Is it possible to extend a fixed-term employment contract?
The parties to an employment contract have the right to express their free will in forming labor relations at their own discretion. Termination of a document after a specified period is not an obstacle to productive cooperation.
For example, for positions elected through competition, the contract cannot be renegotiated, but can be extended automatically upon re-appointment to the same elective position (Article 332 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).
Sometimes the rules and regulations of the law take into account the interests of a temporary worker, prohibiting the termination of employment. For example, in the case of a woman’s pregnancy (Part 2 of Article 261 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). The contract will need to be extended until the end of maternity or child care leave.
How to properly extend a fixed-term employment contract? According to Articles 58, 59 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the extension of the period must be based on the same legal norms that govern the conclusion of a temporary contract:
- if there are no grounds for limiting the employee’s terms, the employment relationship should be transferred to a permanent basis.
- If it is not possible to register an employee permanently, if the reason is officially justified, temporary employment in the same or another position is extended.
- In the absence of warning about the end of the term of performance of duties, the employment relationship is automatically preserved and transferred to a permanent basis.
ATTENTION: One month before the end of the employment contract period, the employee is officially notified of dismissal, against signature.
In what cases can this be done?
Extension of the term of a fixed-term contract is permitted subject to:
availability of a vacancy;- impossibility of transferring an employee to a permanent basis.
For example, if, after maternity leave, the main employee took out maternity leave for up to three years.
Or - production necessity required the use of the services of a temporary specialist further, for a commensurate period of time.
In what cases is it not possible?
If the period for which the employee was hired has ended, and there are no further grounds for its extension, the contract cannot be extended. The same applies if a fixed-term contract has lost its force on the basis of the provisions specified in it, but there is a vacancy for a permanent position in the organization .
In such cases it is permissible:
- renew the contract (if there is a vacancy);
- create a new local temporary work document.
What should you pay attention to when extending your work period?
Depending on the circumstances, you need to pay attention to the nuances associated with the procedure for extending the work period. However, there are also general norms that are basic for all cases.
Drawing up an agreement, sample of filling out an application and order
If all the provisions of the fixed-term contract drawn up earlier remain in force, except for the date of dismissal, the parties can draw up an agreement.
An agreement is an additional document that acts as an annex to the main agreement.
Therefore, it must indicate the details of the main employment contract, with reference to its legal powers.
Then the powers of the primary document are retained, and the agreement indicates only the point that is changed by the entry into force of the agreement (Article 72 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).
Based on the previously drawn up contract, the reason for the extension of tenure should be adjusted. This could be “extension of parental leave for the main employee,” “the need to complete previously planned work on a new date,” etc.
Example of an agreement to an employment contract:
Additional agreement to the employment contract (number and date of the contract)
“____” ________ _____ city ___________
Additional liability company "Prizma" represented by director Petr Ivanovich Krasikov, acting on the basis of ______, hereinafter referred to as the employer, on the one hand, and citizen Gleb Petrovich Razumovsky, hereinafter referred to as the employee, on the other hand, have entered into this additional agreement as follows:
Supplement clause 2 of the employment contract No. ___ dated "___" _____ ____ with subclause 2.7 “Provide the employee with additional leave of 5 days.” State clause 3.1. as follows: “Salary is 27,000 rubles.” Exclude clause 4.5 from the agreement. Employer Employee
A sample additional agreement to extend a fixed-term employment contract for an indefinite period is presented in the photo below.
Documents for the extension procedure
The extension procedure does not require additional documentation from the employee if the requirements for functional responsibilities and competencies have not changed.
Those documents that the employer already has are suitable, except for an application that needs to be submitted in light of new circumstances.
In this case, the employer is obliged to receive an application from the absent main employee with a request to extend the period of absence and official confirmation of the legality of the absence. Also, if necessary, he draws up new orders:
- local act on the extension of cooperation;
- additions to the staffing table;
- order.
REFERENCE: The order certifies any legal action taking place in the employer’s company.
Statement
If the temporary worker is a deputy, then he writes the application only after the main employee is absent for a good reason. The main employee indicates the reason for continued forced absence, if possible, indicating the exact day of return.
On this basis, the temporary employee requests an extension of his tenure for the same period.
Hired specialists, seasonal workers and other persons have the right to submit applications only after an authorized official has completed documentation on the opening or continued relevance of the vacancy for which the applicant is applying.
The wording of the main part of the application may be as follows: “I ask you to extend your work as a salesperson in the children’s clothing department until S.S. Titarenko returns from maternity leave.”
A sample application for extension of a fixed-term employment contract is presented in the photo below.
Order
Compiled by the employer based on submitted applications from main and temporary employees. For example, in the first one the order is given: “Extend parental leave to three years for the seller S.S. Titarenko.”
As follows: “Extend the validity of the employment contract for the period of absence of Titarenko S.S., seller of the children’s clothing department N.P. Kostyushkina.”
IMPORTANT: All documents extending the absence of the main employee are dated earlier than the documents extending the period of work of the deputy.
Otherwise, the initial order must reflect other reasons for the extension. For example: “In connection with an additional audit, extend the term of the contract for accountant A.M. Penkova.”
Sample order to extend a fixed-term employment contract:
Necessary documents when changing conditions by agreement of the parties
In the event that the employee and employer decide to convert the contract into an open-ended one without waiting for its expiration, an additional agreement will be required. How to do it and when does it take effect?
