How to reconcile an employer and an employee -Publication

Most of our clients, when dealing with a BDO accountant or HR manager, do not even suspect that a whole team of professionals is working for them. Last time we told you about the work of 1C team. Now we are going to describe the work of the Labor Safety Department. We have talked to Anna Bauer, BDO Unicon Outsourcing specialist, and this is what we learned.

– Anna, why does the company need a Labor Safety specialist?

– A company with over 50 employees must have a Labor Safety specialist (as required by applicable law). He/she monitors changes in legislation, conducts training for the company and the customers’ employees, assesses working conditions, conducts medical examinations and investigates incidents, on a regular basis. In case of emergency, he/she convokes a special "investigation" commission to register the incident-related documents and submit them to the relevant authorities.

– What kind of incidents might occur?

– A girl was running upstairs (in bureaucratic terms, it is "neglecting personal safety requirements"), overbalanced and fell down, broke her hand, or got brain concussion. The consequences of incidents may vary: an extra inspection by the labor authority, or administrative and criminal liability. In my practice, an employer was held liable to a small administrative fine, and was subject to some unscheduled inspections.

Sometimes I have to deal with occupational diseases. They are triggered by chemical factors, dust, physical factors, overload, the impact of biological factors (infectious or parasitic).

– What happens if an employee is diagnosed as having an occupational disease?

- In this case, the company shall conduct an investigation. The damage caused to an employee is compensated by various payments (lump-sum payment, monthly payments and rehabilitation payment). All payments are covered by the Social Insurance Fund. The amount of compensation depends on the employee's salary.

– Do you often witness disputes between the employer and an employee?

– Labor rights protection is often remote from the protection of the company’s interests. Therefore, a Labor Safety specialist at a company is supposed to correct the employer’s faults and guard the employees’ rights.

– Therefore, they find themselves between two fires. What is the way to settle conflicts?

– Disputes arise rather often. But it is possible to have a dialogue with any party. As a rule, a conflict can be resolved when appealing to a Labor Safety specialist. Employees have the chance to speak and to communicate their requirements to the employer in a civilised way. A Labor Safety specialist acts as a moderator here. They can arrange a dialogue between an employee and the employer, explain the possible risks for both parties in various cases, help them find a solution, applicable for both parties.

– I hope that the difficulties end at this stage...

– Unfortunately, we often deal with difficulties. A problem may arise due to double-edged interpretation of the law. Sometimes it is difficult to convince the customers that they should comply with the requirements set forth by regulatory authorities. Our employees always consider the worst scenario, therefore a client is offered numerous requirements related to labor safety. This is due to the fact that in some cases both administrative or material, and criminal liability is possible. Some companies oppose such requirements. It largely depends on a an employer and its responsibility. Foreign companies tend to comply with the labor safety specialist’s requirements in most cases, while national companies sometimes employ the happy-go-lucky mentality. On the whole, there is a positive trend: Russian small and middle-sized businesses demonstrate willingness to comply with lawful requirements.