the amount of the employee’s average earnings (Article 234 of the Labor Code).

If, upon expiration of the notice period for dismissal, the employment contract has not been terminated and the employee does not insist on dismissal, then the employment contract continues.

Termination of an employment contract at the initiative of the employer. Unlike dismissal at the initiative of the employee, the law provides for an exhaustive list of grounds for the employer on which he can terminate the employment contract. It is possible to provide additional grounds for dismissal in comparison with the law in an employment contract only if this is permitted by law. Such grounds can be included in an employment contract with:

The head of the organization or members of the collegial executive body;

An employee working for an employer - an individual (Article 307 of the Labor Code) or in a religious organization (Article 347 of the Labor Code);

Homeworker (Article 312 of the Labor Code).

The Labor Code provides that an employer may terminate an employment contract in the following cases (Article 81):

1) liquidation of the organization or termination of activities by the employer - an individual;

2) reduction in the number or staff of the organization’s employees;

3) the employee’s inconsistency with the position held or the work performed due to:

a) health status in accordance with a medical report;

b) insufficient qualifications confirmed by certification results;

4) change of owner of the organization’s property (in relation to the head of the organization, his deputies and the chief accountant);

5) repeated failure by an employee to perform labor duties without good reason, if he has a disciplinary sanction;

6) a single gross violation by an employee of labor duties:

a) absenteeism (absence from the workplace without good reason for more than four hours in a row during the working day);

b) appearing at work in a state of alcohol, drug or other toxic intoxication;

c) disclosure of secrets protected by law (state, commercial, official and other) that became known to the employee in connection with the performance of his job duties;

d) committing at the place of work theft (including small) of someone else's property, embezzlement, intentional destruction or damage, established by a court verdict that has entered into legal force or a resolution of the body authorized to apply administrative penalties;

e) violation by an employee of labor protection requirements, if this violation entailed serious consequences (work accident, accident, catastrophe) or knowingly created a real threat of such consequences;

7) commission of guilty actions by an employee directly servicing monetary or commodity assets, if these actions give rise to a loss of confidence in him by the employer;

8) an employee performing educational functions has committed an immoral offense that is incompatible with the continuation of this work;

9) the adoption of an unjustified decision by the head of the organization (branch, representative office), his deputies and the chief accountant, which entailed a violation of the safety of property, its unlawful use or other damage to the property of the organization;

10) a single gross violation by the head of the organization (branch, representative office), his deputies of their labor duties;

11) the employee submits forged documents or knowingly false information to the employer when concluding an employment contract;

12) termination of access to state secrets if the work performed requires access to state secrets;

13) provided for in the employment contract with the head of the organization, members of the collegial executive body of the organization;

14) in other cases established by the Labor Code and other federal laws (additional grounds for dismissal are provided, for example, for part-time workers, teaching staff, etc.). The grounds for dismissal at the initiative of the administration can be divided into general, under which any employee can be dismissed (clauses 1–3, 5, 6, 11), and special – for certain categories of employees (clauses 4, 7–10, 12–14 ). Let's look at the general principles first.

Clause 1. Liquidation of an organization is its termination without transfer of rights and obligations by way of succession to other persons (Article 61 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation). Termination of an organization with the transfer of rights and obligations as a result of transformation, merger, division, accession is a reorganization in which labor relations continue with the consent of the employee (Article 75 of the Labor Code). When an organization is liquidated, all employees are subject to dismissal, including pregnant women (Article 261 of the Labor Code) and workers on vacation or absent from work due to temporary disability, who cannot be dismissed at the initiative of the employer for any other reason. In the event of termination of the activities of a branch, representative office or other separate structural unit of an organization located in another locality, the termination of employment contracts with employees of these structural units is carried out according to the rules provided for cases of liquidation of the organization. Employees are warned by the employer personally and against signature of upcoming dismissal due to the liquidation of the organization at least two months before dismissal (Article 180 of the Labor Code).

The period of notice of dismissal upon termination of activity by the employer - an individual is determined by the employment contract (Article 307 of the Labor Code).

Clause 2. As a general rule, the organization independently determines the number and staff of employees and can reduce them at any time. Sometimes an employer, trying to fire an unwanted employee, makes a fictitious reduction, i.e. after the dismissal of this employee, the staff or number is restored and another employee is hired to replace the dismissed one. Therefore, the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation indicated that, when resolving claims for the reinstatement of persons dismissed on this basis, the courts are obliged to find out whether a reduction in the number or staff of employees has actually been made72.

Dismissal due to reduction in number or staff is permitted if it is impossible to transfer the employee with his consent to another job. Dismissal of workers who are members of a trade union due to reduction in numbers or staff is carried out taking into account the reasoned opinion of the elected trade union body of the organization.

Employees, as well as during the liquidation of the organization, are notified by the employer of the upcoming dismissal due to a reduction in the number or staff of the organization's employees at least two months before the dismissal. The employer, with the written consent of the employee, has the right to terminate the employment contract with him without notice of dismissal two months in advance, while simultaneously paying additional compensation in the amount of two months' average earnings. When dismissing seasonal workers on this basis (as well as in connection with the liquidation of an organization), they are notified at least 7 days in advance (Article 296 of the Labor Code), and temporary workers - 3 days in advance (Article 292 of the Labor Code).

An important question is which of the employees occupying the same positions or performing similar work has the right to priority in remaining at work during layoffs.

First of all, you need to keep in mind that, in addition to pregnant women, who are generally not subject to dismissal at the initiative of the employer, except in cases of liquidation of the organization, dismissal due to staff reduction is not allowed for women with children under the age of three, single mothers raising a child aged up to fourteen years of age (disabled child up to eighteen years of age), other persons raising these children without a mother.

Among other employees, priority right to remain at work is given to employees with higher labor productivity and qualifications.

With equal labor productivity and qualifications, preference in remaining at work is given to: family - in the presence of two or more dependents (disabled family members who are fully supported by the employee or receive assistance from him, which is their constant and main source of livelihood); persons in whose family there are no other independent workers; employees who received a work injury or occupational disease in this organization; disabled people of the Great Patriotic War and disabled people fighting in defense of the Fatherland; employees who improve their qualifications in the direction of the employer without interruption from work.

The collective agreement may provide for other categories of employees of the organization who enjoy a preferential right to remain at work with equal productivity and qualifications.

Clause 3. Dismissal due to the employee’s inadequacy for the position held or the work performed (i.e., the employee’s objective inability to perform his job duties) is divided into two grounds: inconsistency for health reasons (clause 3) and lack of qualifications (clause 3b), and the latter must be confirmed by certification results. In both cases, dismissal is allowed only if it is impossible to transfer the employee with his consent to another job that corresponds to his state of health or qualifications.

