Conclusion What conditions must be included in an employment contract?

27.08.2019

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4 min.

The relationship between an employee and an employer is secured by an employment contract. The document specifies the main provisions related to the process of service, as well as remuneration for it. All aspects included in the agreement can be divided into mandatory and additional. The peculiarity of the former is that they appear in all types of employment contracts.

Basic Concepts

When considering the essential conditions, it is necessary to study the basic concepts that are necessarily present in any version of the work contract:

• employment contract – a contract concluded between an employer and an applicant for a specific position;
• provisions of the agreement - conditions governing the process of the employee’s activities, the rights and obligations of the parties;
• employer – a person or organization providing places to work;
• employee - a citizen who has entered into an agreement with an enterprise, performs his duties and receives a salary for this;
• mandatory terms in an employment contract are necessary elements of the agreement.

Attention! All relationships between the parties are regulated by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, as well as a number of other regulations.

Can the terms be changed?

If the essential conditions specified in the employment agreement change (for example, the working technological process is rebuilt, and therefore the work schedule is changed), the employer is obliged to notify the subordinate about the innovations no later than 2 months before they come into force.

If the employee is not satisfied with these changes, he can:

1. obtain another position at the enterprise, but the level of his salary should not decrease;
2. terminate the contract with the employer, indicating the reason - change in working conditions.

When dismissed in this situation, the employee is not entitled to any compensation , as, for example, in case of layoff. Unscrupulous employers often take advantage of this fact.

That is why it is permissible to change significant labor conditions only in two cases - during technological or organizational reform at the enterprise.

If, after changing any clause in the contract, the employee’s position worsens or the conditions contradict Russian laws, then the contract is canceled, declared invalid and leads to legal proceedings, which is regulated by
Article 8 of the Labor Code .
When concluding an employment contract, you should carefully read each clause indicated in the document. This will protect you from many problems, since failure to comply with the conditions leads to sanctions applied to both subordinates and superiors, and allows you to work in accordance with the standards specified in the legislation.

Let's consider the absence of essential conditions using the example of a contract:

General contents of the cooperation agreement

The employment contract has a unified form and a list of basic provisions. In addition to the mandatory and additional conditions, which are individual for each company and specialty, the document contains:

1. Personal information of the parties – full name of the employee and name of the employing company or individual entrepreneur.
2. Information about identification documents of individuals (employees and sometimes business owners).
3. Information about the employer’s representative, reflecting his authority in concluding the agreement.
4. Day and place of formation of the agreement.

Next, we will consider in more detail what are the essential and additional conditions when concluding a contract.

Essential (mandatory) conditions

The essential terms of an employment contract are basic aspects that are required to be specified. The absence of one or another clause makes the document invalid, since it is considered incomplete. These include:

• place of duty indicating the full address and telephone numbers;
• job responsibilities, work schedule and list of specific powers for this employee;
• start date of employment and, in case of a fixed-term agreement, end date;
• terms of payment for work;
• a link to the work and rest schedule recorded in the company’s internal documentation or a detailed description if it will be different for the employee;
• guarantees provided for by labor legislation - additional payments, additional days off, vacation days and grounds for their implementation;
• the nature of the work, for example, traveling.

One of the points is the provision for compulsory insurance of employees. If all the above aspects are present, the contract is considered valid. After signatures are made, changes are possible only by drawing up an additional agreement or re-registration.

Additional terms

In accordance with labor legislation, if necessary, additional conditions may be included in the contract. Let's look at some of them specified in the code:

1. Probationary period – its existence, grounds for termination of the contract, as well as duration.
2. Obligation of non-disclosure of corporate secrets - as a rule, the clause is included in the agreement, and the future employee signs a separate document.
3. Additional insurance at the initiative of the employer.
4. The need to work for a certain period of time if the company paid for the employee’s training.

It is important to know! According to current regulations, additional conditions cannot worsen the situation of the employee or his family members.

Additional terms of the employment contract

Optional provisions (Article 57 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation):

• Employee's probationary period - the employer has the right to stipulate in the employment contract additional conditions of the probationary period and its expiration date.
• Non-disclosure of secrets protected by law - the employer may require the employee to sign a non-disclosure of commercial, official and other secrets.
• Types and conditions of additional insurance for the employee - the employer may stipulate in the terms of the employment contract the obligation to provide any additional insurance to the employee.
• Improving the social and living conditions of the employee and his family members.
• The employee’s obligation to work after training for at least the established period if the training was carried out at the expense of the employer. There are often cases when an employer, wanting to protect its investment in personnel training, obliges the employee to work for a certain period after training.
• Other additional terms of the employment contract: on increasing leave, monetary compensation and other conditions that do not worsen the employee’s position in comparison with the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, laws and other regulatory legal acts (Article 57 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

List of essential conditions

The full list and contents are presented in Article 57 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. Let us consider the mandatory conditions for inclusion in an employment contract in more detail.

