Features of dismissal under a fixed-term employment contract. Features of dismissal under a fixed-term employment contract

It must be remembered that dismissal under a fixed-term employment contract differs from the general rule. And in order to reduce to zero the possible risks of employees going to the labor inspectorate and the court, you need to know the main features of this procedure.

Definition

A fixed-term employment contract is a type of agreement concluded for a specific period. Article 59 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation provides that such an agreement can be concluded for a certain time if the employee cannot work on a permanent basis. A fixed-term employment contract is signed for a maximum of five years. If the terms are not specified in the document, the agreement is considered unlimited. A concluded fixed-term contract without compelling reasons may be recognized by the court as unlimited-term.

The employee must be notified accordingly of the termination of the agreement. In the absence of notification, a person has the right to continue working. A fixed-term employment contract can be extended, but only in those cases provided for by law, or the contract is extended by agreement of the parties.

Legality of the contract

An organization that accepts an employee into its staff can offer him either permanent work or for a limited period of time. In the latter case, a fixed-term employment contract is signed. The Labor Code of the Russian Federation regulates the signing of such an agreement depending on the circumstances: taking into account the assigned work or by agreement of the parties. When drawing up a contract, its legality must be checked. It is urgent only if there is a clause where a deadline is fixed. Otherwise, the document will automatically be terminated, which will be possible on the grounds mentioned in Article 59 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Notice of dismissal

Providing notice of dismissal on time is also an important factor. After all, if the employee is not notified in advance, or he himself did not write a letter of resignation on time when the contract expired, he can simply continue working. The agreement becomes indefinite, and dismissal under a fixed-term employment contract becomes irrelevant. Subsequent dismissal must comply with legal requirements. Otherwise it will be illegal.

It is necessary to notify the employee of the upcoming dismissal three days in writing. The following cases are exceptions:

• the contract was signed during the absence of the employee for whom the duties are performed (accordingly, the document becomes invalid from the moment the employee returns to work);
• the contract is concluded for the performance of a specific work (after the work is completed, the agreement is automatically terminated);
• The contract was concluded for seasonal work.

The notification must be sent by an authorized employee, often an employee of the human resources department. The document is drawn up and signed in two copies. To prevent the risk of litigation, the recipient must indicate on the company copy that he received his copy.

Main reasons

According to the Labor Code, dismissal under a fixed-term employment contract (Article 77-81) occurs for the following reasons:

• Return of a previously employed employee, during whose absence a temporary one was issued.
• Expiration of the contract due to the fulfillment of the obligations for which the employee was hired.
• Agreement of the parties.
• Initiative of the employee or employer.

Employee initiative

The employee must inform in advance of his intention to terminate the fixed-term employment contract. Dismissal at will requires written notice to the employer 14 days in advance. Upon dismissal, by agreement of the parties, the contract can be terminated earlier than after two weeks.

Grounds for termination of the contract by the employee:

• disability or illness that makes it impossible to continue to perform one’s duties;
• illness of one of the family members requiring constant care;
• failure by the manager to fulfill the obligations or conditions specified in the contract, as well as his violation of legislative norms;
• Moving to another city;
• admission to an elected position;
• other reasons.

If the manager does not want to sign the dismissal order, arguing that there are no valid reasons for this, this issue can be resolved through the court or through a commission for resolving labor disputes.

Employer initiative

Dismissal under a fixed-term employment contract at the initiative of the employer is provided for a number of reasons:

• closure of an organization;
• inconsistency with the position held by the employee;
• systematic failure to fulfill or generally ignore the obligations stipulated by the contract;
• change of personnel (this applies to leadership positions);
• violation of discipline in the workplace;
• providing false data when concluding an agreement;
• committing actions that caused significant harm to the organization.

Among other things, the head of an organization, having decided to terminate a fixed-term contract with an employee, must take into account some nuances:

• Any grounds for termination of an employment contract must be provided for by law.
• Dismissal under a fixed-term employment contract and the circumstances leading to this must be supported by facts. This could be a memo, an explanatory note from an employee, an act, or a collection order.
• A person who has not reached the age of majority may be dismissed before the end of the contract, if there is permission from government authorities.
• Mandatory compliance with deadlines established by law.
• Mandatory payment of all compensations and guarantees.