Dismissal for non-compliance due to health conditions is possible in the event of a persistent decline in working capacity that prevents the proper performance of job duties, or if the performance of job duties, taking into account the employee’s health condition, is contraindicated for him or is dangerous for members of the work collective or the citizens he serves. Inconsistency due to health status is confirmed by a medical certificate.

Dismissal due to an employee’s inadequacy for the position held or work performed due to insufficient qualifications is possible only on the basis of certification results. The procedure and conditions for certification are determined by a local act of the organization, if for the corresponding category of employees this procedure and conditions are not provided for by law. In accordance with legislative acts, for example, certification of civil servants, heads of state unitary enterprises, and welding production specialists is carried out.

Dismissal of trade union members on this basis is carried out taking into account the opinion of the elected trade union body of this organization (Article 373 of the Labor Code), and a member of the said body must be included in the certification commission (Article 82 of the Labor Code).

On this basis, women who have children under the age of three, single mothers raising a child under the age of fourteen (a disabled child under eighteen), as well as other persons raising these children without a mother cannot be dismissed (Article 261 TK).

Clause 5. Inadequacy for a position due to insufficient qualifications should be distinguished from failure to fulfill job duties without good reason. In both options, the employee works poorly, but in the first case because he doesn’t know how, and in the second because he doesn’t want to. In the latter case, a disciplinary sanction may be imposed on the employee, and if he repeatedly fails to comply, he may be dismissed, but not under paragraph 3 “b” of Article 81, but under paragraph 5 of the same article. The dismissal of a trade union member on this basis is carried out taking into account the opinion of the elected trade union body. This dismissal is a disciplinary sanction, therefore the employer is obliged to comply with the procedure for imposing such penalties - the employee must be asked to write a written explanation of his incorrect behavior, the deadlines must be met: a penalty can be imposed within one month from the date of discovery of the disciplinary offense, but no later than 6 months from the day of its commission. The exception is the case when a violation is revealed as a result of an audit, inspection of financial and economic activities or an audit. A longer period is provided here - 2 years from the date of commission of the disciplinary offense.

Dismissal for repeated failure by an employee to fulfill work duties without good reason is possible only if he has a disciplinary sanction (reprimand or reprimand). A disciplinary sanction is valid for one year, unless a new sanction has been imposed on the employee. After a year, the employee is considered to have no penalties. Therefore, it is possible to dismiss an employee for repeated failure to fulfill job duties only if the repeated violation occurred during the period of the disciplinary sanction, i.e. within a year after its application. It should be emphasized that dismissal is possible only if the employee did not perform his job duties without good reason. Thus, participation in a legal strike or termination of work by an employee due to a delay in payment of wages for more than 15 days cannot be grounds for dismissal (or other disciplinary action) (Article 142 of the Labor Code).

Clause 6. The Labor Code especially highlights cases of gross violations of labor duties by employees, which can serve as grounds for dismissal even in the event of a single violation.

There are five such violations:

a) Absenteeism (absence from the workplace without good reason for more than four hours in a row during the working day). Absenteeism is also considered to be unauthorized going on vacation or unauthorized use of vacation days;

b) Appearing at work in a state of alcohol, drug or other toxic intoxication is grounds for dismissal, regardless of whether the employee was actually suspended from work (in accordance with Article 76 of the Labor Code, the employer is obliged to do this). Proof that an employee is drunk can be either a medical report or other evidence, for example, witness testimony;

c) Disclosure of secrets protected by law (state, commercial, official and other) that became known to the employee in connection with the performance of his job duties. Dismissal on this basis is possible only if the obligation not to disclose such a secret is expressly provided for in the employment contract with the employee;

d) Committing theft (including small) of someone else's property, embezzlement, intentional destruction or damage at the place of work, established by a court verdict that has entered into legal force or a resolution of an authority authorized to apply administrative penalties. The grounds for dismissal are the specified actions, regardless of whose property was stolen (deliberately damaged, etc.) - the employer or other employees;

e) Violation by an employee of labor protection requirements, if this violation entailed serious consequences (industrial accident, accident, catastrophe) or knowingly created a real threat of such consequences. The employee’s obligation to comply with labor protection requirements is enshrined in Article 214 of the Labor Code. Dismissal for violation of this requirement can only be applied if there is documentary evidence of the violation committed by the employee and the presence of serious consequences or the threat of their occurrence. Clause 11. An employee can also be dismissed if, when concluding an employment contract, he provided the employer with forged documents or knowingly false information. Such dismissal is possible, apparently, only if genuine documents or valid information could serve as an obstacle to the conclusion of the contract.

Special grounds for termination of an employment contract apply only to certain categories of employees.

Clause 4 provides for the possibility of dismissing the head of the organization, his deputies and the chief accountant in connection with a change in the owner of the organization’s property. Article 75 of the Labor Code especially emphasizes that labor relations with all other employees during a change of ownership continue with their consent.

Paragraph 7 provides for the possibility of dismissing an employee who directly services monetary or commodity assets for committing guilty actions, if these actions give rise to a loss of trust in him on the part of the employer. On this basis, only employees who directly service valuables are subject to dismissal; therefore, accountants and other employees who do not deal directly with valuables cannot be dismissed on the grounds of loss of trust. The basis for dismissal should be proven guilty actions of the employee, and not suspicion. Thus, the presence of a shortage cannot be grounds for dismissal if the employee’s guilt in its occurrence has not been proven.

Clause 8 allows for the dismissal of an employee performing educational functions for committing an immoral offense that is incompatible with the continuation of this work. On this basis, only those employees for whom educational functions constitute the main content of their work can be dismissed, for example, teachers, lecturers, kindergarten teachers, industrial training masters. Managerial employees cannot be fired for committing an immoral offense, because, although they should be involved in educating their subordinates, this is not their main function. This ground for dismissal cannot be applied based on a general negative assessment of the employee’s personality; the fact of committing a specific immoral offense must be proven, i.e. violations of moral principles and generally accepted standards of behavior, for example, appearing in a public place (not necessarily at work) in a state of intoxication that offends human dignity.

Clause 9. On this basis, only heads of organizations (branches, representative offices), their deputies and chief accountants can be dismissed if they make an unfounded decision that causes damage to the organization’s property. These persons have broad powers in the area of ​​disposal of the organization’s property, which predetermines increased responsibility. This also requires a specific solution that caused harm, rather than a general negative assessment of the work.

Clause 10 applies only to heads of organizations (branches, representative offices) and their deputies. These persons may be dismissed for a single gross violation of labor duties. Obviously, what is meant here is not the five gross violations provided for in paragraph 6, for which any employee can be fired, but some others.

