The concept, tasks and functions of trade unions. The concept of trade unions, their characteristics In the trade union movement, the following types are distinguished

"HR officer. Labor law for a personnel officer", 2011, N 8

PROFESSIONAL UNIONS AS SUBJECTS OF CIVIL LAW

According to the author of the article, in the future, the regulation of the civil law status of trade unions should become more effective, excluding prerequisites for abuse and controversial situations associated with the vagueness of certain regulatory requirements and the lack of their logical connection with other legislative provisions.

AT modern conditions trade unions are entities designed to perform the most important function - to represent workers in their interaction with employers. Through trade union representation, employees get the opportunity to express their interests in collective bargaining, concluding or changing a collective agreement, monitoring its implementation, exercising the right to participate in the management of the organization, and resolving labor disputes with the employer. Therefore, trade unions are usually considered as subjects of labor law, it is from these positions that the specifics of their legal status are studied.

At the same time, they also participate in a wide range of civil legal relations - they acquire property into ownership and exercise the powers of the owner, make various civil law transactions, carry out income-generating activities, etc., acting as independent subjects of civil circulation. Participation in property relations largely contributes to the creation of optimal conditions for the trade unions to perform their main socially useful functions in the field of social partnership.

According to paragraph 1 of Art. 2 of the Federal Law of 12.01.1996 N 10-FZ "On trade unions, their rights and guarantees of activity" (as amended on 12/28/2010, hereinafter referred to as the Law on Trade Unions), a trade union is recognized as a voluntary public association of citizens connected by common production, professional interests by the nature of their activity, created for the purpose of representing and protecting their social and labor rights and interests. From this legal definition it follows that a trade union is a public organization of a special kind, which is characterized by a specific purpose of activity, which consists in representing and protecting the social and labor rights and interests of its members, as well as the common interests of the production and professional nature underlying the creation of the organization.

The types of trade unions are primary, all-Russian and interregional trade union organizations. They have the right to create their own associations (associations) on a sectoral, territorial or other basis that takes into account professional specifics - all-Russian, interregional, territorial associations (associations) of trade unions.

The moments of the creation of a trade union (association of trade unions, primary trade union organization) and the acquisition of rights by it legal entity are delimited. Like most other public associations, a trade union is considered established from the moment the founders (congress, conference, assembly) decide to create it. The rights of a legal entity and, accordingly, the civil legal personality of a trade union acquires from the moment of its state registration in the manner prescribed by law. This feature of trade unions is due to the fact that the goals of their activities are outside the scope of civil law regulation and can be achieved without recognizing the relevant entities as subjects of civil law.

The organizational and legal form of trade unions and their associations as legal entities is a public organization (association). Meanwhile, some authors tend to consider the trade union as an independent type of non-commercial legal entities, different from the form of public organization (association). In accordance with paragraph 1 of Art. 117 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, public organizations (associations) are recognized as voluntary associations of citizens who, in the manner prescribed by law, have united on the basis of their common interests to satisfy spiritual or other non-material needs.

Similarly, the concept of public organizations (associations) is disclosed in Art. 6 of the Federal Law of 12.01.1996 N 7-FZ "On non-profit organizations"(as amended on December 29, 2010, hereinafter referred to as the Law on Non-Commercial Organizations). At the same time, both documents, establishing a single legal regime for all public organizations (associations), allow for the possibility of determining the features of their status as participants in civil law relations by special laws.

The main act regulating the activities of public associations is the Federal Law of May 19, 1995 N 82-FZ "On Public Associations" (as amended on July 22, 2010, hereinafter referred to as the Law on Public Associations), which also implies the possibility of detailing the status, the procedure for creating , activities, reorganization and (or) liquidation of certain types of public associations, including trade unions, other laws.

dual position

The Special Law on Trade Unions, which has a complex character, is the main document that determines the status of trade unions, including as subjects of civil law. It is from this that judicial practice proceeds (for example, the Decree of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Volga District of 16 - 19.06.1998 in case No. 10/23). At the same time, those of its separate norms that can be qualified as civil law must comply with the Civil Code of the Russian Federation (clause 2, article 3). Since this act is fundamental in the system of civil legislation, all norms of civil law contained in other laws should not contradict it. In the event of conflicts, the provisions of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation shall prevail. In the system of legal regulation of trade unions, such discrepancies between the norms take place. This is largely dictated by the dual position of the trade unions.

On the one hand, these are special social formations based on the principles of voluntariness, equality, self-government and legality, free in determining their internal structure, goals, forms and methods of activity. On the other hand, there are non-commercial legal entities with a corporate structure, which implies the emergence between them and their founders (members) of certain relations that are characteristic of all such organizations, the presence of a certain structure of management bodies, etc.

The right to create trade unions to protect their interests, join them, engage in trade union activities and leave trade unions is granted to every citizen who has reached the age of 14 and is engaged in labor (professional) activities (clause 2, article 2 of the Law on trade unions).

The literal interpretation of this norm indicates that the will of one employee who has reached the specified age is sufficient to create a trade union, nevertheless, a trade union is defined as an association of citizens, and therefore its founders must be at least two. If we focus on the provisions of the Law on Public Associations, it is necessary for at least 3 individuals to participate in the creation of a trade union (Article 18). In addition, a minor, as a general rule (Article 26 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation), does not have sufficient civil capacity to establish legal entities other than cooperatives.

The exception is cases when he acquires full legal capacity in connection with marriage or emancipation. In this regard, it would be more accurate to define minors who have reached the age of 14 as capable of creating trade unions, not acquiring the rights of a legal entity, and as possible members of already established trade unions - legal entities.

It should be noted that the establishment of some additional conditions for joining a trade union, in addition to those specified in the Law and relating to the age and activity of a citizen, is illegal and entails the liquidation of the trade union.

Example. At the request of the prosecutor, the public organization "Professional Union of the Azerbaijani Diaspora of the Republic of Tatarstan", which unites workers, students and other citizens of Azerbaijani nationality and natives of the Republic of Azerbaijan, was liquidated, since only persons of a certain nationality and having a place of birth in a certain territory had the opportunity to participate in it (Determination of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation dated November 30, 2010 N 11-Г10-32).

State registration

State registration of trade unions, their associations (associations), primary trade union organizations as legal entities is carried out in accordance with the Federal Law of 08.08.2001 N 129-FZ "On State Registration of Legal Entities and Individual Entrepreneurs" (as amended on 12/23/2010). For its implementation, a special procedure is provided - the decision on state registration of an organization is made by the federal executive body authorized in the field of registration of public associations, or its territorial body.

Currently, this body is the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation. Trade unions, their unions (associations), primary trade union organizations must submit the documents necessary for state registration within 1 month from the date of their creation. The forms of documents required for state registration of non-profit organizations are approved by Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of April 15, 2006 N 212 "On Measures to Implement Certain Provisions of Federal Laws Regulating the Activities of Non-Profit Organizations" (as amended on May 5, 2010). The adopted decision serves as the basis for the Federal Tax Service of Russia to enter information on the creation of a trade union in the Unified State Register of Legal Entities. The procedure for its adoption is established by the Administrative Regulations for the implementation by the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation of the state function of making a decision on the state registration of non-profit organizations, approved. Order of the Ministry of Justice of Russia dated March 31, 2009 N 96.

Article 8 of the Law on Trade Unions provides that the state registration of trade union organizations of all types as a legal entity is carried out on a notification basis. Accordingly, the Ministry of Justice and its territorial bodies have no right to control the activities of trade unions, their unions (associations), primary trade union organizations, and also refuse to register them. Denial of registration or evasion of it may be appealed in court.

Example. Thus, the refusal to register the trade union of the unemployed, workers of private enterprises and homeworkers of Kuzbass, based on the fact that this organization unites workers of enterprises of various forms of ownership and the unemployed, was recognized as unlawful. Recognizing the refusal to register a trade union as illegal, the court proceeded from the existence of a ban on refusal to register trade unions (Overview judicial practice Supreme Court of the Russian Federation for the IV quarter of 1999, approved. Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation of April 5, 2000).

