In any company there is a team consisting of two parties interacting with each other. It is about the employer and employees. In order to maintain order and discipline, a collective agreement is concluded that takes into account the conditions of cooperation. The parties to the collective agreement equally benefit from its conclusion, all the basic rules for the preparation and nuances are specified in the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. A similar document can be concluded not only within the framework of one enterprise, but also on a wider scale.
Concept of collective agreement
To protect workers and employers, labor relations are strictly regulated by labor law. All aspects of cooperation are prescribed in a special legal act, called the collective agreement. The obligations of the parties, their rights and all the provisions governed by the agreement apply to all employees of the company. This is the main difference between a document and an employment contract.
Parties to the conclusion of a collective agreement are: the employer (manager) and employees (labor collective). Both parties may take the initiative to conclude an agreement. The law does not provide for its mandatory availability. But if one of the parties suggested this, then the other should answer. The reasons why the parties may wish to conclude an agreement are as follows:
- Increased motivation and interest. The employer has the right to enter into the contract information on monetary reimbursements, surcharges indicating the reasons in connection with which they are issued.
- Regulation of payments, which is relevant when prices increase due to inflation.
- Difficult working conditions. Information on cases of improvement of the established conditions, safety issues and insurance can be made by both employees and the employer.
- The collective agreement creates the image of a stable and progressive company for the employer. The document protects workers and can only improve working conditions compared with those provided by labor legislation.
- The company provides a favorable atmosphere at work, preventing the likelihood of strikes, malfunctions and other negative aspects.
A collective agreement involving social and labor relations is beneficial to both the employer and the employee. It indicates the main criteria for ensuring the life and proper conditions of workers. At the same time, the parties to the collective agreement have the right to take an active part in its development and changes in conditions. A legal act cannot limit the rights of the parties and decrease the guarantees of employees that are prescribed in the Labor Code.
Legal regulation
All provisions of the collective agreement are regulated by the Labor Code, namely:
- Art. 40 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation contains information about the concept.
- Art. 43 - on the extension of the agreement.
- Art. 37 - on amendments and additions.
- Art. 41 - about the structure and content.
- Art. 50 - about registration.
Content
The purpose of the collective agreement is to facilitate the establishment of strong legal relations between the employer and employees of both a small company and various branches of a large company. To this end, the structure of the collective agreement may contain the following provisions regarding the rights and obligations of both parties:
- Payment, size, form and system.
- Compensation and additional payments.
- Employment, training.
- The period of rest and work.
- Providing conditions, ensuring environmental safety and labor protection.
- Warranties for employees undergoing training.
- Paid food.
- Wellness activities.
- Monitoring compliance with the provisions of the collective agreement.
Rights and obligations of the parties
After discussion, the parties decide how the collective agreement will be drawn up. The sample model agreement contains the three main sections used in the model act. These include:
- Introduction with information on the main directions of the company.
- Rights and obligations of management.
- Rights and obligations of employees.
The parties to the collective agreement must write down information about themselves in the act. The details include the following information:
- Names of representatives of the parties who are responsible for signing the contract.
- Data on their documents.
- Time and place of signing.
- Duration of the agreement.
Parties to the collective bargaining agreement are employees and the employer. The latter do not act as individuals, but as a work collective in the person of one representative. A representative is selected from among employees or from members of a trade union organization. The employer must respond to the proposals of the labor collective or can choose the person who will act on behalf of all employees.
Labor relations are defined in Art. 21 and Art. 22 Labor Code of the Russian Federation. They are supplemented by different conditions, but cannot contradict the current legislation. This is a basic requirement that parties to a collective agreement must comply with.
Conditions
If conditions worsen the situation of employees, then the contract will be declared invalid. Such a decision can be made by the authorized state body, where the act is sent after signing. If no violations are detected, then the document is considered valid for the entire duration period provided for in it.
The procedure for concluding a contract
As mentioned above, any of the parties can make a proposal to sign such a contract. With the initiative coming from company employees, you need to choose a representative or delegate the appropriate authority to the trade union organization. Further, the procedure will be as follows:
- Sending a written notice of the conclusion of the contract to the opposite party.
- Notification of trade union organizations and the choice of a representative (at the initiative of workers). 5 days are given for this action.
- Opening of the negotiation process.
- Formation of a commission that exercises control over how a collective agreement is developed and concluded.
- The sample can be prepared by third-party specialists. Then their work should be paid (as a rule, by the initiative group).
- Providing all the necessary information on which requests were made, within 2 weeks.
- Discussion and approval of the finished project.
- Signing a document.
- If there are disputes of a social nature that cannot be resolved, a protocol of disagreements may be drawn up.
- The procedure is carried out for 3 months.
- After signing the agreement, the document is sent to the labor and employment service for registration.