Clause 12 provides for the dismissal of employees whose work requires access to state secrets if their access to state secrets is terminated. According to Articles 22 and 23 of the Law of the Russian Federation “On State Secrets”73, the access of an official or citizen to state secrets can be terminated by decision of the head of a government body, enterprise, institution or organization in the following cases:

A one-time violation of his obligations under the employment agreement (contract) related to the protection of state secrets;

Recognition by the court as incompetent, partially capable or a repeat offender, being on trial or under investigation for state and other serious crimes, having an outstanding criminal record for these crimes;

The presence of medical contraindications for working with the use of information constituting a state secret, according to the list approved by the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation;

Permanent residence of his close relatives abroad and (or) registration by these persons of documents for departure for permanent residence in other states;

Identification, as a result of inspection activities, of employee actions that pose a threat to the security of the Russian Federation;

Evading him from verification activities and (or) providing him with knowingly false personal data. Clause 13 allows for the dismissal of heads of organizations or members of a collegial executive body on the grounds provided for in employment contracts with these persons. This rule is an exception to the general rule that employment contracts cannot contain conditions that reduce the level of rights and guarantees of workers established by labor legislation (Article 9 of the Labor Code). This is due to the special position of the manager in labor relations - the degree of independence of his work is much higher than that of other employees, subordination is very relative.

And managers are better off financially than ordinary workers. Therefore, the legislator considered it possible to weaken the protective functions of labor law in relation to this category of workers.

Paragraph 14 establishes that the list of grounds for dismissal provided for in Article 81 of the Labor Code is not exhaustive. The Labor Code and other federal laws may provide for other grounds.

A number of such grounds are provided for in Section. XII Labor Code “Peculiarities of labor regulation of certain categories of workers.” Thus, Article 278 of the Labor Code establishes additional grounds for termination of an employment contract with the head of an organization, Article 288 - with a part-time worker, Article 307 - with an individual working for an individual, Article 312 - with a home worker, Article 336 - with a teaching employee, Art. 341 – with an employee of a representative office of the Russian Federation abroad, Article 347 – with someone working in a religious organization.

Additional grounds for dismissal are provided for by federal laws for state74 and municipal75 employees.

The Code of Administrative Offenses76 provides for a special type of administrative punishment - disqualification. Disqualification consists of depriving an individual of the right to occupy leadership positions in the executive management body of a legal entity, to join the board of directors (supervisory board), to carry out entrepreneurial activities to manage a legal entity, as well as to manage a legal entity in other cases provided for by the legislation of the Russian Federation. The disqualification resolution is executed by terminating the contract with the disqualified person for the activities of managing the legal entity. Thus, if a legal entity is managed by a manager working under an employment contract, this contract, if disqualification is applied to such a manager, must be immediately terminated.

Guarantees for dismissal at the initiative of the employer. It is not allowed to dismiss an employee at the initiative of the employer (except in the case of liquidation of the organization or termination of activities by the employer - an individual) during the period of his temporary incapacity for work and while on vacation.

As mentioned above, the dismissal of a trade union member due to staff reduction (clause 2 of Article 81), the employee’s inadequacy for the position held or the work performed due to insufficient qualifications (subclause 3 “b” of Article 81) and for repeated failure by the employee to fulfill job duties without good reason (Clause 5 of Article 81) is carried out taking into account the reasoned opinion of the elected trade union body of this organization.

The employer sends to the relevant elected trade union body of this organization a draft order, as well as copies of documents that are the basis for making this decision.

The elected trade union body, within seven working days from the date of receipt of the draft order and copies of documents, considers this issue and sends its motivated opinion to the employer in writing.

If the elected trade union body disagrees with the employer’s proposed decision, it holds additional consultations with the employer or its representative within three working days. If general agreement is not reached as a result of consultations, the employer, after ten working days from the date of sending the draft order and copies of documents to the elected trade union body, has the right to make a final decision, which can be appealed to the relevant state labor inspectorate. The State Labor Inspectorate, within ten days from the date of receipt of the complaint (application), considers the issue of dismissal and, if it is recognized as illegal, issues the employer a binding order to reinstate the employee at work with payment for forced absence.

Compliance with the above procedure does not deprive the employee or the elected trade union body representing his interests of the right to appeal the dismissal directly to the court, or the employer to appeal the order of the state labor inspectorate to the court.

The employer has the right to terminate the employment contract no later than one month from the date of receipt of the reasoned opinion of the elected trade union body.

Additional guarantees are established for certain categories of workers. Termination of an employment contract at the initiative of the employer with pregnant women is not allowed, except in cases of liquidation of the organization.

If a fixed-term employment contract expires during a woman’s pregnancy, the employer is obliged, at her request, to extend the term of the employment contract until she becomes entitled to maternity leave.

Termination of an employment contract with women who have children under three years of age, single mothers raising a child under fourteen years of age (a disabled child under eighteen years of age), other persons raising these children without a mother, at the initiative of the employer is not allowed (with the exception of dismissal under clause 1, clause “a”, clause 3, clauses 5-8, 10 and 11 of Article 81 of the Labor Code).

Termination of an employment contract with employees under the age of eighteen at the initiative of the employer (except in the case of liquidation of the organization), in addition to compliance with the general procedure, is allowed only with the consent of the relevant state labor inspectorate and the commission for minors and the protection of their rights. Additional guarantees are also provided for trade union activists, members of labor dispute commissions and some other categories of workers.

Termination of an employment contract due to circumstances beyond the control of the parties (Article 83 of the Labor Code). The employment contract is subject to termination due to the following circumstances beyond the control of the parties:

1) conscription of an employee for military service or sending him to an alternative civilian service that replaces it;

2) reinstatement of an employee who previously performed this work, by decision of the state labor inspectorate or court;

3) failure to be elected to office;

4) sentencing of an employee to a punishment that precludes the continuation of previous work, in accordance with a court verdict that has entered into legal force;

5) recognition of the employee as completely disabled in accordance with a medical report;

6) death of an employee or employer - an individual, as well as recognition by a court of an employee or employer - an individual as deceased or missing;

7) the occurrence of emergency circumstances that impede the continuation of labor relations (military action, catastrophe, natural disaster, major accident, epidemic and other emergency circumstances), if this circumstance is recognized by a decision of the Government of the Russian Federation or a government body of the relevant subject of the Russian Federation.

The grounds for termination of an employment contract, provided for in Article 83, should be distinguished from its termination at the initiative of the employer. Dismissal at the initiative of the employer is his right, but not his obligation; here the employer is obliged to fire the employee.

Termination of an employment contract on the basis specified in paragraph 2 of this article is permitted if it is impossible to transfer the employee with his consent to another job.

Termination of an employment contract due to violation of the mandatory rules established by the Labor Code or other federal law when concluding an employment contract (Article 84 of the Labor Code). The employment contract is terminated if violation of these rules excludes the possibility of continuing work in the following cases:

Concluding an employment contract in violation of a court verdict depriving a specific person of the right to occupy certain positions or engage in certain activities;

Concluding an employment contract to perform work that is contraindicated for a given person for health reasons in accordance with a medical report;

Absence of an appropriate document on education, if the work requires special knowledge in accordance with federal law or other regulatory legal acts.