Property

According to paragraph 1 of Art. 24 of the Law on Trade Unions, trade unions, their associations (associations), primary trade union organizations that have acquired the rights of a legal entity are the owners of property, incl. Money necessary to fulfill their statutory goals and objectives, own and use other property transferred to them in accordance with the established procedure for their economic management. From this norm it follows that the property of trade union organizations can be both on the right of ownership and on the right of economic management. At the same time, the Law does not define either the entities that have the right to transfer property in their ownership to the economic management of trade union organizations, or the grounds for such transfer, or its procedure. This provision does not comply with the rules of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation.

According to Art. 216 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the right of economic management is a limited real right, different from the right of ownership. By virtue of Art. 294 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, only state or municipal unitary enterprises, except for state-owned ones, are recognized as subjects of the right of economic management. They are created by public legal entities in order to carry out entrepreneurial activities, for which they are endowed with state or municipal property on the right of economic management. The possibility of transferring property owned by public legal entities or private property of individuals and legal entities to the economic management of other organizations is not provided for by the Civil Code of the Russian Federation.

Also in Art. 24 of the Law on Trade Unions stipulates that trade unions own, use and dispose of property belonging to them by right of ownership. At the same time, the recognition, inviolability and protection of the property rights of trade unions, the conditions for the exercise of these rights on an equal footing with other legal entities, regardless of the form of ownership, are guaranteed.

According to paragraph 2 of Art. 209 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the owner has the right, at his discretion, to take any actions with respect to his property that do not contradict the law and other legal acts and do not violate the rights and legally protected interests of other persons, including alienating his property into the ownership of other persons, transferring to them , while remaining the owner of the right to own, use and dispose of property, pledge property and encumber it in other ways, dispose of it in another way.

However, for non-profit organizations, based on the peculiarities of their legal status, a restriction is established. By virtue of paragraph 4 of Art. 213 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, public and religious organizations(associations), charitable and other foundations that are the owners of the property acquired by them, can use it only to achieve the goals stipulated by their constituent documents. This rule implies some limitation of the range of transactions that non-profit organizations are able to make in relation to their property.

With regard to trade union organizations, according to par. 4 p. 2 art. 24 of the Law on Trade Unions, their property may be alienated only by a court decision. Thus, the Law on Trade Unions contains two mutually exclusive rules: on the one hand, it proclaims the equality of the trade union in exercising the rights of the owner along with others (in this case, non-commercial legal entities), on the other hand, trade union organizations, as owners, are deprived of the opportunity to independently exercise the authority to dispose of their property. Such a provision does not comply with the norms of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, in connection with which the norm of the Law on Trade Unions, which restricts the rights of trade unions to alienate their property, is not subject to application.

Sources, the procedure for the formation of property and the use of trade union funds are determined by their charters and regulations on primary trade union organizations. If we proceed from the general rules on non-profit organizations, then the property of a trade union can be formed at the expense of regular and one-time receipts from the founders (participants, members); voluntary property contributions and donations; proceeds from the sale of goods, works, services; dividends (income, interest) received on shares, bonds, other securities and deposits; income received from the property of a non-profit organization; other receipts not prohibited by law (clause 1, article 26 of the Law on non-profit organizations). Trade unions may own various types of property necessary to ensure their statutory activities.

A certain role in the formation of the property of trade unions operating in the organization is assigned to the employer. In particular, a collective agreement or an agreement may impose obligations on the employer to provide trade unions with certain types of property for free use. If there are written applications from employees who are members of the trade union, the employer monthly and free of charge transfers trade union membership dues from the wages of employees to the account of the trade union in accordance with the collective agreement, agreement.

It should be noted that the exercise of financial control over the funds of trade unions by the executive authorities is not allowed. The only exception is control over funds from the entrepreneurial activities of trade union organizations. One of its possible forms is the conduct of tax audits.

Example. The Tax Inspectorate of Russia N 27 for the South-Western Administrative District of Moscow Decision N 392 dated 24.05.2002 appointed an on-site tax audit at the Association of Trade Unions of Russia "SOTSPROF" on the issue of the correct calculation and timeliness of the transfer of personal income tax (income tax) for the period from 01/01/1999 to 01.05.2002.

The association of trade unions applied to the Moscow Arbitration Court with an application for invalidation (illegal) of the Decisions of the tax authority dated 24.05.2002 N 392, dated 09.09.2002 N 03-18/3547.

By the decision of the court, left unchanged by the decision of the appellate instance, the applicant's claims are satisfied.

The legality and validity of judicial acts were checked in accordance with Art. 284 of the Arbitration Procedure Code of the Russian Federation on the cassation complaint of the Ministry of Taxes and Taxes of Russia N 27 for the South-Western Administrative District of Moscow, in which the tax authority asked for the decision and the decision to be canceled, referring to the fact that the court did not establish a violation of the rights and legitimate interests of the applicant, the court unreasonably did not apply the rules of substantive the rights to be applied - art. Art. 31, 87, 89, 24, 217, 226 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation, Art. 20 of the Law of the Russian Federation of 07.12.1991 "On income tax from individuals".

Having studied the materials of the case, after hearing the representatives of the parties, the court of cassation considers that the decision and the decision are subject to cancellation due to the incorrect application by the court of the norms of substantive law.

The decision was made within the powers of the tax authority to conduct tax control, provided by Art. Art. 31, 89 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.

The current tax legislation does not provide for the prohibition of tax audits of organizations (associations) of trade unions. The applicant's allegation of a violation of the provisions of the ILO Convention N 87 "On freedom of association and protection of the rights to organize" (Articles 2, 3, 8) does not correspond to the literal content of the text of the Convention, since the very fact of appointing an on-site tax audit cannot violate or limit the guarantees freedom to create organizations, the right to develop statutes and regulations, freely choose their representatives, organize their activities and formulate their program.

Moreover, art. Article 8 of the Convention provides that in exercising the rights recognized by this Convention, workers, employers and their respective organizations, as well as other persons or organized groups, shall observe the law.

Article 24 of the Federal Law of January 12, 1996 N 10-FZ "On trade unions, their rights and guarantees of activity" provides that financial control over the funds of trade unions by executive authorities is not carried out, with the exception of control over funds from entrepreneurial activity.

Articles 8.1, 8.2, 8.20 of the Charter of the Association of Trade Unions of Russia "SOTSPROF" provide for the possibility for organizations "SOTSPROF" to carry out entrepreneurial activities and receive income from such activities.

One of the forms of control over business income in accordance with the Tax Code of the Russian Federation is the conduct of tax audits.

In addition, with regard to the subject of the dispute under consideration, it should be noted that an on-site tax audit was appointed on the issue of compliance with the procedure for calculating and transferring income tax (tax on personal income), i.e. not the funds of the Association itself, but the income of specific individuals were subject to control persons in relation to which the Association is a tax agent.

Under the above circumstances, the judicial acts regarding the invalidation of the decision of 05.24.2002 N 392 are subject to cancellation due to the incorrect application of the above substantive law with the adoption of a new decision to refuse to satisfy the applicant's claims in this part (Resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Moscow District of 18.07.2003 N KA-A40/4669-03).

Doing Business

Being non-profit organizations, trade unions and their associations can engage in entrepreneurial activities, but only in so far as it serves to achieve the goals for which they were created, and corresponds to these goals (clause 3, article 50 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation). The Law on Non-Commercial Organizations provides for the possibility of carrying out, in addition to entrepreneurial activities, other income-generating activities. Such activity is the profitable production of goods and services that meet the goals of creating a non-profit organization, the acquisition and sale of securities, property and non-property rights, participation in business companies and limited partnerships as a contributor.

According to paragraph 2 of Art. 24 of the Law on Non-Commercial Organizations, possible types of income-generating activities of non-commercial organizations must be mandatory provided for in their constituent documents. Income from entrepreneurial and other activities cannot be redistributed among the founders (participants) of non-profit organizations and must be used only to achieve their statutory goals.