Act
Depending on the circumstances, the term of the collective agreement may vary. So, it is allowed to terminate a previously established period or, conversely, an extension. The contract may be terminated early in the following cases:
- Change of legal form.
- Reorganization.
- Liquidation of a company.
If a company needs change, then it can be realized by transferring all the powers of another organization. If this company has a different legal form, then the first company should adopt it, and then completely cease its activities. At the same time, rights and obligations are redirected to the new organization.Then the collective agreement will be valid for another 3 months from the date of transfer of the rights of the new company.
Reorganization of the company may be needed, for example, in order to increase profitability or when new large-scale tasks arise. At the same time, management may decide, for example, to complete the activities of the old company and reissue it into several new ones. In the event of a reorganization of any kind, the term of the collective agreement will continue throughout the entire period while this process lasts.
Upon liquidation, the company completely ceases to exist, therefore, all obligations also become null and void. In this case, the cases are not transferred to other persons in a succession order. Thus, the collective agreement that was concluded earlier is not extended or changed. It is valid during the entire process of liquidation, and after the termination of the employment relationship, terminated.
Entry into force of the contract
In general, a collective agreement comes into force from the moment it is signed. Also, the act may contain information about the date of entry into force or the occurrence of an event at which it begins to act. If the definition of a collective agreement is set forth in Art. 40 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the provision on its entry into force is prescribed in Art. 43 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. The period of the beginning of the action does not depend on the circumstances. The exception is cases in which the parties to the collective agreement and their representatives themselves have expressed a corresponding desire.
Validity
The maximum duration of a collective agreement between an employer and employees is three years. This period may be shorter. When the end of the term is nearing (the employer and the employee representative in the collective agreement) has the right to decide on its extension for the same period. Each of the parties may propose to make some changes to the document.
Change of conditions
Since two parties are involved in concluding the contract, it is also necessary to obtain the consent of both parties to make any changes. This is done in the following order:
- The party interested in amending the contract (for example, the labor collective) must send the other party (that is, the employer) a written proposal. A project of planned changes must be attached to it.
- The other party is given 7 days to express consent also in writing.
- After receiving a response, the initiator of the changes begins the stage of negotiations.
- A commission is created to organize the entire process, resolve disputes and develop such changes that will satisfy both parties.
- All proposals are developed and reviewed within three months. Once they are approved, the new collective agreement takes effect.
- The signed document is sent to the registration authority to provide the parties with additional guarantees.
Responsibility for breach of contract
The parties do not always comply with the provisions established by the contract. If the corresponding obligations are not fulfilled, legal liability arises. Current legislation provides for the following types of punishments for violations by the parties of the collective agreement. Current fines are as follows:
- From 1 thousand rubles up to 3 thousand rubles - for evading the negotiation process and violating the period of imprisonment.
- From 3 thousand rubles up to 5 thousand rubles. - for evasion of contractual obligations.
- From 1 thousand rubles up to 3 thousand rubles or disciplinary action - for concealing information necessary for the negotiation process.
- From 3 thousand rubles up to 5 thousand rubles. - for the refusal to sign a collective agreement without the stated justification.
- From 1 thousand rubles up to 3 thousand rubles - for evading requirements and participating in procedures for the settlement of disputes.
These types of punishments are prescribed by administrative law, namely, Articles 5.28 - 5.32 of the Code of Administrative Offenses.
Agreement
Social partnership agreements are very similar to a collective agreement. The main difference between the agreements is that they are concluded at a higher level than the collective agreement. Therefore, the validity of these documents does not apply to one employer, but to several (at least). Agreements may include the following points:
- Salary.
- Labor guarantees, reimbursements, benefits to company employees.
- Labor regime.
- Employment and conditions for exemption from it.
- Training and education of specialists.
- Labor conditions.
- Development of social partnership.
- Additional insurance.
- Other issues related to labor law.
Agreements are of various types depending on the regulation of the circle of social relations. The main ones include the following:
- General agreement.
- Interregional.
- Regional
- Industry.
- Intersectoral.
- Territorial.
- Other species.
The general document provides for the principles of regulation of legal relations in the field of labor legislation and the economy at the state level. The interregional document provides rules for regulating the relevant legal relations of two or more regions of the country. The regional document provides for regulatory issues at the regional level. An industry, as well as an interdisciplinary document, legal relations can be provided both at the level of different regions, and in one region or a certain territory of the country. The territorial document provides for uniform labor conditions, compensation, guarantees and benefits in the territory of a particular municipality. Other documents may provide for conditions of social partnership at different levels.
Conclusion
Now the reader is aware not only of which parties are involved in the adoption of the collective agreement, but also a lot of other information about this document. Knowing their rights, it is much easier for workers to fully realize them. But you also need to remember that rights are certainly accompanied by the performance of certain duties. If the obligations are not respected, the violator may be held administratively liable.