Labor relations affect almost everyone. Most of the country's population is employed, a small part is business owners and employers. Therefore, the number of conflict situations in this area is quite large. Labor disputes in a court of general jurisdiction are one of the most common categories of civil cases considered. But, despite this, judicial practice is often ambiguous, which requires detailed study before going to court to protect one’s rights, and this is relevant not only for the employee, but also for the employer.
Court decisions on labor disputes regarding non-payment of wages
The most common reason for litigation between an employee and an employer is non-payment of wages. In most such situations, the court sides with the employee and recovers back wages from the employer. Moreover, recent practice shows that often the initiator of going to court is not the employee himself, but the prosecutor to whom he turned, for example, the decision in case No. 2-2905/2018 of October 30, 2018 of the Sovetsky District Court of Samara, or in case No. 2-681/2018 dated October 30, 2018, Ilovlinsky District Court of the Volgograd Region.
Often the solution to the issue of collecting arrears of wages is accompanied by the satisfaction of a claim for compensation for moral damage. Thus, the decision in case No. 2-4406/2018 dated October 30, 2018 of the Abakan City Court of the Republic of Khakassia satisfied the plaintiff’s demands in full for the collection of arrears of wages, as well as compensation for moral damage in the amount of 3,000 rubles.
In the already mentioned decision in case No. 2-2905/2018 of October 30, 2018 of the Sovetsky District Court of Samara, the plaintiff filed claims for compensation for moral damage in the amount of 2,000 rubles. The court established compensation in the amount of 1,000 rubles due to the fact that the employer is in bankruptcy proceedings.
An even more significant reduction in the amount of moral damage was noted in the decision of the Syktyvkar City Court in case No. 2-8209/2018 dated October 29, 2020, for incomplete payment of wages in the period from September 2020 to June 2020: the plaintiff demanded 150,000 rubles in compensation for moral damage, the court satisfied only the amount of 7,000 rubles. Let us note that in this decision the amount of the principal debt was significantly reduced - from 147,938 rubles to 12,632 rubles. The plaintiff was unable to provide the court with evidence of overtime work, as well as the fact of an increased volume of work, which became the basis for partial satisfaction of the claims.
A general analysis of wage disputes shows that if there is a sufficient evidence base, it is not difficult for an employee to collect arrears of wages, as well as receive a small compensation for moral suffering.
The proceeds of an employee who has lured clients cannot be taken away.
Several organizations to which the company provided services for the preparation of documentation for participation in tenders refused to prolong the contracts.
An internal investigation revealed the reason: the tender specialist switched clients to herself, continuing to provide them with services using utility software. She pocketed all the proceeds.
In this regard, the employer went to court with a demand to recover from the employee:
