They don't pay their salaries: where to go and what to do to get money. Where to turn if, after dismissal, the employer delays with the final payment? Consultation with a legal labor inspector Where to go if wages are delayed in Belarus

For non-compliance with labor legislation, including late payment of wages, disciplinary liability is provided for the manager and administrative liability for both the official and the employing organization<*> .

In order to strengthen the social protection of the population, personal liability has been established for the heads of organizations that do not ensure timely payment of wages and payments to the budget, up to and including dismissal from their positions.<*> .

It should be noted that arrears of wages are considered to be the total amount of wages due to the employee for the time actually worked in the previous month and not paid to him.

A distinction is made between arrears of wages and arrears of wages.

Overdue wages are established on the basis of state statistical reporting data and are determined by the amounts of wages to employees, including internal and external part-time workers, as well as dismissed workers, accrued but not paid by the organization until 24 hours of the last day of the month following the month for which these amounts accrued<*>. Wage arrears are recognized as non-payment of wages on the day established by the collective or labor agreement.

Example

The collective and labor agreement stipulates that wages must be paid on the 22nd.

Failure to pay wages on or after this date constitutes arrears.

If wages are not paid on the 1st day of the next month, then the organization will have overdue wages.

Employer's actions

If wages are not paid on time, they must be indexed in accordance with the consumer price index, which is published by Belstat<*>. In this case, the basis for indexation is a delay in the payment of wages for a calendar month or more compared to the period established by the local regulatory legal act of the employer or the employee’s employment agreement (contract).<*> .

Example

Salaries are due on the 22nd. From the 23rd day of the following month, the employer becomes obligated to index the amount of wages if it has not been paid before this time.

It should be taken into account that the indexation of untimely amounts is carried out in full for each month separately by adjusting them to the consumer price index, calculated on an accrual basis for the period of delay. When indexing, the consumer price index published by Belstat is used<*> .

Employee actions

An employee whose wages are not paid on time has the right to dismissal.

At the same time, the procedure and grounds for dismissal depend on what kind of employment contract is concluded with the employee - fixed-term or indefinite.

1. If a permanent employment contract has been concluded with an employee, he can submit a resignation letter of his own free will and indicate in it that the employer is violating labor laws, in particular, wages are not paid on time. The employer is obliged to terminate the employment contract within the period specified in the application<*> .

Let us note that for dismissal on the above grounds, the legislation does not provide that it is necessary for authorized bodies to confirm the employer’s violation of labor laws.

Disputes on this issue are considered by the courts or the labor dispute commission in terms of violation of labor legislation.

2. If a fixed-term employment agreement (contract) has been concluded with an employee, he has the right to resign due to the employer’s violation of labor legislation, a collective or labor agreement (contract). In this case, the fact of such a violation must be established by a specially authorized state body for supervision and control over compliance with labor legislation, trade unions and (or) the court<*>. An employee may apply to the court with a demand to establish the fact of violation by the employer of labor legislation and to terminate a fixed-term employment agreement (contract) under Art. 41 TK.

After confirmation of the employer’s violation of labor laws has been received, if there is a valid employee’s request for dismissal, the employer issues an appropriate order. Please note that the employee is not required to resign; he can continue working for the employer.

Upon termination of both an open-ended and a fixed-term employment contract due to violation by the employer of labor legislation, a collective or labor agreement, the employer pays the employee severance pay in the amount of at least two weeks of average earnings, with the exception of employees for whom the legislation establishes the payment of minimum compensation for termination of a fixed-term contract. employment contract in connection with the employer’s violation of labor legislation, collective or labor agreement<*> .

If the contract is terminated early due to non-fulfillment or improper fulfillment of its terms through the fault of the employer, along with the specified compensation, compensation in the amount of three average monthly wages is also paid<*> .

Responsibility of officials

1. The head of an organization may be brought to disciplinary liability by the employer, the owner of the property, in accordance with Art. 198 TK.

2. For violation by the employer or an authorized official of the employer of the procedure and terms for paying wages to employees of the organization, administrative liability is provided in the form of a fine, which can be imposed on both the organization and the officials responsible for the delay in paying wages.

In accordance with Part 1 of Art. 9.19 of the Code of Administrative Offenses establishes the following fines:

— for an official — from 4 to 20 basic units;

— for a legal entity — up to 100 basic units.

