Zelenskyy Signs Law On Labor Relations During Martial Law

On March 23, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a law on the organization of labor relations during martial law.

This is evidenced by the information on the page of bill 7160 on the website of the Verkhovna Rada, Ukrainian News Agency reports.

The document provides that in order to eliminate the shortage of personnel and labor shortages, including as a result of the absence of workers who, as a result of hostilities, were evacuated to another locality, are on vacation, idle time, temporarily lost their ability to work, or whose fate is temporarily unknown, employers may enter into new employees fixed-term employment contracts for the period of martial law or the period of replacement of a temporarily absent employee.

For the period of martial law:

- the employer has the right to transfer the employee to another job without his consent, if it is not contraindicated for the employee for health reasons, only to prevent or eliminate the consequences of hostilities, with remuneration for the work done, but not lower than the average earnings for the previous job;
- the rules on a two-month period for warning an employee about a change in essential working conditions do not apply.
In connection with the conduct of hostilities in the areas in which the enterprise is located, and the threat to the life and health of the employee, he may terminate the employment contract on his own initiative without a two-week notice period.
The employer has the right to terminate the employment contract with the employee in connection with the liquidation of the enterprise, caused by the destruction as a result of hostilities of all production, organizational or technical capacities or property of the enterprise.
The employee is warned about such dismissal no later than 10 days with the payment of a severance pay in the amount of at least the average monthly salary.
For the period of martial law, it is also allowed to dismiss an employee at the initiative of the employer during the period of his temporary incapacity for work, as well as while the employee is on vacation (except for maternity leave and parental leave), indicating the date of dismissal, which is the first working day , following the day of the end of temporary incapacity for work, specified in the document on temporary incapacity for work, or the first working day after the end of the vacation.
In case of impossibility of payment of wages due to hostilities, the payment of wages may be suspended until the restoration of the ability of the enterprise to carry out its main activities.
It is also possible, under martial law, to suspend the employment contract.
In this case, compensation of wages, guarantee and compensation payments to employees for the period of suspension of the employment contract in connection with military aggression against Ukraine is fully assigned to the state carrying out military aggression.
It is noted that the law is valid only for the period of martial law and comes into force the day after its publication.
As Ukrainian News Agency reported, the Verkhovna Rada adopted the relevant bill on March 15.

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