Today it is very rare to find companies that do not install new employees probation to check their professional suitability. However, often neither the employee nor even the employer fully understands the meaning of the probationary period and the consequences of its establishment. Therefore, below we will talk about in what cases a probationary period can be established, what are the procedure and consequences of its establishment, and describe the main features associated with the probationary period.
When and in what order can a probationary period be established?
In accordance with Art. 70 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation (hereinafter referred to as the Labor Code of the Russian Federation), a test when hiring is established by agreement of the parties to verify the employee’s compliance with the assigned work. Thus, the probationary period can only be fixed in an agreement between the parties, which is usually an employment contract. The probationary condition cannot be established by order of the employer and cannot be recorded in local acts organizations with which the employee is introduced after being hired.
If, upon hiring, the employee was “not registered”, in other words, an employment contract was not concluded with him, then by virtue of Art. 16 Labor Code of the Russian Federation, according to general rule such an employee, however, is considered accepted and has all the rights in accordance with the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. Since in in this case If there is no employment contract, then there is also no agreement on establishing a probationary period. Therefore, the employee is considered accepted without testing.
Since the probationary period is established only at the time of hiring, it cannot be established later, even by agreement of the parties. Therefore, if in employment contract, concluded for employment, there is no record of the test, it will no longer be possible to introduce a probationary period using legal methods.
Please note that the Labor Code of the Russian Federation does not talk about a probationary period, but uses the term “test”. Therefore, in order to avoid disputes between the employee and the employer, the employment contract should specifically indicate the establishment of a trial, and not a probationary period.
In Art. 70 and some other articles of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation indicate persons for whom probation cannot be established. Most often, this restriction applies to the following categories of persons:
- pregnant women and women with children under the age of one and a half years;
- persons who graduated from state accredited educational institutions of primary, secondary and higher education vocational education and those entering work for the first time in their specialty within one year from the date of graduation educational institution(we are talking about young specialists graduating from university);
- persons invited to work by way of transfer from another employer as agreed between the employers.
Thus, even if the employment contract concluded with these persons contains a probationary condition, this condition will be invalid as contrary to the law. For these persons, the test is fundamentally unacceptable.
As a general rule, the probationary period cannot exceed three months.. For organizational leaders, chief accountants and their deputies – 6 months. It is important to note that the probationary period does not count the time when the employee was actually absent from work, for example, sick.
Consequences of establishing a probationary period
The main consequence of establishing a probationary period is possibility of simplified termination of an employment contract, both for the employee and the employer.
The simplified procedure is expressed in the fact that an “unsatisfactory test result” is sufficient to dismiss an employee during the probationary period. Although it is important to note that unsatisfactory results must be confirmed and must be attributed specifically to business qualities employee In other words, you cannot fire an employee if there are no business claims against him, but “they don’t get along.” In the latter case, the dismissal will be considered illegal. The procedure for an employee to act in case of illegal dismissal is described in a separate article.
The main evidence of an unsatisfactory test result can be:
- orders for disciplinary action,
- memos from the immediate superior about the unsatisfactory quality of work of the subordinate,
- explanatory notes the employee himself regarding violations committed,
- an act drawn up based on the results of an internal audit, etc.
It is very important for the employer to have evidence that the employee was not doing his job. If an employee is late or absent, the entire procedure for bringing disciplinary action must be followed. If an employee swears obscenely at his colleagues, it is necessary to schedule an internal inspection, collect explanatory notes and draw up a report based on the results. And this should be done in every situation when the employee’s actions are not satisfactory. In court in a dispute over illegal dismissal simple words absenteeism and an irresponsible approach to work will not be enough.
Before dismissing an employee, the employer is obliged to notify him of the upcoming dismissal no later than three days in advance. The notice must indicate the reasons why the employer concluded that the test result was unsatisfactory. Only after three days from the date of notification, the employer can issue an order to terminate the employment contract, otherwise the dismissal may be considered illegal due to non-compliance established order. The dismissal order must be issued within the probationary period.
An employee can also terminate an employment contract in a simplified manner. If usually, upon dismissal at will the employee is obliged to notify the employer two weeks in advance, then while on a probationary period, the employee must notify the employer of dismissal in just three days.