Place of work

The contract records not only the full name of the organization, but also its address. Note that it happens that a person will have to work at a location other than the legal address of the company, for example, if the company has structural divisions. In this case, the place of actual employment must be indicated.

Transfer of an employee from one department to another is possible only with mutual consent of the parties. Then an additional agreement to the contract is concluded, where the change of address is recorded. Thus, the place of employment is a mandatory condition of the employment contract.

Start date

In most cases, the start day of work follows the day on which the employment contract was concluded. In a number of situations, the start may be postponed by decision of the parties. For example, a girl lives abroad and will arrive in Russia only in two weeks, but the employer is interested in a specialist and concludes an agreement in advance.

Attention! If we are talking about a fixed-term agreement, then the end date is also entered as a prerequisite for concluding an employment contract. Typically, such contracts are signed with seasonal or replacement workers.

The start date is important for both parties. Firstly, the employee has the right to wages and other social privileges. Secondly, the employer may require the employee to perform job duties.

Responsibilities

The contract must specify in detail all the job functions that the employee is required to perform. An employer does not have the right to force a person to do something that is not stated in the agreement.

As a rule, the contract specifies not only the type of activity, but also a specific profession and sometimes qualifications. For example, when joining a transport company, it will be indicated not just a cargo carrier, but a driver with a category B or C license.

Job responsibilities remain unchanged throughout the entire period of service. With the mutual consent of the parties, changes may be made to the agreements, in particular related to the expansion of powers.

Working conditions

The format of activity, as a mandatory condition of an employment contract under the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, is considered in two contexts:

1. The work and rest schedule established at the enterprise for all employees or for a specific person.
2. Employee's workplace.

The employee should feel comfortable and safe. Any risk to life and health is discussed and paid additionally.

Terms of payment

According to the law, if the contract does not specify the system and amount of remuneration, the agreement is considered invalid. It is permissible to use different forms: tariffs per hour or shift, salary per month, and others described in Article 129 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Allowances and other incentive payments are also fixed in the agreement. It is not necessary to indicate their sizes, but the conditions for receipt are stated. Please note that there are circumstances in which additional payments are necessary, for example, overtime work or working on holidays.

Others

If the employment contract is not open-ended, then this fact must be indicated. The following formulations are acceptable depending on the situation:

• for seasonal work;
• for temporary replacement of the main employee;
• at the same time.

A bilateral agreement will not be valid without such basic elements as a preamble, details and signatures of the parties.

What are the conditions?

When signing a contract, the employee should carefully study the document. The employment contract must list a whole range of conditions that are significant for the labor relationship.

Essential

These are clauses that must be present in the employment contract concluded between the employer and employee. Their list is listed in Article 57 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

List of essential conditions:

1. Place of work activity.

If an employee will work in a branch or other separate division that is located in a different area, it is necessary to indicate its location .

2. Description of the work assigned to the employee.

The staffing table, specialization and qualifications and other information related to the labor function must be indicated

If an employee in connection with the implementation of this activity is entitled to benefits, compensation, or, on the contrary, any restrictions are imposed, it is necessary to indicate in the contract the position, specialty or profession in accordance with the requirements specified in the qualification reference books, which is regulated by Federal Laws 13 and 236.

3. The date on which the employee is required to begin performing duties.

If this clause is missing, the contract is considered valid from the moment it is signed by the parties.

4. Contract time.

If a fixed-term contract is concluded, it is necessary to indicate the reasons - for example, part-time work.

Find out everything about a fixed-term contract in our article.

5. Rest and work mode.

This paragraph is necessary if the conditions for carrying out activities for a particular employee differ from the general ones established by this employer. This item is regulated by the Internal Labor Regulations in force at a particular enterprise.

6. Payment amount.

All payments should be listed here . These include salary, incentive payments and other allowances.

7. Working conditions.

This indicates the presence of harmful and dangerous working conditions , as well as an irregular schedule, guarantees and compensation for the above characteristics, which is regulated by Federal Law No. 421.

