Ukraine HR Information

Updated on: 2025/03/11 04:48 (UTC)

Overview

The principal law governing employment is the Labor Code of Ukraine, adopted in 1971. Although the Labor Code and other labor laws have been amended numerous times, they still include many Soviet concepts and other contradictions, inconsistencies and gaps that can make their proper implementation difficult.

A general feature of Ukrainian labor law is its pro-employee orientation. Parties to the employment agreement cannot waive any employee-protective provisions stipulated by the law even if both the employer and the employee consent to such an amendment.

Hiring

Employment Contracts

The employment agreement is concluded between an employee and an employer. Under the agreement, an employee commits to fulfill the job requirements and comply with the employer’s internal labor regulations, and an employer commits to compensate the employee for work and maintain working conditions as required by the applicable law, any collective agreement and the employment agreement.

Employment agreements may be executed as written agreements signed by the parties or as employer orders. A written agreement is required in certain cases.

In all cases, hiring must be formalized by a written internal order of the employer. Even in the absence of an order, a person is deemed to be employed and an employment agreement is deemed to be concluded when the worker is allowed to start work.

Any provisions of the employment agreement less favorable than those guaranteed by law are invalid.

While Ukrainian law does not provide express requirements regarding the terms that must be stipulated in an employment agreement, certain conditions of employment are mandatory under the Labor Code without explicit reference in the employment agreement:

• limits to working hours and overtime,
• minimum pay and compensation,
• annual leave and sick leave entitlements,
• termination and redundancy guarantees and
• special treatment of certain categories of employees.

An employment agreement is generally concluded for an indefinite term and can be terminated only in cases prescribed by law.

Fixed-term employment may only be established in specific circumstances as permitted by law. In particular, parties may agree to a fixed term of employment:

• if the character or conditions of work make it impossible to set an indefinite duration (e.g. elected position, seasonal work, substitution for another employee),
• for completion of certain work,
• due to an employee’s situation (personal condition) and
• in other cases allowed by law (e.g., if the employee is the CEO of the company).

A fixed-term in an employment agreement, if allowed, can be of any duration mutually agreed to by the parties.

A fixed-term employment agreement becomes an agreement for an indefinite term if, after the expiration of the term for which the agreement was concluded, an employee continues to work and neither of the parties requests termination of the agreement.

An employment contract is a special form of employment agreement which may only be concluded with limited categories of employees (e.g., CEOs and foreign citizens) in cases expressly prescribed by Ukrainian law.

Parties to the employment contract may agree on the following additional conditions of employment:

• term (fixed or indefinite),
• rights and obligations of the parties,
• parties’ liability (including liability for damages),
• organization of the work of the employee,
• material support and
• termination of the employment contract (including early termination).

If an employment contract is concluded with an employee for whom a contract is not required by law, the agreement is considered an employment agreement and any provisions not consonant with employment law (e.g., grounds for its termination other than those directly provided by law) are void.

Generally, a probationary period may not exceed three months. If the primary trade union organization agrees, however, the probationary period may last up to six months in certain cases (e.g., for some public officers). An employer may terminate employment at any time during the probationary period if an employee is found to be unsuitable for the position.

Certain employees cannot be terminated for unsatisfactory performance during the probationary period, however, including:

• pregnant women;
• women with children under 3 years old, under 6 years old if certified by a registered medical practitioner to need home care and
• single parents of children under the age of 14 or of handicapped children.

Restrictions on Hiring

The minimum age for employment is 16, although children who have reached age 15 can work with the permission of a parent.

Recordkeeping

When entering into an employment agreement, an employee must provide the following documents to an employer:

• passport or other identification,
• labor book,
• documents certifying the employee’s professional qualification (if required by law),
• medical examination document (if required by law) and
• any other relevant documents required by law for particular positions (e.g., income statements for certain categories of public officers).

Employers must keep a labor book for most employees containing:

• employee personal data,
• information about the job position,
• start and termination dates and
• information about state awards or bonuses.

Generally, entries in a labor book are made by the employer, although in the case of representative offices of foreign entities, labor books are maintained by a special body.

Information on secondary employment may be included in the labor book at the employee’s discretion.

A labor book is always kept at the primary place of employment.

Background Checks

Background checks are generally prohibited, and unless employees give their consent, employers cannot ask them to provide information about their political views, nationality, origin, place of residence, criminal convictions or health.

Noncompetition Agreements

Restrictive covenants generally are not permitted under Ukrainian labor law.