There is a special rule for trade unions. According to paragraph 7 of Art. 24 of the Law on Trade Unions, they have the right to carry out entrepreneurial activities through the organizations they have established. On the possibility of trade unions conducting such activities directly special law does not mention, but also does not contain a direct prohibition. At the same time, both the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, the Law on Non-Commercial Organizations, and the Law on Public Associations allow public associations to engage in entrepreneurial activities without creating special structures for this. However, the courts often interpret this provision literally and consider it unlawful for trade unions to directly carry out entrepreneurial activities (Resolution of the Court of Appeal of the Arbitration Court of the Chelyabinsk Region dated September 20, 2001 in case N A76-3840 / 01-15 / 33 / 42-116).

It should be noted that when evaluating the specific activity of a trade union in the field of property in order to determine its nature, the courts proceed from the presumption that this activity is not entrepreneurial.

Example. Thus, when considering one of the cases, the court noted that the facts of the conclusion of civil law contracts and the transfer of funds for their execution cannot serve as evidence of the implementation by the trade union organization commercial activities with goals contrary to its charter (Resolution of the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Moscow District dated 04.06.2003 N KA-A40 / 3463-03 in case N A40-40728 / 02-114-495).

New bill on trade unions

At present, in order to improve the legal regulation of the property status of trade unions, a draft law has been prepared to amend the Law on Trade Unions. According to its developers, such changes will make it possible to eliminate possible abuses in the disposal of trade union property.

The draft law proposes to establish specific legal mechanisms, the introduction of which will create conditions for strengthening control over the disposal of trade union property. In particular, it is planned to establish mandatory prior approval by the highest governing trade union body of all transactions for the alienation of real estate of trade unions; the right of any trade union member to receive information about the financial and economic activities of the relevant trade union; the obligation of trade unions to publish information on the list of property belonging to them by right of ownership and the composition and structure of trade union bodies in the media mass media and/or on the Internet.

It is also proposed to include trade unions in the number of legal entities obliged to publish financial statements in the media. Such measures will make it possible to prevent the facts of illegal alienation of property of trade unions and ensure the rights of their members.

Reforming civil law

A significant revision of approaches to the regulation of the civil law status of trade unions is also expected in connection with the reform of civil legislation carried out in pursuance of Decree of the President of the Russian Federation of July 18, 2008 N 1108 "On the improvement of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation." The developed Concept for the Development of the Civil Legislation of the Russian Federation and the draft federal law prepared on its basis on amendments to the Civil Code of the Russian Federation provide for the division of legal entities into corporate and unitary with the introduction of certain unified rules for each of the groups. It is assumed that trade union organizations as legal entities will be created and carry out their activities in the organizational and legal form of public organizations of citizens. The associations they create on the basis of the territorial principle will have a fundamentally different organizational form - associations and unions. In this regard, the civil law status of trade union organizations and their associations will differ, while at present they all function in a single form of public associations.

It also provides for the establishment of a minimum number of founders of a trade union organization - there cannot be less than five. The rights of members in relation to the trade union as a legal entity are planned to be qualified as corporate. These include the right to participate in the management of property affairs of the corporation; to receive information about the property activities of the corporation, and in cases provided for by law or the charter of the corporation, to get acquainted with its accounting and other documentation; to appeal the decisions of the bodies of the corporation, entailing civil law consequences; in cases stipulated by law - to challenge the transaction made by the corporation and to file claims for compensation for the losses caused to the corporation; to leave the corporation at any time. The procedure for exercising these rights must be provided for by the charter of the organization.

As for the corporate obligations of members of trade union organizations, they must participate in the formation of the property of the corporation in the manner, amount, method and within the time limits provided for by the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, other law or charter; not to disclose confidential information about the activities of the corporation; participate in the adoption of corporate decisions necessary in accordance with the law for the implementation of the activities of the corporation; pay the membership and other property contributions provided for by its charter.

If now trade unions are relatively independent in matters of determining the structure of governing bodies, then in the future in all public organizations of citizens, including trade unions that have acquired the rights of a legal entity, along with the highest body - the general meeting of members of the organization - a collegiate (council , board, presidium, etc.) and sole (chairman, president, etc.) bodies. By decision general meeting members of the civil law powers of these bodies will be able to voluntarily terminate in cases gross violation by them of their duties, revealed inability to properly conduct business or in the presence of other serious grounds. At the same time, according to the meaning of the draft, powers in other areas can be retained by these bodies.

Thus, in the future, the regulation of the civil law status of trade unions should become more effective, excluding prerequisites for abuse and controversial situations associated with the vagueness of certain regulatory requirements and the lack of their logical connection with other legislative provisions. Ultimately, this will contribute to the creation of the necessary conditions for the implementation by trade unions of their main activities in the field of social partnership.

Bibliographic list

1. Lomakin DV Corporate legal relations: general theory and practice of its application in economic societies. M.: Statute, 2008.

2. Verbitskaya Yu. O. On the division of organizations into commercial and non-commercial // Corporations and institutions: Sat. articles / Rep. ed. M. A. Rozhkova. M.: Statute, 2007.

3. Official website of the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation [Electronic resource]. URL: arbiter. ru/presscentr/news/31202.html.

4. Draft federal law N 510228-5 "On Amendments to Article 24 of the Federal Law "On Trade Unions, Their Rights and Guarantees of Activity" and Article 16 of the Federal Law "On Accounting" [Electronic resource].

T. Soifer

departments of civil

and family law

MGUA them. O. E. Kutafina

Signed for print

We will tell you what a trade union of workers is and how cooperation with it can improve the activities of the enterprise as a whole.

When did the first trade unions of workers appear in Russia?

The first trade unions in Russia arose during the revolutionary upheavals of 1905-1907. In the countries of Europe and America, these organizations have existed for a long time and had a significant voice in resolving issues of national industry. Similar activities in Russia in the pre-revolutionary period were carried out by strike committees, which eventually transformed into trade unions.

The best workers are enterprising employees. They are full of new ideas, they are ready to work hard and take responsibility. But they are also the most dangerous - sooner or later they decide to work for themselves. At best, they will simply leave and create their own business, at worst, they will take your information, a pool of customers and become competitors.

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April 30, 1906, when the first meeting of Moscow workers was held, is considered to be the official date of the creation of the first professional association. However, on October 6, 1905, the All-Russian Conference of Trade Unions was held, at which the Moscow Bureau of Commissioners (Central Bureau of Trade Unions) was created. Before the overthrow of the autocracy in Russia, all activities of trade union organizations were illegal. The second All-Russian Conference of Trade Unions, which took place in St. Petersburg at the end of February 1906, was also illegal.

The revolution of 1917 completely changed the situation. After the change of power, the first regional committee of trade unions of workers appeared, and the third All-Russian Conference of Trade Unions, held in June 1917, was absolutely legal. As a result, the All-Russian Central Council of Trade Unions was elected.

In addition, functions were included in the scope of activity of trade union organizations, which included concern for the growth of labor productivity and raising the level of the economy. Such attention to production was considered the highest manifestation of concern for the workers. The updated program of workers' unions included various competitions that instilled industrial discipline and were designed to stimulate their work.

After the first and second All-Russian Congresses of Trade Unions (1918-1919) were held, the main directions of their activities were changed, due to which these organizations began to radically differ from their Western counterparts. The basis of the new course was the principle of nationalization. Joining a trade union became compulsory, and the union now included both workers and enterprise managers, and therefore their struggle lost its meaning.

In the years 1950-1970, the adoption of various legal acts regulating the activities of trade unions granted them new rights and functions, as well as almost unlimited freedom. Therefore, already in the mid-1980s, the trade union organization was a stable, branched structure, organically integrated into the state political system. Unfortunately, such a large scale led to the emergence of bureaucracy, which remained formally unnoticed due to the high authoritative power of these organizations. The trade union became a political tool through which the party leadership introduced its ideology. In addition, the associations were engaged in the organization of social activities (subbotniks, demonstrations, circle work, etc.) and the distribution of material benefits provided by the state (vouchers, apartments, etc.).