3. The head of the organization may be dismissed under clauses 1-2 of Art. 47 of the Labor Code for violation without good reason of the procedure and deadlines for the payment of wages and (or) benefits.

The decision to dismiss him is made by the owner of the organization’s property or his authorized body.

4. Heads of organizations are responsible for violation of deadlines for payment of wages on the basis of regulatory legal acts.

Thus, if there are arrears in paying wages to the heads of organizations, regardless of the form of ownership (with the exception of budgetary organizations and other organizations receiving subsidies, whose employees are equal in wages to employees of budgetary organizations), all types of bonuses, bonuses and remunerations are not accrued or paid<*>. In this case, the payment of wages to managers is made no earlier than its payment to employees of organizations and in accordance with the percentage (shares) of wages paid to employees<*> .

5. Submission of distorted data of state statistical reporting, untimely submission or failure to submit such reporting to state statistics bodies entails a fine of 10 to 50 basic units.<*> .

The Department of State Labor Inspection of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection has the right to bring the organization to administrative responsibility for violating the terms of payment of wages.<*>. If the organization does not agree with the decision of the specified Department, it can appeal the decision in the case of an administrative offense in court<*> .

Almost everyone has encountered a situation where employers delayed wages. Salary delays may be one-time in nature and for a short period of time. Employees usually treat this with understanding and do not want to come into conflict with the management of the enterprise. In other cases, due to incompetent management of the organization, difficult economic circumstances in the country salary delay becomes chronic. Then workers' salaries are delayed for months, and their families find themselves in a difficult financial situation.

The purpose of this article is to help answer the question what to do and where to go if wages are not paid.

The court, in this case, is the slowest, formalized body, endowed with great powers for a comprehensive and objective consideration of the claim for the collection of arrears of wages.

Please note that only these three methods can be used to collect wages and contact a bailiff for enforcement by writing off funds from the current account or selling the organization’s property to pay off wage arrears.

State bodies supervising the implementation of labor legislation, where you can contact regarding compliance with the procedure and timing of salary payment:

• Department of State Labor Inspection of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection;
• Committee (department) for labor, employment and social protection of the population of local executive and administrative bodies (executive committees);
• Prosecutor's Office;
• State Control Committee.

These bodies are called upon to identify and suppress violations of the law, including in the area of ​​timely payment of wages.

They have the right to conduct scheduled and unscheduled inspections of compliance with labor legislation in cases and in the manner prescribed by law, request explanations and documents from the employer, warn him about the inadmissibility of violating the terms of payment of wages, establish the fact of violation of the law, take measures to attract legal entities and their officials to administrative liability for delayed payment of wages, etc.

However, these bodies are not authorized to consider labor disputes. Nor do they have the right to forcibly pay wages to employees at the expense of the property of the debtor organization. In addition, contacting these bodies, as well as the trade union organization, does not interrupt the three-month statute of limitations for collecting wages. In judicial practice, there are often cases when employees go to court (labour dispute commission) after three months because they were waiting for answers from the prosecutor's office and the department of state labor inspection. Under such circumstances, employees are denied claims to collect wage arrears due to missed deadlines.

Thus, if wages are not paid, employees should be guided by the current Belarusian legislation, be active and independent in protecting their rights, taking into account the specifics of the activities of specific government bodies.

In accordance with the Labor Code, the employer is obliged to make all payments due to the employee no later than the day of dismissal. This and other questions were answered during the direct line by the chief legal labor inspector of the Gomel regional organization of the trade union of forestry and environmental workers, Vladimir SHVETSOV.

“It’s been two months since I quit my previous job and got a job in a new organization. But the former employer did not finally pay me off upon dismissal, citing the fact that the bailiff had seized the funds in the current account. What should I do now? And does the law provide for the responsibility of the employer in this case? Victor S., Gomel

– In accordance with Article 77 of the Labor Code, when dismissing an employee, the employer is obliged to make all payments due to him no later than the day of dismissal. If the employee did not work on that day, then the final payment must be made no later than the next day after the relevant request is submitted. Seizure of the employer's funds is not a valid reason for failure to pay the final payment to the employee within the time limits established by law and does not relieve the manager from liability established by law for the delay in payment upon dismissal.