Reference Citations

Employment Contracts: Labor Code, 2001, No. 311, arts. 21-24, 27 (Ukrainian)

Restrictions on Hiring: Labor Code, 2001, No. 311, art. 188 (Ukrainian)

Recordkeeping: Labor Code, 2001, No. 311, art. 48 (Ukrainian)

Background Checks: Labor Code, 2001, No. 311, art. 22 (Ukrainian)

Immigration and Work Permits

In General

Upon obtaining a work permit, a non Ukrainian employee will need to obtain a long-term visa and a temporary residence permit to enter and exit Ukraine freely. Employers must pay foreign employees at least 10 times the Ukrainian minimum monthly salary. Graduates of the top 100 global universities, copyright creators, and IT specialists are exempt from this minimum salary requirement. Highly-paid professionals must earn 50 times the Ukrainian minimum monthly salary.

Visas and Work Permits

Under Ukrainian law, any company that employs non Ukrainian nationals is required to obtain a work permit for such employees. A work permit is issued for a maximum period of one year with an unlimited number of extensions. It usually takes about two weeks to one month to obtain a work permit, depending on the efficiency of the local employment center. Collating the required documents for the permit application may itself take an additional two to three weeks.

Upon obtaining a work permit, a non Ukrainian employee will need to obtain a long-term visa (visa type ‘D’) and a temporary residence permit to enter and exit Ukraine freely. To obtain the visa, a non Ukrainian national must apply to a Ukrainian consulate in his or her home country and provide a certified copy of his or her work permit (the visa may not be obtained on the territory of Ukraine).

The long-term visa is a single-entry visa valid for 90 days that only gives a right to enter Ukraine for the purpose of obtaining the temporary residence permit, which will be the basis of the non Ukrainian employee’s stay in Ukraine going forward. The temporary residence permit is issued for the duration of the work permit and may be re-issued if the work permit is extended.

On Sept. 27, 2017, new regulations went into effect establishing three-year visas for the following categories of workers:

• highly paid professionals (those earning at least 50 times the Ukrainian monthly salary),
• foreigners who have invested at least 100,000 euros in a Ukrainian company,
• graduates of the top 100 universities in the world (as specified by the Ukrainian government),
• copyright holders and creators, and
• IT specialists.

Employers must pay foreign employees at least 10 times the Ukrainian minimum monthly salary. Foreign investors, graduates of the top 100 global universities, copyright creators, and IT specialists are exempt from the minimum salary requirement.

Applications to renew a work permit must be submitted no less than 20 days before the expiration of the existing permit. Applications to renew a residence permit can be submitted until 10 days before expiration of the current permit.

Reference Citations

Visas and Work Permits: Law No. 2058-VIII, 2017 (Ukrainian)

Nondiscrimination

In General

The Constitution and Labor Code forbid discrimination in employment based on ethnic or social origin, social and property status, race and nationality, color, gender, language, political views, religion and type and character of occupation or residence, among other characteristics.

The Constitution of Ukraine prohibits any privileges or restrictions based on race; color; political, religious or other beliefs; gender; ethnic or social origin; ownership; residence; language; and other grounds.

The Labor Code guarantees equal labor rights to all citizens, regardless of origin, social and property status, race and nationality, gender, language, political views, religion, type and character of occupation or residence, among other characteristics.

Gender Discrimination

Ukrainian labor law provides protections and benefits for pregnant women and mothers, including:

• paid maternity leave;
• prohibitions against the dismissal of pregnant women, mothers with children under age 3, and single mothers with children under age 14 or disabled children;
• prohibitions against denial of employment; and
• preferential retention in case of layoffs.

Discrimination of all kinds against pregnant women is prohibited.

Sexual harassment at work is a crime under Article 154 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, and violators are subject to a fine and to imprisonment for up to six months. Sexual harassment is defined to include insulting or humiliating actions against persons subordinate to or financially dependant on the harasser, whether verbal (e.g., threats, humiliating remarks) or physical (touching, slaps). These actions combined with the threat to damage, destroy or remove property belonging to the victim or to the victim’s close relatives or to spread information that humiliates the victim or a close relative can subject the perpetrator to imprisonment for up to six months or restriction of freedom for up to three years.

Employers must provide men and women equal pay for equal work.