Federal law may provide for other cases.

Dismissal on this basis is carried out if it is impossible to transfer the employee with his written consent to another job available to the employer, and, as in the case of dismissal under Article 83, the employer is obliged to dismiss.

In case of such dismissal, the employer pays the employee severance pay in the amount of average monthly earnings, if the violation of the rules for concluding an employment contract was not the fault of the employee.

A benefit in the amount of average monthly earnings is also paid upon termination of an employment contract due to the liquidation of the organization (clause 1 of Article 81) or reduction in the number or staff of the organization's employees (clause 2 of Article 81), in addition, in these cases, the average monthly salary is retained earnings for the period of employment, but not more than two months from the date of dismissal (including severance pay), and in exceptional cases - three months.

Severance pay in the amount of two weeks' average earnings is paid to employees upon termination of an employment contract due to:

Inconsistency of the employee with the position held or the work performed due to a health condition that prevents the continuation of this work (clause “a”, clause 3 of Article 81);

By conscripting an employee into military service or sending him to an alternative civilian service that replaces it (clause 1 of Article 83);

Reinstatement of an employee who previously performed this work (clause 2 of Article 83);

The employee’s refusal to transfer due to the employer’s relocation to another location (clause 9 of Article 77).

In the event of termination of the employment contract with the head of the organization, his deputies and the chief accountant in connection with a change in the owner of the organization, the new owner is obliged to pay compensation to these employees in the amount of not less than three average monthly earnings of the employee.

An employment contract or collective agreement may provide for other cases of payment of severance pay, as well as establish increased amounts of severance pay.

TEST QUESTIONS AND TASKS

1. What is an employment contract? What is its content and main types?

2. What guarantees are provided when hiring?

3. What documents are required when applying for a job?

4. What is a work book?

5. What is a job test?

6. What types of transfers to another job do you know? How is translation different from displacement?

7. What are the terms of the employment contract and in what cases can the employer change unilaterally?

8. What is a temporary transfer to another job in case of production necessity?

9. In what cases is an employer obliged to remove an employee from work?

10. On what general grounds can employment be terminated?

11. How is an employment contract terminated at the employee’s initiative?

12. In what cases does an employer have the right to terminate an employment contract?

13. Under what circumstances, beyond the control of the parties, is an employment contract terminated?

14. What violations committed during hiring are grounds for termination of the employment contract?

15. What is severance pay? In what cases is it paid?

16. What is the procedure for taking into account the opinion of the elected trade union body when dismissing a trade union member? Upon dismissal, on what grounds is such accounting required?

1. Akopova E.M. Employment contract: formation and development. Rostov-on-Don. 2001.

2. Barov V.K. The main differences between the new Labor Code of the Russian Federation and the old Labor Code // Library RG. 2002, No. 1. P. 4-7.

3. Commentary on the Labor Code of the Russian Federation / Ed. K.N. Guseva. M., 2002.

4. Commentary on the Labor Code of the Russian Federation / Rep. ed. prof. Y.P. Orlovsky. M., 2002.

5. Commentary on the Labor Code of the Russian Federation / Ed. honorable Russian lawyer S.A. Panin. M., 2002.

7. Mironov V.I. Article-by-article commentary of the Labor Code. M., 2002.

8. Morozov P. Evolution of the employment contract // Economics and life of AKDI. 2002, No. 4. P. 18-19.

The Labor Code of the Russian Federation, Article 77, provides general grounds for termination of an employment contract. In accordance with this article, an employment contract may be terminated due to:

1. reaching an agreement between the parties;

2. expiration of the employment contract, except for cases where the employment relationship actually continues and neither party has demanded its termination;

3. termination of the employment contract at the initiative of the employee;

4. termination of the employment contract at the initiative of the employer;

5. transfer of an employee, at his request or with his consent, to work for another employer or transfer to an elective job (position);

6. the employee’s refusal to continue working in connection with a change in the owner of the organization’s property, a change in the jurisdiction (subordination) of the organization or its reorganization;

7. the employee’s refusal to continue working due to a change in the essential terms of the employment contract;

8. the employee’s refusal to transfer to another job due to health conditions in accordance with a medical report;

9. the employee’s refusal to transfer due to the employer’s relocation to another location;

10. the presence of circumstances beyond the control of the parties;

11. violation of the rules for concluding an employment contract established by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation or other federal law, if this violation excludes the possibility of continuing work.

Now, let's look at these reasons in more detail.

1. The employment contract, in accordance with Art. 78 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, can be terminated at any time by agreement of the parties. To dismiss on this basis, a corresponding application from the employee is required, with a request to dismiss him in accordance with paragraph 1 of Part 77 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation and a positive decision of the employer. This basis for dismissal has some advantages over voluntary dismissal, which will be discussed a little later. So, for example, when applying to the employment center and subsequent registration as unemployed, the amount of the benefit will be determined on the basis of the official salary that was at the last place of work, while when resigning at will and subsequently applying to the employment center, the amount of benefits, in case of recognition as unemployed, will be determined on the basis of the minimum wage (minimum wage), which, as a rule, is significantly less.

2. An employment contract concluded for a certain period, in accordance with Art. 79 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, terminated upon expiration of its validity period, of which the employee must be warned in writing at least three days before dismissal. Here it is necessary to note one legislative limitation - in the event of expiration of a fixed-term employment contract during a woman’s pregnancy, the employer is obliged, at her request, to extend the term of the employment contract until she becomes entitled to maternity leave. An employment contract concluded for the duration of certain work is terminated upon completion of this work. An employment contract concluded for the duration of the duties of an absent employee is terminated when this employee returns to work. An employment contract concluded for the duration of seasonal work is terminated after a certain season.

3. For dismissal of one's own free will (at the initiative of the employee), it is necessary to warn the employer, as stated in Art. 80 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, about your dismissal in writing two weeks in advance. By agreement between the employee and the employer, the employment contract may be terminated and the employee dismissed accordingly even before the expiration of the notice period. In cases where an employee’s application for voluntary resignation is related to the impossibility of continuing his work, for example due to enrollment in an educational institution, retirement, etc., as well as in cases of established violation by the employer of legal requirements or, say, the terms of an employment contract , the employer is obliged to terminate the employment contract within the period specified in the employee’s application. Upon expiration of the notice period for dismissal, the employee has the right to stop working. On the last day of work, the employer is obliged to issue the employee a work book and other documents related to the work, upon the employee’s written application, and make a final payment to him. At the same time, it is worth keeping in mind that before the expiration of the notice of dismissal, the employee has the right to withdraw his application at any time. If the application is withdrawn, dismissal is not carried out, except in cases where another employee is not invited in writing to replace the employee who submitted the application for dismissal, who, in accordance with current legislation, cannot be refused to conclude an employment contract. In cases where, upon expiration of the notice period for dismissal, the employment contract has not been terminated, and the employee does not insist on dismissal, the employment contract continues.