The perestroika that took place in the 1990s gave the trade unions organizational independence. Having lost state support, associations were forced to change the principles of work, but they faced a mass exodus of members of trade union organizations, which led to the closure of many of them.

However, at the end of the 1990s, trade unions reappeared, formed according to the Western type and independent of the state.

What functions does the trade union of employees of the organization perform today

A trade union is a voluntary public association of citizens connected by common industrial and professional interests by the nature of their activity, created in order to represent and protect their social and labor rights and interests (clause 1, article 2 of the Federal Law "On Trade Unions"). The rights of all trade union organizations are equal.

Each association of workers seeking to obtain the status of a trade union must have the following characteristics:

• voluntary entry;
• the obligatory presence of a governing body, which is called the trade union committee;
• age limit. According to paragraph 2 of Art. 2 of the Federal Law “On Trade Unions”, everyone who has reached the age of 14 and is engaged in labor (professional) activities has the right to create trade unions to protect their interests, join them, engage in trade union activities and leave trade unions. This right is exercised freely, without prior permission from parents and guardianship authorities.

If an association of workers meets all the criteria, it receives the status of a trade union immediately from the moment of creation. A trade union organization is not subject to registration as a legal entity (Article 8 of the Federal Law "On Trade Unions"). But, if the trade union carries out activities that fall under the definition of legal, such registration is required. According to Federal Law N 129-FZ “On State Registration of Legal Entities and Individual Entrepreneurs” dated August 08, 2001, the state registration procedure (trade union organizations are registered in a separate procedure established by the Federal Law “On Trade Unions”) imposes on the trade union the rights and obligations of a legal entity.

Trade unions of workers are independent voluntary associations and are not dependent on other state authorities, which are prohibited from interfering in their activities.

According to the territorial principle, trade union associations are divided into:

• all-Russian, which include more than half of the employees of one or more professional industries (if a trade union organization operates on the territory of more than half of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, it also receives the status of all-Russian);
• interregional, uniting members of trade unions of one or several industries on the territory of several constituent entities of the Russian Federation, but less than half of their total number;
• territorial, which include members of trade union associations of one or more constituent entities of the Russian Federation, cities or other settlements(for example, the regional trade union of workers).

The trade union of workers performs the task of protecting the rights of workers, representing their interests in the workplace and taking care of their preservation. In addition, the responsibilities of trade unions include:

• improvement of working conditions for employees;
• interaction with employers;
• improvement of wage conditions.

In addition, the protection of workers by trade unions is carried out in the sphere of resolving issues of dismissal and reduction of workers, in case of non-compliance with the Labor Code of the Russian Federation and some articles related to labor protection from other state legislative acts.

All of these provisions concern the relationship between the trade union and workers, as well as employers. When it comes to interaction between trade union organizations and the state, these associations represent the interests and protect the rights of all working population who are members of trade unions. For example, workers can delegate to a trade union association the right to represent local self-government bodies in elections. At the state level, trade unions have the right to participate in the development of programs for labor protection, employment, etc. Often, such associations cooperate with political parties and even create their own in order to lobby the interests of workers.

What normative acts regulate the activities of trade unions of workers

The right to form a trade union and participate in it is spelled out in Art. 30 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation: everyone has the right to association, including the right to form trade unions to protect their interests. The freedom of activity of public associations is guaranteed. This provision establishes the voluntary nature of association, entry into a trade union organization and exit from it.

In addition, individual acts relating to the activities of trade unions are spelled out in several legislative documents, such as:

1. Chapter 58 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
2. Federal Law N 10-FZ "On trade unions, their rights and guarantees of activity" dated 12.01.1996.
3. Some provisions are contained in the Federal Law N 82-FZ "On Public Associations", Civil Code RF.
4. Laws of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation that do not contradict federal law.

It must be taken into account that the legislative regulation of the norms of trade union movements in the military industry, in the internal affairs bodies, in the judiciary and the prosecutor's office, federal service security, customs authorities, drug control authorities, as well as in the field of work of the Ministries of Fire Service and Emergency Situations is prescribed in separate relevant federal laws.

What rights does a workers' union have?

The Federal Law of the Russian Federation “On Trade Unions, Their Rights and Guarantees of Activity” prescribes the basic rights of trade unions, which oblige them to:

• protect the interests of employees;
• to introduce the necessary initiatives to the authorities in order to adopt appropriate laws;
• participate in the adoption and discussion of bills proposed by the authorities;
• freely visit the workplaces of workers and receive the necessary social and labor information from the employer;
• conduct collective negotiations and conclude collective agreements;
• draw the attention of the employer to the existing violations of the rights of workers, obliging him to eliminate the identified shortcomings within a week;
• hold rallies, meetings, strikes and put forward demands based on the observance of the interests of employees;
• to participate equally in the management of state funds formed at the expense of receipt of membership fees;
• create their own inspections to control working conditions, compliance with collective agreements and environmental safety of employees.

Legislative acts allow trade union organizations to own real estate, which includes:

• land;
• buildings;
• building;
• sanatorium-resort or sports complexes;
• printing houses.

In addition, trade unions of workers may own securities, have the right to create funds and dispose of them.

If a dangerous situation arises at work that threatens the health or life of workers, the chairman of the trade union organization requires the employer to as soon as possible Troubleshoot the problem that created this threat.

If it is impossible to promptly eliminate violations, the work of workers is terminated until the dangerous situation is eliminated and normal activities are resumed. In case of reorganization or liquidation of the enterprise, as a result of which the staff is reduced or the working conditions worsen, the management undertakes to inform the trade union about the upcoming changes no later than three months before the occurrence of this event.

The provision by the insurance fund of the trade union of social protection of workers makes it possible to organize recreational activities for its members, send them to sanatoriums and boarding houses.

Rights of an employee joining a trade union

As noted earlier, the main task of trade unions is to help workers in enterprises. By becoming a member of a trade union, a worker acquires the right to:

• receive all the benefits provided for by the collective agreement;
• involve the trade union of workers in resolving contentious issues on wages, vacations, advanced training;
• receive free legal assistance if necessary in the event of litigation;
• improve qualifications with the participation of the trade union organization;
• receive qualified protection in case of unfair dismissal, non-payment in case of reduction or compensation for harm caused at work;
• purchase vouchers to boarding houses and sanatoriums for yourself and your family members.

Trade union membership is protected Russian legislation therefore, any discrimination against members of trade union organizations and restriction of their rights and freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution are prohibited. In addition, workers who are not members of a trade union, as well as workers belonging to this association, should not have obstacles to the implementation of labor activities. Their unjustified dismissal is also prohibited.

Joining a trade union

If there is a primary trade union organization, to join, it is enough for an employee to write two applications: one is sent to the trade union committee to make a decision on acceptance, the second, containing an appeal for the collection of trade union membership dues, -. The second application after approval is also transferred to the trade union committee. As soon as the trade union meeting or committee decides to admit the applicant to the trade union, from that day the employee is considered a member of the trade union and receives a trade union card issued by the committee. Anyone who wishes to join a trade union must be provided with its Charter for familiarization, as well as the provision on the primary trade union organization.

In the absence of a trade union association at the enterprise, employees have the right to create it (if there are at least 3 people who declared the creation). They are negotiating with the territorial organization of this trade union and declare their desire to create a primary trade union organization at the enterprise. After receiving a positive decision of the territorial organization, a constituent assembly is held, on the agenda of which the issue of creating a primary trade union and its governing and control and audit bodies is placed.

What does the bylaws of a workers' union include?

Organizational decisions of trade union associations concern the creation of a charter, the development of a structure and the introduction of governing bodies. In addition, the tasks of the trade union include the coordination of its work and the organization of conferences, meetings, etc.

Each primary trade union association, which includes employees of the enterprise, is part of all-Russian or interregional organizations, therefore their charters should not contradict each other.

