Labor Code of the Republic of Belarus: hiring and dismissal, minimum wage, overtime pay

From August 25, the Law of the Republic of Belarus of January 8, 2014 No. 131-Z "On Amendments and Additions to the Labor Code of the Republic of Belarus" came into force. As a result, changes affected more than 180 articles of the Labor Code, which are ultimately aimed at consolidating labor relations issues within it, improving its norms to ensure their consistency with other legislative acts, as well as taking into account the practice of their application. In our publication, a "direct line" with readers was held by Veneta Nikolaevna Sinitskaya, Deputy Head of the Vitebsk Regional Department of the Department of State Labor Inspectorate, who answered readers' questions regarding working hours, hiring and dismissal, minimum wage, overtime pay, and others. Today we publish answers on the most popular topics.

Irina Nikolaevna.

— A grandmother is calling you, who is on social leave for childcare up to three years old. I was told that the legislation has changed, and if I do not return to work from August 25, 2014, I will be dismissed for absenteeism, as my daughter (the child's mother) is on maternity leave. Is this action lawful?

— Yes, it is legitimate. Indeed, on August 25, 2014, the Law of the Republic of Belarus of January 8, 2014, No. 131-Z "On Amendments and Additions to the Labor Code of the Republic of Belarus" came into force. The new version of Article 185 enshrines the right to childcare leave for a working father or other relative, a family member, not only instead of the mother working under an employment contract, but also in cases where she is engaged in independent activities provided for by legislation, i.e., cases where the mother is an individual entrepreneur, a private notary, a lawyer, a creative worker, a person engaged in handicraft activities, or activities in the field of agro-ecotourism. Taking into account the issues that arose during the application of Article 185 of the Labor Code, amendments were also made to it on other points. In particular, Part Six of Article 185 of the Code establishes a norm according to which childcare leave until the child reaches the age of 3 years is interrupted in the event that the child's mother is granted maternity leave and resumes upon its completion.

Thus, citizens who have exercised the right to childcare leave instead of the mother lose this right for the period the mother is on maternity leave.

Svetlana EFIMOVA.

— I worked under a fixed-term employment contract (not a contract). At my request, I was dismissed due to the employer's violation of labor legislation under Article 41 of the Labor Code. Do I have the right to severance pay?

— Yes, you do. For the termination of a fixed-term employment contract that is not a contract, severance pay is paid, as provided for by Part Three of Article 48 of the Labor Code, which is not less than two weeks' average earnings.

Ivan Sergeevich.

— Veneta Nikolaevna, I am 61 years old, I work under a contract, and due to the employer's violation of labor legislation, I wish to terminate the contract under Article 41 of the Labor Code. What severance pay am I entitled to claim?

— Termination of a contract with employees who have reached retirement age (men – 60 years, women – 55 years) and are entitled to a full pension, as well as employees who have not reached the specified age but are receiving a pension (except for disability pensions, survivor's pensions, and social pensions), shall be paid severance pay as provided for in Part Three of Article 48 of the Labor Code – not less than two weeks of average earnings.

Nikolai.

— I am interested in whether I can work concurrently in three organizations, with different employers?

— Yes. The new version of Article 343 of the Labor Code enshrines the employee's right to conclude part-time employment contracts with an unlimited number of employers, unless otherwise established by legislative acts.

Valentina IVANOVA.

— Veneta Nikolaevna, I have this situation: I have a main job, and I want to get a part-time job. Do I need to get consent for part-time work from my employer?

— For part-time work, consent from the employer at the main place of work is not required, except in cases provided for by the Labor Code of the Republic of Belarus and other legislative acts.

Valentin Mikhailovich.

— Due to the temporary suspension of work at my main place of employment, my employer granted me unpaid leave. Can I get a part-time job with another employer, and for what duration of working time?

— Yes, you can. Employees on unpaid leave or leave with partial wage payment, granted at the initiative of the employer in cases of temporary suspension of work or reduction of its volume, can work part-time on a full working day (shift) basis.