Preparation and preparation of papers
The law does not indicate who can initiate the transfer of fixed-term employment relationships to indefinite ones. This can be done either by the employee by submitting a corresponding application during the contract period, or by the employer by inviting the employee in writing to change the conditions.
Regardless of who proposes to do this, the procedure will be the same:
- An additional agreement to the employment contract is being prepared.
- The employer issues an order that approves the document signed by the parties.
The specific wording used by the parties in the document remains at the discretion of the parties: the legislation does not provide standard forms and forms for employment contracts. In practice, changing the deadline can be formalized using statements like:
- “Consider the employment contract No.... dated... concluded for an indefinite period.”
- “Exclude from the employment contract No.... dated... clause number...” (here is the clause of the original contract that stated the validity period).
The parties may use other wording if they wish. The main thing in this case is to clearly and unambiguously establish in the employment contract the conditions under which it ceases to be limited to a certain period of validity.
Important! As in the case of expiration, when concluding an additional agreement, an order from the employer will be required. It is compiled according to the same rules as described above.
We have also prepared material for you on how to transfer an employee from an open-ended contract to a fixed-term one. We also invite you to read about the specifics of changing an employment contract due to an employee’s transfer to another position, a change in salary or a change in the employee’s last name.
Extension of a fixed-term employment contract
For an unlimited period
How to extend a fixed-term employment contract for an indefinite period? Such situations allow the use of one of the convenient options:
- drawing up an agreement to cancel the dismissal date;
- ignoring the date of dismissal.
Such cases are allowed when the deputy continues to work after the main employee leaves, without leaving after a long absence. Or - after the temporary vacancy becomes permanent.
That is, if the precedent for dismissal disappears, the employment contract will automatically become an open-ended one (Part 4 of Article 58 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).
For a certain period
How to extend a fixed-term employment contract for a certain period? If you want to extend your employment contract for a specific period, do so before the end date of the contract. In accordance with Article 72 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, an agreement can be concluded between the employer and employee to change the terms of the employment contract in writing.
The text of this document must contain a provision that the parties have agreed to state the relevant clause of the employment contract in a new edition. In fact, only the end date of the employment contract will change.
It is important to keep in mind that, according to the general rule of Article 58 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the duration of the employment relationship under a fixed-term contract should not exceed five years even after its extension, unless another period is established by law.
Reason for dismissal of a temporary employee
Art. 79 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation provides possible reasons for termination of a fixed-term employment contract:
- the arrival of the date specified therein;
- completion of the work specified in the contract;
- the departure of a full-time employee to work, whose place was occupied by a temporary employee.
In practice, companies do not always meet work deadlines, and fixed-term contracts with those who carry them out are coming to an end. Then an order is issued for them to extend the employment contract .
EXAMPLE
The company is replacing metal supporting structures. A team of installers and welders was hired for this purpose. For reasons beyond their control, the work will not be completed on time. In order not to hire a new team or fire the previous one, the personnel officer prepared a sample order to extend the employment contract with each worker.
How to extend it with a pregnant woman?
In order to extend the employment relationship with a pregnant woman, an official medical document is required from her.
Such a document can only be a pregnancy certificate issued by an antenatal clinic, certified by a doctor and the chief physician of the clinic, and the clinic seal. The certified gestational age must not be less than 12 weeks.
The employee brings this certificate to the employer and attaches it to a handwritten application in which she indicates: “I request the extension of the employment contract due to pregnancy.”
IMPORTANT: To renew the contract, the employee’s initiative in the form of an application and an attached certificate are required. Oral statements about pregnancy have no legal force.
After conscientiously registering her position, the employee has the right to expect that her position will be retained after the date of dismissal.
Under no circumstances should the employer let the situation take its course, otherwise the woman will remain on his staff indefinitely. After receiving the documentation, you need to issue an order: “Extend the validity of the employment contract until the end of the maternity leave.”
After giving birth, he will be able to fire her when the payment for the second (postpartum) sick leave is completed, and the young mother will be able to receive child care benefits from the social security service.
Learn more about extending a fixed-term employment contract with a pregnant woman in the video below:
Mandatory documents
It is important for the personnel service to know what documents are needed to formalize the extension of a fixed-term contract with an additional agreement without dismissal, so that this decision is not challenged by the State Labor Inspectorate:
- application from the employee or proposal from the employer indicating the reason for the extension;
- signing of an additional agreement on the extension of the STD;
- issuance of an order.
The obligatory condition for renewal is until the expiration of the STD. If the employment contract ends, it cannot be extended.
What to do if it is impossible to extend the contract?
If it is impossible to extend the term of the employment relationship, the employee must be dismissed on the appointed day.
Upon completion of the contract period, the employee is notified in advance.
In normal cases, notification occurs one month before the planned date of dismissal. For seasonal workers - 7 days in advance (Article 296 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). If a deputy quits when the main employee returns, notification can occur the same way - several days after submitting a letter of resignation.
If there are vacancies, the employer has the right to offer to remain on the appropriate conditions provided for when taking on a new position. In this case, the contract is renewed according to the new vacancy.
The same applies to pregnant women who cannot be left in their previous place due to objective reasons. The employer officially, upon signature, offers them new vacancies; a pregnant woman who does not agree to the offered job may be fired.