8. The nature of the activity - on the road, traveling or otherwise, as well as the procedure for making payment.
9. Compulsory employee insurance.

This paragraph indicates the need for social insurance of an employee in the event of pregnancy, injury or another situation when the employee is entitled to benefits and social payments.

If any clauses of the essential conditions are not included in the employment contract, then the contract is still considered valid. However, the contract can be supplemented with those provisions that are missing by including them in a separate agreement or annex, which becomes a formal part of the contract.

Additional

additional conditions may be present in the employment contract .

As a rule, the more detailed the terms of the relationship between the employer and employee are specified in the agreement, the better - in case of violation of any clause, it is easier to prove to the labor inspectorate that you are right.

Moreover, none of the listed conditions should violate the legally regulated rights of the subordinate or in any way worsen his position. If the contract contains clauses that contradict the Labor Code and other legislative acts, they are not enforceable and are considered void.

The list of additional conditions may include:

• data on completion of the probationary period, if established;
• additional information about the job;
• non-disclosure of secrets protected by law - commercial, state, patent or other;
• an agreement to improve the standard of living of a subordinate and his relatives;
• information about the possibility of additional insurance;
• a non-state option for additional pension provision for an employee;
• clarification of the responsibilities and rights of both parties;
• the obligation of an employee who studied at the company’s expense to work at this enterprise for a certain period of time.

The law states that additional conditions can be included in the document only by agreement of the parties. An employment contract is considered valid even without the introduction of secondary conditions.

Random

The concept of “accidental conditions” includes those clauses of the contract that are included in it solely by mutual agreement of the parties.

They can become an addition to the main and secondary conditions specified in the contract. However, an employment agreement is considered valid even if it does not contain contingent conditions.

Unlike the essential terms of the contract, incidental ones will have legal force only if they are included in the text of the agreement . An agreement may be declared void if one of the parties proves that it required the inclusion of a certain clause in the document.

If the employee refuses to accept the changes being made

The employee’s refusal may not be motivated by him in any way. Its presence is enough. The employee either does not sign the notice of upcoming changes (a draft order or a draft of a new local act), about which a commission of three people draws up an act, or signs and accompanies it with the note “does not agree.”

If an employee expresses disagreement and refuses to work under the new conditions, the employer offers him to work in another position with a possible change in functionality, if these positions are not affected by the introduced innovations.

This is especially reasonable when the employee does not agree with a reduction or new salary calculation or with a new schedule. By moving to a position with approximately the same previous pay, he loses nothing, except that he can perform a different job function within the framework of his qualifications.

Attention! If an employee opposes a job change, then he is offered available vacancies in his desired location or territory.

If the employee, in principle, does not agree with the changes being made, does not accept innovations and refuses to work in new organizational and/or production conditions, then in this case the employer has the right, in accordance with paragraph 7 of Article 77 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, to dismiss him.

Form and period of notification to the employee about changes in working conditions

Certification of workplaces or special assessment of working conditions

The employer is required to notify staff of future changes. This must be done in writing within the following deadlines:

• if the employer operates as an individual entrepreneur - no less than 14 calendar days;
• For legal entities, the notice period is two months.

The document must contain a description of the upcoming transformations, as well as an indication of the local regulatory act in accordance with which they are being implemented. Such an act could be, for example, an order to introduce a new technical regulation.

General procedure for registering changes made

Similar jobs: special assessment of working conditions

Updated working conditions are drawn up in the form of an additional agreement and included in personnel documents.

Order to change working conditions

Based on the signed agreement, an order is issued to transfer the employee to another position. He must familiarize himself with the contents of the document, which will be confirmed by the signature in the “Acquainted” column on the administrative document. At the request of the employee, a copy of the order is issued.

Making changes to personnel documentation

After the order is issued, new data is entered into the work book and personal card. Personnel affected by the changes should be aware of the relevant records.

Personnel documents must be updated

Dismissal of an employee upon refusal to continue work due to changes in working conditions

The employee has every right not to agree with the new requirements, as well as to refuse the offered vacancies (if any). A special order is issued to terminate the employment contract due to such disagreement. The person being dismissed must read the document and sign in the indicated place.

Industrial relations are unstable, and changes in working conditions are a common occurrence in economic life. Consistent compliance with legal requirements while documenting innovations will optimize work processes and help avoid legal disputes and problems during personnel audits.