Reference Citations

Nondiscrimination: Labor Code, 2001, No. 311, art. 2 (Ukrainian)

Gender Discrimination: Criminal Code of Ukraine, 2001, art. 154; Law Ensuring Equal Rights and Equal Opportunities for Women and Men, 2007, art. 17

Employee Privacy

Employee Data

Under the Law on Protection of Personal Data, company officers face criminal sanctions for unlawfully collecting, storing, using, destroying, transferring, or modifying confidential information about an employee.

Personal data may be transferred to third countries that provide sufficient protection for personal information. Personal information can also be transferred to countries that do not provide adequate protection if a legal basis applies such as consent, contractual necessity, or vital interests. Organizations must appoint a department or a person responsible for the protection of personal information during the processing of that information.

Controllers must file a notification with the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights about the processing of certain categories of sensitive personal information such as health, biometric, and genetic data; geolocation; trade-union, political, or religious memberships; information on race, ethnicity, or national origin; and criminal records.

Employee Monitoring and Surveillance

Ukrainian law does not address monitoring and surveillance of workers.

Reference Citations

Employee Data: Law on Protection of Personal Data, 2011 arts. 10-15

Compensation

Hours of Work

The Labor Code provides for a 40-hour workweek, generally of five days. The law does not specify the duration of a workday, which is left to the discretion of the employer or to negotiation between the employer and its principal trade union organizations. The Labor Code allows six-day workweeks, during which an average workday cannot exceed seven hours for the standard 40-hour workweek.

Employees work either a five-day week (with two mandatory days off) or a six-day week (with one mandatory day off). Sunday is generally recognized as the common day off, although for employees working five-day weeks another regular day off can be established if business necessity requires it, normally Saturday or Monday.

Employees are entitled to an unpaid workday break of up to two hours and a weekly rest break of at least 42 hours.

The Labor Code specifies shorter standard workweeks of between 24 and 36 hours for certain employees, including:

• employees under age 18,
• students working during their vacations,
• employees working under hazardous conditions,
• certain medical practitioners,
• teachers,
• employees with certain disabilities and
• employees working with pesticides and agrichemicals.

In addition to full-time employment of 40 hours per week, the Labor Code provides for part-time, irregular, and shift work. While workweeks generally cannot exceed 40 hours, under a “cumulative” work scheme the number of working hours in certain weeks can exceed 40 as long as the average hours worked per week for a certain period (agreed to by employer and employee) do not. In no case is an employer prohibited from setting a workweek of fewer than 40 hours.

Minimum Wage

Effective from Jan. 1, 2024, the minimum wage is 7,100 Ukrainian hryvnias per month and 42.60 hryvnias per hour. Effective April 1, 2024, the monthly minimum wage will be 8,000 hryvnias per month and 48 hryvnias per hour.

For more information, see the country primer.

From Jan. 1, 2022, the minimum wage was 6,500 hryvnia per month and on Oct. 1, 2022, rate rose to 6,700 hryvnia per month.

Employees in Ukraine cannot receive remuneration for their monthly or hourly work in an amount less than the statutory minimum wage.

Night work, which is defined as employment between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., must be compensated at a higher rate than work performed within regular hours (i.e., between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m.). Actual compensation should be determined by the general industry rate or by a collective bargaining agreement, but in any case cannot be less than 20 percent above the standard hourly rate.

Under the Labor Code, an employee is entitled to double time for work on holidays and days off and to compensation for business trips, relocation and other work-related travel. Pay cannot be docked for an innocent failure to meet production targets (as agreed to by the parties according to existing industry standards).

Overtime

The Labor Code establishes two main systems of payment for employment:

• piece-rate, where the employee’s compensation depends on performance as measured against a standard, and
• time-based, where wages depend on the amount of time an employee works.

In a piece-rate system, each hour of overtime must be paid at 100 percent above the hourly standard rate for the relevant work.

In a time-based system, overtime must be compensated at a double hourly rate for each hour of overtime.

An employer can require an employee to work overtime only if the work is necessary:

• for national defense, the containment of a civil or natural disaster or immediate management of a production accident and its consequences;
• to carry out public works in connection with the supply of water, gas, heat or electricity;
• to complete tasks already begun that, because of unexpected circumstances or accidental delays, could not be completed within regular working hours and stoppage of which could lead to damage or destruction of public property;
• for urgent repair of equipment whose nonfunctioning would cause a work stoppage for a significant number of employees;
• to carry out loading or unloading to prevent shipment delays; and
• to maintain continuous processes when a replacement employee is absent (in this case, an employer must take all necessary measures to find an immediate replacement for the employee continuing to work).

