The employer cannot shift the start of the working day to an earlier time without the consent of the employees. This clarification was made by the first general jurisdiction of the Court of Cassation in its examination of judicial practice. The reason for the clarifications was the case of Maria V., a resident of the Nizhny Novgorod region, whose bosses, by order, changed the working schedule. After refusing to come to work at eight in the morning, the woman was fired. & Lt;
Why was the court prohibited from shifting the working day without the workers' consent?
The court considered that changing the working schedule against the will of the employee was forced labor, which is prohibited by law in Russia. The court referred to Convention No. 29 of the International Labor Organization of June 28, 1930. The document was ratified in 1956 by the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR.
According to this document, forced labor is understood as any work that must be performed under the threat of any kind of sanction and for which the employee has not given his voluntary consent. According to the explanation of the court, the changes to the working hours from 9 a.m. to 8 a.m. are de jure mandatory, because the employee did not voluntarily offer her services during these hours. On the contrary, she was forced to come earlier on pain of sanction up to and including dismissal.
What if I need to change the work schedule?
According to article 72 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, changes to the terms of an employment contract are allowed only with the agreement of parts. If the employee does not agree to work under the new conditions, then the employer is obliged to offer him another job in writing, explained the First Court of Cassation.
In this case, the employer is obligated to offer the employee all vacancies that meet the specified requirements as field. The employer is obliged to offer vacant positions in other localities, if this is provided for by the collective agreement, agreements, employment contract (article 74 of the Labor Code of the Federation of Russia)
severance pay in the amount of an average salary over two weeks in accordance with Part 7 of Art. 178 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
Can an employee demand reinstatement for unlawful dismissal?
In the event of unlawful dismissal, an employee has the right not only to demand reinstatement, but also to recover substantial compensation. A person should receive a salary that they could have received, but did not receive due to wrongful dismissal. In addition, courts must necessarily award compensation for moral injury.