Samples of job descriptions, rules for drafting and approval

Article 57 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation does not contain an imperative requirement for the employer to draw up job descriptions (or include a detailed list of the employee’s job responsibilities in the text of the employment contract). The Labor Code of the Russian Federation defines only the mandatory minimum - according to Part 2 of Article 57 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, only the labor function must be specified in the employment contract (work according to the position in accordance with the staffing table, profession, specialty indicating qualifications; the specific type of work assigned to the employee).

The presence of a job description is currently a right, but not an obligation of the employer, which is confirmed, inter alia, by the letter of the Federal Service for Labor and Employment dated August 9, 2007 N 3042-6-0, according to which “the mere absence of a job description should not be regarded as a violation of labor legislation and entail liability, but may have negative consequences in the form of the employer making illegal decisions due to its absence.”

Exception!

Clause 7 of the Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation dated June 23, 2011 N 498 (as amended on September 09, 2015) “On some issues of private detective (detective) and private security activities” directly provides for the licensee to have a job description approved by him on the actions of employees to ensure internal and access control at each security facility. There is judicial practice in administrative cases, where a private security company is charged, among other things, with the absence of the specified job description, as committing an administrative offense under Part 2 of Art. 5.27 of the Code of the Russian Federation on Administrative Offences.

In practice, a job description is an effective and necessary applied tool for regulating labor relations between an employee and an employer. In certain circumstances, a properly prepared job description can be used as an argument in the event of a dispute, both by the employee and the employer.

According to Article 8 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the employer (except for individuals who are not individual entrepreneurs) has the right to adopt local regulations that comply with the current labor legislation and do not worsen the position of the employee in comparison with the established labor legislation.

Since the procedure for drawing up instructions is not defined at the legislative level, each company is absolutely free to choose the procedure for its execution. For instructions, as for a corporate document, other names can be used, for example, “position description”, “work instructions”, “job regulations”, “list of employee responsibilities”, “functional responsibilities for the position”.

What are the objectives of the job description?

• Clear regulation of the obligations of the parties to the employment contract (transparency of labor relations), both at the stage of personnel selection and in the process of labor activity.
• Determining the specific job functions of the employee, detailing the procedure for his actions, limiting the area of ​​his responsibility and the limits of authority
• To be a guide to action, as well as a basis for resolving disputes in the event of disagreements (between an employee and an employer, between employees within a structural unit, between structural units, in court).
• Become a tool for personnel assessment and, ultimately, corporate management of business processes.

Who develops the job description?

• The instruction can be developed by the head of a structural unit or an employee of the human resources department, agreed upon by the immediate supervisor, other responsible persons (chief engineer, deputies, labor protection specialist, lawyer), and approved by the head of the organization.
• The developer of the instructions may be a third-party organization professionally involved in HR management. This is not yet a widespread phenomenon in our country.

Violations of labor protection requirements

The Labor Code of the Russian Federation imposes an obligation on all employers to ensure labor protection. Let's make a rating of the top 10 typical violations in this area (the rating is based on statistics from Rostrud, judicial and law enforcement practice).

Lack of training and testing of knowledge on labor protection for managers

A practical situation.

The director of the company changes: a decision of the founders, an employment contract, an order, etc. are being prepared. And directors often forget about occupational safety training. Meanwhile, the obligation to train the director at the training center is provided for in Art. 212 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation and the Procedure for training in labor protection, approved by Resolution of the Ministry of Labor of Russia dated January 13, 2003 No. 1/29 (hereinafter referred to as the Procedure). Moreover, not only the director, but also all managers who organize the work of subordinates must undergo such training.

In the absence of protocols for testing knowledge of labor protection requirements and a certificate of knowledge testing, the inspector can not only fine the company, but also remove managers from work (Article 76 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Lack of training and testing of knowledge on labor protection of ordinary workers

If in relation to managers the lack of training can still be understood (certain costs must be incurred to train workers in a training center), then the reasons for the lack of training and testing of occupational safety knowledge for ordinary workers are not clear. After all, no costs are required in this case, just do the following:

• Organize an internal commission of employees trained in specialized training centers.
• Develop a program and conduct training and knowledge testing within the company.
• After this, draw up protocols and certificates according to the samples given in the Appendices to the Procedure.