Obtaining an employee’s consent for overtime work in these situations is generally not required, although in normal circumstances an employer must have the approval of the primary trade union organization before an employee can work overtime.

In normal circumstances, an employer must have the approval of the primary trade union organization before an employee can work overtime.

Certain categories of employees may not work overtime, including pregnant women and women who have children under the age of 3, persons under 18 and employees simultaneously working and attending school.

Certain other employees can work overtime only if they expressly consent to it, including part-time employees; mothers, single fathers or legal guardians of children between 3 and 15 years of age or of disabled children; disabled persons and elderly persons.

The maximum overtime permitted by the Labor Code is four hours for every two consecutive days worked and up to 120 hours per year. Compensatory time off in lieu of payment for overtime is prohibited by law.

Wage Payment

Employees must be paid at least twice per month at intervals no longer than 16 days.

Deductions from wages are permitted only in cases prescribed by law, such as withholding to cover individual income tax and obligatory contributions to state social funds and payments under court direction.

Under the Labor Code, total deductions from wages generally cannot exceed 20 percent of the net payment (i.e., wages after withholding of individual income tax and contributions to state social funds). In certain cases, however, up to 50 percent of net wages may be withheld—for example, for the payment of alimony, restitution for criminal damages or any other court-ordered obligation. In exceptional cases (such as child-support payments), up to 70 percent of net pay may be withheld.

Reduction of wages payable to an employee is considered to be a change of material employment conditions and may therefore be implemented only with the employee’s consent. Under the general rule, an employer is not entitled to dismiss an employee who does not consent to a salary reduction.

If the reduction in wages is due to a change in the organization of work, the employer must provide an employee with two months’ notice, which:

• justifies the changes in the organization of work and
• provides information about the reduced amount of wages.

Following the two-month notification period, the employer may dismiss an employee who does not consent to continue working for the reduced salary.

Mandatory Bonuses

Payment of any kind of bonus is at the discretion of the employer.

Rules for a bonus scheme may be established in individual employment agreements, collective bargaining agreements, internal orders of the employer or other employer/employee agreements.

Reference Citations

Hours of Work: Labor Code, 2001, No. 311, arts. 50-55 (Ukrainian)

Minimum Wage: State Budget for Ukraine, 2016, art. 8 (Ukrainian)

Overtime: Labor Code, 2001, No. 311, arts. 62-65, 106 (Ukrainian)

Wage Payment: Labor Code, 2001, No. 311, arts. 115, 127-129 (Ukrainian)

Benefits

Vacation

Employees are entitled to 24 calendar days of paid annual leave after working for an employer for six continuous months. Before the expiration of this six-month period, employees can take paid annual leave on a pro rata basis for the time they have been employed. The full period of paid annual leave must be granted before the expiration of the initial six months of employment to certain employees upon their request (e.g., pregnant women, women with two or more children under the age of 15 or a disabled child, disabled persons and persons under the age of 18).

Paid annual leave is extended for some categories of employees. Employees under the age of 18 are entitled to 31 calendar days of annual leave, for example, and employees involved in hazardous work (e.g., mining) or those who have special working conditions (e.g., irregular schedules) are entitled to additional annual paid leve of up to 35 days.

Individual employment agreements or collective bargaining agreements may provide for a longer term of paid annual leave, although the aggregate duration of principal and additional annual leave may not exceed 59 calendar days (69 calendar days for employees engaged in mining).

The employer and the employee can agree on the increments in which annual leave will be taken, although the employee must take one period of at least 14 continuous calendar days.

As a general rule, annual leave must be used by the end of the year, but unused leave can be carried over to the next year. Alternatively, an employee who has used at least 24 calendar days of annual leave can ask for monetary compensation in lieu of the remaining leave. Terminating employees are entitled to compensation for unused annual leave.

Holidays

Employees are entitled to the following paid public holidays:

• Jan. 1: New Year’s Day
• Jan. 7: Orthodox Christmas Day
• March 8: International Women’s Day
• Orthodox Easter Sunday
• Trinity Sunday
• May 1-2: Labor Day
• May 8: Day of Remembrance and Victory
• May 9: World War II Victory Day
• Orthodox Trinity Sunday
• June 28: Ukrainian Constitution Day
• • July 15: Ukrainian Statehood Day Aug. 24: Independence Day Oct. 1: Ukraine Defender’s Day
• • Dec. 15: Christmas

Holidays that fall on weekends (or other days off) are moved to the next business day. Working days preceding a public holiday are reduced by an hour.