The charter of the trade union organization includes:

• the name, goals and functions of the trade union;
• categories and groups to which the employees included in the association belong;
• algorithm for amending the charter;
• the procedure for making membership fees;
• composition of the trade union association;
• rights and obligations of trade union members;
• requirements for future members of the organization;
• a description of the sources from which the financing of the workers' union comes;
• association property management algorithm;
• requirements for the reorganization and liquidation of the trade union of workers;
• other organizational issues regulating the activities of the trade union association.

How is a workers' union registered?

As noted earlier, a trade union organization can be registered as a legal entity. This right is guaranteed by the legislation of the Russian Federation. However, this is not a mandatory requirement put forward when creating a trade union of workers.

The state registration procedure is carried out by the relevant executive authorities at the location of the trade union association. The list of basic documentation provided by the organization's envoy is as follows:

• charter (original or notarized copy);

• decision of the congress on the creation of a trade union association (original or notarized copy);
• decision on approval of the charter (original or notarized copy);
• list of participants.

After receiving the package of documents by the executive authority, a decision is made to register the trade union as a legal entity, while information about the organization is entered into the single State Register.

If the need arises for the reorganization or liquidation of the trade union, the relevant procedures are carried out in accordance with the regulations of the charter and the norms of federal legislation. If the activity of a trade union organization is contrary to the provisions of the Constitution of the Russian Federation or federal legislation, a decision may be made to liquidate the trade union or to forcibly suspend its work for up to 1 year.

Protection of workers' rights by trade unions

Trade unions have the right to exercise control over compliance by employers and their representatives with labor legislation and other normative legal acts containing labor law norms, their compliance with the terms of collective agreements and agreements (Article 370 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

If violations are detected at the enterprise, the trade union organization puts forward a demand to the employer to eliminate them within a week. The head of the company informs the responsible member of the trade union about the results of the consideration and the actions taken to eliminate the shortcomings. In cases provided for by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the employer is obliged to make decisions taking into account the opinion of the relevant trade union body (Article 371 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). The adoption of local regulations by the employer is also carried out with the participation of trade unions in cases regulated by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

In addition, the opinion of the trade union organization should be taken into account by the management of the enterprise if it becomes necessary to dismiss an employee - a member of the trade union, if the basis for terminating the employment contract is:

• reduction in the number of workers;
• the employee's lack of the necessary qualification knowledge, revealed during the professional certification. In this case, the employee is recognized as inappropriate for the position held or the work performed;
• repeated refusal of an employee to fulfill his job duties(in the presence of a disciplinary sanction and the absence good reasons for such sabotage).

Article 373 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation prescribes the procedure for taking into account the opinion of the trade union. Articles 374 and 376 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation regulate the provisions on the dismissal of heads of trade union organizations. Article 370 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation provides trade union organizations with the opportunity to create legal and technical inspections labor unions.

Trade union labor inspectors have the right to freely visit any employers (organizations regardless of their organizational and legal forms and forms of ownership, as well as employers - individuals) who employ members of this trade union or trade unions that are members of the association, to conduct inspections of compliance with labor laws , legislation on trade unions, as well as the fulfillment of the terms of a collective agreement or agreement (Article 370 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

The list of rights granted to trade union labor inspectors includes:

• monitoring compliance by the employer with the norms of labor legislation and other regulatory legal acts in the field of labor law;
• implementation independent evaluation working conditions and labor safety at the enterprise;
• participation in finding out the causes of accidents at work, as well as the causes of occupational diseases;
• obtaining the necessary information about the state of working conditions from all responsible officials, as well as about all occupational diseases and accidents at work;
• trade union assistance to employees in the form of protection of their rights and interests on issues of compensation for harm caused to health resulting from inadequate working conditions at work (work);
• the requirement to suspend work in the presence of a direct threat to the life and health of workers;
• drawing up claims for presentation to the employer with the requirement to eliminate the detected violations of labor legislation and other regulatory legal acts containing labor law norms, and oblige him to comply with the instructions as soon as possible;
• participation as independent experts in the work of commissions for testing and commissioning of means of production;
• assistance in disputes related to violation of labor legislation and other regulatory legal acts containing labor law norms, obligations stipulated by collective agreements and agreements, as well as changes in working conditions;

• the ability to demand from the relevant authorities to bring to justice persons involved in the violation of labor legislation and other acts in the field of labor law or in concealing the facts of accidents at work.

Dismissal of a trade union worker: main nuances and mistakes

The process of reducing a trade union employee or terminating an employment contract with him is regulated not only by the provisions of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, but also by the charter of the association. In some cases, the termination of cooperation between the trade union and its member (as well as the trade union leader) must take into account a reasoned opinion or be carried out with the consent of the relevant body of the trade union. Such actions necessarily accompany the dismissal procedure.

According to the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, if the employer fails to comply with the requirements of the law on obtaining the consent or a reasoned opinion of the trade union body, the dismissal is recognized as illegal and the employee must be reinstated at work (paragraph 26 of the resolution of March 17, 2004 No. 2). This instruction of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation is the basis for the consideration of such cases by lower courts.

However, it is not always easy to understand which workers, in what cases and which trade union body should be contacted. Sectoral and territorial trade union associations, as well as trade unions of large enterprises with separate subdivisions in different regions of the country, can have a complex branched structure. In this case, it can be extremely difficult to figure out who to contact and how many requests to send.

The employer is not limited in his right to make a decision to dismiss a trade union member, even if the trade union association refuses to confirm this decision (Article 373 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). However, ignoring the procedure for taking into account the motivated opinion of the elected body of the primary trade union organization leads to rather dangerous errors.

Error 1. Incomplete set of documents.

After agreeing on some provisions, many companies do not bother to transfer to the trade union organization a full package of documents that justify the adoption of these decisions. The Labor Code of the Russian Federation and the regulatory legal acts in the field of labor do not contain a list of specific documentation that must be submitted to the trade union of workers.

However, the transfer of an incomplete package of documents will certainly cause the refusal of the trade union organization, which will require the full implementation of the process of taking into account a motivated opinion when dismissing an employee who is a member of the trade union.

The basis for this will be the assertion that it was impossible to express a position on the submitted documents. In addition, the trade union has every right to refuse the employer to dismiss an employee if it decides that in this case there is a lack of necessary documentation, which is a clear violation of the requirements of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Below are sample sets of documents for requesting a reasoned opinion of the trade union on each ground for dismissal:

Ignorance of the person responsible for preparing the necessary package of documents may lead to an erroneous transfer of the request to an elected body that is not authorized to make these decisions.

As an example, consider this situation. At one of the enterprises, an employee was employed, whose “track record” indicated repeated prosecutions for violating labor protection standards. One of them even ended in an accident at work. After the decision was made to dismiss this employee, the employer handed over a package of necessary documents to the chairman of the primary trade union organization. After reviewing the documentation, the chairman confirmed the correctness of the position of the company's management regarding the dismissal of this employee, so the employer prepared an appropriate order. Nevertheless, according to the results of the trial, it turned out that the chairman of the primary trade union organization cannot provide a reasoned opinion, since this is the prerogative of the collegiate meeting. Thus, the decision to terminate the employment relationship with this employee was annulled, and the employee himself was reinstated (appeal ruling of the Moscow Regional Court dated 08.10.2014 in case No. 33-22265/2014).

Another example demonstrates that even the signature of the chairman of the trade union of workers on the order to dismiss an employee cannot be recognized as a motivated opinion of the elected body of the primary trade union organization, therefore the dismissal is recognized as illegal (appellate ruling of the Moscow City Court dated 10.10.2014 in case No. 33-25253).

