Where should employee work books be kept and who is responsible for them?

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Published: 05/22/2020

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The work record book is the only general document that contains information about a person’s work experience and places of work before 2002. In any case, it will be difficult and often impossible to recover information over a long period. In this regard, the safety of the book in an enterprise or organization (institution) is of utmost importance.

• Legal regulation of the issue
• Issuance of work books in hand

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Basic standards for recording work books

The established rules apply to any companies and individuals using hired workers. Maintaining a work record book directly correlates with the employee’s rights, so knowledge of the rules of accounting and registration can prevent possible conflicts.

What regulates the procedure for maintaining a work book?

Any action carried out during employment is clearly regulated by law. The documents developed for practical use by organizations and entrepreneurs are:

• Labor Code (especially relevant to the issue of articles 66 and 234);
• Resolution No. 225 of April 16, 2003 – on the rules;
• Resolution No. 69 of October 10, 2003, containing instructions.

Employers have the right to develop internal local regulations that further explain to the authorized person how to properly organize work with documents. They are approved by orders of the head.

Responsibility for maintaining and storing

Legislators delineate responsibility: the organization of accounting and storage is entrusted to the employer, and the maintenance of work books is the responsibility of the person entrusted with it, who also ensures its safety. In an enterprise, responsibilities are most often transferred to the human resources or accounting department. A specific employee is appointed by order of the manager. The selected person is introduced to the standards, instructions and procedures applied. When the person in charge changes, the availability of books is checked and an act of acceptance and transfer of documents is drawn up.

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We appoint a responsible person

As a general rule, responsibility for organizing the work of maintaining, storing, recording and issuing work books and inserts in them rests with the employer (clause 45 of the Rules).

In this case, the employer, by order or regulation (see Example 1), appoints a person responsible for working with work books (clause 45 of the Rules). If an organization has a personnel department, this is usually its head. If there is no such structural unit, an accountant does this.

Example 1 Order appointing an authorized person responsible for maintaining, storing, recording and issuing work books

Don’t forget to include the requirement for working with work books in the employee’s job responsibilities (see Example 2).

Example 2 Fragment of a job description and/or employment contract

Accounting for work records

The enterprise must keep records of forms (they are equivalent to strict reporting documents): completed and blank forms, as well as inserts and duplicates. There are special books for this:

• Receipt and expense. To record the receipt and expenditure of new forms. Most often, the accounting department keeps a journal.
• According to movement accounting. To reflect received documents when hiring personnel and issued forms upon dismissal. It is filled out by the official who is responsible for receiving and issuing books.

It is important to know! The storage of work records is organized in such a way as to exclude the possibility of loss of documents, especially their accidental or intentional damage. For this purpose, the company allocates a separate safe or a special metal cabinet or iron box; Access to the content should only be available to a limited number of people.

Storage

Such important documentation as work records must be stored in a fireproof safe. If this is not possible, you should use a secure cabinet that can be locked with a key. Blank forms should also be stored here and issued to the person responsible for their maintenance upon an application drawn up in any form.

At the end of each month, the personnel officer responsible for work books submits a report to the accounting department, which contains information about the current availability of blank forms and the amounts received for registration, if any. This also applies to earbuds. An invoice containing information about the amounts received for issuing forms and inserts can be drawn up in any form.

If the work book was not received by the employee upon his dismissal due to his refusal, it must be stored in the archives of the enterprise for 50 years. During this period of time, all records are valid, and if the document is issued to its owner, it will be current. Therefore, no matter how long the work book is kept, a pension can be calculated from it, provided it is properly completed.

As for the work record book, if a new one is issued, the old one should also be kept in the archives for 50 years. Thus, if necessary, all archival records about a specific work book will help to find it. For convenience, some businesses create an electronic copy of the log stored on a server or hard drive.