Expiration

The Labor Code of the Russian Federation allows severing labor relations in accordance with Article 77. Taking into account this article, you can dismiss an employee based on the expiration of the agreement. If neither the employee nor the employer insists on its termination at the end of the contract and the working relationship continues, then the document automatically loses its force and becomes indefinite.

Terms of dismissal

The timing of dismissal under a fixed-term employment contract varies depending on what exactly was the reason for dismissal:

• If the dismissal occurs at the request of the employee before the agreement expires, then management must be notified of this decision three working days in advance.
• If the employer decides to terminate the employment relationship with the employee before the end of the contract, the notice must be drawn up and sent two weeks in advance.
• Dismissal upon expiration of the employment contract can be carried out on the day when the agreement expires.

Registration procedure

The procedure for dismissal under a fixed-term employment contract is the following algorithm of actions:

• Notice warning of impending dismissal.
• Drawing up a dismissal order.
• Familiarization of the employee with the dismissal order.
• Preparation of the calculation sheet.
• Familiarization with the calculation sheet.
• Calculation on the day of employee dismissal.
• Drawing up a work book, making a record of dismissal and explaining on what basis the termination of employment occurred.

Documentation

Dismissal upon expiration of the employment contract involves drawing up and filling out the following documents:

• Employee statement. If the dismissal occurs at their own request, the employee writes a statement two weeks in advance, indicating the reason for his decision. Usually, an article of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation and a paragraph of this article are prescribed.
• Notification to the employer (if the manager takes the initiative in dismissal). The document must be drawn up in 2 copies, registered in the personnel department and contain the reason for dismissal, a request for confirmation of reading this notice must be written and the signature of the dismissed employee must be written.
• Order of dismissal. The document must be prepared on the day of dismissal of the employee in several copies, one of which remains with the employer with the employee’s signature confirming its familiarization. If for some reason the employee was not familiar with the order, an appropriate note should be made about this.
• The completed work book is handed over to you.

Correct execution of all documents will allow the employer to avoid possible future legal disputes or proceedings with the labor dispute commission.

Employment history

It is necessary to make an entry in the work book form after the order is issued. An employee who has stopped working must sign the work record book. By this he confirms that he has received the document and agrees with all the entries. The document is filled out by the manager or an authorized person (often this is a personnel department employee or an accountant). The filling algorithm is discussed below.

• The first column contains a serial number that continues the previous entry.
• In the second - the date of dismissal.
• In the third column, it is necessary to write down the grounds for terminating the employment contract, write down the details of the person who filled out the employment form, and affix the organization’s seal. Also in this column, the dismissed employee signs that he is familiar with the reason for his dismissal.
• The last column contains information about the document confirming the fact of dismissal.

If an employee has not received his work form, the employer must indicate this fact and send the employee a notification that he needs to pick up the document. If after this there is no reaction from the employee, then the work report is sent by mail to the actual residential address indicated in the documents.

Payments

In addition to receiving all the necessary documents, the employee must receive all required payments on the day of dismissal. If an employee, then he receives payments as soon as he returns to work. If the employee disagrees with the payments provided, those funds that are not disputed must be paid. Other issues are resolved through the courts.

A resigning employee is entitled to the following monetary compensation:

• salary for all the time that he actually worked in the month of dismissal;
• monetary compensation for all vacations not taken;
• severance pay (if required by law).

There are grounds (for example, liquidation of the company) under which a fixed-term employment contract was terminated, providing for certain compensation. Compensation for dismissal under a fixed-term employment contract provides for the following payments:

• reimbursement of wages for several months;
• compensation for vacation upon dismissal (provided that the employee did not rest on the days allotted to him before dismissal).

Preferential categories

When drawing up and signing a fixed-term contract, you need to remember that there are some that are not subject to the general conditions of such a contract.