In accordance with Article 78 of the Labor Code, in case of non-payment of the due amounts, the employee has the right to recover from the employer the average salary for each day of delay in the final payment, and in the event of non-payment of part of the amount - in proportion to the amounts unpaid during the calculation.

You should also know that if wages are not paid on time, they are indexed (in accordance with Article 58 of the Labor Code). Wages, all types of pensions, scholarships and benefits are subject to indexation, the delay in payment of which is a calendar month or more compared to the period established by law, the local regulatory legal act of the employer, the employee’s employment agreement (contract) (according to clauses 12 and 13 Instructions on the procedure and conditions for indexing the population's cash income due to inflation, as well as in case of late payment of wages, pensions, scholarships and benefits, approved by Resolution of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection dated 05/05/2009 No. 57). Organizations carry out indexation of untimely paid amounts regardless of the form of ownership at the place of their accrual.

– When I was fired, my final payment was delayed, and then the management changed, and they just shrugged their shoulders at my requests. Where can I go to recover the amount due to me? Olga K., Gomel

– In accordance with Article 233 of the Labor Code, individual labor disputes on the application of labor legislation, collective agreements, agreements are considered by the labor dispute commission or the court.

The Labor Dispute Commission considers disputes between employees who are members of the relevant trade union (Article 236 of the Labor Code). But since in this case the person is no longer an employee of the enterprise, it is necessary to go to court - to file a claim to recover the final payment from the employer upon dismissal.

In addition, the debt for accrued but not paid wages by the employer can be recovered from the employer through a notary’s writ of execution. To make a writ of execution, the notary is provided with an application and a document containing information about the place of work, the amount of wage arrears and payment terms, signed by the head of the organization and the chief accountant, sealed (if any), as well as a document confirming the payment by the employee of the notary fee, which subject to recovery from the employer in accordance with Article 105 of the Law of July 18, 2004 No. 305-Z “On Notaries and Notarial Activities”, with subsequent amendments and additions.

– I tried to negotiate the final payment with the employer for four months from the date of dismissal to no avail. When I decided to go to court, I was told that it was too late. But why? Are there any deadlines set? Dmitry R., Rechitsa

– In accordance with Article 242 of the Labor Code, in order to protect the rights of the employee, including those relating to payment of the final payment upon dismissal, a 3-month period has been established for applying to the labor dispute commission or court from the day the employee learned or should have known about violation of your rights. The specified period is a special limitation period.

If missed for valid reasons, the limitation period may be restored by the labor dispute commission or the court. Valid reasons are circumstances that objectively prevented the application for protection (illness, long business trip, etc.).

In accordance with Article 200 of the Civil Code, the limitation period is applied by the court only upon the application of a party to the dispute made before the court makes a decision. The expiration of the limitation period, the application of which is declared by a party to the dispute, is the basis for the court to make a decision to reject the claim.

The running of the limitation period is interrupted by filing a claim in the prescribed manner, as well as by the obligated person performing actions indicating recognition of the debt (Article 204 of the Civil Code). After the break, the limitation period begins again. The time elapsed before the break does not count towards the new deadline.

Thus, the employee must go to court to collect the final payment no later than 3 months from the date of dismissal, otherwise the employer may declare in court that the employee missed the statute of limitations, which will entail denial of the claim. In order for the statute of limitations to be interrupted and started anew, the employee must receive from the employer (preferably in writing) a document confirming the recognition of the debt.

Lawyers receive many questions about how to protect their rights when it comes to the relationship between an employer and an employee. has prepared answers to the most common questions encountered in her practice.

The legislator of the Republic of Belarus gave in Art. 57 of the Labor Code provides a legal definition of wages, emphasizing the remunerative nature of the relationship between employer and employee.

Therefore, one of the main terms of an employment contract is the amount of wages and the timing of its payment.

When labor relations are properly formalized, an employment contract is concluded between the parties, which clearly reflects the amount or mechanism for determining the amount of wages and the timing of its payment.

How often should salaries be paid?

The legislator of the Republic of Belarus established the employer’s obligation to pay wages regularly, but at least once a month(Part 1, Clause 4 of Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus dated July 26, 1999 No. 29 “On additional measures to improve labor relations, strengthen labor and performance discipline”).