Work on national holidays is allowed only if technical or production requirements demand it (e.g., for employers with uninterrupted production cycles); in the case of public services; and in certain emergency situations prescribed by law (e.g., for the prevention or containment of natural disasters or accidents which may threaten human life, normal living conditions or property).

Employers who are required to work on a holiday are entitled to double pay for the hours worked.

Maternity Leave

Female employees are entitled to 70 calendar days of paid prenatal leave and 56 calendar days of paid post-delivery and child care leave (70 days in cases of multiple births or post-delivery complications).

Maternity leave is paid by the State Social Insurance Fund at 100 percent of the parent’s average monthly salary for six months.

Paternity Leave

Employers must provide up to 14 days of paternity leave to a husband whose wife has given birth to a child, as well as to the child’s father who is not married to the child’s mother, provided that they live together and have a common household. The leave must be taken within the first three months following the child’s birth.

Sick Leave

Employees who are unable to work due to sickness or other temporary disability are entitled to compensation for the entire period of their absence from work. The fact of sickness or other temporary disability and its expected duration must be certified by a registered medical practitioner. Compensation is paid by the employer for the first five days of sick leave and by the State Temporary Disability Fund for the remainder of the time. The amount of compensation depends on the length of the worker’s employment:

• 60 percent of average salary for employees with up to five years of continuous employment,
• 80 percent for employees with five to eight years of continuous employment and
• 100 percent for employees with more than eight years.

The length of sick leave is determined by a doctor, although after four consecutive months an employee may be terminated.

Certain employees (e.g., persons affected by the Chernobyl nuclear accident) are entitled to receive 100 percent of their average salary as compensation for sick leave regardless of their length of employment.

Other Leave

Adoption leave. In cases of adoption directly from the maternity home, one of the adopting parents is entitled to 56 calendar days of paid child care leave (70 days in the case of multiple adoptions).

Child care leave. Employees can take unpaid leave to care for a child until the child’s third birthday.

If a registered medical practitioner certifies that a child requires home care, the child’s parent, grandparent or other relative or the legal guardian taking care of the child is eligible for unpaid leave until the child’s sixth birthday, the child’s sixteenth birthday when the child has been diagnosed by a registered medical practitioner to have diabetes mellitus type I.

Parental leave. An employee is entitled to 10 calendar days of paid parental leave per year if the employee is:

• a parent of two or more children under the age of 15,
• a parent of a disabled child, or
• an adoptive parent.

Unpaid leave. An employee may request unpaid leave of up to 15 calendar days per year for personal reasons. (Unpaid leave beyond 15 days is also allowed if a quarantine has been ordered by the Cabinet of Ministers.) Such leave is generally provided at the employer’s discretion, but Ukrainian law requires the employer to provide unpaid leave in certain situations, for example:

• up to 14 calendar days for war veterans and other individuals rewarded for special services to the country,
• up to 21 calendar days for individuals rewarded for special labor services to the country,
• up to 10 calendar days of wedding leave,
• up to seven calendar days of compassionate leave plus necessary travel time and
• up to 30 calendar days to care for a relative when it has been confirmed by a registered medical practitioner that home care is required.

Pensions and Social Security

Employees may retire with a full pension at age 60 with at least 15 years’ coverage. Partial pensions are available for employees who meet the age requirements and have 15 to 34 (men) or 15 to 29 (women) years of coverage.

Effective Jan. 1, 2018, employees may retire with a full pension at age 60 if they have at least 25 years’ coverage. The required length of service will grow annually by 12 months and reach 35 years in 2028. Employees who have 15-25 years of pensionable service by Jan. 1, 2018, may retire at 63. From 2028, pensions at the age of 65 will be awarded to persons who will have 15-25 years of pensionable service.

Employers are required to make a single monthly contribution of 22 percent of payroll to the unified social insurance fund covering pension, temporary disability, unemployment and accident benefits. Employees make no contribution.

Workers’ Compensation

Employees who are injured at work or develop an occupational illness resulting from the performance of their duties are compensated by the government through the social insurance fund.