When dismissing pregnant women or mothers with children working under a fixed-term contract, there are some nuances:

• A woman in a position can be fired either if the organization is completely liquidated, or if the work involved replacing a temporarily unemployed employee who has assumed his duties. In other cases, a pregnant woman can be fired only after pregnancy and childbirth.
• The organization has the right to require confirmation of her status from the woman throughout her pregnancy.
• If the term of the employment contract has expired while the woman is pregnant, the employer must, at the request of the employee, as well as after she provides a medical document, extend the term of the employment contract until the end of pregnancy or the end of maternity leave.
• If after giving birth a woman continues to work, the employer can, in agreement, terminate her employment contract within a week.
• At the initiative of the employer, an employment contract cannot be terminated with a woman who has children under 3 years of age, a mother who is raising disabled children who have not reached the age of majority, or children under 14 years of age.
• A fixed-term employment contract of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation does not allow termination by the employer if the employee is the breadwinner or guardian of a child under three years of age or a disabled person under 18 years of age in a family with three or more children and the second parent does not work.

differs from termination of employment with other full-time employees. If the period specified in the documents has expired, then dismissal under a fixed-term employment contract should occur according to general rules.

What is a fixed-term employment contract?

The hiring of new employees is confirmed by the execution of employment contracts, which reflect the procedure and conditions of work, the rights and obligations of existing parties, as well as the duration of the employment relationship.

In this case, it is possible to conclude both open-ended employment contracts and contracts with a limited period of validity. The duration of the latter cannot exceed 5 years (Article 58 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). If a longer period is prescribed, then such an agreement becomes indefinite.

In accordance with the provisions of Art. 59 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, a fixed-term employment contract is drawn up on the basis of the following conditions:

1. If you plan to hire a new employee whose responsibilities include performing the functions of temporarily absent employees.
2. If it is necessary to perform seasonal or temporary (no more than 2 months) work.
3. To perform specific types of work and services not related to the daily activities of an economic entity.
4. To perform labor functions, the end date of which is determined by a specific date.
5. When sending an employee abroad.
6. If the nature of the work is related to studies, internships.
7. For temporary employment of persons undergoing alternative civil service, or citizens sent to temporary work by employment centers.
8. In other situations permitted by law.

In addition, fixed-term employment contracts can be concluded with paralegals and prosecutorial employees, as well as with persons in the civil service.

Employers also have the right to conclude employment contracts with a limited period of validity with the agreement of the interested parties (Article 59 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). These include small enterprises whose number of employees does not exceed 35 people. Also, agreements of this kind can be drawn up with:

• citizens who have reached retirement age, as well as those who, for medical reasons, are allowed only temporary employment;
• persons working in the Far North;
• employees whose activities are related to the prevention of natural disasters and other emergency situations;
• workers of culture and art;
• representatives of the management apparatus - managers, chief accountants;
• ship crew members;
• employees performing their duties part-time;
• full-time students.

Illegal establishment of the validity period of an employment contract, confirmed by the judicial authorities, transfers it to the category of indefinite (Article 58 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). The conclusion of fixed-term employment contracts that limit the rights of employees may be considered illegal. Thus, if dismissal is due to the liquidation of an enterprise or staff reduction, severance pay in the amount of 2 average monthly salaries is not due to employees who have entered into fixed-term employment contracts lasting up to 2 months.

For other information about severance pay and its taxation, see the material “On personal income tax exemption of the amount of severance pay upon dismissal.”

Conditions for applying a fixed-term employment contract

Employment contracts with a limited duration are mainly concluded in cases where the type of work performed is temporary. In other situations, agreement of both parties is required.

If fixed-term contracts are periodically concluded with the same employee, the employer must be ready to provide reasoned explanations for the need to determine the terms. Otherwise, when considering conflict situations, such agreements may be recognized as unlimited by the judicial authorities.

If, after the expiration of the concluded employment contract, neither party has expressed a desire to terminate the employment relationship, the contract is recognized as unlimited. In this case, there is no need to make additional entries in the work book. However, the changes will need to be recorded in an additional agreement (letter of Rostrud “On the term of the employment contract” dated November 20, 2006 No. 1904-6-1). The extension of the term of the employment contract is also confirmed by the order.

