18.04.2013 Karina Starikova, junior associate at Maxima Legal

Labor relations with remote personnel are falling under the Russian labor legislation

The Federal Law № 60-FZ, making changes to the Labor Code relating to regulation of labor of remote employees was passed on 05 April, 2013.

The concept of remote work was introduced in Russia for the first time. It involves fulfillment of labor functions outside the workplace, territory or facility which is directly or indirectly controlled by the employer. Remote work takes place provided that information networks including the "Internet" are used for performing labor function as well as for interaction between employer and employee on issues related to work.

Pursuant to such labor agreements employer and employee are supposed to communicate in electronic form. For this purpose employees should use enhanced qualified electronic signatures (Federal Law N 63-FZ 06.04.2011 "On electronic signature"). During such communication each party shall notify the other party in electronic form of receipt of any electronic document within the period of time provided by an employment agreement.

An employment agreement itself may be concluded by exchange of electronic documents. Employer can also communicate to employee in electronic form any orders and other documents that the employee should be informed about in writing in accordance with the Labor Code. Employee can send applications to employer as well as provide him with explanations and other information required by the Labour Code in electronic form.

At the same time there are some cases requiring to provide paper copies of documents necessarily or at the request of a party to an agreement. Typically, such documents or copies thereof shall be mailed by registered mail (articles 312.1, 312.2, 312.5 of the Labor Code).
According to the new provisions of the Labor Code many questions shall be provided in a labor agreement, including the holidays matters, the grounds for termination of employment agreement by the employer, the order and terms of providing of reports on the work performed, the procedure for compensation of costs related to work, etc.

Under article 312.2 of the Labor Code, the parties may agree there is no need to issue a work record card or to put the information to an existing work record card of the employee.

The new version of the Labor Code provides the right of employer to set the duty of employee to use the means of information protection (art. 312.2 of the Labour Code).

The duty of employer to ensure safe working conditions provided by the Labor Code as a general rule does not apply in case of remote work unless otherwise stated in the agreement. This rule however does not apply to three of such duties which must be observed by the employer in accordance with the Labor Code: compulsory social insurance of workers against accidents at work and occupational diseases; investigation and registration of such accidents and diseases; compliance with the requirements of supervision authorities(paragraph 16, 19, 20 of part 2, art. 212 of the Labour Code).

Introducing such special regime the legislator seeks to provide freelancers with the guarantees and rights stipulated by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. In accordance with the new provisions of the Labor Code the latter regulates work of such persons without any legal restrictions. Therefore any civil contracts concluded by employers with freelancers may be qualified as employment agreements by the court.