Isn't it a simple procedure? However, this violation is the second in the ranking, and for it employers are also held accountable, and employees are suspended from work.

Occupational safety specialist: regulations

Lack of special assessment of working conditions

Often employers do not conduct a special assessment because it is a costly exercise. The only reassuring thing is that you only need to spend money once every five years. But there is also a failure to carry out a special assessment due to ignorance.

A practical situation. A small company has only office staff. A special assessment was not carried out because they thought that this was not required for office staff. During the inspection, the inspectorate issued a fine, because according to the Federal Law “On Special Assessment of Working Conditions” dated December 28, 2013 No. 426-FZ, all jobs are subject to special assessment, except for remote workers and homeworkers.

Lack of medical examinations for workers

Unlike the previous three violations, the lack of medical examinations does not always lead to administrative liability, because not all employees are subject to medical examinations. In order not to make a mistake in this matter, employers should carefully study not only the Order of the Ministry of Health and Social Development of the Russian Federation dated April 12, 2011 No. 302n, dedicated to medical examinations, but also other regulations. For example, SanPiN 2.2.2/2.4.1340-03 dated 06/03/2003. According to this document, persons who work with computers more than 50% of their working time must undergo mandatory medical examinations.

If medical examinations are mandatory for workers, but there are no documents confirming their completion, the labor inspector can hold the company accountable and impose a fine, as well as remove workers from work.

Lack of personal protective equipment

Failure to provide protective clothing is a common violation in the manufacturing sector. His reasons are clear: issuing protective clothing requires costs. But sometimes special clothing is not provided even out of ignorance. For example, according to Order of the Ministry of Labor of Russia dated December 9, 2014 No. 997n, the driver, the janitor, the watchman, and the cleaning lady must wear special clothing.

Therefore, employers should check whether the company has such and other employees who are required to wear protective clothing. And if there is, then workers should be dressed in special clothing and make notes on the personal card for recording the issuance of PPE in accordance with Order of the Ministry of Health and Social Development dated June 1, 2009 No. 290n, otherwise fines cannot be avoided.

Concealing an accident

Accidents are subject to investigation - Art. 227 Labor Code of the Russian Federation. It happens that companies do not investigate them intentionally in order to make their lives easier. What could be the consequences? For example, an employee fell during working hours and broke his leg. The employer did not investigate the accident and asked the employee to tell the hospital that he had fallen at home. The worker did just that, but the leg healed incorrectly and required longer treatment. The employee learned that various guarantees are provided for in the event of an accident at work, and filed a complaint with the labor inspectorate that the accident was not investigated. This is a clear case of a cover-up.

But it happens that the company did not even think about hiding the accident.

A practical situation.

A serious accident occurred in the company, which means that government agencies should be notified within 24 hours (Article 228.1 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). The employer notified everyone except the union association, thinking that if there is no union in the company, then there is no point in notifying this body. But the labor inspector considered this case to be hidden, since notification to the association of trade unions is mandatory in this case as well. What are the consequences? Not only the fine, but also the fact that the accident is investigated not by the commission, but by the labor inspector alone.

Lack of compensation for harmful working conditions

If working conditions are harmful, then the company must provide the employee with compensation (additional pay, shortened working hours, additional leave in accordance with Article 117, 147 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). It is clear that companies often do not provide compensation to workers due to a desire to save money. But such savings can lead to considerable financial costs. Employees can go to court and recover from the employer not only compensation, but also interest under Art. 236 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, and compensation for moral damage (Article 237 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Lack of occupational safety specialist

The position of occupational safety specialist is introduced in an organization when the number of employees exceeds 50 (Article 217 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). If the company is small, then it is not necessary to enter the whole rate; you can hire an external or internal part-time employee for part of the rate. And if the company has grown, then to calculate the number of employees, you should use the Intersectoral headcount standards approved by Resolution of the Ministry of Labor of Russia dated January 22, 2001 No. 10.

