When will work books be abolished in Russia? Why do you need a work book? An alternative to a work book. Do I need a work book?

The work book was invented to record work experience and came into force in 1918. In addition, ration cards were issued based on the work record. But in modern world, the institution of labor books is losing its relevance, although the current labor code defines this document as the main one for accounting labor activity citizen.

Why do you need a work book and its meaning?

The country has introduced personalized accounting in the system state insurance. Personal accounts contain more complete information about the labor activities of Russian citizens than a work book. In addition, the amount of the assigned pension is determined from the number of people enrolled in Pension Fund money, and not just based on work experience. However, applying for a pension without of this document You won't succeed. This is the main answer to the question of why a work book is needed in the modern world.

Moreover, if errors were made in the document (Natalia is written, not Natalia, for example), even if everything is correct in the personalized accounting, you will have to restore your rights through the court. Although all legislators loudly repeat that a work book is not needed, that it does not carry useful information(for example, about income levels), however, no one plans to cancel it yet.

Main functions of a work book

It is believed that the work book serves as a “letter of recommendation”. A potential employer can look at the work history of an applicant for a position and find out why he was fired previous places work, although in practice personnel officers open for the first time work book after the decision to hire has been made.

The work book has another function - “protecting the rights of the employee.” If he was wrongfully dismissed, based on the entry in the work book, he can challenge this dismissal in judicial procedure and be reinstated. But this is also a controversial issue, entries about this will remain in the book forever, and it is difficult to predict how the future employer will react to them. Thus, the work book in its current form guards the interests of the state, and not of workers and employers, and interests that are not at all related or have little connection with the problems of the labor activity of citizens. Among other things, when traveling abroad, you will be required to present a certified copy of your work record book. This is done to limit the travel abroad of citizens who have access to state secrets.

Grigory Milov

The main function of a work book is to record work experience. However, in modern conditions this is not the most effective method solve this problem.

Work books, with the addition “for non-workers,” first appeared in 1918 in Soviet Russia as a document on the basis of which ration cards were issued (“they were issued to workers” at their place of work). In their current form, the Labor Code defines them as “the main document on the employee’s work activity and length of service.” “But their time is inexorably running out,” notes Lydia Pedchenko, lawyer and member expert council National Union of Personnel Officers.

“With the introduction of personalized accounting in the state system pension insurance the work book loses the function of recording the length of service that was the most important criterion when calculating pensions,” says deputy Oleg Shein, deputy chairman of the committee State Duma on labor and social policy. A personal record in the state pension insurance system contains significantly more full information about the labor activity of a citizen of the Russian Federation, which can be reflected in the work book. In addition, as a result of the pension reform, the size of pensions of citizens of the Russian Federation is calculated on the basis of income to the Pension Fund, and not only on the basis of length of service. “But nevertheless, it is almost impossible to apply for a pension without presenting a work book,” notes Pedchenko: it still needs to be presented “live.”

Moreover, if there is an error in at least one letter in the work book (for example, Natalia is written instead of Natalia), government bodies may deny a person a pension, and, despite the data stored in the Pension Fund, justice will have to be restored through the courts. Legislators also see this contradiction. “When applying for a pension, a work book will soon not be needed for nothing,” says Shein. “After all, it does not carry any information, for example, about income level.” But nevertheless, it is still considered the main document confirming work experience, says Tatyana Kuznetsova, head of the document flow department of the document flow faculty of the Russian State Humanitarian University.

It’s too early to cancel work books, Shein believes. “By recording work activity, it can fulfill the same role as letters of recommendation“, he states. The employer can see the reasons for leaving previous jobs, which may influence his decision to join labor Relations with the candidate, Pedchenko notes. However, in practice personnel services Enterprises first open the work book of a potential employee after the decision to hire him has been made, she reminds.

Another function of the work book is “some protection of the rights of the employee,” says Shein. If an employee is fired, the law obliges the employer to make a record reflecting the specific article of law under which the dismissal was made, he says. “This gives the former employee an opportunity to challenge the legality of his dismissal,” he adds. However, even if the employee manages to be reinstated, the record of dismissal will remain with him forever, and the next employer will be able to see that they tried to fire the employee, but he was able to be reinstated by a court decision. “Employers can draw very different conclusions from these records,” notes Pedchenko. "IN current conditions The work book protects the interests not of the employee or the employer, but of the state, and interests that have little to do with issues of labor activity, says Olga Suvorova, managing partner of the recruiting company Suvorova and Partners. “Its certified copy must be presented when applying for a foreign passport, which makes it possible to limit the travel abroad of people admitted to state secrets.”

You can often find information on the Internet about the cancellation of work records. How much should you trust such rumors and what is the general situation with formal confirmation of experience?

When did work books appear?