In a number of cases, courts refuse to satisfy workers' claims for the collection of arrears of wages.

However, in reality, there are often cases of untimely payments to employees during the period of validity of the employment contract. An employee who is unaware of certain aspects of the law, and the employer is obviously at fault, remains powerless; in some cases, courts refuse to collect wage arrears from employees. This often happens because the employee does not know about the deadlines for going to court to resolve a dispute over the collection of wages or does not present sufficient evidence to the court.

The main points that an employee needs to know in the event of delays in the payment of remuneration for labor and the algorithm of actions to protect his violated right to timely receipt of wages, read below.

If you are late in filing your complaint, the court may reject your claim.

It is necessary to begin with the fact that the labor legislation of the Republic of Belarus provides for fairly short terms for applying for resolution of labor disputes. In accordance with Part 1 of Art. 242 Labor Code of the Republic of Belarus this the period is set at three months from the date when the person learned or should have learned about the violation of his right. When resolving labor disputes regarding the collection of wages, court practice proceeds from the fact that the calculation of the three-month period specified in Part 1 of Art. 242 of the Labor Code of the Republic of Belarus, is carried out from the day following the day on which wages should have been paid according to the employment contract.

If the employee missed the specified deadline, and the defendant (employer) filed a petition in court to apply the deadline provided for in Part 1. Art. 242 of the Labor Code of the Republic of Belarus, the court will refuse to satisfy the employee’s demands for the collection of arrears of wages.

In what cases is the period within which you can go to court extended?

The legislation of the Republic of Belarus provides for cases when the period provided for in Part 1 of Art. 242 of the Labor Code of the Republic of Belarus are interrupted. So, in accordance with Art. 204 of the Civil Code of the Republic of Belarus, the course of the specified period is interrupted by the obligated person performing actions indicating recognition of the debt. In this case, the time elapsed before the break does not count towards the new period.

In order for an employee to apply the rules for interrupting the deadline for applying for resolution of a labor dispute to his situation, it is necessary to request a certificate of arrears of wages, or any written information from the employer that such arrears are recognized and will be repaid. The presence of a certificate of arrears of wages is the basis for the indisputable collection of debt through the execution of a writ of execution from a notary.

The period provided for in Part 1. Art. 242 of the Labor Code of the Republic of Belarus will also be interrupted if partial repayment of wage arrears is made.

If the employer refuses to issue documents on the amount of wage arrears, It is advisable for the employee to send a written complaint to the employer registered with notification by correspondence. Filing a claim will suspend the period provided for in Part 1 of Art. 242 of the Labor Code of the Republic of Belarus, from the day the claim is sent until the day the response to it is received or the deadline for response established by law expires.

A missed deadline for applying for resolution of a labor dispute can be restored by the court if the reasons for missing the specified deadline are recognized by the court as valid (for example, illness).

Where to go if your salary is not paid?

The main way to protect the violated right of an employee to receive wages is to file a claim in court. If the employee is a member of a trade union, then it is mandatory to comply with the pre-trial procedure - appeal to the Labor Dispute Commission (commission on labor disputes operating at the enterprise). If a CTS has not been created at the enterprise, then you must apply for protection to the court at the location of the employer; it is possible to file a claim at the location of the branch.

How to prove that the employer does not pay wages?

The claim for recovery of wages must be accompanied by documents confirming the existence of wage arrears (for example, payslips), copies of the employment contract, work record book, etc. If the employer refuses to provide the documents referred to by the employee, then a petition can be filed in court to demand such documents.

The card account statement will clearly show when the money was credited.

There is no universal list of documents that can be provided to the court by an employee to confirm the existence of wage arrears: it is necessary to take into account how the wages were paid, whether the employer disputes the existence of wage arrears or its size.

For example, an extract from a card account will clearly show information about when and in what amounts the employee’s wages were credited, and in the absence of statements on the payment of wages, such a document will become evidence confirming the validity of the employee’s claims. Information about the insurance premiums transferred by the employer in relation to the employee (upon the employee’s application can be requested from the district department of the Federal Social Security Fund) confirms the fact that the plaintiff performed the work for the defendant (employer). A copy of the employment contract, bonus regulations, staffing table will allow you to determine the amount of wages, etc.