By and large, the establishment of a probationary period does not entail any other consequences other than a simplified procedure for terminating an employment contract. Therefore, during the probationary period, the employee is endowed with the same rights as other employees of the organization.. In connection with the test, he cannot be given a lower salary, longer work hours, etc. The only difference with such an employee is that he can be dismissed in a simplified manner. In all other respects, he has the same rights and bears the same responsibilities as his colleagues.
How to get hired with a probationary period? The probationary period is a period of time during which the parties evaluate each other. After signing necessary documents, the employee was hired for a probationary period.
The employer evaluates the subject as a future employee: his qualifications, accuracy and quality of duties performed, disciplinary behavior.
During the test, the subject can also draw conclusions about working conditions, requirements for tasks performed, and meeting deadlines for paying wages.
The testing time is included in the total length of service; during this period, no rights of the test subject should be infringed. All conditions provided for other employees also apply to the subject. This also applies to wages.
The probationary period allows, in case of poor performance of one’s duties, to terminate the contract with the subject before the end of the inspection without additional payments. But the main thing is that when applying for a job with a probationary period, the documents are drawn up correctly. Is the employment contract concluded for a probationary period?
When adding a newcomer to the staff of an enterprise, the following basic documents are drawn up::
- Application for a job with a probationary period;
- employment contract with a probationary period;
- order of admission with a probationary period;
- registration of probationary period work book.
Only if all these documents are completed correctly, if the work performed is poor during the inspection period, the subject can be fired without any legal proceedings.
In accordance with Article 70 of the Labor Code, the probationary period is not prerequisite when starting a job.
The person being issued has the right to refuse it.
In such a situation, it is either accepted without verification, or simply refused to be processed.
Let's take a closer look at the following questions: how to arrange a probationary period and is an entry made in the work book during the probationary period?
Application for a job
The first step in hiring an employee for a probationary period is to draw up an application for a probationary period.. It is usually written in free form. The inclusion of test period language in this document is in good faith of the applicant.
The application is drawn up in the name general director enterprise, indicating its full name, position and name of the organization. Next it is written from whom this document is being sent.
The text of the application must indicate the position for which the applicant is being accepted and the service or department where he is applying. Then the applying employee can write that he is being accepted on a probationary period, indicating its duration.
Moreover, this duration cannot be set longer than the period prescribed by law: for ordinary employees, employment with a probationary period of 3 months is the maximum.
Employment contract with a probationary period upon hiring
Is an agreement drawn up for the duration of a probationary period and how to draw up an employment contract with a probationary period (sample below)?
An employment contract with an employee for a probationary period is the most important link when registering for work ().
When it is drawn up for a newcomer undergoing testing, the text of the document includes a clause on the verification period under Article 57 of the Labor Code.
The main condition of the employment contract during the probationary period is bilateral consent.
Upon registration unlimited contract The inspection period under Article 70 of the Labor Code cannot be declared more than three months for ordinary employees and six for management personnel. In this sample employment contract with a probationary period of 3 months, the following is written:
An employee is hired as an engineer. The beginning of activities is counted from “__” _______ 2016.
This document determines the execution of a probationary period of 3 (three) months from the date of hiring. A positive mark of passing the test is considered to be the high-quality performance of the duties recorded in the job description.
In case of dishonest work, the contract is terminated at the request of the employer in the form of a written notice three days before the termination date.
The conditions of the probationary period must be specified in the regulations on passing the test; it stipulates the conditions and criteria for assessing the subject.
If there is no mention of the verification period in the document, it is considered that the newcomer is enrolled without verification.
The probationary period for a fixed-term employment contract (employment with a probationary period of six months) should not be more than two weeks.
For persons signing a contract for 2 months, no check is introduced.
In all other cases fixed-term contracts the period remains the same as for perpetual ones.
If for some reason the document did not contain wording about passing the test, then after the employee began performing his duties, it is no longer possible to change or add an entry about the test in the document.
The practice is considered incorrect when a document confirming passing the test is signed after working in a new place for several days.
Order
After drawing up an employment contract, an employment order is generated. It contains a record of the test and indicates its duration, if such a note is included in the contract. If it is not included in the contract, the inspection note is not included in the order.
The employee was enrolled from “__” ______ 2016 to the position of accountant with a salary according to staffing table in the amount of ______ rubles.
With a trial period of 3 (three) months.
Grounds: Employment contract No. __ dated “__” _______2016.
Filling out a work book
Is an entry made in the work book during the probationary period?
Is the probationary period included in the work book?