Ekaterina.

— I heard that the payment for overtime, public holidays, festive days, and days off has changed. How exactly?

— Since August 25, 2014, according to Article 69 of the Labor Code, for each hour of overtime, public holidays, festive days, and days off, in addition to the wages accrued for the specified time, an additional payment is made: for piece-rate workers — not less than piece-rate tariffs; for time-rate workers — not less than hourly tariff rates (salaries). For overtime work and work on days off, instead of additional payment, another unpaid day off may be granted with the employee's consent. In this case, for overtime hours, one unpaid day off is granted based on an eight-hour working day (one day off for eight hours of overtime work).

Sergey.

— I am constantly involved in overtime work. Tell me, is there a limit on the amount of overtime work for an employee?

— Yes, there is. Firstly, according to Article 120 of the Labor Code, overtime work is allowed only with the employee's consent, except for cases provided for in Article 121 of the Code, as well as by collective agreement or treaty. Secondly, overtime work should not exceed 10 hours per week and 180 hours per year for each employee, and the duration of daily work, including overtime, should not exceed 12 hours. The limit does not include overtime work performed in cases provided for in Article 121 of the Code. Thirdly, the employer is obliged to keep an accurate record of overtime work performed by each employee. Information about the amount of overtime work is provided to the employee upon request.

— I have cumulative working time accounting. Previously, my working hours according to the work schedule never exceeded 12 hours. Now we have been given a work schedule that includes days with 14-hour work shifts. Is this lawful?

— Lawful. Since August 25, 2014, the Law of the Republic of Belarus of January 8, 2014 No. 131-Z has amended Article 126 of the Labor Code. Thus, the weekly duration of working hours with summarized accounting may be more or less than the established norm of working hours per week (Articles 112-114). In this case, the daily duration of working hours cannot exceed 12 hours on average for the accounting period. This means that during the accounting period, the weekly working hours stipulated by Articles 112-114 of the Code may be more in some weeks and less in others compared to the weekly norm. When establishing summarized working hours for employees, their work can be planned for individual days of the accounting period with a duration of more than 12 hours (with the exception of certain categories of employees), and for individual days - less than 12 hours. In this case, the daily working hours limit for the accounting period (quarter, half-year, year) must be observed, not exceeding 12 hours on average. The established working hours regime must be brought to the attention of employees no later than one month before its introduction (Part 6 of Article 123 of the Labor Code).

Ivan Pavlovich.

— I work as a security guard in a private organization. Does the payment of minimum wage apply to private organizations?

— Yes, certainly. In connection with the entry into force of the Law of the Republic of Belarus of April 24, 2014 No. 134-Z "On Amendments and Additions to Certain Laws of the Republic of Belarus on Minimum Wage", in accordance with which Article 59 of the Labor Code and the Law of the Republic of Belarus of July 17, 2002 No. 124-Z "On the Establishment and Procedure for Increasing the Minimum Wage" (hereinafter referred to as the Law) have been restated in a new edition.

The amount of the monthly minimum wage is established annually by the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus from January 1, taking into account the ratio of the monthly minimum wage to the minimum consumer budget, as well as other indicators. The Law establishes that the hourly minimum wage is determined by the employer by dividing the monthly minimum wage by the ratio of the calculated norm of working hours of the calendar year, established for specific categories of employees by the employer in accordance with labor legislation, and the number of months in the calendar year.

A collective agreement (agreement) may establish a different amount of the monthly minimum wage, but not lower than the amount of the monthly minimum wage established in accordance with the law.

The new edition of the law provides that for an employee whose accrued wage is lower than the minimum wage (monthly and hourly), the employer is obliged to make an additional payment up to the minimum wage (monthly and hourly). When determining the amount of such additional payment, payments of a compensatory nature and payments not related to the employee's performance of duties arising from legislation, local regulatory legal acts, and the employment contract are not taken into account in the employee's accrued wage.

Prepared by Natalia DROZDOVA, "Vitebskiye Vedomosti"