4. At the initiative of the employer, employment contract, in accordance with Art. 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, may be terminated in the following cases:

• liquidation of the organization or termination of activities by the employer - an individual;
• reduction in the number or staff of the organization's employees;
• inconsistency of the employee with the position held or the work performed due to:
• health status in accordance with a medical report;
• insufficient qualifications confirmed by certification results;
• change of owner of the organization’s property (in relation to the head of the organization, his deputies and the chief accountant);
• repeated failure by an employee to perform labor duties without good reason, if he has a disciplinary sanction;
• a single gross violation of labor duties by an employee:
• absenteeism (absence from the workplace without good reason for more than four hours in a row during the working day);
• appearing at work in a state of alcohol, drug or other toxic intoxication;
• disclosure of secrets protected by law (state, commercial, official and other) that became known to the employee in connection with the performance of his job duties;
• committing at the place of work theft (including small) of someone else's property, embezzlement, intentional destruction or damage, established by a court verdict that has entered into legal force or a resolution of an authority authorized to apply administrative penalties;
• violation by an employee of labor safety requirements, if this violation entailed serious consequences (industrial accident, accident, catastrophe) or knowingly created a real threat of such consequences;
• commission of guilty actions by an employee directly servicing monetary or commodity assets, if these actions give rise to a loss of confidence in him on the part of the employer;
• the commission by an employee performing educational functions of an immoral offense incompatible with the continuation of this work;
• making an unjustified decision by the head of the organization (branch, representative office), his deputies and the chief accountant, which entailed a violation of the safety of property, its unlawful use or other damage to the property of the organization;
• a single gross violation by the head of the organization (branch, representative office) or his deputies of their labor duties;
• the employee submits false documents or knowingly false information to the employer when concluding an employment contract;
• termination of access to state secrets if the work performed requires access to state secrets;
• provided for in the employment contract with the head of the organization, members of the collegial executive body of the organization;

It is worth noting that dismissal due to a reduction in staff numbers or the employee’s inadequacy for the position held is permitted if it is impossible to transfer the employee with his consent to another job.

Dismissal of an employee on vacation or sick leave at the initiative of the employer is not allowed, except in the case of liquidation of the organization or termination of activities by the employer - an individual.

In the event of termination of the activities of a branch, representative office or other separate structural unit of an organization located in another locality, the termination of employment contracts with employees of these structural units is carried out according to the rules provided for cases of liquidation of the organization.

It is important to emphasize that in order to dismiss an employee for any of these reasons, the employer must have documents confirming these grounds. For example, in order to be dismissed due to appearing at work in a state of alcoholic or other intoxication, it is necessary to have an act documenting the detection of signs of intoxication of the employee while he was at work, a medical examination act confirming the presence of alcoholic or other intoxication, and written explanations from the employee; To dismiss due to absenteeism, a document must be drawn up, recording the employee’s absence from the workplace for 4 hours and written explanations from the employee. In addition, it is worth noting that termination of an employment contract at the initiative of the employer with certain categories of employees is not allowed, for example, with pregnant women (except in cases of liquidation of the organization), with women with children under the age of three, single mothers raising a child in under the age of fourteen years (a disabled child under eighteen years old), other persons raising these children without a mother (except for dismissal under paragraph 1, subparagraph “a” of paragraph 3, paragraphs 5-8, 10 and 11 of Article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation) .

5. To dismiss an employee by way of transfer at his request or with his consent to work for another employer or in connection with a transfer to an elective job (position) you need a corresponding application from the employee and a document confirming the consent of another employer (in the form of a letter or invitation to work), or a document confirming election to a particular elective position;

6. refusal to continue work due to a change in the owner of the organization’s property, a change in the jurisdiction (subordination) of the organization or its reorganization carried out at the request of the employee, with the exception of cases of termination of employment contracts with the head of the organization, his deputies and the chief accountant. In accordance with Art. 75 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, when the owner of the organization’s property changes, the new owner, no later than three months from the date on which his ownership rights arise, has the right to terminate the employment contract with the head of the organization, his deputies and the chief accountant on his own initiative.

7. Dismissal of an employee due to his refusal to continue working due to a change in the essential terms of the employment contract carried out in accordance with Art. 74 Labor Code of the Russian Federation. According to this article of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, for reasons related to changes in organizational or technological working conditions, it is allowed to change the essential terms of the employment contract determined by the parties at the initiative of the employer when the employee continues to work without changing the job function.

The employee must be notified by the employer in writing of the introduction of these changes no later than two months before their introduction, unless otherwise provided by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation or other federal law.

If the employee does not agree to continue working under the new conditions, then the employer is obliged to offer him in writing another job available in the organization that corresponds to his qualifications and state of health, and in the absence of such work, a vacant lower position or lower paid job that the employee can perform with taking into account his qualifications and state of health.

In the absence of the specified work, as well as in the event of the employee’s refusal of the proposed work, the employment contract is terminated in accordance with paragraph 7 of Article 77 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

If the circumstances specified in part one of this article may lead to mass dismissal of workers, the employer, in order to preserve jobs, has the right, taking into account the opinion of the elected trade union body of this organization (if there is one), to introduce a part-time working regime for a period of up to six months.

If the employee refuses to continue working under the terms of the appropriate working hours, then the employment contract is terminated in accordance with paragraph 2 of Article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation with the payment to the employee of severance pay provided for by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Cancellation of the part-time work regime is carried out by the employer, taking into account the opinion of the representative body of the organization’s employees.

It is important to note that in any case, changes to the essential terms of the employment contract cannot be introduced that worsen the employee’s position in comparison with the terms of the collective agreement, agreement, or the provisions of labor legislation;

8. In accordance with para. 1 tbsp. 73 Labor Code of the Russian Federation, an employee who, in accordance with a medical certificate, needs to be provided with another job, the employer is obliged, with his consent, to transfer him to another available job that is not contraindicated for him for health reasons. If the employee refuses to transfer or the organization does not have the relevant work, the employment contract is terminated in accordance with paragraph 8 of Article 77 of this Code. Thus, to dismiss an employee on this basis, it is necessary to have a medical report, the employee’s application requesting a transfer to another job in accordance with the medical report and the absence of such a possibility of transfer, or a written refusal of the provided transfer, in accordance with the medical report.

