Jurisdiction of labor disputes is a property that determines the assignment of powers to consider and resolve labor disputes to the conduct of a particular court. Ultimately, it allows you to decide which authority you will need to contact in order to protect violated labor rights.
What is it like?
In the theory of the current civil process, the jurisdiction of labor disputes is divided into territorial and tribal. In relation to such issues, the patrimonial allows you to determine which specific categories are within the competence of the justice of the peace, district court, as well as the Supreme or a subject of the Russian Federation. The territorial jurisdiction of labor disputes delimits the main powers for their consideration between the courts of a single level, depending on the specific territory, which is within the competence of a particular magistrate or court.
Generic
Almost all categories of such issues are within the competence of the district court, and the only exception here is the proceedings on the recognition of a strike as illegal.
Earlier, the current legislation provided for the jurisdiction of labor disputes as part of the competence of magistrates if cases arose from labor relations, and as an exception, only cases of reinstatement in the workplace or the solution of any collective labor issues were considered here. However, such a rule ceased to be in force in 2008.
To date, the only exception that is considered by a justice of the peace is the jurisdiction of labor disputes regarding the recovery of wages, which were accrued but not paid, as well as the amount of vacation pay, payments in the process of dismissal, or any other amounts credited to the employee.
Territorial
Everything is extremely simple here, since in almost all situations a lawsuit must be brought before a district court. The only controversial issue, which provides for the jurisdiction of labor disputes about the recovery of wages, is to which district court it is necessary to submit papers. It often happens that an employer is registered in a certain city, while his employee works in another, and is registered in the third.
It is quite important to determine the authority that will deal with the claim for the protection of labor rights. Do not forget that the maximum allowable time for filing a claim cannot exceed three months after the moment the employee’s labor rights have been violated. And in disputes regarding dismissals, the term for a possible appeal to the courts is only one month.
At the place of residence or stay of the defendant
In accordance with the general rules of territorial jurisdiction of various civil-law disputes (including labor), a lawsuit must be brought at the place of residence of the defendant, while a lawsuit against a particular organization must be filed with the court at the place where it is located. In other words, in such situations, the jurisdiction of labor disputes at the place of residence of the plaintiff is not provided, and this must be taken into account.
In this case, the place of residence provides for the address of its registration, while the location of the organization is the address at which it is registered as a legal entity.It is worth noting that some experts point out the incorrect determination of the citizen’s place of residence as the place of registration, since the first one is any dwelling that is occupied by a person legally, and in which he predominantly or permanently resides, which complies with the rules by which the jurisdiction is distributed.
The jurisdiction of individual labor disputes in practice suggests that the claim nevertheless needs to be brought directly to the place of registration, since it legally turns out that if a person is registered at a certain address, then he lives there and everyone else does not care. All this creates some problems with the balance of interests of the defendant and the plaintiff.
What if the respondent’s residence is unknown?
It often happens that the plaintiff does not know the place of residence of the defendant (individual), or that he does not live on the territory of the Russian Federation. For example, the jurisdiction of cases of labor disputes provides for situations in which the defendant was deregistered, but at the same time he did not have time to register at some new address.
In such cases, the current legislation provides for the filing of a claim at the place where the person himself or his property is located, and can also be carried out at his last place of residence in the Russian Federation. In this case, one must correctly understand that the jurisdiction of individual labor disputes considers the last known place of residence as the place of registration, while the location of the property is best determined by reference to various real estate.
At the location of the representative office
If you performed your duties in a certain representative office or branch of a legal entity, then in this case, a claim for the restoration of violated labor rights must be filed at the location of the representative office or branch. Special attention should be paid to the wording of the norm, which provides for the jurisdiction of labor disputes over recovery at work and other similar matters. If you have no relation to any particular representative office or branch, the lawsuit must be filed at the place of direct registration of the company itself.
Several labor disputes
Quite often, in recent times, one may encounter situations when, for example, the employer’s place of residence is in Moscow, but the plaintiff does not want to go there, since the trip will cost him quite expensive and time-consuming. In such a situation, the territorial jurisdiction of labor disputes provides for some tricks with which it will be possible to change it to some other cities.
In accordance with applicable law, a lawsuit may be filed against several defendants who live or are located in different places in a court that deals with issues at the location or residence of one person, and the plaintiff has the choice. This norm provides an opportunity to independently choose which court to apply to - at the location or place of residence of the defendants and, accordingly, choose the one that is more convenient for you.