During the probationary period when hiring, no entry is made in the work book..
A standard phrase about applying for a job is formulated. When dismissal (at the initiative of the employer) during the probationary period, the following entry is made in the employment record: “dismissed at his own request.”
If the termination of the contract occurs during an inspection at the suggestion of the employer (), then the following entry is made:
Dismissed due to unsatisfactory test results in accordance with Article 71 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
Important: The Labor Code uses the term “test” and not “probationary period”. In order to avoid any discrepancies with the wording of the law, it is better to make an entry in official documents with the word test.
With test without registration
If an employee is on a probationary period without a contract, then he is considered enrolled without any tests.
Hiring with a test must be documented. Moreover, when concluding an employment contract for a probationary period, the consent of the hired employee is required.
Without this, this paragraph is not included in any document. A person applying for a job indicates his consent to verification by making an entry in the application for employment he draws up and by signing in the concluded employment contract.
If new employee began to fulfill his job responsibilities, then it is impossible to add a line about testing after the law. Only if the documents are correctly drawn up and the wording about the verification period is included in them, no discrepancies will subsequently arise in conflict situations.
A probationary period is a working period during which the employer and employee have the opportunity to finally take a closer look at each other and decide whether it is worth continuing cooperation. Moreover, although it seems that the final word here remains with the employer, the employee can also change his mind during the probationary period, so it is probably worth drawing the conclusion that establishing a probationary period is beneficial to both parties to the employment relationship.
Legal norms
The norms and nuances of the probationary period are stipulated in the articles of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation:
- 70 “Test for employment”;
- 71 “Result of the test when applying for a job.”
Some features of the test setup for government civil servants are specified in Federal laws Russian Federation.
Determination of probationary period
As mentioned above, a probationary period is a period during which the employer can determine whether the employee is suitable for him, and the employee can finally decide whether he is satisfied with such work and such a team. The probationary period is no different from the normal work process, with the exception that both parties to the working relationship are closely examining each other, and during this period there is a simplified dismissal procedure in terms of working out. This is where all the differences with the normal labor process end - an employee undergoing a probationary period is subject to the same requirements and guarantees as all other employees of the enterprise, in accordance with their positions, labor law standards and internal documents of the enterprise.
Documentation of the probationary period
The probationary period is part of the labor process, therefore, the employment contract must include an entry stating that the employee was hired on a probationary period. If such a record was not made, it is considered that the employee was accepted without any tests, even if after a couple of days or a week the employer comes to his senses and decides to formalize the test. It is illegal to do this.
The probationary period must be established with the consent of the employee, and the employee must know its duration and the nuances of completion. Information about the duration of the probationary period is duplicated in the employment order - the dates of the probationary period in the employment contract and the employment order must match.
Information about the completion of the probationary period is not entered into the work book, except in cases where the employee is dismissed as having failed the test. The end of the probationary period in other cases - when the employee successfully copes and is left on the staff of the enterprise - is not documented in any way, because the employment contract already states that the employee has been accepted, and the dates of the duration of the probationary period indicate its completion.
Probationary period regulations
In order for each employee to understand what his responsibilities are during the probationary period, and also to be sure that his rights are protected, it is possible to further develop and approve the Probationary Period Regulations.
The probation period must contain:
- general provisions - which stipulate the duration of the probationary period, its goals and objectives, and may refer to legal norms;
- the procedure for passing the test - which indicates the nuances of passing the probationary period at a given enterprise: work plan for the probationary period, assigning a supervisor to the employee, the procedure for submitting reports, the form of the conclusion on the test results, etc.;
- the result of passing the test - where they indicate the procedure for making a decision on the results of the probationary period.
An employee of the enterprise must be familiar with this Regulation.
Probation plan
Of course, it is more convenient to evaluate the results of an employee’s activities when there are certain criteria, for example, if the employer has established that a certain amount of products of a certain quality must be produced per work shift. For the employee, for his part, it is also more beneficial to have a clear plan during the probationary period, since if a decision is made that the employee did not cope with the test, having precise criteria in hand, it will be easier to appeal it in court.
Of course, the tasks for the probationary period included in the plan must be accurate, the criteria for their evaluation should not allow for ambiguous interpretation, if any additional tasks appear during the probationary period, they must be included in the plan.
p>The plan must be signed by the head of the enterprise and provided to the employee for review.