9. An employee’s refusal to transfer due to the employer’s relocation to another location. Termination of an employment contract on this basis is carried out in accordance with Part 1 of Art. 72.1 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation in the case when an organization, moving to another area, notified the employee in a timely manner and received a written refusal to transfer to another area together with the organization;

10 . Termination of an employment contract due to circumstances beyond the control of the parties, is carried out in accordance with Art. 83 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, in the following cases:

• conscripting an employee into military service or sending him to an alternative civilian service that replaces it;
• reinstatement at work of an employee who previously performed this work, by decision of the state labor inspectorate or court. Termination of an employment contract on this basis is permitted if it is impossible to transfer the employee, with his written consent, to another job;
• failure to be elected to office;
• convicting the employee to a punishment that precludes the continuation of his previous work, in accordance with a court verdict that has entered into legal force;
• declaring the employee completely disabled in accordance with a medical report;
• death of an employee or employer - an individual, as well as recognition by a court of an employee or employer - an individual as deceased or missing;
• the occurrence of emergency circumstances that impede the continuation of labor relations (military action, catastrophe, natural disaster, major accident, epidemic and other emergency circumstances), if this circumstance is recognized by a decision of the Government of the Russian Federation or a government body of the relevant constituent entity of the Russian Federation.

11. Termination of an employment contract due to violation of the mandatory rules established by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation or other federal law when concluding an employment contract carried out in accordance with Art. 84 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, if violation of these rules excludes the possibility of continuing work in the following cases:

• conclusion of an employment contract in violation of a court verdict depriving a specific person of the right to occupy certain positions or engage in certain activities. Termination of an employment contract on this basis is permitted if it is impossible to transfer the employee, with his written consent, to another job;
• concluding an employment contract to perform work that is contraindicated for a given person for health reasons in accordance with a medical report;
• lack of an appropriate education document if the work requires special knowledge in accordance with federal law or other regulatory legal acts;
• in other cases provided for by federal law.

In the event of termination of an employment contract due to violation of the mandatory rules established by law when concluding an employment contract, the employer pays the employee severance pay in the amount of average monthly earnings, if the violation of the rules for concluding an employment contract was not the fault of the employee.

In all cases, the day of dismissal of an employee is the last day of his work.

In addition to the generally considered grounds for termination of an employment contract, special laws may establish additional grounds. For example:

• dismissal of a civil servant, in addition to the grounds provided for in the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, is also allowed in cases of reaching the age limit established by law, disclosure of information constituting state and other secrets protected by law, on other grounds expressly specified in Art. 33 of the Federal Law “On Public Service” (including engaging in entrepreneurial activities personally or through proxies; membership in the management body of a commercial organization; acting as an attorney or representative of third parties in the government agency where he serves).

The relationship between the employer and employees must be formalized, for which an employment contract is used. It must be drawn up in the correct form and contain a lot of important information. It can only be terminated if there are compelling reasons. The initiator can be either an employer or an employee. Therefore, you should understand how termination of an employment contract occurs, how this process is formalized, and also how business owners can avoid various negative consequences.

General provisions

Dismissal is represented by the termination of an employment contract or other contracts drawn up between a business representative and a hired specialist. Each party performs certain actions aimed at ending the relationship. The nuances of the process include:

• the employer must take into account the provisions of the Labor Code in order to prevent various violations for which significant fines will have to be paid;
• if a specialist is dismissed without prior notice or without compelling reasons, he can challenge this action through the court;
• upon dismissal of a citizen, it is required to pay him severance pay and other funds, as well as put the necessary mark in the work book.

Proper termination of an employment contract guarantees no problems with the labor inspectorate or court for a business representative.

Contract concept

An employment contract is a bilateral agreement drawn up and signed by the employer and employees. Based on it, the hired specialist occupies a specific position. He is assigned certain job responsibilities that must be performed promptly and correctly.

This document regulates the relations arising between the two parties.

Not all companies use such contracts, since employment is often offered without registration. In this case, firms can save on taxes and contributions to various social funds. But such a solution is unacceptable for specialists, since their future pension is reduced, they cannot count on a social package, and they can also resign in violation of Labor Code norms. Therefore, each person must require an employment contract before starting work. This guarantees the opportunity to defend your rights in case of unjustified dismissal.

Reasons for termination of the contract

There are various grounds for terminating an employment contract. They can be available to both the employee and the business owner. If the initiator is the employer, then he cannot deprive the specialist of his job without reason. Therefore, they must take into account different nuances and requirements.

There are several reasons:

• which is carried out if both parties agree that it is inappropriate for the employee to continue working at a particular enterprise;
• dismissal of a citizen by an employer, and this is usually due to the fact that the hired specialist cannot cope with his duties, regularly violates labor discipline, or there are other compelling reasons;
• dismissal of an employee at his own request, for example, he may not be satisfied with the working conditions, he may find another job, or he needs to move to another city altogether;
• transfer of a specialist to another company or to another position in one company;
• termination of relations on the basis that significant changes have been made to the principles and rules of the organization;
• refusal to extend or renew the contract on the part of management or the specialist himself, which is usually associated with the introduction of fundamental changes in working conditions;
• you have to end the relationship due to circumstances that are beyond the control of the two parties;
• the contract does not comply with legal requirements, so it is impossible for the specialist to further cooperate with such an employer.

These are the most popular grounds for ending a relationship. Most often, termination of an employment contract is made as a result of a decision made by management or the employee himself. An agreement is also often drawn up on the basis of which the contract is voluntarily terminated.

How does an employee terminate an agreement?

Often the initiator is the hired specialist himself. He may have various reasons for this. Termination of an employment contract at the initiative of an employee is also called voluntary dismissal. However, certain conditions must be met, which include:

• the person cannot continue cooperation, for example, he retires, the working conditions of the enterprise change, a move is planned or long-term treatment is planned;
• the employer violates employment legislation or the immediate provisions of the employment contract itself.

If there are such grounds, each person can terminate relations with the company. Termination of an employment contract by an employee requires the preparation of a special application, which is submitted to the management of the company. It requires you to indicate the reasons for leaving work, and also states a petition on the basis of which the contract will be terminated. In this case, a mandatory work assignment is assigned, after which the specialist receives the funds due to him and a work book with the changes made.

The nuances of termination of relations by the employer

The initiator can even be the management of a particular company. Such a procedure may be associated with various reasons, and they must be justified. Termination of an employment contract at the initiative of the employer can be carried out if the following conditions are met:

• closure of a company or individual entrepreneur;
• carrying out the reduction procedure at the enterprise;
• the employee lacks the necessary knowledge, skills or experience to cope with the work assigned to him;
• the owner of the property used in the operation of the company has changed;
• the employee does not fulfill his job duties specified in the agreement, and such cases are repeated, but they must be recorded by bringing the employee to disciplinary liability;
• violation of work rules by a citizen, which is represented by absence from work during the entire work shift without good reason, appearing at work in a state of intoxication, or disclosing confidential work information;
• theft of property or valuables belonging to the company;
• committing immoral acts against other employees of the company.

