Step-by-step instructions for dismissal for absenteeism in 2021

What is truancy

According to subparagraph “a” of paragraph 6 of Article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, absenteeism is absence from the workplace without a good reason for more than four hours in a row during the working day.
If your employee is absent from work without your knowledge, then there is a possibility that he is grossly violating labor discipline. For which he can be fired, but in order to fire for absenteeism, a strict personnel procedure must be followed. If it is violated, the dismissal will be considered illegal, and the employee, if he goes to court, will be reinstated at work with a high degree of probability. It is not necessary to fire someone for absenteeism.
Other disciplinary action may be taken. ConsultantPlus instructions will help you choose and arrange everything correctly. Use them for free. To do this, register using the link below.

Procedure for dismissal for absenteeism

Truancy can be divided into two groups:

short-term - it is possible to establish all the circumstances of the commission of an offense within a short period of time;
long-term - it is impossible to quickly find out what happened to the employee who committed absenteeism.

The division into these groups determines a different approach to the procedure for dismissal for absenteeism, subject to compliance with general requirements. Let us reflect in the table the features of the stages of dismissal depending on their belonging to one of the groups. This description can be used as step-by-step instructions for dismissal for absenteeism in 2021.

Stage	Short-term absence	Long-term absenteeism
The employee is absent from the workplace for more than the required time for an unknown reason.	For each fact or day of absence, a report or report from the head of the department on the absence of the employee is drawn up. The fact of absence for an unknown reason is noted on the working time sheet
Receiving explanations	The employee is given a written request for an explanation and given 2 working days to compile it. In case of refusal to provide an explanation, an act of such refusal is drawn up	The employer tries to independently find out the reasons for the employee’s absence by calling him or relatives, sending letters or telegrams with notification to the registration address, filing a statement with the police
Consideration of reasons for absence	There are no explanations, they are disrespectful or not supported by documents. A memorandum is drawn up addressed to the head of the organization, which reflects the fact that a violation has been established.	The reason for the absence could not be determined. Draw up a report on the futility of its clarification
Making a decision to dismiss	Based on the decision of the manager, an order is issued in form T-8 or T-8a (if a group of people has been absent), in which sub-clause is indicated as the basis for dismissal. "a" clause 6 of Art. 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, and all documents drawn up when recording the fact of absenteeism and receiving explanations on it are listed as justification documents
Date of dismissal order	Day of actual compilation	The order is issued by the date of its actual preparation, but the fact of dismissal in it corresponds to the date of the last working day before the first day of continuous absenteeism (letter of the Federal Service for Labor and Employment of the Russian Federation dated July 11, 2006 No. 1074-6-1)
Familiarization of the dismissed employee with the order	Upon receipt within 3 working days from the date of execution of the order. In case of refusal, a report on this circumstance is drawn up (Article 193 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation)	In the absence of an employee, a corresponding entry is made in the order about the impossibility of notifying him (Article 84.1 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). A copy of the order can be sent to the employee by letter to his registered address
Calculation of severance	This is done completely as usual on the last working day with the issuance of all necessary certificates (Article 84.1 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation)	The calculation of payments itself is done in full as usual on the last working day. Money is issued on this day if it is possible to transfer it to the card. If it is impossible to issue the employee, they are sent a written notice of the need to appear for the money.
Issuance of a work book	On the day of dismissal with the signature of the employee in the personal card, work record book. If you refuse to receive a work book, a report on this is drawn up	The employee is sent a written notification of the need to appear for a work book or to inform in writing of his consent to send it by mail (Article 84.1 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation)

ATTENTION! The rules for maintaining work books in force from 09/01/2021 (approved by order of the Ministry of Labor dated 05/19/2021 No. 320n) do not provide for familiarization of the employee with the signature of the work records entered into the paper work book (previously, employees signed the dismissal record). Read more about the new rules for registering a work book, effective from September 2021, here.

Read about the features of drawing up different types of time sheets in the articles:

“Working time sheet according to form T-12 - form”;
“Working time sheet - form T-13 (form).”

All documents drawn up during the dismissal procedure for absenteeism (acts, notifications, letters, memos, explanations) are drawn up in any form and recorded in the appropriate accounting journals. The acts must be signed by at least 3 persons who were present when the employee refused to draw up, receive the document or sign it.

Dismissal for absenteeism does not require the issuance of orders other than the order for dismissal in the established form T-8 or T-8a (decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated 09.11.2012 No. 60-APG12-7, letter of the Federal Service for Labor and Employment of the Russian Federation dated 01.06. 2011 No. 1493-6-1).

When dismissing for absenteeism, the employer, as well as during a regular dismissal, is obliged to report this fact:

to the military registration and enlistment office if an employee subject to military registration is dismissed;
The Federal Bailiff Service (FSSP) upon the dismissal of an employee from whose salary deductions were made according to a writ of execution. In this case, the writ of execution is returned to the FSSP with a note in it about the deductions made during the period of work. If alimony was paid under this document, then the recipient of the alimony is also informed about the dismissal.

Can you only get fired for absenteeism? Sign up for a free trial access to ConsultantPlus and find out what other disciplinary sanctions for absenteeism are allowed by law.

What to do

The general procedure for dismissing an employee for absenteeism is as follows:

Recording the fact of absence.
Getting an explanation.
Qualification of the offense.
Preparation of documents for dismissal.
Familiarization of the employee with documents and handing them over upon dismissal.

Let's analyze each stage in detail. Please note that each stage must be documented. This is necessary because in the event of a labor dispute, the employer will have to prove that he is right, including that he followed the step-by-step instructions for dismissal for absenteeism in each specific case.