In general, it is in the interests of both the employee and the employer to record literally every step on paper and certify with signatures - this allows you to avoid unpleasant conversations with the labor commission and other regulatory authorities in the future.
Probation period report
At many enterprises, based on the results of the probationary period, the employee is required to write a report. As a rule, enterprises have a list of issues that the employee needs to disclose in his report, for example:
- what difficulties he encountered during the probationary period and how he solved them;
- what innovations he can bring to his work and to the work of the unit;
- what tasks the employee learned to cope with during the probationary period;
- what tasks the employee failed to cope with, why and how he plans to cope in the future.
The report is usually drawn up in any form in compliance with business style on standard sheets A4.
Conclusion on passing the probationary period
At the end of the probationary period, the employer, if described in the Probationary Period Regulations, writes a conclusion on the results. This could be a separate order, analytical note, commission act, etc. If a supervisor was provided to the employee during the probationary period, such a conclusion is drawn up by him. The enterprise may have a specially designed form for the report, or the conclusion may be drawn up in any form.
In the conclusion on completion of the probationary period, it is necessary to indicate, for example, such criteria and their assessment as:
- professional competence;
- obligation;
- diligence;
- ability to plan;
- workflow optimization;
- quality of work performed;
- compliance with labor discipline;
- employee achievements;
- skill to work in team.
Based on this conclusion, it can be concluded whether this employee to the enterprise. The employee must be familiar with the conclusion against signature, especially if we are talking about the dismissal of the employee for not completing the probationary period.
Order to end the probationary period
In the case when the employee has successfully completed the probationary period, no additional documents are required - the employee simply continues to work as he worked before, and by default it is considered that he has completed it.
In the same case, when the employee did not cope with the test, he must be dismissed at the end of the probationary period. To do this, it is best to first draw up a conclusion about the results of completing the probationary period, familiarize the employee with it against signature, and if the employee refuses to sign, draw up a corresponding report in the presence of the appointed commission.
After which the company issues an order to dismiss the employee due to the fact that he has not completed the probationary period. The basis for the order is an employment contract, which states the condition of completing a probationary period, and a conclusion on the results of the test or an act of the commission.
What are the benefits of a probationary period?
Despite the fact that the probationary period is the same part of the work process as regular working days, and the employee is subject to all the rights and obligations provided for by the labor code and internal documents of the enterprise, during the probationary period there is one significant nuance that makes it attractive and for the employee and for the employer. We are talking about dismissal during the probationary period.
Under normal circumstances, dismissal at the initiative of the employer is almost impossible, especially if a permanent employment contract is signed. After all, first you will have to prove the employee’s dishonesty or wait for an opportunity to liquidate the enterprise - which, you see, is not worth such effort if we are talking about one working unit.
If an employee is undergoing a probationary period, and the employer sees that he cannot cope, the employee can be dismissed not only as having failed the test at the end of the probationary period, but also in the midst of the process at any time. To do this, the employer must only notify the employee of dismissal in writing, against signature, three days before the date of dismissal. It is best to prepare a conclusion on the unsuitability of the employee for this, since such dismissal can be appealed in court.
Dismissal at the end of the probationary period or in the middle of it is not agreed upon with the trade union committee and does not imply payment of severance pay, which, of course, is also very convenient for employers.
The employee, for his part, in the event of dismissal under normal circumstances, must work for at least two weeks, and work during the probationary period is only three days. Therefore, for some reason, it is also more profitable for an employee to get a job with a probationary period than without it, despite the fact that many are worried about how a record of such a short-term job will look in their work book or resume.
How long can the probationary period last?
According to the law, the average length of the probationary period is three months. At the request of the employer, the probationary period can be set for just a month or two months. But it’s better to take as much time as possible, since you can always complete the test ahead of schedule, but extending the probationary period is prohibited by law.
In some cases, the length of the probationary period varies.
1. For employees with whom an employment contract has been signed for a period of two to six months, the probationary period must be set at two weeks.
2. For civil government employees, the probationary period is set to last from six months to a year, in some cases – for the same three months.
3. For heads of enterprises, branches and various divisions, the probationary period can be set from three months to six months.