Reference Citations

Vacation: Labor Code, 2001, No. 311, arts. 74-76, 79 (Ukrainian)

Holidays: Labor Code, 2001, No. 311, art. 73, 107 (Ukrainian)

Maternity Leave: Labor Code, 2001, No. 311, arts. 179-180 (Ukrainian); Law of Ukraine on Leave, 1997, No. 2, art. 18 (Ukrainian)

Sick Leave: Law on Compulsory State Social Insurance, 1999, No. 46-47, art. 22 (Ukrainian)

Other Leave: Law of Ukraine on Leave, arts. 18, 25 (Ukrainian)

Pensions and Social Security: Law on Compulsory State Social Insurance, 1999, Nos. 46-47 (Ukrainian); Law on Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine on Increasing Pensions

Workers’ Compensation: Law on Compulsory State Social Insurance, 1999, Nos. 46-47 (Ukrainian)

Labor Relations

In General

The Constitution of Ukraine guarantees the right to peaceful gatherings, trade unions and strikes. Participation in a trade union is voluntary and may not serve as the basis for discrimination or preferential treatment by employers.

A collective labor dispute is deemed to have arisen if an employer denies wholly or in part employee demands. The dispute will be considered by the conciliation commission or a labor arbitration tribunal. If these conciliation procedures fail, the parties may submit their dispute to the National Service for Mediation and Reconciliation. Under Ukrainian law, a strike is considered a last resort when all other dispute resolution methods have been exhausted or when the employer fails to comply with the decision reached through these procedures or avoids participation in them. Written notification must be provided to the employer seven days before the beginning of a strike, 15 days in the case of continuous-production plants. If any strike meetings, rallies or demonstrations are to be held outside the employer’s premises, local authorities must be provided with at least three days’ notice.

If an employer is acquired, the existing collective bargaining agreement binds the new owner for the term agreed to by the original employer but not for longer than one year.

Right to Organize

The Constitution of Ukraine guarantees the right to peaceful gatherings, trade unions and strikes. Special laws and regulations provide detailed provisions and requirements.

Participation in a trade union is voluntary and may not serve as the basis for discrimination or preferential treatment by employers. Trade unions must act according to their charters and are legalized through notification of the government. Any employed or self-employed person or a student may join a trade union by submitting an application.

Trade unions may be established at the company, local, regional or national level.

Trade unions may form associations.

Works Councils

Employers are not required to establish works councils. At companies where a trade union has not been formed, however, general meetings of employees have representative powers, and employee representatives must be consulted by the employer on issues such as compensation and work rules.

Dispute Resolution

Any labor dispute between an employee and an employer may be settled by a court, which must interpret ambiguous terms or discrepancies in the law or the employment contract in favor of the employee.

A dispute may also be submitted to a company’s labor dispute commission, which must consider it within 10 days. Labor dispute commissions are established at companies with 15 or more employees by a general meeting of workers. Commissions may consider any dispute not subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts (e.g. reinstatement of a dismissed employee, dismissal or transfers of employees, disciplinary sanctions, and denial of employment to a pregnant woman). Decisions of labor dispute commissions may be challenged in court and are enforceable through the State Enforcement Service.

Any dispute between employees or unions on one hand and employers or employer associations on the other is considered a collective labor dispute subject to a special reconciliation and settlement procedure.

When employees or their representatives submit demands to an employer, the employer has 30 days to respond. A collective labor dispute is deemed to have arisen if the employer denies wholly or in part the employees’ demands. In such a case, the employees’ representatives must submit a notice of commencement of a collective labor dispute within three days to the employer, the local executive and governmental bodies and the National Service for Mediation and Reconciliation.

The dispute will then be considered by the conciliation commission or a labor arbitration tribunal. If these conciliation procedures fail to resolve the dispute, the parties may submit their dispute to the National Service for Mediation and Reconciliation.

Conciliation commissions consider collective labor disputes related to the conclusion or amendment of collective bargaining agreements or to the conditions of work and production. A conciliation commission is formed by the initiative of one of the parties to the dispute and combines representatives of each party in equal proportion. Depending on the dispute, the commission may be formed at the national, industry or regional level or at a particular company. The company-level commission must consider a dispute within five days, while industry and regional level commissions have 10 days and national commissions 15 days to make a decision. Decisions of the conciliation commission are binding on both parties.

Labor arbitration tribunals consider disputes related to violation of collective bargaining agreements or employment law and disputes that were not resolved successfully by a conciliation commission. The arbitration tribunal is formed of experts appointed by the parties to the dispute. The tribunal generally issues its decision within 10 days but may extend its deliberation to as many as 20 days by majority vote. The decision of the tribunal is binding if the parties agree to this beforehand.

The National Service for Mediation and Reconciliation considers collective labor disputes that were not resolved through conciliation commissions or arbitration tribunals. The service’s recommendations must be issued within 10 days and are not binding.

