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Publication date: 27.04.2024
Lawyer with ten years of experience. I am engaged in drawing up contracts, writing claims and lawsuits, accompanying enforcement proceedings, drafting constituent documents for legal entities, dealing with state registration of legal entities and individual entrepreneurs. I also provide legal services in the areas of civil and commercial law.
Introduction
The labour book is the only document designed to record an employee's length of service. Without it, it is impossible to get another job, prove experience and qualifications to the employer, draw a pension, and perform other actions that require confirmation of the length of employment record.
It is in the employee's interest to keep his/her labour book carefully and prevent its loss. However, there are situations in which it is not possible to keep this document.
In this article, I will discuss the ways and procedure for restoring a lost employment record book.
Section 1. When it is necessary to restore a labour record book
The need to restore a labour record book arises in two cases:
1. the labour book is lost by the employee;
2. the labour book has been lost by the employer.
The procedure for each case is stipulated by the Instruction on the procedure for keeping work record books of employees, approved by Order No. 58 of 29 July 1993. Section No. 5 of the Instruction deals directly with the restoration of the labour book.
Now let us consider the procedure for restoring the labour book for each case separately.
Section 2. Restoration of a labour record book lost by an employee
An employee must notify the employer of the loss of his/her labour book. The Instruction does not stipulate the period of notification, limiting itself to stating that it should be done immediately. It is better to notify the employer on the same day when the labour book was lost. If this is not possible (for example, the loss occurred on a non-working day or a day off), the employer should be notified on the next working day.
The Instruction does not stipulate the form of notification. The employee should decide for himself how to notify the employer: in writing or orally. The written form is preferable, because then the employee will have proof of contacting the employer.
After receiving the notice from the employee, the employer has fifteen days to issue a duplicate of the labour book. If there are circumstances that prevent the observance of this term, he has the right to issue a duplicate in other terms. The Instruction does not specify what these terms are. Therefore, the employer may determine at his discretion when he can issue a duplicate to the employee.
The issuance of a duplicate copy may require information about the employee's employment history from previous jobs. In such a case, the employer is obliged to assist the employee in obtaining the necessary documents (e.g. by helping to compile and send requests to former employers).
There is a fee for issuing a duplicate copy – the cost of the labour book form. The cost of the used labour book form is withheld by the employer from the employee's salary.
Section 3. Restoration of a labour record book lost by the employer
The Instruction provides: an unusable (burnt, torn, contaminated) labour book is replaced by the employer with a duplicate. The replacement period does not change: fifteen days in normal conditions; longer than fifteen days – if the employer is hindered by certain circumstances.
It is not necessary to notify the employer in this case, because the labour book is lost through his fault.
The issuance of a duplicate may require obtaining information about the length of service of the employee from previous jobs. In this case, the employer is also obliged to assist the employee in obtaining the required information.
A duplicate of the labour book is issued to the employee free of charge.
Section 4. Restoration of the labour record book by a new employer
It is not always possible for an employee to restore his/her labour record book with the help of the last employer. In such a case, the Instruction provides for the possibility of obtaining a duplicate of the labour book at the new place of work.
In order for an employee to obtain a duplicate labour book from a new employer, one of the following conditions must exist:
➢ the employee's original employment record book is not accessible as a result of an
as a result of an emergency situation stipulated by the Civil Protection Code of
Ukraine;
➢ there is an anti-terrorist operation in the territory where the employee worked.
Emergencies are divided into four categories:
➢ technogenic;
➢ natural;
➢ social;
➢ military.
War refers to emergencies. If an employee has left the region or city where military operations were/are taking place and lost his/her labour book, he/she can get a duplicate copy at the new place of work.
To obtain a duplicate, the employee must do the following:
➢ obtain a certificate of emergency situation from the emergency response headquarters or a certificate of anti-terrorist operation from the Anti-Terrorist Centre under the Security Service of Ukraine;
➢ submit to the new employer a written application for a duplicate (add the certificate of emergency/anti-terrorist operation to the application).
After submitting these documents, the employee will receive a duplicate labour book from the new employer.
Conclusion
The procedure for restoring the labour book is clearly described in a special instruction. If you make sense of it, the procedure seems simple. However, in practice, there are no simple situations – therefore, before engaging in the restoration of the labour book, it is necessary to obtain legal advice.
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