Law passed in State Duma safeguards employees from diminished social security contributions
In a plenary session, the State Duma has adopted a bill in its second and third readings, safeguarding workers from reductions in bonuses upon receiving disciplinary penalties. This development is noted in the legislative database of the State Duma.
The enacted legislation necessitates employers to establish comprehensive bonus systems within employment contracts and local regulatory acts. These documents should outline the types of bonuses, their amounts, conditions, and payment timelines, taking into consideration factors like work quality, employee seniority, and the presence of disciplinary penalties.
The law imposes restrictions on reducing bonus payments due to labor discipline violations. A reduction is permissible only for the pay period in which the penalty was imposed and only for bonuses corresponding to that period. Furthermore, the total reduction in wages for this reason cannot exceed 20% of the monthly wage.
Beyond this, the Duma has proposed limitations on unregulated work hours and revised regulations concerning work and rest schedules for personnel with special schedules, rules for combined jobs for educators, medical professionals, and cultural workers, as well as guidelines for minors and foreign labor.
In October 2024, the State Duma adopted a law mandating employers to compensate workers for unused leave upon termination. The law clarifies the duration within which leave can be taken and permits the payment of unused leave upon termination.
Russian employees are allotted 28 calendar days of paid annual leave, with some employee categories receiving additional leave entitlements. Upon termination, employees must be compensated for any unused leave, with the compensation calculated based on the average wage formula over the last 12 months.
While there were no specific new regulations mentioned on bonuses or work hours, existing labor laws provide protection for employees' compensation rights. The Russian government is actively addressing labor shortages, primarily through policies to bring non-working but working-age Russians into the workforce and measures to reduce employment gender restrictions and equalize pay. Migrant labor remains a significant component of Russia's labor market, with the government extending deadlines for undocumented migrants to regularize their status to alleviate labor shortages.
- The adoption of the bill by the State Duma underscores the government's commitment to workplace-wellness, as it outlines policy-and-legislation to safeguard workers' bonus payments from reductions due to disciplinary penalties, promoting health-and-wellness in the workplace.
- Beyond the bonus system, the Russian government has introduced several other regulations focused on general-news topics, such as limitations on unregulated work hours, revised rules for work and rest schedules, guidelines for minors and foreign labor, and regulations for combined jobs in specific professions like education, medicine, and culture.
- In a separate development, the State Duma implemented a law in October 2024, requiring employers to compensate employees for unused leave upon termination, promoting a balanced work-life balance as part of a broader effort to address health-and-wellness and employee rights within the context of politics and policy-and-legislation.