How relevant is this?
These methods are often used by modern “arbitrage” who do not want to fly between large cities to solve not the most significant issues. In this case, in order to change the jurisdiction of the consideration of labor disputes, a special guarantee agreement with a certain organization located in the desired city is added to or comes up with the supply contract, after which you can sue the court of this particular locality, as a result of which the defendant will have to fly there.
At the same time, it is worth noting that using such a scheme in labor disputes is not so simple, since it is difficult to involve some third parties in solving labor relations between the employer and the employee of the company due to the peculiarities of the jurisdiction of the courts.Labor disputes are initially formed between the employer and his subordinate, but if we consider the characteristics of each specific situation, we can find a similar opportunity.
How to do it?
Quite often, it turns out to be done, for example, in the process of resolving proceedings on the establishment of the fact of labor relations. For example, you are allowed to work by a certain employer, but at the same time you are engaged in performing work on the territory of another organization. In this case, it will be possible to present a requirement to determine the fact of an employment relationship at once to two employers, which will automatically make them co-defendants. Due to this possibility, the jurisdiction and jurisdiction of labor disputes is significantly expanded, which opens up a lot of opportunities for you.
At the same time, it is still better to consult with an experienced lawyer beforehand on how realistic it is to implement this specifically in your case.
At the place of performance of the employment contract
There are several more features that provide jurisdiction for labor disputes. Code of Civil Procedure of the Russian Federation, for example, provides an opportunity to sue in defense of labor rights directly at the place where the employment contract is being executed. In accordance with the established standards, all claims arising from contracts drawn up with an indication of a specific place for their execution, if necessary, may be brought to the court located at that place.
This approach is often used by modern lawyers, although not everyone understands how to apply it correctly, because there are a lot of unresolved issues. For example, many do not understand how specifically a specific place for performing labor functions should be indicated. In accordance with applicable law, the employer is not required to provide the exact address at which the work of his employee will be carried out. At the same time, many experts do not even insistently recommend specifying such clarifications, since in this situation the employer automatically loses the opportunity to transfer the employee to the place of work at some other address even within the same locality.
Paper
The collection of documentation is one of the most crucial steps in preparing for a trial. Not everyone understands correctly how important it is to compile a list of necessary papers and provide them in full, because otherwise your case may be failed at the very beginning.
First of all, you must first collect the documentation for the reason that this will allow you to provide protection against the destruction of any papers by the employer. Especially in this sense, a work book is valuable, as it contains all the information regarding your work experience. It often happens that the employer simply destroys all documents on the conduct of labor activities of its employees, after which it does not bear any responsibility.
Also, documents must be protected from any possible changes to them. For example, how often is an employment contract flashed and page numbering? In modern jurist practice, such cases do not occur, which allows you to change the pages in it or the content itself without any risk.
Among other things, the documents constitute the strongest evidence. If you intend to file a lawsuit in court to ensure the protection of labor rights, all necessary documentation must be attached to the statement of claim. Of course, in certain cases, you can write a complaint even without the application of the relevant evidence, but if you nevertheless consolidate your requirements with them, the consideration of the case will be much faster and more efficient.
Of course, all of the above is relevant only when resolving controversial issues with dishonest employers, but in any case it is always better to play it safe in advance.
What documents are needed?
First you need to get an employment contract and job description. If you do not have these copies on hand, then you should get them first. Thanks to your employment contract, you will be able to confirm the occurrence of an employment relationship, your place of work, work responsibilities and the start date of your work tasks.
It is also nice to get a certified copy of the work book, which will say “works to this day”, as it will also allow you to confirm the fact of the employment relationship and the specific position in which you are assigned to your employer. It happens that the employer “loses” the original, and it may indicate twenty years of work experience.
Certificate 2-NDFL is another document confirming the fact of an employment relationship, but the most important information that it contains is the size of your salary, that is, ensuring the correct calculation of average earnings. It is best to get such a certificate for the longest possible time period.
Among other things, a rather important document is an order to hire you, which is issued on the basis of and in accordance with a drawn up employment contract. In modern practice, there are often cases when the size of the salary is not clearly defined in the labor contract, but at the same time it was contained in the order for the person to be hired.