In each case, the process of proving the circumstances referred to by the plaintiff (employee) is different and depends on the position of the defendant (employer). Therefore, the preparation of a statement of claim for the recovery of wages and the preparation for participation in court hearings should be taken responsibly.

The employee has the right to demand indexation of the amount owed to him.

I would like to emphasize that when collecting wage arrears, the employee (plaintiff) has the right to demand indexation of the amounts collected in accordance with the consumer price index published by the National Statistical Committee of the Republic of Belarus.

If your salary is delayed, you can contact the body that supervises compliance with labor and labor protection legislation

It should be noted that if there is arrears in wages, as well as if there is a delay in payment, the employee has the right to establish the fact of violation of labor legislation by submitting an application to the Department of State Labor Inspection of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Republic of Belarus. Upon receipt of an employee's application, as a rule, an unscheduled inspection is carried out. If the fact of untimely payment of wages is established (i.e. the fact of violation of labor legislation is confirmed), the employee has the right to raise the issue of terminating the employment contract in accordance with Art. 41 of the Labor Code of the Republic of Belarus with payment of severance pay.

Moreover, as part of the verification activities, circumstances that are important for a civil case regarding the collection of wages can be established (for example, the employer, when giving explanations, will confirm the existence of a debt; if necessary, the material of an unscheduled inspection can be requested by the court).

Often, such unscheduled inspections discipline the employer, who, soon after receiving the employee’s application, repays the debt. Thus, it is possible to resolve the dispute without resorting to a judicial mechanism for protecting violated labor rights.

Summarizing all of the above, it should be noted that an employee whose rights are violated has the right to respond to the unlawful actions of the employer in all ways available to him. What documents will form the basis for preparing a reasoned claim for recovery of wages:

• correspondence between the parties;
• information requested from the Federal Social Security Fund about insurance premiums transferred by the employer in relation to the employee;
• response from the Department of State Labor Inspection of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Republic of Belarus on the results of an unscheduled inspection;
• card account statements;
• copies of payslips and other documents

Remember the deadlines for applying for resolution of labor disputes and your legal requirements will be reflected in the court decision. Timely contacting a lawyer for an initial consultation, for assistance in obtaining documents and preparing a statement of claim is the key to successful protection of your legitimate interests.

Prepared by Nadezhda Shakhalai

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Non-payment or late payment of wages occurs in our difficult times. There may be several reasons for this, most often they are production and economic. Sometimes these reasons can even be called “good reasons.” But the worker also needs, to put it simply, a means of subsistence.

According to Art. 57 of the Labor Code of the Republic of Belarus (hereinafter referred to as the Labor Code), wages are remuneration for work, which the employer is obliged to pay to the employee for the work performed, depending on its complexity, quantity, quality, working conditions and qualifications of the employee, taking into account the actual time worked, as well as for the periods included in working hours.

Clause 4, Part 1, Art. 55 of the Labor Code establishes a requirement according to which, when organizing the work of employees, the employer is obliged to pay wages within the terms and amounts established by law, a collective agreement, an agreement or an employment contract. In case of violation of the provisions of this paragraph, the employee is guaranteed the right to protection of his violated rights and legitimate interests.

We will now try to figure out where and in what ways to seek protection.

Without leaving the entrance

Firstly, if your wages are being delayed, before you go somewhere to complain, it is worth sending a statement to the employer with a requirement for the proper fulfillment of assumed obligations under the employment contract, specifically for the payment of wages.

Of course, you won’t reveal anything new to the employer with your appeal and you won’t be able to scare him so much that he will immediately settle accounts with you. But this step will not be superfluous, and if events develop differently, it will even be necessary. If you have to contact any authorities on this issue, you will already have a motivated response from the employer indicating the reasons for the delay in the payment of your hard-earned money.

After receiving such a response (and it will most likely be disappointing), you should contact the employer with a request to issue documents on work and wages. In accordance with Art. 51 TC data documents must be issued to the employee within 5 days in the form of a certificate indicating the specialty, qualifications, position, hours of work and wages, as well as other documents on work provided for by law. This certificate will be useful to you if the case goes to court, as well as when applying to other authorities.

If your company has established a labor dispute commission (hereinafter referred to as the LCC), you should contact it. In accordance with Art. 235 TK The CCC is the mandatory primary body for resolving labor disputes, except for cases when the Labor Code and other legislative acts establish a different procedure for their consideration.