It must be taken into account that only those days when the employee was present at the workplace are counted in the probationary period. Therefore, for example, sick leave during the probationary period or military training does not count towards the general term. That is, an employee who has a probationary period from May 5th to June 5th, who was sick for four working days during this period, will have to work on the probationary period until June 9th. Extension of the probationary period due to the employee’s absence from the workplace is formalized by an order, to which the relevant documents confirming the employee’s absence are attached. And this is the only case when it is allowed to extend the probationary period.
Prohibition on setting a probationary period
Labor legislation provides for a certain category of citizens for whom a probationary period is not established. These include:
- pregnant women;
- minors;
- employees hired for transfer between enterprises or divisions;
- young specialists accepted into their specialty within a year after graduation;
- employees in elected positions;
- employees who won a competition for a position;
- temporary workers whose employment contract is signed for a period of no more than two months.
In some cases, pregnant women or employees hired by transfer may still be subject to a probationary period - we are talking about the civil public service.
Guarantees for employees during the probationary period
We must not forget that the law guarantees employees on a probationary period equal rights with other employees. This applies to all the nuances of the work process. For example, pay during the probationary period should be the same as for other employees in this position. If the employer pays the employee less during this period, he violates the norms of the Labor Code. It is strictly prohibited to describe in the Probationary Period Regulations or Employment Contract that during this period the employee will be paid less.
Recruiting personnel for any organization is an important and very difficult matter. Employers often maintain entire HR services, create their own system for searching and evaluating applicants, and turn to professional recruitment agencies, but these measures do not always give the desired result. Even multi-level interviews and the presence of recommendations from the candidate cannot guarantee that the potential employee has the necessary competence, discipline and other characteristics that carry the greatest weight in the eyes of the employer. As you know, it is quite difficult to fire a person on the initiative of the employer. And so that the company can easily get rid of a newly hired employee who turned out to be not so good, labor legislation allows him to be placed on a probationary period.
Test period – unique opportunity for the administration and colleagues to take a closer look at the newcomer, evaluate his professional and personal qualities, on the basis of which make a decision on further interaction. At the same time, the employee himself tries himself in the business, tries to join the team and checks to what extent the working conditions promised at the interview correspond to reality. Having realized that this is “not his” place, he has every right to quit within 3 days and not waste his and other people’s time on unpromising cooperation. Thus, the candidate will be able to immediately start looking for more interesting offers, and already former employer– selection of a suitable applicant.
True, break labor Relations it is not so easy with an employee who does not believe that he has failed the test. The organization's decision to part with such an employee must be justified and supported by relevant documents. It is important to strictly follow all procedures related to the probationary period - this will avoid problems with the dismissal of a careless newcomer.
Assignment of probationary period
An applicant is admitted for a probationary period only with his consent. This condition should in mandatory be present in the employment contract, otherwise the employee has every right to begin his duties immediately as a “full-fledged” employee.
According to the letter of the law, the establishment of a probationary period is possible only at the time of employment. You cannot assign a test “retroactively” when the new person has already taken office and started working. There is also a ban on testing for “old-timers” who are transferred to another job, even if the new position is a leadership one. Promotion or transfer of an employee on probation to another position means that the test was completed successfully and completed ahead of schedule.
There are a number of persons for whom the Labor Code of the Russian Federation prohibits establishing a probationary period. These include:
- minors;
- pregnant women and women with children under 1.5 years of age;
- graduates of universities and colleges applying for a job in their specialty for the first time within a year after receiving their diploma;
- winners of the competition to fill a vacant position;
- entering into elective office;
- those who came on transfer from another job;
- those entering into a short-term employment contract (up to 2 months);
- other categories of employees, established by legal norms and the provisions of the organization’s collective agreement.
An employer who has established a probationary period for the above persons may incur administrative responsibility up to the suspension of the enterprise’s activities, but such punishment is not always applied. The fact is that the organization’s responsibilities do not include establishing the “benefits” available to the employee during the probationary period. If on the day of registration for a job the applicant has not presented supporting documents to the personnel service, then the test that is contrary to the law is recognized as legal.
Duration of probationary period
The standard trial period for most beginners is 3 months. Exceptions to this rule are listed in Art. 70 of the Labor Code and include 2 categories of employees:
- For management employees, chief accountants and their deputies, the probationary period can be set for a period of up to 6 months.
- Urgent workers labor contract(from 2 months to six months) the test is completed in a maximum of 2 weeks.
The appointed time must be fixed in labor agreement and cannot exceed the maximum established for this category of workers. The employer may initially hire a person for a shortened probationary period, but in this case, he no longer has the right to extend it without the consent of the subject.
