An employee has the right to submit a letter of resignation at any time, but the employer is not obliged to let him go right away: according to the law, he may require a two-week “work off”. However, there are cases when it is possible to receive the final calculation and work book before the expiration of this period.
Two weeks (more precisely, 14 calendar days, the countdown of which starts from the day following the day of filing the application) is the period during which the quitting employee “hands over the cases” and his superiors are looking for a new candidate for his position. At the same time, it is not an obligation, but the right of the manager to appoint a working period. And, if he is ready to meet an employee who wants to leave the workplace as soon as possible, the deadline can be set by agreement of the parties, up to the calculation on the day of filing the application. However, this is not always the case. At the same time, the management, wishing to detain an employee at the workplace, may try to impose a working off even on those people who, by law, have the right to be fired immediately - or within a few days.
When the term of work cannot exceed three days
Two-week work may be required only for those employees who work in the organization on a permanent basis and does not apply to:
- to those who are hired for seasonal work (which should be officially recorded in the employment agreement);
- to workers hired temporarily (for up to two months);
- to employees on probation.
In any of these cases, the period of compulsory work cannot exceed three days, and not working days, but calendar days. That is, when working on a five-day basis, a person who submitted a letter of resignation on Friday will be required to work only on Monday. The same applies to shift work - weekends will be "credited" within three days.
When an employer is obliged to let go of an employee without work
Cases when the bosses are not entitled to insist on two-week work are listed in article 80 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation (part three). In cases where the dismissal is due to the inability to continue further work, the order must be signed on the day indicated by the dismissing himself. The Labor Code explicitly states that this applies to situations where dismissal is associated with:
- with admission to an educational institution (for full-time education);
- with the transfer of the employee's husband or wife to work in another locality or abroad (as a rule, we are talking about the military, and in this case, a copy of the transfer order serves as a supporting document).
Also, the TC mentions "other cases", but their exact list is not given. According to lawyers, the need to care for family members in the event of a serious illness or deterioration of their own health is certainly a good reason. But the very fact of having children under the age of 14 is not considered a reason for an emergency termination of labor relations - the mother has the right to appoint a full term of work. The same is with the usual move - if you decide to move to another city on your own initiative, then the bosses can meet you halfway, but they are not obliged to do so.
Another situation in which an employee has the right to demand immediate dismissal is a violation by the employer of labor legislation, the terms of the employment agreement with this particular employee and other violations of the "rules of the game".
Features of dismissal of pensioners
The list of "indications" for dismissal on the day of filing the application includes the retirement age. An employee who has crossed this line has every right to leave the workplace "at his own request in connection with retirement" at any time convenient for him.
However, we note that reaching retirement age can be a reason for immediate release from work only once. If a pensioner subsequently finds a new job, he will quit on a general basis.
What to do if there are no official reasons for shortening the term
If there is no legal basis for the immediate issuance of a work book, and the employee assumes that the management will not meet him halfway? In this case, you can try to at least minimize your presence in the workplace.
Note that 14 days before dismissal does not mean that an employee must “work out” during this time - the period is calculated in calendar days, and does not depend on how much time is spent at the workplace. And it is absolutely legal:
- apply on the eve of the May or New Year holidays, so that a solid part of the two-week period falls on the weekend;
- take a vacation (regular or administrative), and write a letter of resignation two weeks before its end;
- if there are health problems - take sick leave, the time of which will also be "credited" on time.
This will not speed up the timing of the final settlement with the employer, but it will eliminate the need to sit hours at the desk and communicate with colleagues and "almost former" bosses.