The above reasons are considered the most popular. Termination of an employment contract by an employer is considered a rather complex process. It must be fulfilled on the basis of numerous conditions, otherwise an employee dismissed in violation of the Labor Code may go to court to recover a fine and moral damages.

How does an employee terminate a relationship?

If the citizen himself, represented by a hired specialist, decides on the need for dismissal, he must know what actions he is taking to achieve this. Termination of an employment contract at the initiative of the employee occurs in successive steps. To do this, the following steps are implemented:

• Initially, a special application is formed, which indicates the need to dismiss the citizen;
• The names of the parties, the reasons why the citizen does not want to continue working in the company must be written down in the document, and there must also be a main text containing different facts depending on the situation;
• at the end of such an application the signature of the applicant must be placed;
• if the reason is related to a disruption in the work of the company itself, then it is advisable to leave a reference to the legal act, the requirements of which are violated by the management;
• the date of the application is entered;
• the document is transferred to the immediate manager of the organization or to the human resources department;
• the company's employees or director must accept this application;
• over the next 14 days the employee continues to cope with his duties, and all days are paid as usual;
• on the last day, he is given a work book and other documents handed over to the company’s management during the employment process.

Quite often, termination of an employment contract is carried out in this way. A sample application for an employee is considered simple, and the document can differ significantly depending on the reason for dismissal and the specialist’s place of work.

Is it possible to withdraw an application?

During the work period, which lasts 14 days, the employee can withdraw the application, and the manager cannot refuse him. An exception would be the situation if another specialist with prerogative for employment is already hired.

Some citizens may change their mind even after 14 days. These include military personnel, and they should be offered the same place as before.

How does the employer terminate the relationship?

Quite often, the director of the company himself decides on the need to fire an employee. Termination of an employment contract at the initiative of the employer is considered a specific process, since the rights of employees and the norms of the Labor Code must be taken into account.

Before carrying out the process, it is important to make sure that the person can be fired, and you also need to check whether the work process will deteriorate and whether labor productivity will decrease.

The procedure is divided into stages:

• the company's management makes the appropriate decision;
• the employee is given a notice of termination of the employment contract, presented in the form of an order;
• the document indicates the name of the dismissed citizen, as well as the reason why the employment relationship is to be terminated;
• the date of acceptance of the notice is specified, and it must be provided to the employee 2 months before termination of the contract, which allows him to find another job;
• during this time, the work process occurs as usual;
• on the last day, the citizen’s work book and other documents are handed over to him.

If the employee does not agree with this decision, he can file a lawsuit. Often, violations are related to the fact that notice of termination of an employment contract is not created or is provided late. There may also be other disorders. If they are identified, the court may declare such a procedure invalid.

Nuances of drawing up an agreement between the parties

Often even both parties come to the conclusion that it is necessary to end the relationship. There are no contradictions or disagreements between them, therefore a special agreement is drawn up to terminate the employment contract by mutual consent.

This process is documented in writing, and often requires the approval of the head of the HR department.

Pros and cons of using an agreement

Termination of an employment contract by agreement of the parties has many advantages, since the worker receives the required compensation, and the manager does not have to deal with legal proceedings or complaints to the labor inspectorate.

When drawing up the document, it is not necessary to indicate the reason why the relationship is terminated. Termination of an employment contract by termination of the parties allows the employee to receive high payments from the labor exchange if he is registered after leaving the company. It is allowed to end the relationship even before the end of the probationary period. An extra month is added to the employee's length of service.

Termination of an employment contract by termination of the parties is allowed if the employee is on sick leave or on vacation, or is absent from work for other serious and compelling reasons.

But there are also some disadvantages, which are that the employer’s activities under such conditions are not controlled by the trade union. Therefore, a situation may arise when such a decision is considered questionable or unlawful.

How is a fixed-term contract terminated?

Often, to register a specialist, fixed-term contracts are used, which clearly indicate the period of time during which the employee is required to perform labor duties. Typically this period does not exceed 5 years.

Termination of a fixed-term employment contract must be carried out in the correct sequence of actions and taking into account some significant factors. In this case, the conditions specified in the document are taken into account. If it is indicated that it is valid for only two years, then after this time the relationship is terminated, and the head of the company must warn the specialist about this in advance. This process is carried out three days before the scheduled date.

If a document is drawn up to perform some work, then the relationship ends after the completion of this work. In this case, all conditions of the document must be met.

Also, such a contract is often required to replace another specialist, so it ceases to be valid when the previous employee returns.

Termination of a fixed-term employment contract usually occurs automatically, for which the corresponding deadlines are prescribed in advance in the document. It is also possible to terminate the relationship early by either party for various reasons.

If violations are detected, citizens can file a lawsuit.

Thus, the procedure for terminating an employment contract is considered a specific process. For it to be legal and correct, each party must take into account numerous requirements and rules. The initiator can be either an employee or the head of the organization. An agreement to terminate an employment contract is often drawn up, which allows each party to enjoy many benefits. In case of violations by the employer, hired specialists can go to court to challenge the contract or dismissal.

The law regulates in detail the termination of an employment contract at the initiative of the employer. The fact is that it is in this matter that the employee is least protected, and the field of possible abuse for the employer is wider than in any other area of ​​labor relations. Therefore, the intervention of the law in this issue is completely justified.

Dismissal - strictly according to the law

The employer and employee are parties to an employment contract, that is, an agreement between the parties to establish labor relations between them.

The employer’s right to conclude, amend and terminate (or terminate, which is the same thing) employment contracts in the manner and under the conditions established by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation is enshrined in its article. 22.

It corresponds to the same right of the employee (Article 21 of the Labor Code).

This means that the employer cannot arbitrarily dismiss an employee on his own initiative; there must be legal grounds for this. Compliance with the procedure for terminating an employment contract at the initiative of the employer is also a necessary condition for its legality.

Grounds for dismissal

Dismissal for wrongdoing

The fact of theft, embezzlement or intentional destruction must be established by a judicial act (sentence, resolution) that has entered into legal force.

The falsity of the document submitted by the employee must be properly established and recorded (for example, by a special examination).

Conditions for termination of an employment contract at the initiative of the employer

Each group of grounds has its own order and procedure for dismissal, enshrined in law. Failure to comply with them may lead to the employee’s reinstatement at work and administrative liability of the employer under Art. 5.27 Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation.

But there are also general conditions: an employee dismissed at the initiative of the employer must not be on vacation or on sick leave at that time (except in cases of liquidation of the organization or termination of the activities of an individual entrepreneur).

Dismissal of an employee during such periods is prohibited by Part 6 of Art. 81 Labor Code of the Russian Federation. Neglecting this rule can also be costly for the employer.

All the grounds for termination of an employment contract at the initiative of the employer listed in the article apply to both fixed-term and open-ended contracts. .