Strikes and Lockouts

Under Ukrainian law, a strike is considered a last resort when all other dispute resolution methods have been exhausted or when the employer fails to comply with the decision reached through these procedures or avoids participation in them. Written notification must be provided to the employer seven days before the beginning of a strike, 15 days in the case of continuous-production plants. If any strike meetings, rallies or demonstrations are to be held outside the employer’s premises, local authorities must be provided with at least three days’ notice.

A court can declare a strike illegal if it finds an employer’s charge that the law was violated has merit. A ruling on such a charge must be issued within seven days, and if the court finds the strike illegal, employees must return to work the following day.

Successorship Clauses

Following an employer’s reorganization, a collective bargaining agreement remains effective for the term originally agreed to unless the agreement is renegotiated by employer and union.

If an employer is acquired, the existing collective bargaining agreement binds the new owner for the term agreed to by the original employer but not for longer than one year. During this transition period, the parties must negotiate a new contract or agree on amendments to the original.

If an employer ceases business altogether, the collective bargaining agreement remains valid for the duration of the liquidation process.

Reference Citations

Right to Organize: Labor Code, 2001, No. 311, arts. 243-245 (Ukrainian)

Dispute Resolution: Procedure for Settling Collective Labor Disputes, 1998, No. 34, arts. 8, 11, 15 (Ukrainian)

Strikes and Lockouts: Procedure for Settling Collective Labor Disputes, 1998, No. 34, arts. 17-19 (Ukrainian)

Successorship Clauses: Labor Code, 2001, No. 311, art. 17 (Ukrainian)

Safety, Health and Security

In General

Employers must ensure that processes, machines, mechanisms and equipment are safe and sanitary. Employees have the right to refuse to work under hazardous or unhealthy conditions. Employers must provide adequate safety training and medical examinations for employees and periodic inspections of the workplace to check for hazardous conditions.

On hiring, the employer is required to notify a new employee of all workplace hazards, their potential impact and any benefits or compensation due the employee for work in such conditions. Before employees can engage in hazardous work, the employer must obtain a permit from labor safety authorities.

Employers are required to adopt internal safety regulations, to establish a labor safety committee or appoint persons responsible for labor safety and to investigate and record any workplace accidents.

Workplace Safety and Health

Safe and healthy working conditions are guaranteed by the Constitution of Ukraine. To this end, employers must ensure that processes, machines, mechanisms, and equipment are safe and sanitary. Employees have the right to refuse to work under hazardous or unhealthy conditions.

Employers must provide adequate safety training and medical examinations for employees and periodic inspections of the workplace to check for hazardous conditions.

Before employees can engage in hazardous work, the employer must obtain a permit from labor safety authorities.

On hiring, the employer is required to notify a new employee of all workplace hazards, their potential impact and any benefits or compensation due the employee for work in such conditions and to obtain the employee’s signature confirming the notification.

Employers are required to adopt internal safety regulations and to establish a labor safety committee (in companies with 50 or more employees) or appoint persons responsible for labor safety. Companies with fewer than 20 employees can contract with a labor safety specialist.

Employers must investigate and record any workplace accidents.

Pregnant women and mothers with children under age 14 or with disabled children are subject to special restrictions on overtime work, business trips and work during nights and weekends. Pregnant women involved in hazardous work should be transferred to safer jobs without reduction of pay.

Drug and Alcohol Use

Ukraine has been a party to the World Health Organization (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control since 2006. Smoking is prohibited in public places and company premises except in specially designated smoking areas. Employers have the obligation to equip such designated smoking areas with appropriate ventilation and signs.

Reference Citations

Workplace Safety and Health: Labor Code, 2001, No. 311, art. 153-155 (Ukrainian)

Drug and Alcohol Use: World Health Organization Country Profile: Ukraine

Termination

Termination by Employer

Under Ukrainian law, it is generally difficult to terminate an employee without the employee’s consent. Valid grounds for termination may be divided into those related to employee breaches of employment duties (termination for employee’s fault) and those not related to the employee’s actions (termination without fault). In general, termination is not allowed while an employee is on annual or sick leave.

An employer may unilaterally terminate an employee for cause in the following cases:

• unjustified failure to fulfill employment obligations,
• unjustified absence from work for more than three hours during one day,
• appearance at work while under the influence of alcohol or drugs,
• misappropriation of property,
• a single gross violation of employment obligations,
• actions of a company head causing delayed or reduced payment of wages,
• actions of an employee entrusted with company assets (cash or property) that result in the loss of the employer’s trust and
• immoral conduct.

