Employee premiums could face fines for unauthorized withholding
In a significant move to safeguard employee rights, President Vladimir Putin has signed a law aimed at protecting employees from unreasonable bonus reduction in case of disciplinary punishment. The new regulation comes into effect on September 1 and will apply to all employers, including individuals engaged in entrepreneurial activity without forming a legal entity.
The recent legislation limits the employer's ability to reduce bonuses or incentive payments arbitrarily when disciplinary measures are applied. The law requires that any reduction in bonuses due to disciplinary punishment must be reasonable and proportionate to the violation committed. Employers are prevented from using bonus reduction as an unfair or hidden penalty beyond what is established in labor regulations or employment contracts.
This new law aligns with broader trends to strengthen labor protections in Russia amid ongoing economic challenges such as hidden unemployment and reduced working hours. Safeguarding worker rights in remuneration has become increasingly important, and the new regulation is a step towards achieving this goal.
If an employee has a disciplinary penalty, the employer can only reduce their bonus in the month when the disciplinary offense occurred. The reduction should not decrease the monthly salary by more than 20%, as per the amendments to article 135 of the LC.
For legal entities, the fine for illegal bonus reduction is from 30,000 to 50,000 rubles. For individuals engaged in entrepreneurial activity without forming a legal entity, the fine for illegal bonus reduction is from 1,000 to 5,000 rubles. The CoA text provides the guidelines for fines in cases of illegal bonus reduction.
If an employee believes they were unlawfully deprived of a bonus, they can appeal this decision by contacting the employer or filing a complaint with the labor inspectorate. The fine for officials for illegal bonus reduction is from 10,000 to 20,000 rubles.
Employers will now have to detail their bonus systems in employment contracts, agreements, and local regulatory acts, as stated in the document text. Bonus reduction can occur due to various reasons, such as a disciplinary penalty during the bonus period, dismissal during the bonus period, an incomplete bonus period, unmet plan or task, a customer complaint, and missed deadlines.
Yevgeny Masharov, who emphasized the details of bonus reduction and the reasons for its implementation, stated that the law will apply to all employers and will help protect employees from unfair bonus reductions. The adoption of this law was also emphasized by Yevgeny Masharov.
In conclusion, the new Russian law is a significant step towards protecting employees from unreasonable bonus reduction related to disciplinary punishments. The law ensures that bonuses, which are often a significant part of employee remuneration, cannot be cut excessively or without fair justification as a form of discipline.
The new regulation in Russia's business and finance sector ensures employers can no longer arbitrarily reduce bonuses as a form of discipline, requiring any reduction to be reasonable and proportionate. Employers are also mandated to detail their bonus systems in employment contracts and local regulatory acts, as stated by Yevgeny Masharov, emphasizing the law's details and adoption.