The grounds for termination of an employment contract are established by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. They are divided into general and special. Below are general grounds that apply to almost any employee (unless special preferential rules prohibit dismissal for a specific reason).

Classification of grounds for termination and termination of an employment contract according to the Labor Code of the Russian Federation

The list of general grounds for termination of an employment contract is covered in Art. 77 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation (hereinafter referred to as the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Moreover, in legal science, such grounds are usually divided into 3 groups.

Group I. Termination due to the will of one or both parties. The grounds for termination of the employment contract in this case are as follows:

• in connection with reaching an agreement (Article 78 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
• at the initiative of the employee (Article 80 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
• at the initiative of the employer (Article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Group II. Cases when it is impossible to continue the employment relationship due to certain events. This:

• the end of the period for which the employment contract was concluded (Article 79 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
• transfer of an employee, carried out at his request or with consent, from one organization to another;
• reorganization or other change of the employer, change in the terms of the employment contract, relocation of the organization to another area and the subsequent refusal of the employee to carry out activities under changed circumstances (Articles 72.1, 74, 75 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
• non-compliance with the rules for concluding an agreement (Article 84 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).
• refusal to transfer to another job if the need for such a transfer is caused by medical indications (Article 73 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Group III includes termination of an employment contract when circumstances arise that do not depend on the will of the participants in the labor relationship (Article 83 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Note! Classification of grounds for termination of an employment contract can be made based on other factors.

Agreement of the parties or employee initiative

One of the common grounds for terminating an employment contract is termination upon reaching an appropriate agreement between the employee and the employer. Some people mistakenly perceive it as identical to termination at the employee’s own request.

In fact, there are differences between these two bases; we present them in the table.

Conclusion! So, the employee does not have the right to withdraw the application upon termination of the employment contract by agreement of the parties (Article 78 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). And when filing an application under Art. 80 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, he has two weeks to change his mind (see the ruling of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation dated October 13, 2009 No. 1091-О-О).

Note! In case of dismissal under Art. 80 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, in contrast to Art. 78 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the presence of management’s consent or its absence has no legal significance for termination of an employment contract (see the ruling of the Chelyabinsk Regional Court dated November 11, 2013 in case No. 11-11506/2013).

Why you can fire an employee under the Labor Code

The grounds for dismissal of an employee under the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, initiated by the employer, are listed in Art. 81. The list contained therein is not exhaustive. Special norms of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation or special laws may provide for other grounds.

Note! Unlike the right of an employee, who can quit without giving any reason, the right of an employer to dismiss an employee is limited by law. The restriction is aimed at protecting the employee as the more vulnerable person in the relationship in question.

Listed in Art. 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, grounds, in turn, are also classified into 2 types:

1. Grounds arising as a result of the employee committing illegal actions or other guilty behavior.
2. Grounds that have an objective reason, in the absence of a relationship with the employee’s guilty behavior.

The grounds related to the first type are given in paragraphs. 5-11 tbsp. 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation - among them:

• failure to fulfill duties in the absence of valid reasons, committed more than once;
• gross failure to comply with duties committed once;
• actions of the employee that caused a loss of confidence in him;
• committing an immoral act (for certain categories of workers);
• actions that caused damage to the employer (in relation to managers, their deputies and chief accountants);
• submission of false documents during the registration of labor relations.

All other grounds on which you can dismiss an employee, named in this article, belong to the second type.

Reasons for dismissing an employee that do not require prior sanctions

Clauses 5 and 6 of Art. 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation provide for the possibility of terminating an employment contract with an employee if he fails to comply with labor discipline. The difference between them is that dismissal under clause 5 is possible only if the employee already has an outstanding disciplinary sanction, and clause 6 does not require an existing punishment, but states that the offense must be gross.

The same article provides a list of gross violations of labor discipline, which make it possible to dismiss a person who has not previously had any penalties.

Important! According to paragraph 38 of the resolution of the Plenum of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation dated March 17, 2004 No. 2, the presented list of violations is not subject to a broad interpretation and is exhaustive.

Grounds for dismissal of an employee that do not require prior sanctions:

• absenteeism, which means absence from work for more than 4 hours;
• being at work in a state of intoxication;
• disclosure of commercial, official or other protected secrets;
• entry into force of a judicial act confirming the theft of property, embezzlement, or damage to property at work;
• non-compliance with labor safety requirements, resulting in serious consequences.

Nuances of other general grounds for dismissal

The remaining grounds for dismissal listed in paragraphs. 2, 5-9, 11 tbsp. 77 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, are caused by the occurrence of a certain legal event or legally significant action, which, in turn, make further execution of the employment contract impossible. Each of them has its own specific application.

Here are just some of the nuances that you should pay attention to when dismissing an employee for these reasons:

1. If after the expiration of the contract the employee continues to work, then it is considered extended for an indefinite period. In this case, the employer is deprived of the right to dismiss under Art. 79 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
2. Dismissal in connection with a transition to a new employer is carried out according to general rules and requires the employee to draw up a corresponding application.
3. An employee’s refusal to work with the new owner of the organization, i.e., a new employer, as well as in connection with the reorganization or reassignment of the employer, is grounds for dismissal that can be applied to the manager, his deputies and the chief accountant.
4. Dismissal when changing the terms of the employment contract is possible if the employee refuses to work in such conditions, as well as refuses other vacancies offered (Article 74 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).
5. Termination of an employment contract under clause 9 of Art. 77 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation provides for the organization to move beyond the administrative-territorial boundaries of the locality in which it is registered.

Circumstances of termination of labor relations beyond the control of the parties

The grounds for dismissal under the Labor Code, which belong to the last, third group, arise as a result of the actions not of the parties to the contract, but of third parties, or as a result of events that neither the employee nor the employer can influence. Their list is presented in Art. 83 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Important points to pay attention to:

1. When conscripted into service (military or alternative civilian), dismissal is made upon presentation of a summons and an order (clause 2 of article 14 of the law “On alternative civil service” dated July 25, 2002 No. 113-FZ, clauses 6, 7 of the regulation “On conscription for military service”, approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of November 11, 2006 No. 663).
2. Dismissal upon reinstatement of a previously employed citizen is carried out only on the basis of a decision of the State Labor Inspectorate or a judicial act.
3. An employee can be recognized as incapable of work only on the basis of an ITU conclusion.
4. Termination of an employment contract due to an emergency circumstance is possible only when this circumstance is recognized as such by a decision of the Government of the Russian Federation or an authorized government agency of a constituent entity of the Russian Federation.

Thus, the Labor Code of the Russian Federation provides for more than a dozen general grounds for termination of an employment contract, each of which has its own nuances and requires a more careful and detailed analysis. You will find detailed information about employment relationships and their termination in the “HR” section on our website.