The decision to terminate labor relations with employees requires consideration at a meeting of the trade union committee (a provision on this is included in the charter). A motivated opinion may be expressed by the trade union committee, the chairman of the trade union, or only the chairman. For more information on who exactly is responsible for making such a decision, please refer to the relevant provisions of the articles of association of the workers' union. When sending a request, you must make sure that the line "addressee" indicates "to the elected body of the primary trade union organization." This is spelled out in article 373 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

It should be taken into account that the opinion of the elected body of the primary trade union organization must also meet certain requirements. Its transfer is carried out within 7 working days, the opinion itself must be motivated (the usual answer about agreeing with the decision of the employer or refusal is not enough, it is necessary to provide detailed arguments explaining the position of the trade union on this issue). If the opinion is not motivated or its transfer was made in violation of the deadlines, the employer has every right to ignore it.

Mistake 3. Notifying the trade union of dismissal only once.

The employer is obliged:

• transfer information about the planned reduction and possible dismissal of the employee to the elected body of the primary trade union organization no later than 2 months in advance. If a significant part of the staff is to be dismissed, it must be reported no later than 3 months in advance. Information must be transmitted regardless of whether members of the trade union are included in the lists of workers who have been laid off or not;
• declare to the elected body of the primary trade union organization a requirement to provide a reasoned opinion regarding the termination of labor relations with an employee who is a member of the workers' trade union.

These requirements are mandatory. The process of protecting the interests of workers by trade unions can be very sensitive in matters of compliance with the correctness of the entire dismissal procedure. If the employer ignores the fulfillment of one of the requirements, the decision may be canceled (determination of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation of September 21, 2012 No. 50-KG12-3, appeal ruling of the Tula Regional Court of October 31, 2013 in case No. 33-2551). Despite popular belief, these requirements are not identical. The first condition requires informing the workers' trade union about the planned termination of the employment contract with the employee due to layoffs, and the second condition concerns obtaining a reasoned opinion regarding the dismissal of a certain member of the trade union organization.

A similar subtlety is also observed when terminating an employment contract with a member of the trade union of workers, if the results of the professional certification carried out revealed his inconsistency with the position held or the work performed. According to part 3 of Art. 82 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, when carrying out certification, the results of which may lead to the dismissal of employees, a representative of the elected body of the primary trade union organization must be included in the certification commission. Nevertheless, his presence does not eliminate the need to request a reasoned opinion from the elected body of the primary trade union organization.

It must be taken into account that the termination of labor relations with an employee who is a member of a trade union is carried out no later than 1 month from the date of receipt of a reasoned opinion (part 5 of article 373 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). This period does not include cases of temporary incapacity for work, which entailed the termination of employment for a certain time, vacation, as well as all periods of absence of the employee, which guarantee the preservation of his workplace. Therefore, early receipt of a reasoned opinion does not make sense, since in this case it has no legal force.

What is the role of the chairman of the workers' union

According to the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, in some cases, termination of an employment contract with an employee occurs only after obtaining the consent of a higher elected trade union body to implement such a procedure. However, this applies only to the heads of trade unions and their deputies, that is, those persons who can be called trade union leaders. This guarantee is also given to the leaders of the primary trade union organizations that are part of individual structural divisions enterprises (Article 374 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

If the structure of the primary trade union organization in the company is ramified, so-called shop trade union associations (shop committees) can be created in it. As a rule, such organizations (and groups similar to them) exist in branches, representative offices, workshops, departments and other structural divisions of the enterprise. Their main tasks are to promptly resolve issues and protect the interests of workers by trade unions in the field. The presence of such organizations, as well as their status, are prescribed in the charter of the relevant trade union association. However, these structural subdivisions of the trade union association are not entitled to give consent to the dismissal of an employee - only the higher elected trade union body has such a right. As noted above, the absence of such consent is guaranteed to cancel the employer's decision to terminate the employment contract, which is recognized as illegal (appeal rulings of the Novgorod Regional Court dated September 03, 2014 in case No. No. 11-12437/2014).

According to Art. 373 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the procedure for taking into account the motivated opinion of the trade union of workers is as follows:

1. The draft order on dismissal, as well as copies of the documents that substantiate this decision, are transferred to the trade union association.
2. The trade union provides a reasoned opinion (the date of receipt of the package of documents is the starting point of the 7-day period during which a response must be sent).
3. In the absence of the consent of the trade union of workers with the opinion of the employer, 3 working days are allotted for additional consultations.
4. After 10 days from the date of request for a reasoned opinion, a final verdict is issued.

It should be noted that the employer should not be afraid to go to court, fearing "omnipotent" trade unions, the protection of workers of which may interfere with the dismissal of employees. Even those who hold leadership positions in such associations are not free from subjectivity. Many of them, in an effort to protect an employee who is in a difficult financial situation from termination of an employment contract, go to extremes and turn a blind eye to the facts of a real threat that this employee can carry by making mistakes in the production process.

When applying to the court, the employer must take into account that the relevant trade union body must provide confirmation of the validity of its refusal. As evidence, it is necessary to cite objective circumstances that demonstrate the discriminatory nature of the dismissal (for example, the termination of an employment contract was based on the employee's membership in a trade union organization, as a result of which he was harassed by the employer). This provision is based on the verdict of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation. In the absence of evidence from the trade union of workers confirming the discriminatory nature of the dismissal, refusals to give consent are recognized as unreasonable (appeal rulings of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Bashkortostan dated April 11, 2013 in case No. 33-3993/2013, the Moscow City Court dated November 26, 2013 in case No. 11 -37993, St. Petersburg City Court dated March 12, 2015 No. 33-3853/2015 in case No. 2-4091/2014).

If the refusal is not based on real evidence of the illegality of the employer's actions, it cannot be considered a complete obstacle to dismissal. Nevertheless, such refusals become the reason for delaying the dismissal procedure, since they force the employer to start legal proceedings and wait for them to end in order to terminate the employment contract with the employee in accordance with all the norms of the relevant legislative acts.

In addition, the issue of determining the “superior elected trade union body” to which the request is submitted can also confuse the employer who first encountered this procedure. The structure of trade union organizations in Russia is sometimes very ramified, and it is not always easy to unravel this tangle. This will help Art. 3 of the Federal Law of 12.01.1996 N 10-FZ "On trade unions, their rights and guarantees of activity."

Nevertheless, many trade unions of workers, guided by this provision and the resolution of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation of October 24, 2013 N 22-P, can independently determine the internal structural divisions of trade union organizations, each of which is created for specific goals and objectives. The characteristics of many of these departments are not prescribed by law. In order to find out which of the divisions to transfer the request to, it is necessary to be guided by the charter of the relevant trade union.

As a rule, trade union organizations are united on a branch (professional) basis, and their structure consists of 3 links:

• the primary trade union organization, which is formed on the basis of a particular enterprise;
• a territorial organization of a trade union operating on the territory of a constituent entity of the Russian Federation, whose elected bodies are superior to the elected bodies of the primary trade union organization;
• branch trade union operating on the territory of the Russian Federation or part of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation.

Termination of the employment contract is carried out only with the consent of the higher trade union, if the dismissed employee is the head or deputy of the following structural divisions of the trade union:

• elected collegial bodies of primary trade union organizations;
• elected collegial bodies of primary trade union organizations of structural subdivisions of enterprises (not lower than workshops and equivalent to them);
• elected bodies of the primary trade union organization.

Thus, in most cases, the higher trade union body is the corresponding elected body of the territorial organization of the trade union of workers operating in the constituent entity of the Russian Federation.

The regulation for obtaining consent is prescribed in Art. 374 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation:

1. The elected body of the primary trade union organization receives from the enterprise a draft order on dismissal and copies of the relevant documents.
2. The elected body of the higher trade union makes a decision within 7 working days and sends the approval or refusal to the employer in writing.

The difference from the procedure for taking into account the opinion is that in this case there is no need to conduct additional consultations if the trade union organization has refused. If there is a decision on the disagreement of the trade union with the termination of the employment contract with the employee, the employer can immediately go to court to appeal. As for the execution of the appeal and the preparation of the necessary documents for submission to the trade union organization, in this case the same recommendations apply as for requesting a reasoned opinion.