The labor inspector will definitely ask for a staffing table. If the document does not contain the title of occupational safety specialist, the company will be fined.

Lack of labor protection instructions

Some companies do not develop labor safety instructions, although according to Art. 212 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation are required to do this. Why they don’t do this is unclear, because this does not require any costs.

What should be done:

• Develop documents using the Methodological Recommendations for the Development of Labor Safety Instructions, approved by the Ministry of Labor of the Russian Federation on May 13, 2004, and standard industry instructions.
• Approve them by order.
• Also approve the list of instructions by order.
• Fill out the log of instructions and the log of the issuance of labor protection instructions.

This way you will save the company from being fined for lack of instructions.

Lack of safety training

The obligation to provide instructions on labor protection is provided for in Art. 212 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation and the Procedure. The reason for their failure also remains a mystery. After all, to conduct them, you only need to approve briefing programs and keep briefing logs in accordance with GOST 12.0.004-90.

Introductory briefings are required for all employees upon hiring, and initial briefings are required at the workplace for workers related to the operation and repair of equipment, use of tools, storage and use of raw materials.

The absence of logs of instructions and programs will be regarded by the labor inspector as a violation. This will be a reason to bring the company to administrative liability.

More information can be found in our distance learning course “Occupational Safety and Health”. Find out more →

What is the procedure for developing and drawing up a job description?

• The procedure for development and approval must be established by the employer’s local regulations. Typically the process includes the stages of preparation, development, coordination and approval of the document. The key is to familiarize the employee with the instructions, as well as all its changes.
• The most common, familiar type of instruction is a document containing a complete description of all job responsibilities and how to perform them. However, the instructions can be brief, as concise as possible, defining only the key job responsibilities of the employee, but at the same time contain links to regulations and process maps, which in turn detail the procedure for performing each function.
• When developing a list of official (labor) responsibilities for a specific position, the provisions of professional standards, qualification characteristics contained in the CES, ETKS, as well as standard forms are taken as a basis.

Exception!

For some positions there are approved standard forms. For example, “Standard job description for the deputy head of an organization carrying out educational activities on the safety of the educational process” (Letter of the Ministry of Education and Science of Russia dated February 14, 2014 N MK-169/12), “Approximate form of job regulations (job description) for an employee of the internal affairs bodies of the Russian Federation "(Order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia dated September 25, 2012 N 886 (as amended on November 14, 2016)), Order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation dated August 22, 2011 N 960 “On approval of standard requirements for the job description of a private security guard at a security facility.”

Responsibility for violations of labor protection legislation

To calculate what damages the above violations can cause, use the table of penalties in accordance with Art. 5.27.1 Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation:

Course “HR Director” Yulia Zhizherina Teacher at the Russian School of Management

What is the structure of the job description?

The employer is free to choose the structure of the job description: it can be a document with a single section - a list of the employee’s job responsibilities, or a complex text with paragraphs, sections, and a detailed description of all production processes.

General provisions

In this section, as a rule,

• describes the position, its name, the basic requirements for the employee - the presence of special education, qualifications, length of service, work experience;
• the person appointing the employee to the position and dismissing the employee from the position is indicated;
• documents are determined that the employee must follow in his activities;
• the procedure for replacing an employee and his subordination is established.

Responsibilities

It is necessary to draw up a list of the employee’s specific responsibilities; they can be conditionally divided into general functional responsibilities and special responsibilities. It is recommended to avoid duplication of employee responsibilities specified in the employment contract.

Rights

In this section it is advisable to list the employee’s powers. There is no need to duplicate the employee’s rights established in the Labor Code of the Russian Federation and the employment contract.

