Ukrainian labor legislation in the context of European integration discussed at round table
On May 22–23, an international round table on «Legislative Reforms in Ukraine and European Standards in the Field of Labor and Social Protection: in the Context of Ukraine's European Integration» was held in Olomouc (Czech Republic).
The event was hosted by the Faculty of Law of Palacký University with the support of the Council of Europe and within the framework of the MSCA4Ukraine project aimed at adapting Ukrainian labor and social legislation to European Union legislation.
The Chairman of the Committee on Labor Law of the Ukrainian National Bar Association, Viktoria Polishchuk, examined the need to implement EU social policy and labor law standards. She outlined the key challenges for labor rights in the context of martial law. Among the problems, the UNBA representative highlighted delays in the payment of wages, abuse of the procedure for suspending employment contracts, risks related to employees' personal data, the misuse of civil law contracts instead of employment contracts, and the insufficient adaptation of legislation to hybrid forms of employment.
V. Polishchuk noted that the current Labor Code is morally outdated and does not meet modern challenges. In her opinion, the priorities of the new Labor Code should be electronic document management, protection of freelancers' rights, flexible working conditions, regulation of agency employment, and the right to «disconnect» from work outside working hours.
Hanna Lysenko, a member of the UNBA Committee on Labor Law, spoke about the realities of employee dismissal in Ukraine and the changes envisaged by the draft Labor Code. In her opinion, the main problem with the current Labor Code is the lack of a clear description of the processes for dismissing employees and the use of vague wording (e.g., “gross violation,” “loss of trust”) and the absence of certain concepts. This leads to numerous legal disputes between employers and employees.
Legislative gaps are effectively filled by the legal positions of the Supreme Court. The draft new code regulates dismissal procedures: it specifies the terms, grounds, and obligations of the parties; determines the date of dismissal and the procedure for issuing the order.
There is also a new mechanism for compensation in the event of staff reductions, clarification of the concept of repeated violations, the format of employee explanations, etc. The advocate stressed that the new code should balance the rights and obligations of the parties, simplify the documentation of personnel decisions, and bring Ukrainian labor law closer to European standards.
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