According to Art. 242 of the Labor Code, employees can apply to the CCC or, in cases established by legislative acts, to court within 3 months from the day when they learned or should have learned about the violation of their right, and in cases of dismissal - to the court within a month from the date of delivery of a copy of the dismissal order or from the date of issuance of the work book with a record of the grounds for termination of the employment contract or from the date of refusal to issue or receive the specified documents.

The CCC is obliged to consider the labor dispute within 10 days; based on the results of the consideration, the commission makes an appropriate decision. This decision is binding on the employer and the union and must be served on these parties within 3 days.

If the employee does not agree with the decision of the CCC, he has the right to appeal this decision to the court within 10 days after he was served with the decision of this commission or 10 days from the moment when a copy of this decision should have been handed to the employee.

Of course, to protect your violated right to remuneration for your work, you You can also contact your trade union, if you have one and are a member.

In accordance with clause 1.2 of Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus dated May 6, 2010 No. 240 “On the exercise of public control by trade unions” (hereinafter referred to as Decree No. 240), trade unions exercise public control in the form of inspections and activities to monitor, analyze, evaluate compliance with labor and socio-economic rights of citizens (monitoring), participation in the work of collegial bodies, commissions and other forms provided for by law, collective agreements (agreements) not related to inspections. In principle, a similar function for trade unions was assigned by law before.

The employer, owner or management body authorized by him must consider the submission of trade unions to eliminate violations of the legislation of the Republic of Belarus on labor and within a month inform the trade unions about the results of the consideration.

However, let's be realistic - most likely you have not discovered anything new for your trade union; if there is a fact of non-payment of wages at the enterprise, then the trade union is aware of these events and is unlikely to influence the situation in any way.

If nothing can be resolved within the enterprise, all that remains is to look for help “from the outside.”

Department of Statelabor inspectorate

In accordance with clause 5 of the Regulations on the Department of State Labor Inspection of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Republic of Belarus, approved by Resolution of the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus dated July 29, 2006 No. 959, the Department supervises the implementation by employers of labor and labor protection legislation, identifies and suppresses violations of labor and labor protection legislation, applies sanctions to employers in accordance with the procedure established by law and brings to administrative responsibility officials of employers who have committed violations of legislation in this area.

According to clause 1.1 of the resolution of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Republic of Belarus dated December 11, 2009 No. 144 “On some measures to implement the Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus dated October 16, 2009 No. 510,” the main method of monitoring compliance with labor and labor protection legislation is checking the work on compliance with the requirements of labor and labor protection legislation, the fulfillment by authorized officials of the inspected entity of the duties assigned to them on these issues.

The Department of State Labor Inspection is an influential body; with its help, citizens often manage to defend their rights. You might be lucky too.

The National Audit Office plays a role

In some situations, contacting such an influential structure as the State Control Committee of the Republic of Belarus (hereinafter referred to as the SCC) may help you.

In accordance with clause 1 of the Regulations on the State Control Committee of the Republic of Belarus, approved by Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus dated November 27, 2008 No. 647, the State Control Committee is a state body exercising state control over the execution of the republican budget, the use of state property, the execution of acts of the President of the Republic of Belarus, the Parliament of the Republic of Belarus, the Government of the Republic of Belarus and other government bodies regulating state property relations, economic, financial and tax relations, as well as on other issues in accordance with the laws and decisions of the President of the Republic of Belarus.

Law of the Republic of Belarus dated 01.07.2010 No. 142-Z “On the State Control Committee of the Republic of Belarus and its territorial bodies” establishes that the State Control Committee, within its competence, considers, in accordance with the law, appeals from citizens and legal entities and organizes their personal reception.

Prosecutor's office

Based on Art. 4 of the Law of the Republic of Belarus dated 05/08/2007 No. 220-Z “On the Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of Belarus” (hereinafter referred to as Law No. 220), one of the main tasks of the prosecutor’s office is to ensure the rule of law, legality and order, protection of the rights and legitimate interests of citizens and organizations. In order to fulfill these tasks, the prosecutor's office supervises the accurate and uniform execution of laws, decrees, decrees and other normative legal acts by republican government bodies and other state organizations subordinate to the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Belarus, local representative, executive and administrative bodies, public associations, religious organizations and other organizations, officials and other citizens, including individual entrepreneurs.