Nuances when preparing and storing work books

There are times when a company does not have a wax seal. In this case, it is advisable to seal the accounting book. The process of making a filling is simple. The ends of the thread holding the book together should be brought to the inside of the cover. There, both ends are glued together with two paper squares. The resulting seal is then secured inside the book to the cover and the company's usual seal is placed on it. It is also possible to affix the personnel service seal. In this case, part of the print should extend beyond the edges of the cover. The last step is to enter the number of pages in the laced book, the date and signature.

There are also various situations in which an employee can request the original work book before his dismissal. It is prohibited to hand out forms while a person is an employee of the company. An exception is the issuance of the original work report in the event that the employee receives a pension in connection with reaching a certain age. The book is issued only against the signature of its owner, who removes all responsibility for its safety from personnel officers for the period specified in the request for issue.

A work record book may also be required when applying for an early pension. But this situation does not imply the issuance of the original form. The employee must be given an extract from the employment record or a copy thereof within three days from the date of submission of the written request. Such issues are discussed in the Labor Rules and the above decisions are legal.

If the work permit is issued without a receipt, the personnel officer will bear all responsibility for its loss. It should be noted that even if a receipt is submitted, this HR department employee will be punished if the reason for issuing the book was not valid.

How to fill out forms

Any documentation must be completed in accordance with the law. The instructions for maintaining work books when filling them out require strict adherence to the following rules:

• all information is entered from original documents (passport, diploma);
• the first entry on the beginning of an employment relationship is made within the first 5 days after admission;
• the basis for the information is orders endorsed by the head;
• It is not permitted to make cuts or erasures in the document; all corrections are made according to certain rules.

Data on part-time work is entered by the main employer upon provision of the relevant documents. For non-core activities, employment is not formalized. Individuals who do not have the status of an entrepreneur are deprived of the right to fill out the document.

Making entries

The book form is recorded in the work record book. The first page is checked, if necessary, filled in or corrected, then proceed to the next spreads. In the section on work, indicate the title: name of the organization, institution, last name, first name, patronymic of the entrepreneur with a designation of status or legal form; The abbreviated name, if any, is written in brackets. Next, the entries are numbered in order and the date of receipt is indicated. Information about the position for which the person was hired is entered in the appropriate fields. Then the date and number of the order confirming the eligibility of the entry.

What information is included in the book?

In addition to entering data on admission and dismissal, the document reflects information on incentives and awards; bonuses are not specified. In addition to periods of work, it is allowed to reflect:

• military service;
• time for retraining and advanced training.

If an employee was awarded or some other significant event occurred that requires reflection, for example, a transfer to another position, the filled lines are numbered in chronological order according to the section where they are shown. A change of name or legal form by the employing organization (for example, from a JSC to a PJSC) must also be included in the personnel documents of employees. The established deadline for entering information is 1 week.

Error correction

If an error is made while filling out, it can be corrected. To make changes under this line, you need to carry out a certain algorithm of actions:

• write down the following serial numbering;
• indicate the date;
• the information confirms: “entry No.... is invalid”;
• the following is the necessary information;
• in the last cell the document providing the basis for entering the information is given.

It is important to know! The correction is made either by the company that made the mistake, or by the HR officer responsible for the position at the current place of work; in the event of reorganization of the enterprise, the legal successor - in the presence of supporting documents. The words of witnesses and their testimony are not taken into account.

About strikethrough

Erroneous data cannot be crossed out. An exception is changed personal information on the first page of the form, for example, a change of surname. One line is drawn through the middle of the entry, and the required correction is written next to it. The cover indicates information about the document on the basis of which the amendment was made.

Insert design

If any section of the work is completely finished, an insert is used to continue the recordings. Registration of issue is recorded in accounting journals. The recipient signs for receipt. The form must be sewn into the book, on the first page at the top there is a stamp imprint with the series and number of the attached document. The numbering of records continues, so there is no need to create a new record.