When the question arises of the need to seek a reasoned opinion from the elected body of a trade union organization before obtaining consent to terminate an employment contract with trade union leaders, experts in labor law do not provide clear guidance. Many consider this requirement mandatory, others refer to the absence of such a requirement in the legislative acts in the field of labor relations. How to avoid mistakes and carry out the dismissal procedure in the prescribed manner, without fear of wasting time and effort?

In any case, the employer should send a request to the primary trade union organization for a reasoned opinion. Carrying out such a procedure will protect the employer in the event that a higher trade union applies to the primary trade union organization to clarify information about the state of affairs at the enterprise.

If the company takes care to comply with the procedure for taking into account a reasoned opinion, this will help the employer to avoid unnecessary questions. In most cases, the lack of consideration of the opinion is the basis for the rejection by the higher body of the trade union of the decision to dismiss the employee.

The traditional trade unions are former Soviet trade unions united in the Federation of Independent Trade Unions (FNPR). Already in the early 1990s, they did not play a serious role in political life and had no influence on decision-making processes. They retained the material base of the Soviet trade union system, but the number of their members fell, because. people left the trade union, and the trade union represented the interests of the administration rather than the workers, people did not want to pay membership dues, they moved to alternative organizations, etc. However, people stayed because they remembered well the role of trade unions in the Soviet era. In addition, the trade unions tried to retain their distributive function, based on established ties in the field of trade and services.

The old trade unions had neither power nor capital, they could no longer mobilize employees for any active actions.

In the early and mid-1990s, the rights of workers were constantly violated during layoffs, when concluding and fulfilling employment contracts. Non-payment of wages has acquired a large-scale character. Claims to the court were accepted with violations, the administration of enterprises was informed about who filed them. The court was also not protected from pressure, and its decisions were not executed, because. wages were not paid, illegally dismissed workers were made redundant after being reinstated, and so on. .

Most of the trade unions belonging to the FNPR could not violate the existing relations with the administration, and could act without going beyond the limits determined by labor legislation. Getting permission to strike was as impossible as winning a lawsuit. It was not possible to achieve the support of workers, while remaining loyal to the authorities and the administration and acting within the framework of the law, it was not possible.

Traditional trade unions during this period began active search new social base. They have declared and continue to prove their involvement in solving various problems, including environmental ones, and declare themselves to be defenders of the interests of not only workers, but the entire population.

The next form of organization of workers is alternative (free) trade unions, which, unlike traditional ones, in most cases were first a form of self-organization of workers who united to protect their vital interests. During the first decade of the 20th century, new organizations constantly came and went. Some of them existed for no more than two years.

The first such alternative trade union organizations emerged as a result of a spontaneous strike movement in the late 1980s. The most famous were the Independent Miners' Union (NPG) and the Federation of Air Traffic Controllers' Trade Unions (FPAD).

These trade unions refused universal membership, did not accept the heads of the enterprise and even specialists. They united certain groups of workers, for example, tunneling workers in the coal industry, air traffic controllers and flight crews of air transport, etc. These groups were responsible for performing some function of the enterprise, vital for the economy and society as a whole. For example, a miners' strike meant power outages and the shutdown of the steel industry. The strike of machinists and dispatchers could completely paralyze the railway and air communications, which are of key importance for a vast country, etc. It was this way of organizing and mobilizing activists that gave the new trade unions power and a real opportunity to influence decision-making.

These new trade unions began to use the mechanism of collective agreements. The form of negotiations has already become fundamentally different and was an open and equal dialogue, instead of the previous and traditional closed discussions with the advantage and pressure of the administration. Disagreement with the demands of the new trade unions or inattention to them turned into strikes and protests for the employer.

Leaders of alternative trade unions were subjected to harassment and violence. The traditional unions have aligned themselves with the administration and in many cases acted with it against the alternative unions. There were no joint actions of traditional and alternative trade union organizations to protect the rights of workers.

Unlike traditional trade unions, they did not have normal working conditions, premises, means of communication, office equipment. In addition, they did not know how to manage organizational resources, i.e. unlike bureaucratic traditional trade unions, they could not ensure the implementation of their own decisions, properly keep accounting records, organize office work, record membership, etc.

In the mid-90s, these results of the work of alternative trade unions were in many cases intercepted by traditional trade unions, for example, Rosugleprof, having become a collective member of the FNPR, appropriated the merit of signing a tariff agreement and a number of other achievements of the alternative NPG

During the same period, some alternative trade unions, such as air traffic controllers, were institutionalized, recognized by employers as partners, and in fact lost their alternativeness.

Other alternative unions of the first wave, like the NPG, simply lost their influence because they could not solve the problems of non-payment of wages and illegal dismissals.

In response, a new wave of the labor movement arose. Strike committees began to be created, which were not officially registered anywhere and were not legally liable to be held accountable. Employees of budgetary organizations - teachers, doctors, workers of industrial enterprises jointly participated in the actions. In many cases, the strike was started by teachers and doctors, who then mobilized the miners, industrial and transport workers. One such action was the "rail war" of 1998, during which workers blocked the main railway lines.

This created the conditions for the emergence of another, third wave of activity of alternative trade unions. Strike committees usually collapsed after their demands were met. In the late 1990s, alternative trade unions were already small in number. They were also created industrial enterprises, and in budget organizations, in hospitals, schools, for example, the independent trade union VAZ, teachers' unions in Novosibirsk, etc.

Their peculiarity was that these trade unions could not be mass due to the opposition of the administration of enterprises. Participation in them was risky. But despite this, third-wave alternative unions often managed to get employers to reckon with their demands. Their leaders and activists, as a rule, were legally literate, actively participated in trade union training programs and successfully used the acquired knowledge in negotiations with the directors of enterprises and power structures.

Trade union education during this period is already becoming an important resource for alternative trade unions after the state and employers felt threatened by the spontaneous labor movement. The main form of action is already lawsuits, many of which have been won.

Trade unions of companies are another form of modern trade unions within large corporations - LUKOIL, Yukos, etc. Trade unions of such companies, in fact, perform the functions of social insurance, as well as other functions that were characteristic of Soviet trade union organizations in the past. For example, the Yukos trade union organized an analogue of socialist competition at the company's enterprises. The creation of such administration-controlled unions allowed companies to resolve internal social problems and demonstrate the Western model of labor relations, which is extremely important for working with Western partners.

The term "social partnership" in relation to the trade union movement usually refers to the coordination of the interests of employees, the state and employers at all stages of the adoption and implementation of decisions that to some extent relate to these interests.

The partnership is carried out through the mechanism of tripartism that has been formed in the West over the past century. The term tripartism means that the process of coordinating interests, regulating social and labor relations, resolving conflict situations, etc. should take place with the obligatory participation of employers represented by their associations, trade unions as representatives of employees and the state, on whose behalf the government administration, sectoral ministries and departments act. Tripartism also implies legislative framework, organizational structures of different levels, established procedures for interaction.

In 1991, the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation B.N. Yeltsin "On social partnership and resolution of labor disputes (conflicts)". Then a number of federal laws were adopted - the Law on Trade Unions, the Law on the Procedure for Resolving Collective Labor Disputes, the Law on Collective Contracts and Agreements, etc. and Labor Code RF.

At the federal level, in 1992, the Russian tripartite commission for the regulation of social and labor relations (RTK) was first created. The tasks, composition and size of the commission were constantly updated. In 1999, the Commission was given the status of a permanent body of the system of social partnership in Russia. According to the federal law on the Russian tripartite commission, the number of members of each of the parties (federal government, employers and trade unions) cannot exceed 30 people. In addition, sectoral tariff commissions were created, regional and territorial tripartite commissions operate in the regions and municipalities, and bilateral commissions (trade union and enterprise administration) operate at enterprises.

All of these commissions must develop and adopt agreements regulating relations between employees and employers (at enterprises - collective agreements), as well as monitor the implementation of these agreements and agreements.

The government, through participation in the tripartite commission, hoped to ease the pressure of the protest movement, but this was not achieved. At the end of the 1990s, the RTC was unable to solve the problem of non-payment of wage arrears, which only increased the social tension that existed in the country. As a result, the government reduced the functions of the RTK as a body of social partnership at the federal level. It was deprived of the right to organize tripartite consultations on issues of social and labor relations, to draw conclusions on the advisability of registering international legal norms, and so on. As a result, the commission was removed from the direct signing of the General Agreement.