Responsibility

There is an opinion that the section is optional, since the employer does not have the right to introduce new types of liability in comparison with those established by law.

Interaction

This section determines the position of the position (employee) in the company, establishes special responsibilities in relation to other structural divisions of the company, other employees, managers and subordinates. For example, relationships with accounting, labor protection services, and various levels of management are regulated.

General provisions on full financial responsibility of working citizens

Financial liability (hereinafter referred to as MO or financial liability) of an employee should be understood as the employee’s obligation to compensate for direct actual damage that he caused to the legal entity.
Important! As a general rule, the compensation limit in this case is the average monthly earnings of a citizen (Article 241 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

However, in certain cases, 100% compensation is provided. Such cases include (Article 243 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation):

• the employee bears full financial responsibility for damages in connection with work in accordance with federal laws;
• shortage of valuables entrusted to a citizen under an agreement or a one-time document (power of attorney to receive goods and materials);
• causing damage intentionally;
• damage caused by toxic intoxication;
• damage due to a crime or offense under the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation;
• causing damage not in connection with work;
• disclosure of secrets protected by law.

The obligation to compensate for the shortage lies entirely with the head of the legal entity by default (Article 277 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation), and with his deputies and the chief accountant only if this is provided for in labor agreements with them (Article 243 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Also, the Labor Code of the Russian Federation uses the concept of “full medical agreements” - individual and collective. That is, for certain types of work and professions, it is legal initially, on the basis of special agreements, to provide for an obligation for comprehensive compensation for damage from shortages of property that was entrusted to the citizen and directly used or serviced by him (resolution of the Ministry of Labor of the Russian Federation “On approval of lists...” of December 31, 2002 No. 85, hereinafter referred to as the List).

For information on how to hold an employee financially liable and what actions need to be taken, read the typical situation of ConsultantPlus. If you do not yet have access to the ConsultantPlus system, you can obtain it free of charge for 2 days.

How to include a job description in an employee’s employment contract?

• The instruction can be issued as an integral annex of the employment contract, indicating its presence in the text of the contract. The job description becomes mandatory from the moment the employment contract is signed.
• An employment contract may contain a reference to the job description as a separate document. In this case, it is mandatory to read the instructions and sign the employee.
• The employment contract may not contain any mention of job description. In this case, the job description is introduced at the enterprise by a separate order or by order of the manager. If the familiarization procedure is followed and there are no changes in the employee’s job function compared to that specified in the employment contract, it becomes mandatory for the employee.

Statement

Instructions are usually created by the HR department. The document is signed by the head of the department. It is recommended to coordinate it with the heads of departments where the employee for whom the instructions are being prepared works. The document is approved by the head of the company.

After the instructions are approved, you need to familiarize the employee with it against signature. The employee puts his signature in one of the following places:

• Separate sheet for painting.
• Special magazine.
• The column is in the instructions itself.

Familiarization may be confirmed in other ways, if they do not contradict the law.

What mistakes should be avoided when working with job descriptions?

• A formal approach is the most common mistake made by employers. Instructions are developed using outdated templates and forms, without due attention to the content of the document and its applied nature.
• Contentless text. The instructions contain a large amount of text with no semantic load, difficult to read, repeatedly repeating the provisions of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, and the employee’s employment contract.
• Inclusion in the list of responsibilities of “managers’ orders not provided for in the job description.” Such a provision, with a high probability, will not be recognized by the court as complying with the law.
• Duplication. Job descriptions are developed haphazardly, the approval process is not followed, and therefore the job responsibilities of individual employees overlap, the provisions of the instructions contradict each other, and have double interpretation.
• The procedure for making changes is violated. The procedure for changing the job description during the employee’s work activity is not followed: a two-month period for familiarizing it is not provided, there is no documented dialogue between the employee and the employer regarding the changes being made, there are no signatures of the parties, the procedure for familiarizing with the instructions is violated when transferring and relocating an employee, or part-time work.