Issue upon dismissal

The reason for termination of the concluded contract is formulated according to the selected article of the Labor Code. The book is issued to the person resigning on the last day of release; they sign for it in the accounting journal. If it is impossible to give it in person, the HR department or management takes measures to notify the former employee. To do this, a notification is sent to the registration address of the owner of the book - with a reminder of receipt or an offer to send consent to send it by mail. A delay in issuing a document or sending a notice may lead to unpleasant consequences: costs in the form of compensation for late execution or an administrative fine for violation of the law.

Shelf life

The books are kept in the personnel department for the entire period of the worker’s work; upon completion of the activity, they are issued in person or (with consent) sent by valuable mail. A former employee who did not pick up the work permit has the right to demand its return by mail. Unclaimed documents must remain in the archives for at least 75 years. In the event of death, the document can be received by a relative of the deceased against signature in the register. If there is no request, it is stored at the enterprise until possible demand by the heirs, no less than the specified period.

Registration of a duplicate

If the book is lost or damaged, the employer issues a duplicate of it. To receive, the employee writes an application for provision. Information about periods of work at other enterprises is restored using available documents: orders, employment contracts, etc. In the form being replaced, the data is indicated as follows:

• First, the length of service is general and continuous, established based on the evidence received for all previous employers.
• Then the company issuing the duplicate completely fills out by date those sections that were used during the person’s service in this place.

It is the employer’s responsibility to help restore information if the form is lost.

Liability for loss

If the book is not issued due to loss during dismissal, the company will be obliged to pay the person earnings for the entire period of delay. In addition, an administrative fine may be collected (Article 5.27 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation):

• from an official 1-5 thousand rubles;
• from the organization 30-50 thousand rubles.

Attention! The state labor inspectorate imposes penalties. For repeated violations, the fines increase significantly.

Based on the entries in the work book, the worker’s length of service is taken into account, as well as his pension rights, so you need to treat the document very responsibly. Failure to complete the form may result in legal proceedings or administrative penalties. It is in the interests of the company to help the official carefully study the instructions for maintaining work records so that there are no mistakes in the future.

Responsible for storage

In every large company, one or more personnel department employees are responsible for storing work records. In small organizations, this position can be combined by specialists from other departments, for example, accountants or secretaries. The director of the organization independently appoints the person responsible by issuing a corresponding order, which is drawn up in free form.

When there is a change in the employee responsible for storing the books, the new employee is presented with an act of acceptance and transfer of cases. It is not enough to indicate the number of all available labor. This act must contain a complete list of owners of forms and document details. After handing over the act, it is certified by the signatures of the person who handed over the documents and who accepted them. In the absence of some work books, which should currently be stored in the archive, the former responsible person draws up a separate act.

Various gross errors, if not corrected in a timely manner, may result in legal proceedings. For example, if a former employee discovers that complete information is missing in the corresponding column, he has the right to demand that his former employer immediately correct this deficiency.

Some employers deliberately continue to ignore such a request. The only way out in such a situation is to go to court. As a result of the proceedings, the court can not only force the offender to correctly draw up a work book. If, due to an erroneous entry, the employee was unable to get a new job, the employer who violated the law will be forced to pay the former subordinate financial compensation.

The obligation to pay compensation to the former employee rests with the employer in cases where:

• the employee was fired or transferred to a new place illegally}
• the employer refused to reinstate an employee who had previously been dismissed due to dishonest entry of information into the employment record}
• the employer completely refuses to issue the employee a work book that contains false information or erroneous wording.

It should be noted that if the owner of the work book decides to leave everything as is, then in the future, due to an incorrectly completed entry, it may not be counted in the total length of service. As a result, this period will not be taken into account when calculating the pension. The amount of compensation can reach 200 thousand rubles or the deprivation of the given employer of his position for a period of 2-5 years.

Punishment for such violations awaits not only the director of the enterprise, but also other authorized persons who have access to work books and are involved in their preparation. In addition, the employer will be held liable in the event of theft or destruction of completed book forms, if such an event occurred through his fault or due to negligence.