For other information about the responsibilities of HR employees, see the material “Procedure for maintaining personnel records at an enterprise.”

Considering the fact that the expiration date of employment contracts does not imply their completion, employers are recommended to keep records of these documents themselves. Otherwise, employees will have to be dismissed on a general basis at the end of the completion period.

For additional information on the procedure for dismissal in certain situations, see the material “Procedure for dismissal due to liquidation of an organization.”

Dismissal under a fixed-term employment contract

The process of terminating the employment relationship with employees who work on fixed-term contracts is slightly different from the standard dismissal procedure.

The reason for dismissal under a fixed-term employment contract may be the end of its validity period. But in this case, it is important not to miss the deadlines. The basis is clause 2 of Art. 77 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, which is applied in cases where the parties have decided to terminate further labor relations.

Dismissal must be preceded by a written warning from management, issued to the employee at least 3 days in advance. The fact that the dismissed person is familiar with the notice sent to him must be recorded. The only exception is the termination of the contract on previously accepted conditions, under which the duties of an employee absent for any reason were temporarily performed (Article 79 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

The absence of notice of dismissal does not allow dismissing an employee due to the expiration of the employment contract. In such cases, the employment relationship can be terminated only on other conditions provided for by law.

Drawing up a notice of termination of an employment contract is allowed in any form. It should reflect the date and reason for dismissal. If the employee refuses to familiarize himself with the notice, a corresponding act is issued.

Termination of employment under a fixed-term employment contract is permitted in the following cases:

1. If the contract is drawn up for the purpose of performing certain types of work, termination occurs upon completion. In this case, an act of acceptance and transfer or performance of work is drawn up. The end of the contract term is the next day after the act is drawn up.
2. If the contract implied the fulfillment of the duties of a temporarily absent employee, then it terminates when the employee returns to the workplace.
3. A fixed-term contract can also be concluded for a period of seasonal work. It ends after the end of the designated period. Lists of seasonal work and their terms are established by the Government of the Russian Federation.

After the termination of the employment relationship, the employee receives a work book, payroll and related documents.

For more detailed information about the documents issued upon dismissal, see the material “Certificate of wages - sample and form in 2015”.

If an employee decides to leave the workplace after the end of the contract, the employer does not have the right to retain him.

Upon dismissal, the employee is guaranteed all due monetary payments: payment for the period of work, compensation for unused vacation. If a fixed-term contract was drawn up for a period of up to 2 months, then compensation for vacation is calculated at the rate of 2 days for 1 month worked (Article 291 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). The grounds for termination of the employment relationship do not affect the amount of compensation paid. The terms of the contract may provide for other payments, such as severance pay, the amounts of which are reflected in local documents.

Under some circumstances, the termination of fixed-term contracts occurs earlier than the established period, including on the basis of the provisions of Art. 77 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, by mutual agreement of the parties, at the initiative of the employer and other circumstances beyond the will of the parties.

Dismissal under a fixed-term employment contract caused by the employee’s initiative must be accompanied by a written notification from management 3 calendar days before the expected date of termination of the employment relationship.

Results

Termination of a fixed-term employment contract must be carried out in accordance with all the rules enshrined in the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, in compliance with the established deadlines. Otherwise, if conflict situations arise between the parties, termination of the contract will have to be carried out on a general basis, involving longer service or, possibly, a higher level of payments upon dismissal.

A fixed-term contract concluded with an individual assumes that the employment relationship will last a limited period of time and will end upon the arrival of a certain date or the completion of a specific event. If the period has expired, the contract terminates, and the employer is obliged to complete the dismissal procedure in accordance with all the rules of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. A mandatory component of this procedure is the preparation and approval of the dismissal order, for which the standard T-8 form is successfully used. In this article we will tell you how to correctly issue a dismissal order upon expiration of the employment contract.

How to notify a conscript of an upcoming dismissal

The expiration date may not be determined by the arrival of a specific date, but by the completion of an event specified in the contract. Examples of this include hiring a person to replace a permanent employee (for example, during maternity leave), to perform a limited amount of work, to provide a specific service, when it is not possible to accurately determine the moment of obtaining the final result of the worker’s actions.