How to determine the end date of the test? Firstly, the duration is calculated in calendar days, that is, holidays and weekends are included in it. Secondly, the days that the “new guy” was sick or took at his own expense are excluded from the probationary period.
Registration of a probationary period
If management, based on the results of the test, decides that the employee is not suitable for working in the company, it will not be possible to dismiss him solely on the basis of a clause in the employment agreement. How to properly arrange a probationary period so that, if necessary, you can say goodbye to a new employee painlessly?
- The employment order must include a record of the probationary period and its duration.
- Evaluation of a newbie's performance cannot be subjective. The employer must develop and formulate on paper clear criteria for suitability for the position held. These can be special tasks, specific indicators that the subject undertakes to achieve within a certain period of time. All assignments are completed in in writing and are handed over to the employee for review and signature. Such a document is a list of tasks with a description of the result that should be obtained in the course of their solution, and specific deadlines for completion.
- The employer is obliged to regularly monitor the newcomer’s achievement of the established indicators. Each fact of dishonest performance of duties must be recorded officially: in an act, memo, report, which will indicate which of the assigned tasks the employee failed to cope with. It is these documents that will serve as proof that the subject this work turned out to be too much for me.
Dismissal of the subject
How to fire an employee who has not completed the probationary period? The employer must prepare for the end of the probationary period in advance, namely, draw up a notice and promptly familiarize the dismissed person with it. This must happen at least 3 days before the date of termination of the employment relationship.
Since the probationary period is calculated in calendar days, the moment it ends may coincide with a weekend or holiday when it is impossible to formalize dismissal. In this case, the date of dismissal should be considered the working day before the day off, which means that the employee must be notified even earlier.
What is a notification? This is a document that informs the employee that he has not completed the probationary period, indicating all recorded facts of unsatisfactory performance of duties and links to confirming office notes. On the notice of dismissal, the subject puts a signature and date of review.
At this point it is worth paying attention Special attention: a missed notice deadline by the HR service will lead to the fact that the “rejected” newcomer will work in his place as if nothing had happened, and it will become almost impossible to fire him on the initiative of the employer. An employee who has not received the employer’s decision within the time period established by law can rightfully consider himself to have passed the test and continue to work peacefully.
If by the end of the term the employee is ill or absent for any other reason, the test is accordingly extended, and the date of dismissal is postponed to the moment when the person reports to the workplace.
However, the subject can leave on his own without waiting for the end of the probationary period. To do this, he just needs to submit an application to the manager of his own free will. In this case, the employer does not have the right to demand work off and is obliged to calculate it within 3 days.
Hiring employees for a probationary period – a great opportunity for the employer to form a highly professional team, leaving only “battle-tested” personnel on staff. However, ignorance or ignorance of the nuances that accompany the registration of a probationary period reduces all the benefits of such employment to zero. If the employer violates the procedure for passing the test, he will not only not be able to get rid of what he considers an incompetent new employee, but there is also a high risk of getting problems with the labor inspectorate and the administrative code.
If the test is not properly completed, the former employee can appeal the dismissal in court, and as a rule, a decision in his favor should be expected. Often in such disputes, judges side with the plaintiffs and find them wrongfully fired. The result of such a verdict is disappointing for the organization - reinstatement of an unnecessary employee in his position and payment of monetary compensation to him in the amount of wages for the time he was forced to be absent from the workplace.
An employee is the main driving mechanism of every enterprise: from a small company to a large corporation. The functioning of the the whole organization. In the process of searching for suitable candidates, a significant portion of applicants are eliminated for various reasons. For rate professional qualities the prospective employee needs to be seen in action. It is for these purposes that a probationary period is provided for in the Labor Code (hereinafter in the article - the Code).
What do you need to know about the probationary period?
A probationary period may be issued to test candidates for compliance with the stated requirements. Its duration should not exceed three months. Moreover, there is one more limitation - for work that lasts from two to six months, tests are not recommended. If it is impossible to do without them, then it is permissible to arrange for their duration to be no more than two weeks.
Article 70 of the Code contains a list of persons for whom a probationary period of six months is possible. Among them:
- heads of enterprises and organizations,
- heads of structural and separate divisions, branches of organizations and enterprises,
- chief accountants and their deputies.