Step 1. Record absenteeism

If an employee does not show up for work and does not notify about his absence, this does not mean that he was absent. What is recognized as absenteeism is specified in the resolution of the plenum of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation dated March 17, 2004 No. 2. The common features for all cases of absenteeism are unauthorized and without good reason absence from work for more than four hours in a row during a working day or shift.

Article 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation in 2020-2021

In Art. 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, namely sub. “a” clause 6 states that in case of absenteeism, the employer can legally dismiss the employee. In this case, the conditions mentioned earlier must be met.

But should a manager always fire an employee for absenteeism? This article gives him the right to do this, but does not establish such an obligation. Legislators leave the right of choice to the company's management. It can reprimand the employee, reprimand him or simply leave absenteeism unattended.

In some cases, the dismissal of an employee is possible due to him going on unauthorized leave without warning management. Every enterprise must have an annual vacation schedule. It is brought to the attention of employees. Lack of a schedule is considered a violation of labor laws.

Find out how to properly create a vacation schedule and download the form on our website. Read the article “Vacation schedule - form and sample for filling out in 2021.”

But in any case, going on vacation without the approval of management is a violation of labor discipline, and the employee may be held accountable for absenteeism.

You may also find these articles useful:

“How to properly arrange leave followed by dismissal?”;
“Order for annual paid leave - sample and form”.

Sometimes it happens that absenteeism ends the employee’s desire to resign of his own free will. The employee writes a letter of resignation and, without working for 2 weeks, does not go to work at the scheduled time.

If an employer dismisses an employee for absenteeism, he makes a corresponding note in his work book with reference to Art. 81 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Arbitrage practice

In some cases, dismissals on this basis are considered illegal even if the procedure is fully followed. The Supreme Court believes that it is impossible to fire an employee for absenteeism if his leave was agreed upon verbally. The essence of the matter: the employee shared on social networks his photographs during working hours, in which he rests outside his place of work. The organization conducted an inspection. The employee claimed that his supervisor allowed him to leave before the end of his shift that day. The employee filled out an application form for leave without pay and left it on the boss’s desk, as was customary at the enterprise. The HR department did not receive the application and the employee was fired for absenteeism. But the employee did not agree with the penalty and challenged it.

The first and second instances supported the organization. The employee's leave has not been formalized. He left his workplace without good reason for more than 4 hours. The RF Armed Forces did not agree with them. The courts had to take into account and verify the employee’s arguments that the manager verbally agreed to provide leave upon request. Under such circumstances, you cannot be fired for absenteeism. The case was sent for a new trial; for more details, see the ruling of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated August 24, 2020 No. 18-КГ20-37.

Absence from work form

Form of statement of refusal to provide explanations

Where to find samples of personnel documents on absenteeism

Most of the documents used to formalize dismissal for absenteeism are drawn up in a free (free) form. Therefore, it is important to reflect the essence of the recorded circumstance, correctly indicate dates and time periods, data of the absent person, affix the necessary signatures and record the fact of registration of the document drawn up.

To learn how you can draw up an act when an employee refuses to provide an explanation, read the material “How to draw up an act on refusal to write an explanatory note.”

The only document that is made in accordance with the established form when dismissing someone for absenteeism is an order for dismissal. However, the form used for this is no different from a regular dismissal order. The differences consist only in references to article numbers of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation as grounds for dismissal and in the list of documents justifying the creation of the order.

For a description of the procedure for filling out the order and its form, see the article “Unified Form No. T-8 - form and sample of completion.”

A sample order for dismissal due to absenteeism, drawn up on Form T-8, can be found on our website. Click on the picture below for a free and completed sample:

Correction of forms SZV-M and SZV-STAZH

Next, the employer’s accountant, who decides to fire the absentee on the last day of work (that is, as recommended by officials and judges), will have to deal with adjusting the “pension” reporting forms. Until an order to dismiss such an employee is issued, for the purposes of personalized accounting he is an insured person, since an employment contract has been concluded with him. This means that information regarding it must be provided in the SZV-M and SZV-STAZh forms.

Once a dismissal order is issued, the employee suddenly, retroactively, ceases to be an insured person. This automatically makes unreliable all reporting in which the days starting from the first day of absenteeism are indicated as a period of work. This means that such reporting needs to be corrected.

A fine can be avoided only if the policyholder corrects the previously submitted information regarding the insured person before the errors are discovered by the territorial body of the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation. To do this, you need to submit corrected information for the reporting period in which this information is clarified (clause 39 of the Instructions, approved by order of the Ministry of Labor of Russia dated December 21, 2016 No. 766n).

Thus, in the case under consideration, the accountant will need to prepare the SZV-M form with the “cancel” type for periods after the date of dismissal specified in the order, excluding information about the dismissed employee from the original form. At the same time, as mentioned above, it is important to submit corrected reports before the PFR authorities identify errors in order to avoid financial sanctions.

If information about a dismissed absentee worker is included in the annual form SZV-STAZH, then you will have to correct it too. After all, as already mentioned, from the moment of termination of the employment contract, the employee ceases to be an insured person for the purposes of personalized accounting. Accordingly, in section 3 of the SZV-STAZH form, the period of work must be indicated up to the date of termination of the employment contract reflected in the dismissal order.

Fill out, check and submit SZV-M and SZV-STAZH via the Internet Submit for free

Guide: everything you need to know about dismissal

How to draw up an agreement to terminate an employment contract

By agreement of the parties, the employment contract can be terminated at any time within the period determined by the parties.
This follows from the totality of the provisions of Art. 78 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, paragraph 20 of the resolution of the plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated March 17, 2004 No. 2. The initiator of termination of the contract on this basis can be either the employee or the employer. Continue reading in ConsultantPlus