Depending on the reason for termination of the agreement, the procedure and timing of notification to the conscript changes.

The notification document must be drawn up on paper and certified by the signature of the responsible person of the employing organization. This document must be delivered directly to the conscript or sent by mail if personal delivery is not possible. Emergency employee notification deadlines:

• When performing certain work or providing a service within the framework of the contract - 3 days before the planned completion date of this work;
• When replacing a temporarily absent employee of the organization - on the day the absentee returns to the workplace;
• If a specific date for termination of the agreement is determined - 3 days before this date.

It is better to prepare two identical copies of the notice - give the first to the conscript, and take the second for yourself with the employee’s signature on it, confirming awareness of the upcoming completion of the work.

A conscript being on sick leave or on any type of vacation is not a reason to extend the contractual relationship. The notification document is sent by valuable mail, and confirmation of delivery will be a paper received from the post office confirming delivery of the letter to the addressee. The sick leave benefit for a fixed-term worker is paid for the entire period specified in the certificate of incapacity for work, even if the fixed-term contract is terminated.

The only case when an employee cannot be fired even after the contract period has expired is if there is a pregnancy of any stage. In this case, the employer is obliged to wait until the pregnancy is resolved and then formalize the dismissal. This rule does not apply to the case when the work consists of replacing a permanent employee. If an absent employee returns to work, then even a pregnant conscript can be fired, unless, of course, there is another job suitable for her qualifications and level of health.

An employee working under a fixed-term contract and who is pregnant at the time of expiration must:

• extend the agreement if she writes a statement about it and provides a medical certificate about her situation;
• if maternity leave is provided 70 days before the date of birth, pay the appropriate allowance and dismiss after completion of the maternity leave;
• if maternity leave is not provided, then dismissal can be made within a week after the end of pregnancy;
• The employer is not obliged to provide a conscript with maternity leave.

Sample and example of notification

The text of the document is formed in free form, and it is advisable to ensure the presence of the following details:

• Information about the employer (you can issue a notification on letterhead with details);
• Full name and position of the conscript in the genitive case at the top of the sheet;
• Name and title of the document;
• Number and date;
• A polite address to an employee, for example, “Dear Evgeniy Alexandrovich!”;
• Text in the form of a warning about termination of the contract under clause 2 of Article 77 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation (the details of the contract are indicated);
• Manager's signature.

It is also advisable to provide a place for the signature of the person to whom this paper is addressed. When delivering a notification document to a conscript, you must require him to sign in the designated place and indicate the date. This record will confirm the employee’s awareness and compliance by the employer with the required dismissal rules upon expiration of the employment contract.

If the employee does not want to sign, his refusal must be reflected in the notification itself in the presence of witnesses or a statement of refusal must be drawn up. If the notice is sent by mail, it is not necessary to obtain the employee’s signature; a postal receipt of receipt will be sufficient.

Documents grounds for drawing up an order

To prepare administrative documentation, documentary evidence is required. If a dismissal order is drawn up due to the expiration of a fixed-term contract, the following documents serve as such confirmation:

• Notification of the employer about termination of activity;
• A clause in a fixed-term contract that indicates the moment at which it expires.

An application from an employee for dismissal due to the expiration of an employment contract is not required. The details of these documents are written in the corresponding line of the order.

How to draw up a dismissal order

For registration, it is better to use the unified T-8 form. Read also the article: → “”. The following fields are filled in sequentially in the form:

The generated and approved order is the basis for calculating payments upon dismissal, which include funds earned and not paid on the day of dismissal, monetary compensation for unspent vacation days. A conscript has the full right to 2.33 days of vacation for each month worked, if the total annual vacation duration is 28 days.

Severance pay is not paid to a dismissed conscript, unless otherwise provided by the company's regulatory documentation.

To calculate payments, a standard calculation note form T-61 is used. Read also the article: → “”. Next, on the basis of the order, a final entry is made into the personal card in the last eleventh section of the T-2 form, and a dismissal entry is also recorded in the work book. The record must include an exact repetition of the dismissal language and code clause from the order.