When passing the tests, periods of incapacity or actual absence from work for any reason are not taken into account. If the employment contract does not indicate a probationary period, then it is considered that the employee was hired without it. During the testing period, the employee is obliged to comply with the standards established in labor legislation. It is also necessary to take into account that there are some categories of persons for whom a probationary period is not established.
Restrictions on the application of the probationary period
When applying for certain citizens to work, simplified conditions of admission are used. This is based on what they relate to special groups, for which application general order unacceptable for a number of reasons. A probationary period is not established for the categories of persons indicated below:
- women during pregnancy,
- women with children under one and a half years old,
- minors (under 18 years old),
- employees who have entered into a contract for a period of less than two months,
- applicants who have received education (specialized secondary or higher education) in programs with state accreditation and are getting a job in their specialty for the first time within a year after the end of their studies,
- candidates who have applied for an elective position (paid),
- employees who were transferred from another company by agreement of employers,
- applicants who were selected through a competition to fill a specific position.
The first part of Article 207 of the Code also contains information about the prohibition of a probationary period for persons who have successfully completed an apprenticeship and subsequently entered into an agreement with the employer from whom they were trained. A similar restriction also applies to citizens who undergo an alternative civil service(clause 41 of Resolution No. 256 of May 28, 2004). In a situation where an agreement is concluded with the listed persons, which contains information about their completion of the probationary period, it is automatically canceled (will have no force). The dismissal of these employees due to failure to pass tests within the period is considered illegal (Article 71 of the Code).
To restore justice, the listed persons can sue. In accordance with Article 394 of the Code, an employee may be offered the following options:
- monetary compensation (moral damage),
- reinstatement,
- monetary compensation for the period of forced downtime.
A few words about the design of tests
All relations between employers and employees are formalized by appropriate agreements. The probationary period is no exception. A special note is placed in the contract. If there is no mention of a probationary period, it is concluded that the employee was hired on a general basis (without passing tests). If for some reason the employee began to perform his duties without signing the relevant papers (the agreement was signed later), then it is considered that he has been accepted.
A probationary period can only be issued before the start of implementation labor activity. Wage for the specified period is paid in full in accordance with the position held. According to Article 70 of the Code, an employee on probation has all the rights and obligations contained in labor law. In accordance with this, penalties and measures provided for in the organization for violation of internal rules may be applied to him.
When passing tests, not only the employer makes a decision regarding the employee. The latter can also analyze the situation within the company and decide on the need to continue working. If anything does not suit him, he can terminate the contract. Before this (three days in advance), the employee must notify the manager of his intention in writing.
Negative test results are a valid reason for terminating the contract. Head of writing notifies the employee three days in advance. The reasons must be indicated in the decision. The employee has the right to appeal it in court. If the probationary period has ended, but the employee continues to perform job responsibilities, then this is automatically considered passing the test. In this case, termination of the contract can be carried out on a general basis.
Penalties for violation of labor regulations
The legislation strictly regulates the relationship between employees and employers. Any violations - intentional or accidental - are punished certain types penalties. Article 5.27 of the Administrative Code provides for liability (administrative) for non-compliance established standards. An amount of from thirty to fifty thousand rubles is collected from legal entities. Officials and individual entrepreneurs will be required to pay from one to five thousand rubles.
Errors in drawing up a contract or its absence lead to a fine equal to ten to twenty thousand rubles for officials. For legal entities it will be fifty to one hundred thousand rubles. If the violation was committed by a person who is engaged in entrepreneurial activity without education legal entity, then the amount is from five to ten thousand. Repeated commission of these violations is punishable by increased monetary penalties and suspension of activities for certain categories of employers (Article 5.27, paragraphs 4 and 5).
The employees are the most important element when building a reliable and profitable business. It does not matter what duties they perform - draw up documentation or are directly involved in the production of goods. From correct selection personnel depends on the prosperity of the company and the quality of project implementation. Every employer strives to find a high-quality professional, but this is not always easy.
The probationary period allows you to solve a wide range of problems that arise (assessing the candidate’s personality, level of qualifications, etc.). When hiring an employee, it becomes possible to analyze his behavior and principles of work in the conditions of a particular company. If he successfully demonstrates his skills, he receives a vacant position. For many employers, this approach to employee selection is the only acceptable option, because no interview can guarantee a candidate’s 100% suitability for the position. Actual performance and actual results are the best proof of applicants' abilities.