Termination in most of these cases is regarded as a disciplinary sanction and must be imposed following special procedures prescribed by law.

An employer may terminate an employee without cause in the following cases:

• changes in organization of work and production,
• employee unsuitability for the job or position,
• reinstatement of an employee who previously occupied the position and
• absence from work due to sickness for more than four consecutive months.

Termination without cause (except when an employee is absent for four months due to sickness) is allowed only if an employee cannot be transferred to another position or job.

Some of the chief officers of the company (e.g. CEO) can be terminated without cause if their corporate mandate is terminated.

Certain employees cannot be terminated by an employer without their prior consent. This category of employees includes:

• pregnant women,
• women who have children under the age of 3 or under the age of 6 if a registered medical practitioner certifies that home care is necessary and
• single parents or legal guardians of a child under the age of 14 or of a handicapped child.

The law allows termination of these employees only if the employer’s business is liquidated without legal succession and under these circumstances requires that they be paid their average wages for three months following termination. Similarly, employees on annual leave or paid sick leave can be dismissed only if the employer’s business is being liquidated.

Termination by Employee

Employees may terminate their employment by providing two weeks’ written notice to the employer. The two-week notice period may be shortened if an employee cannot continue to work for justifiable reasons (e.g., retirement, university enrollment, change of residence). Employees have the right to withdraw a resignation within the notice period. Employees who work under fixed-term agreements may prematurely terminate their employment because of sickness or physical disability preventing them from continuing to work.

Plant Closings and Mass Layoffs

Employers are required to report mass layoffs to local authorities at least one month prior to dismissing:

• 10 or more employees from an organization with 20 to 100 employees or
• 10 percent or more of employees from an organization with 101 to 300 employees.

The requirement to report layoffs also is required within three months of dismissing 20 percent or more of an organization’s employees regardless of the total number of employees.

Payment on Termination

On termination of employment, all wages and compensation for all unused annual leave due to the employee must be fully paid on the last day of employment. When an employee is terminated in connection with changes in the organization of the employer (e.g., liquidation, reorganization, staff redundancy, change of job requirements), the employee is also entitled to a severance payment, which cannot be less than the worker’s average monthly wages.

Unemployment Insurance

Ukraine’s state social security fund provides unemployment insurance to eligible individuals. In order to receive unemployment benefits, recipients must be registered at an employment office, able and willing to work and have income below the minimum wage.

Benefits can be reduced, suspended, or terminated for infractions such as violating work rules or filing a fraudulent claim.

For individuals with less than two years of covered employment, the benefit is based on 50 percent of average earnings; with two to six years, 55 percent of average earnings; with seven to 10 years, 60 percent of average earnings; with more than 10 years, 70 percent of average earnings.

Eligible recipients are entitled to 100 percent of the benefit for the first 90 calendar days of unemployment, 80 percent for the next 90 calendar days, and 70 percent thereafter.

Reference Citations

Termination by Employer: Labor Code, 2001, No. 311, arts. 36-41 (Ukrainian)

Termination by Employee: Labor Code, 2001, No. 311, art. 38 (Ukrainian)

Unemployment Insurance: Law on Compulsory State Social Insurance, 1999, Nos. 46-47 (Ukrainian)

Personal Taxes

Residency Requirements

An individual is considered a resident for tax purposes if he or she:

• has a permanent residence in Ukraine,
• has closer personal and economic ties to Ukraine than to any other country,
• is present in Ukraine for at least 183 days during a calendar year or
• has Ukrainian citizenship.

Taxable Income

Ukrainian residents pay personal income tax on their worldwide income, nonresidents only on income from Ukrainian sources. Employment income including most employer-provided benefits is taxable. Certain benefits are exempt from taxation, however, including pension, life and medical insurance contributions.

Tax Rates

Income tax is applied at a flat rate of 18 percent plus a 1.5 percent “temporary” war tax introduced in August 2014 and extended indefinitely until the reform of the Ukrainian armed forces has been completed.

Employers must contribute to social security at a flat rate of 22 percent. The maximum taxable cap on which the social security charges apply is 25 minimum wages.

Reference Citations

Residency Requirements: Tax Code of Ukraine, 2014, § 14.1.213

References

In Ukrainian, unless otherwise noted.

Law and Regulation

Labor Code

Law on Labor Protection

Law on Leave

Law on Settlement of Collective Labor Disputes

Law on Wages