On the day of dismissal, the dismissed person receives accrued payments, a work book and a 2-NDFL certificate about the current year’s earnings and the personal income tax withheld from them. Upon written request, a copy of the dismissal order may also be provided.

How long is an order stored?

The completed order is registered in a special registration book (journal) for personnel documentation. Next, it is necessary to ensure its safety for a certain period established by archival documentation. For personnel documentation, including dismissal orders, the retention period is 75 years.

To ensure the safety of the document over such a long period of time, storage conditions should be properly organized, favorable climatic conditions should be created; the air in the room should not be humid. The place itself must have a high level of safety and security both from access by third parties and from the impact of unforeseen situations such as floods and fires. Ideally, orders will be stored in metal, fireproof and sealed boxes, safes with a lock.

Regardless of whether an open-ended or fixed-term employment contract has been concluded with the employee, the procedure for dismissal at will (clause 3, part 1, article 77 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation) for temporary workers does not differ from the general rules.

Fixed-term employment contract: working off upon dismissal

The first step in dismissing a temporary employee on your own initiative should be to notify management of your desire. From this moment the “working off” period begins to count.

As a general rule, the minimum working time is two weeks from the date of warning, but there are several exceptions:

• seasonal workers and temporary workers (contract term - less than two months) - three-day work (Article 292, Article 296 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

For these employees, there is one more feature when dismissing: when making the final calculation, it must be taken into account that such employees are granted leave in the amount of two calendar days for each working month (Articles 291, 295 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);

• employees on a probationary period - three-day work (part 4 of article 71 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
• Head of the organization; athletes and coaches with contracts for a period of no more than four months - monthly work (Article 280, Article 348.12 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

There are situations when a temporary employee needs to be fired within the period for which he requests. We are talking about admission to an educational institution, retirement, violations by the employer and mutual consent of the parties (Part 3 of Article 80 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Fixed-term employment contract: dismissal on sick leave

The illness of a temporary employee is not an obstacle to his dismissal. Labor legislation (Part 6, Article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation) prohibits dismissing employees only at the initiative of the organization (Clause 4, Part 1, Article 77 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Letter of resignation

A warning is drawn up in any form, usually in the form of a statement typed on a computer or written by hand. An organization can independently develop a form for such an application and familiarize employees with it - laws do not prohibit this.

The main thing is that the employee signs the application, which will make it possible in the event of a legal dispute to prove the existence of the employee’s will to dismiss.

First of all, you need to make sure that the temporary employee correctly indicated the date of dismissal, ideally without using the preposition “from” (dismiss from August 15), so that there are no discrepancies in determining the last day of work.

A temporary employee may change his mind and withdraw his application; he cannot be prevented from doing so. In this case, dismissal can only occur when another dismissed employee was not invited in writing to take his place by way of transfer from another company (Part 4 of Article 64 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Issuing an order and making an entry in the work book

The dismissal order is issued based on the application submitted by the employee. It must indicate that the employment relationship is terminated on the basis

Employees can be hired either permanently or for a limited period. In the latter case, fixed-term employment contracts are concluded between the organization (enterprise) and the staff. Article 59 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation defines special criteria with which the legislation connects the possibility of signing a fixed-term contract. When hiring personnel under such conditions, it should be taken into account that in the mentioned case the dismissal procedure has its own characteristics.

First of all, each party to the employment contract must have firm confidence that a fixed-term contract has been concluded with the employee. The requirements of Part 3 of Article 58 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation stipulate the following: if the text of such a document has not specifically specified the validity period (a specific termination date has not been identified), then the contract is not recognized as fixed-term. That is, it is assumed that it is issued for an indefinite period of time. At the same time, if the contract is recognized as unlimited, then its termination is possible only on the grounds set out in Chapter 13 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

For the purpose of dismissal of personnel with whom fixed-term contracts were issued, a special rule is provided (namely, clause 2, part 1, article 77 of the Labor Code of Russia). However, its presence does not exclude the possibility of termination of obligations under a fixed-term contract by virtue of agreement of the parties or due to such grounds as ordinary personal desire.