In the early 1990s, Russian tripartism was a purely symbolic, demonstrative model of social partnership created by the government along Western lines. By the end of the 1990s, under the influence of the protest labor movement, this model began to really function.

trade union foreign institutionalization of labor

To the question Are trade union organizations and a trade union one and the same? given by the author Prostitution the best answer is Yes. In accordance with Art. 3 of the Federal Law of 12.01.1996 N 10-FZ, the following types of trade unions can be distinguished depending on their level:
1) primary trade union organization. This is a trade union that represents at the local level the interests of employees of this employer who are members of the relevant trade unions (part 1 of article 30 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). This trade union is created at a particular enterprise;
2) the all-Russian trade union. This is an association of trade union members - workers in one or more industries related to common social, labor and professional interests. It operates throughout the territory of the Russian Federation or in the territories of more than half of the subjects of the Russian Federation, or unites at least half of the total number of employees in one or more industries. Such trade unions are, in particular, the All-Russian Trade Union of Aviation Workers, the Trade Union of Automobile and Agricultural Engineering Workers of the Russian Federation, etc.;
3) an all-Russian union (association) of trade unions. This is a voluntary association of all-Russian trade unions, territorial associations (associations) of trade union organizations, operating throughout the Russian Federation or in the territories of more than half of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation. Examples of such associations are the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Russia (FNPR), the All-Russian Confederation of Labor (VKT), etc.;
4) interregional trade union. This is a voluntary association of trade union members - workers in one or more industries, operating in the territories of less than half of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation. An example of such an association is the Interregional Trade Union of Professional Drivers;
5) interregional association (association) of trade union organizations. This is a voluntary association of interregional trade unions and (or) territorial associations (associations) of trade union organizations, operating in the territories of less than half of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation;
6) territorial association (association) of trade union organizations. This is a voluntary association of trade union organizations operating in one subject of the Russian Federation or on the territory of a city or district. Such an association of trade unions is formed according to the territorial principle, regardless of the professional affiliation of each specific trade union included in this association;
7) territorial organization of the trade union. This is a voluntary association of members of the primary trade union organizations of one trade union, operating on the territory of one or more constituent entities of the Russian Federation or on the territory of a city or district. For example, a trade union of textile industry workers may have several primary trade union organizations at specific enterprises within a constituent entity of the Russian Federation, city or district. To coordinate their actions, they can unite in the territorial organization of the trade union.

Material from the Uncyclopedia

Professional associations (trade unions) are mass public organizations that arose in Western European countries and the USA at the end of the 18th century. Their primary task is to protect the socio-economic interests of working people.

The first international associations of trade unions were born at the beginning of the 20th century. In 1901, the International Trade Union Secretariat was founded, which in 1913 was transformed into the International Federation of Trade Unions, which collapsed during the First World War. In 1919, at the International Congress in Amsterdam (Netherlands), convened by the leaders of the reformist trade unions, it was restored and went down in history under the name of the Amsterdam Trade Union International (it lasted until 1945).

Reflecting the desire of the revolutionary-minded working people for unity of action, the 1st International Congress of Revolutionary Trade Unions, which met in Moscow in July 1921, founded the Red International of Trade Unions (Profintern). Despite the serious mistakes it made, the Profintern over the years of its existence (1921-1937) did a great job of coordinating and organizing the broad masses of working people in the struggle in defense of their just demands, against fascism and the threat of war.

In 1945, the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) was created, which became the only universal union in the world, numbering in 1991 about 200 million people in its ranks. For the first time in practice, the possibility of uniting trade unions of various orientations into a single trade union center was confirmed. The WFTU firmly and consistently upholds the whole wide range of rights and interests. In close contact with the WFTU, the international associations of trade unions adjoining it act, protecting the specific interests of workers in various sectors of the economy. The 12th World Congress of Trade Unions, held in Moscow in 1990, outlined a program of activity for the 1990s, discussed and adopted decisions on other vital problems for the working people.

In 1949, most of the trade unions of Western Europe and some other states left the WFTU and formed the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU). It has 87 million members, most of them adhere to the social democratic orientation (see Social Democracy). The ICFTU brings together three regional organizations: the Inter-American Regional Organization (ORIT), the Asia-Pacific Regional Organization (APRO) and the African Regional Organization (AFRO). In Western Europe, the confederation relies on the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), which is autonomous from international trade union centers. Within the framework of the ICFTU there are formally independent secretariats that unite the national branch trade unions of many countries.

The third major international trade union center - the World Confederation of Labor (WCL) represents mainly the Christian trade union movement. As a result of "deconfessionalization", the previously existing International Confederation of Christian Trade Unions (ICTU, established in 1920) was turned in 1968 into a formally secular trade union center - the World Confederation of Labor. At present, the WCL has about 15 million members. Its regional organizations are the Brotherhood of Asian Trade Unions (BATU) and the Latin American Labor Union Center (LAPT).

In addition, there are a number of regional trade union associations, as well as autonomous international professional organizations and associations. Established in 1982 in Dublin (Ireland), the International Trade Union Committee for Peace and Disarmament, which coordinates the struggle of trade unions, develops specific initiatives in this area and carries out research in the field of socio-economic aspects of the arms race, disarmament and conversion, has become widely known.

The complex and largely contradictory processes taking place in recent years in the international labor and trade union movement, closely related to the peculiarities of the socio-economic and political development of the world community, with the specifics of their manifestation in individual countries, have led to a reduction in the number of many trade unions. Yes, since the 1970s. the number of trade union members has decreased in France, Great Britain, Austria, the Netherlands, Japan and other countries. The once most active and capable trade unions today often represent workers in industries that, under the conditions of the current stage of scientific and technological progress, no longer play the same role in the development of the economy as they did in previous decades. In addition, the number of employees in trade unions is decreasing and the number of pensioners is increasing. Thus, in Italy, their share in the largest trade union association of the General Italian Confederation of Labor (GICT) is 35%. The share of young people is low (90% of young people in France do not show a desire to join trade unions, although they most often put forward demands consonant with them).

At the heart of the serious difficulties of the trade unions lie not only objective, but also a number of subjective factors, such as the mistakes they made in determining priority tasks, the use of old forms and methods of struggle that do not meet the new conditions. This led to the disappointment of certain categories of workers in the trade unions, to disbelief in their ability to effectively defend the interests of the workers. Established in the 80s and 90s. The socio-economic and political situation demanded from the trade unions a serious renewal of the structure, the alternative socio-economic programs they had previously adopted, the forms and methods of struggle for their implementation, and the expansion of the social base of the movement.

In our country, where the structure, program guidelines, forms and methods of work of the trade unions were formed in an environment of a command-administrative system and lagged behind the requirements of life, the perestroika processes are aimed at a decisive turn towards strengthening the protective function of the trade unions and gaining genuine independence from any kind of political parties, state and economic bodies. In essence, a new trade union movement based on qualitatively different concepts is being born. In the conditions of a multi-party system that has become a reality, alternative trade union associations, numerous workers' organizations, and other public formations are being created that also act in the sphere of trade union interests.

As the integration processes are actively developing now, the urgent task of the trade unions has become the organization and coordination of joint actions of the workers of various countries and the strengthening of their solidarity in the struggle for their demands. The World Federation of Trade Unions has repeatedly declared its readiness for joint action with other international, regional and autonomous organizations. The objective conditions for this are ripe, since today the positions of various sections of the trade union movement have largely converged on such important issues as peace, disarmament, employment problems, the environment, the social consequences of technological innovations and countering the expansion of transnational corporations, protecting the interests of working women, youth, engineers and technicians, immigrants, foreign debt, the establishment of a new international economic order, etc. Only by joining forces, trade unions will be able to contribute to a much greater extent to the renewal processes taking place in the world today.