Prosecutor's office in accordance with their powers consider citizens' appeals, including individual entrepreneurs and organizations containing information about violations of the law, in the manner and within the time limits established by legislative acts. Prosecutor takes measures to restore the violated rights and legitimate interests of citizens, including individual entrepreneurs and organizations, bringing violators to responsibility established by legislative acts.

Employer's liability

It should be noted that the above bodies (Department, State Control Committee, Prosecutor's Office) have the right to involve the employer or persons authorized by the employer in cases and in the manner established by law, to administrative and other liability.

So, in accordance with Art. 465 of the Labor Code for violations of labor legislation, including non-payment (late payment) of wages, guilty legal entities and individuals bear disciplinary, administrative, criminal and other liability in accordance with the law.

Part 1 of Art. 9.19 of the Code of the Republic of Belarus on Administrative Offenses (hereinafter referred to as the Administrative Offenses Code) establishes that for violation of the procedure and terms for payment of wages, the employer or an official authorized by the employer is subject to administrative liability in the form of a fine in the amount of 4 to 20 basic units, and for a legal entity face - up to 100 basic units. Cases of administrative offenses provided for in Part 1 of Art. 9.19. Code of Administrative Offences, are considered by the court, the KGC, if the protocol on the commission of an administrative offense was drawn up by officials of the Committee, and by the Department, if the protocol on the commission of an administrative offense was drawn up by officials of the Department.

It is also worth noting that according to Part 2, Clause 1 of Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus dated August 30, 1996 No. 344 “On the timely payment of wages, pensions, scholarships and benefits,” heads of enterprises, associations and organizations, regardless of their form of ownership, who do not ensure timely payment wages, bear personal responsibility until dismissal from their position.

Judicial protection

The most common way to protect a violated right is going to court.

If the employee’s wages are accrued and not disputed by the employer, but are not paid by him for any reason, the easiest way will be in accordance with clause 5 of Art. 394 of the Civil Procedure Code of the Republic of Belarus to apply to the court to collect the amount of arrears of wages in the order of writ proceedings. Collection of debt from the employer in this situation is practically undeniable, since the court collects from the employer the entire debt, no matter for what period it was incurred, since, by accruing the appropriate wages, the employer recognizes the employee’s right to receive these funds. The employer’s response to your application, which we talked about at the beginning of the article, would be appropriate here.

Let's stop separately on filing a claim to the judicial authorities for the recovery of wages and/or early termination of the employment contract at the initiative of the employee if it is established that the employer has violated its obligations under the employment contract.

In accordance with Art. 41 of the Labor Code, an employment contract is subject to early termination at the request of the employee in the event of his illness or disability that prevents the performance of work under the employment contract, violation by the employer of labor legislation, collective or labor agreements and for other valid reasons. The Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Belarus, by resolution of June 26, 2008 No. 4 “On the practice of courts considering labor disputes related to the contract form of hiring workers,” determined that when assessing the validity of the reasons for terminating an employment contract at the request of an employee, it is necessary to take into account that the reasons indicated by the plaintiff (employee) prevented him from performing work under the concluded labor contract. The court also included non-payment or late payment of wages to the employee as such valid reasons.

In case of early termination of an employment contract on the specified grounds, the employee must first contact the specially authorized state body for supervision and control over compliance with labor legislation (Department), trade union and (or) the court with a request to establish the fact of violation by the employer of labor legislation, collective or labor contract. After receiving such a conclusion, you can submit to the employer a statement of intent to terminate the employment contract early.

You can first submit an application to the employer, and then look in the above structures for confirmation of a violation of the terms of the employment contract. But it should be remembered that before the employer issues an order for early dismissal or before the court makes a decision on early termination of the employment contract, the employee (plaintiff) does not have the right to stop working, since such termination may be grounds for dismissal of an employee for violation of labor discipline.

Of course, when entering into such a battle, you must be aware that you cannot do without the help of a qualified lawyer (attorney). But we hope that our article will at least help you properly coordinate your actions and orient you in the complex system of public and state control bodies and supervision of compliance with labor laws.

"Personal Lawyer", No. 7/2011