Expiration of the employment contract

According to Article 79 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, employment contracts of a fixed-term nature are subject to termination due to the expiration of their validity period. Employees must be notified in writing of the impending occurrence of this circumstance no later than 3 days (calendar) before the actual dismissal. At the same time, traditionally, the only exceptions are situations where fixed-term contracts, issued while replacing absent specialists, expire.

Contracts that were signed for the period of performance of certain works are subject to termination upon completion. Contracts concluded for the duration of the duties of absent employees are terminated when such employees return to work. Contracts issued for the purpose of performing seasonal operations terminate at the end of the season.

Termination at the initiative of the employee

The procedure for terminating fixed-term contracts if there is initiative on the part of employees is similar to the rules for terminating contracts that were signed for an indefinite period.

The general requirements for these cases are established in Article 80 of the TKPF, which provides for the right to terminate employment relations with written warning to the employer no later than 2 weeks in advance. The calculation of this period begins from the next day after the confirmed fact of receipt by employers of the resignation letter. Such confirmation can be received either in the form of a mark on the second copy of the application or in the form of a tear-off notification coupon. If the implementation of none of these options is possible, then the applications can be sent by employees as valuable registered items with an inventory of the contents and receipt receipts.

However, the legal norm of Part 3 of Article 80 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation stipulates that if employees submit applications for dismissal due to the impossibility of work (in particular, in connection with admission to study or retirement), the management of organizations is obliged to ensure the termination of contracts on the day specified by the specialists in the applications.

Termination at the initiative of the employer

The reason for the termination of fixed-term contracts due to their expiration is in no way related to the initiative of employers. But such contracts can be terminated by employers before their expiration date. For this, a wide list of grounds outlined in Article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation can be used. In particular, the employing organization may dismiss an employee with whom a fixed-term contract was concluded in the following situations:

• liquidation of the enterprise;
• termination of work of individual entrepreneurs;
• inadequacy of specialists for their positions due to their low qualifications;
• staff reductions;
• identifying facts of repeated failure by employees to perform official functions without good reason (if there is a disciplinary sanction);
• a single gross violation of official duties by an employee (in the form of absenteeism, showing up at work drunk, divulging secrets protected by law, deliberate damage to property, theft, safety violations);
• change of owners of the enterprise (in situations related to the dismissal of management and chief accountants);
• commission of actions found guilty by specialists to whom goods and materials were entrusted;
• making unfounded decisions by management and chief accountants that resulted in damage to the property of organizations;
• commission of immoral offenses by specialists implementing educational tasks;
• employees providing false documentation to employers when applying for a job.

Fixed-term contracts with the management of an organization can also be terminated on other grounds, which must be specified in the text of the contracts. In addition, Article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation stipulates the employer’s right to terminate contracts in other cases, namely:

• in case of unsatisfactory test results during hiring (Article 71 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
• in case of gross violation by teachers of the statutes of educational institutions twice during the year (clause 1 of Article 336 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
• when athletes are disqualified for a period exceeding 6 months (clause 1 of Article 348.11 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
• if athletes fail to comply with the current rules of the anti-doping system (clause 2 of Article 348.11 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
• when authorized entities make decisions aimed at terminating contracts with enterprise managers (Article 278 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
• upon removal from duties of managers of debtor enterprises in the event of bankruptcy proceedings (Article 278 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation);
• in case of proven use by teachers of unworthy methods of education (clause 2 of Article 336 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

In addition, special legislative norms provide regulation of issues of termination of contracts at the initiative of employers in the Ministry of Emergency Situations, internal affairs bodies, government agencies, etc.

Registration of termination

Competent execution of termination of fixed-term contracts involves the implementation of a number of procedures. Thus, the most important point is the notice of termination of the contract, which the employer must give to the dismissed employee on time. In the absence of notification, the organization faces the risk of recognizing the contract as signed for an indefinite period (Part 4, Article 58 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Therefore, the notification procedure must be implemented in writing no later than 3 days before the end of the contract. The notification is drawn up in two copies and signed by the manager or a special authorized person. The dismissed employee leaves his signature on the copy that remains in the organization.