For the first time, the decision on the need to document professional activity citizens were accepted in the revolutionary year of 1919, when the work book simultaneously served as an identity card, instead of a passport, and as a basis for receiving food rations. It was quite possible to get a prison sentence for refusing to fill out a book, so the government’s initiative quickly spread.

The work book in the form in which we know it appeared in 1938, after which the form of the document changed on average once every 30 years. While buy a work book cost only 50 kopecks. and this could be done directly at the place of work. Today, on the territory of the Russian Federation, work books of the 1938, 1973 and 2003 models are in use on absolutely equal terms.

Who needs this document and why?

According to Article 66 Labor Code RF, work books must be issued by all employees who have worked in an organization for more than 5 days, for whom a specific job is the main source of income. Getting settled for the first official work, buy a work book you need to do it yourself; you can do this in any office supply department or in the HR department itself. It is submitted along with all other documents (passport, certificate of education, etc.) upon employment and remains in the personnel department until the moment of formal dismissal. However, if you wish, you can make a note about part-time work.

Today, the work book has lost its main purpose - to contain data on the professional activities and length of service of each employee for subsequent registration of a pension. It was replaced by a system of personalized accounting of the Pension Fund of Russia and employment contracts. Copies taken from orders for employment and dismissal of an employee also serve as proof of the fact of work.

However, buy work books may well be required of employees in some organizations who are accustomed to working according to old scheme organizing the relationship between employer and subordinate. Moreover, things have not yet come to the point of officially canceling the work book as a document and this may not happen for many years.

Recently, there have been changes in the country's labor and pension legislation, but this does not mean that work books have lost their meaning. And first, let's figure out what it is.

Employment history - main document about a person’s work activity, intended to take into account his work experience. And it appeared at the beginning of the last century as a document on the basis of which food cards were issued. The official “birthday” was December 20, 1938. It was on this day that the government decree “On the introduction of work books” was adopted. At the same time, a fee was established for the form of a work book - 25 kopecks, and for its loss a fine of 25 rubles was charged.

In the work books of employees, according to by and large their professional biography is reflected: education and qualifications, career advancement, attitude to work. On their basis, all types of work experience were established for the purpose of state pensions, benefits social insurance, as well as official salaries (in cases where it depends on the length of work experience), payments of remuneration for length of service, percentage bonuses for work in the Far North, etc.

When concluding an employment contract, a person entering a job presents to the employer, among other documents, a work book, with the exception of cases when the employment contract is concluded for the first time or the employee enters work on a part-time basis. When concluding an employment contract for the first time, a work book and an insurance certificate of state pension insurance are issued by the employer. If the employee loses or damages this document, the new employer is obliged, upon written application (indicating the reason for the absence of a work book), to issue a new one.

Since the work book is the main document in the field of professional activity, it significantly increases its owner’s sense of responsibility for work, helps strengthen discipline, and greatly facilitates the task correct selection personnel, allows you to significantly streamline the work of social security authorities in assigning pensions.

The employer, for its part, by opening the work record book of a potential employee, can see the reasons for dismissal from previous jobs, which may influence his decision to hire this person. Although, in most cases, the personnel services of enterprises first open the applicant’s work book after the decision to hire him has been made.

Also, the work book serves as a kind of protection of the rights of its owner. Indeed, in the event of dismissal of an employee, the law obliges the employer to make a record in which he refers to the specific article of the law under which the dismissal was made. Work book while the employee is performing his duties job responsibilities is kept in the HR department and can only be issued in case of dismissal. The employee cannot demand to receive it in person, but can ask the employer for a copy of the work record book or an extract from it. Upon a written application from the employee, the employer is obliged, no later than three working days from the date of filing this application, to provide the employee with copies of documents related to the work, as well as extracts from the work record book.

It is imperative to ensure that all records from places of work are certified with appropriate seals. The absence of the employer's stamp on the dismissal record invalidates all records of employment with him. Therefore, it may turn out that this period will not be counted towards the employee when applying for a pension. In this case, it is better to contact your previous employer and get a stamp.

Maintaining work records is the most important responsibility of every law-abiding employer. If the employee carries out his professional activities for more than five days, then this document remains at the relevant enterprise. Many citizens are interested in the question of when work books will be abolished in Russia. Still, the digital era should significantly influence the development of automation processes. Will work books be abolished in our country? The answer to this question will be presented in the article.

History of the work record

The first official document indicating a citizen’s employment appeared in 1918 in accordance with the Labor Code Soviet Republic. It was from this moment that each employee had to confirm his position with a work book. The system for issuing and processing a document a century ago was practically no different from the system today.

A little later, a decree of the Council of People's Commissars appeared on the need for unemployed persons to have work books. In this case, the document could completely replace a passport. The provisions have changed several times. IN last time the work book underwent changes in 2004. And today, in this century digital technologies and universal informatization, a very serious question arises: when will work books be abolished in Russia?