The most important stage of registration is the issuance of an order to terminate the contract. The basis on which an employee is dismissed must be stated in such an order strictly as in the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, without changes: clause 2, part 1, article 77 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation - expiration of the employment contract. The document must be certified by the signature of the manager, HR specialist and the company seal. The dismissed employee must be familiarized with this order against his signature. Such an order is issued no later than the last day of work of the employee with whom the fixed-term contract is terminated.

Application for termination at will

If an employee wishes to terminate a fixed-term contract, he must fill out a statement (warning) about this. This document is drawn up in any form. The will to dismiss must be confirmed by the employee’s signature. In such a statement, it is necessary to clearly and unambiguously indicate the date of dismissal (preferably without using the preposition “from” to eliminate discrepancies in determining the last working day).

Recording in labor

Based on the order to terminate the contract, employers must make an entry in a document such as the work book of the dismissed employee. It must reflect the basis, identical to the order, in accordance with which the dismissal is carried out: clause 2, part 1, article 77 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation - expiration of the employment contract.

Entries made in work books, by virtue of clause 41 of the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 225 of April 16, 2003, must be certified by the signatures of personnel specialists and the seals of enterprises. According to paragraph 35 of the mentioned Resolution, as well as by virtue of Article 84.1 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the provision of work books to dismissed employees by employers is ensured on the day that is the moment of termination of the contract.

The fact that dismissed specialists have received these documents in their hands confirms with their signatures in personal cards and special books for recording the movement of work records.

Calculation and payments upon termination

By virtue of Article 140 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, upon termination of employment contracts (including fixed-term ones), the transfer of all amounts due to dismissed employees from employers is carried out strictly on the day of dismissal. If the specialists did not work on this day, then all necessary payments must be made no later than the day following the date the dismissed specialists presented the corresponding demands for final payments.

If there is a dispute about the amount of payments, then in accordance with Article 140 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, employers have an obligation to pay the undisputed amount of funds within the mentioned period, including in terms of wages and compensation for unused vacation.

Payment of compensation to pregnant women

When terminating fixed-term contracts with pregnant female employees, a number of features must be taken into account. By virtue of Part 2 of Article 261 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, an immutable principle applies in this situation: the contract must be extended until the end of pregnancy. According to the clarifications of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, contracts of an urgent nature are extended until the completion of the employee’s pregnancy, regardless of the reason for such completion (including abortions for medical reasons, miscarriages, birth of children).

If the expectant mother is on maternity leave, the contract is extended until the end of the maternity leave. In this case, the following conditions must be met:

• the pregnancy status must be confirmed by a medical document, which must be updated every 3 months;
• a pregnant employee must confirm in a written statement her desire to extend the term of her employment contract.

It should be borne in mind that employers have only a week to dismiss, starting from the moment when they should have learned about the end of pregnancy of an employee hired under a fixed-term contract (if she continues to work after the end of the waiting period for the baby). If such an employee takes maternity leave, then she can be fired no earlier than the end of this leave.

If a pregnant employee takes a “maternity” position, replacing a temporarily absent specialist, then, by virtue of Part 3 of Article 261 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, she can be fired in the only case: when she refuses to move to other vacancies offered to her by the employer company. At the same time, such an employee must be provided with information about all vacancies available at the enterprise that correspond to her state of health and level of qualifications.

Pregnant workers who have entered into fixed-term employment contracts must be granted maternity leave upon their request, based on medical documents. In this case the following are subject to payment:

• before birth - 70 (for multiple pregnancy - 84) days (calendar);
• after childbirth - 70 (for health complications - 86, for multiple pregnancy - 110) days (calendar).

There are often cases when the duration of maternity leave increases significantly due to employees receiving sick leave for additional time. Employers, having received an application for extension of maternity leave confirmed by medical documents, have the opportunity to terminate a fixed-term contract no earlier than the next day after the end of the maternity leave. Moreover, according to the general rule, employers are obliged, no later than 3 calendar days before the end of the vacation, to warn such employees about the impending termination of the contract.