Prospects for cancellation

The problem of canceling work records was raised in both 2004 and 2006. Quite recently, the government again raised the question of canceling the documents under consideration. As some decisions of 2014 and 2015 stated, the process of transferring work books to electronic format was supposed to start in January 2017. But, as can be seen today, nothing like this has yet been observed.

On this moment all information about employees’ work experience goes to the Russian Pension Fund. Strict personalized records of each employee are maintained. Accordingly, confirmation of work experience by presenting a work record book is not at all mandatory. So what prevents the current government from completely abolishing paper versions of documents? Still, joining the world standard would not hinder the Russian state at all.

Is there an alternative to a work book?

Of course, the abolition of work records should entail the full preservation of guarantees of confirmation of work experience. This is understood by both the employer and employee, and the state itself.

What alternative might be present here? Many experts talk about employment contract. But the requirements for this document should change significantly. The content of the contract must be protected from possible falsification. Only making certain additions, thanks to which work experience will not need to be confirmed, will optimize the work as labor organizations, and the Pension Fund of Russia.

As soon as all the nuances are finalized, a worthy bill will be submitted to the State Duma.

What will the cancellation lead to?

Thus, the question of whether work books will be abolished in Russia remains a little unclear. But what consequences will the cancellation lead to? Experts talk about a sharp reduction in HR costs. All human resources will be immediately optimized. Accounting, storage of work records, issuance of salaries to personnel officers - all this will be significantly simplified. Among other things, the responsibility for transferring or storing work records upon dismissal will be removed: it is worth recalling that personnel officers can be punished for careless handling of papers.

But the abolition of work records also has some disadvantages. In particular, it is worth highlighting the possibility of an employee concealing true reasons dismissals from previous jobs, because they will not be displayed anywhere. We must not forget about the possible falsification of resumes and recommendations. Of course, all of these shortcomings can be easily eliminated; the introduction of certain additions will help correct the situation.

Will it be easier for workers?

The pros and cons of the process under consideration on the part of employers and personnel officers were mentioned above. Will anything change for the workers themselves? Will the fact that maintaining work records no longer be necessary somehow affect ordinary working people? This will be discussed further below.

The first drawback worth highlighting is insecurity digital system. Any failure in the program will stop the entire process of working with electronic versions of work books. If the data is completely lost, the employee will have to contact his previous employers for confirmation of length of service (and it is not a fact that they will retain such information). The second drawback is the possible dishonesty of the employer. Constantly monitoring how management contributes the required amounts to the Pension Fund will not be so easy. It is quite possible that an employee will simply lose his seniority due to the dishonesty of his superiors.

But there are also advantages here. Still, the question of when work books will be abolished in Russia is not in vain raised so often. So, when the document in question transitions to digital format the future pensioner will get rid of the paperwork that is present in so much today. It is worth remembering how much a work book costs. So, at the Rospechat kiosk you can buy it from five hundred rubles. The amount is small, but for many residents of the country, one might say, “inconvenient.” Of course, the abolition of work books will entail the abolition of the need to purchase them.

Will work books be canceled in the Russian Federation?

As mentioned above, some government decrees stated that the registration and storage of work records in Russia will cease at the beginning of 2017. But on July 3, 2016 it comes out in Russia the federal law on amendments to the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. The bill was set to come into effect on January 1, 2017. What does the presented law say?
In short, employers are pointed out the need to act according to previously established rules. That is, no new procedure for maintaining work records is being established again. Entries in documents, as usual, are recorded when working for more than five days at one enterprise. There is no talk of any electronic versions yet.

Thus, you should not expect significant changes in 2017.

Why isn't it cancelled?

So why is the state so slow to abolish paper documents confirming work experience? Why do you need a work book in an outdated non-digital form? As usual, exact answers to these questions cannot yet be obtained. But it is not so difficult to guess the reasons for the conservatism of the authorities.

The primary reason for preserving work records is the value of the information they contain. It is also worth mentioning possible problems with pension accruals, layoffs, transitions to new jobs, etc. Translating books into digital format costs a lot of money. And the government, as you know, does not like to spend money on social needs.

Lawyers' opinions

What do experts think about the current situation? When will work books be abolished in Russia, according to lawyers?

According to most experts, the abolition of work records in Russia should only bring benefits. For the state, according to experts, the existence of paper work records does not matter. For many years now, employers have been making contributions to the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation, and therefore information about “paper” work experience simply becomes unnecessary. For workers, the question of how much a work book costs will no longer exist, and the problems of paperwork will also disappear. The Russian authorities should strive for world standards. The advantages of canceling books, as experts in the field say labor law, will affect all interested groups.

But some experts think differently. In their opinion, the abolition of work records will greatly affect Russians, and negatively. Considering the conservatism of many citizens, the abolition of paper versions of the document will only entail a wave of discontent. If the books are cancelled, it won’t be for long, experts say; most likely, many citizens themselves will demand their return.