Author: Ivan Ivanov
The legislation of the Russian Federation does not prohibit combining work and study, but in some cases difficulties may arise - for example, the session period may last some time. Sometimes it is impossible to combine a session with work, because the university may be located in another city or it is necessary to attend review lectures before exams. For this purpose, the Labor Code provides for the rules for going on study leave, as well as the necessary list of documents for its preparation - a certificate calling for a session is one of them.
The problem with sending to a session - does everything depend on the boss?
Conscientious and responsible bosses, as a rule, are themselves interested in sending a student for training. Indeed, in this case, as a result, they will receive a more trained, educated and versatile employee who will be able to work better and more efficiently.
However, if you are unlucky with management, there is a danger of encountering a situation in which the boss refuses to let his subordinate go to the session. You should be aware of your rights in such a case.
For an employee who is undergoing correspondence training, the organization is obliged to provide study leave for the entire duration of the session.
In situations where leave for the duration of the session is not provided for reasons beyond the employee’s control, there is no need to despair. This does not mean that you will have to make difficult choices when deciding whether to quit school or work. There are completely legal and effective methods on how to solve the problem, keep your job and still go to school.
The manager does not have the right to prohibit a student from receiving an education - this point is regulated by Article 173 of the Labor Code of Russia: students of part-time and full-time (evening) forms of education who combine study at a university with work and are successfully studying (without debts) have the right to additional study leave with preservation of wages on the basis of a summons certificate from an educational institution
Which study leaves are paid and which are not?
Not all student leaves are necessarily paid by the employer. At the same time, the employer is not deprived of the right to establish the payment of all vacations under a collective agreement or other local regulation.
All types of paid and unpaid student leave are established in Articles 173-176 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
Vacation pay in 2021 - new in legislation
Reasons for obtaining study leave for a part-time student
Since the provision of study leave to an employee is enshrined in the Labor Code, any employer is obliged to do this, regardless of the form of ownership of the enterprise. Private companies are required to provide study leave in the same way as state-owned enterprises.
There are two conditions under which the employer does not have the right to refuse to grant his employee study leave for the session:
- The employee must receive his first higher education.
- The employee is studying at a public or private university that has official state accreditation.
Requirements according to the Labor Code and the order of the Ministry of Education and Science
The Labor Code includes only a reference norm regarding the summons certificate.
This law states that approval of its form falls under the responsibility of the authorized body at the federal level of the executive power system, which is entrusted with establishing the policy of the Russian Federation in the field of education. The form for the summons certificate was determined by the Ministry of Education and Science, which issued the corresponding order number 1368 in 2013. It is required that the document be issued by an educational organization for a specific student (and not for their group). It must contain the following information:
- date of registration;
- full designation of the organization in which the employee works and where the document is sent;
- number of the article of the Labor Code, on the basis of which the employee has the right to receive a call to the session;
- the employee’s surname, as well as his name and patronymic, which are put in the dative case (to whom?);
- form of study (full-time, part-time or part-time) and the serial number of the course for which the session is taken (or in which the diploma is defended);
- the time of the vacation provided, you need to write the date of its beginning and its end, as well as indicate its total duration;
- designation of the educational organization;
- details of the certificate issued to the educational organization certifying its accreditation;
- name of the authority from which this certificate was received
- level of training program that the employee is completing
- the name of the specialty that the student will acquire and its code.
For the certificate to be considered valid, it must be signed by the head of the institution or a person authorized by him. In particular, if an employee is studying at a university, the rector must sign, unless he has granted this right to another employee. This detail must be sealed.
The bottom part of the certificate is detachable. With its help, it is verified that the employee passed the session during such and such a period of time. After completing this process, the head of the educational institution fills out all the required fields, after which this counterfoil is provided to the employer.
Determining the duration and payment of study leave
Is it possible to provide an employee with paid study leave? It is stated in the official employment contract. It occurs at the time an employee is registered for work.
The duration of the vacation ranges from 40 to 50 days. In practice, it is determined by the actual duration of the session. If fewer days are needed, then this circumstance, as a rule, can be agreed with the employer without any problems.
It cannot take more than 50 days to pass the session. As soon as the student has a schedule for the correspondence session, you can adjust the duration of the study leave, taking into account all the nuances.
Separate study leave is provided for practical training in the chosen specialty, passing state exams, preparing and writing a thesis. This leave is issued for a period of four months.
Session during distance learning: legal aspects
Basic leave and study leave are different concepts that are in no way related to each other. The Labor Code of the Russian Federation clearly separates these “types of well-deserved rest” and provides a working student with a number of privileges , in accordance with current legislation.
So here's what you need to know:
• Art. 287 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation states that study leave can only be obtained at the main place of official employment;
• If a student works part-time, he does not have to count on paid study leave, so the only option is to go to the session at his own expense.
• The fact that the employee is additionally studying in the correspondence department must be additionally stipulated when drawing up the contract during employment.
• If the contract signed with the employer does not contain information about student leave, the latter may deny the working student the right to leave for the session.
• Several types of vacations cannot coincide and overlap each other, while they are paid according to a different grid.
• The combination of two vacations must be pre-agreed with the employer, since not every boss will agree to a long absence of his employee.
• If study leave is paid, its deadlines for returning to work should not be violated. When a working student takes “at his own expense”, he can interrupt his study leave and go to work early.
• To receive study leave, you need to write a standard application 2 weeks in advance and agree on all the details with your boss.
• If an employer denies paid study leave to a working student who is officially employed, this means that he is breaking the law.
• Study leave is calculated in calendar days, includes holidays and weekends, and treats them as ordinary days.
• Study leave cannot be extended, but it can be divided or an employed part-time student can be recalled to work prematurely.
• If the employer does not agree to provide the employee with study leave, he may offer him a compromise solution - monetary compensation.
• The boss must pay a working student’s travel to the university once a year, provided that he receives a secondary specialized or higher education.
Having studied his rights and responsibilities, the student needs to decide what to do right on the eve of the next session. It is important to pass the exams safely, and not to lose your favorite job for absenteeism.
Payment and compensation
Leave during the session is additional. They cannot replace annual tariff leave.
For employees studying at state universities/secondary colleges, or private ones with state accreditation, the employer provides:
- payment of 50% of the basic salary for the duration of the session;
- payment for the student's travel to the place of study (in both directions).
Guarantees and compensation for students in educational institutions without accreditation are established by a collective or labor agreement.
Obtaining a summons certificate for official registration of leave for the duration of the session
The official basis for granting an employee study leave is a certificate calling for a session. Until it is completed and received by the employee, the employer has no legal basis to grant leave to the employee during the session.
A student can obtain a certificate from the dean’s office of his university. It is issued one month before the start of the next session. If a student lives in another city or region, there is no need to personally come for a certificate. It can be sent by email.
Sample call help
It has now been determined that the summons certificate must comply with the form established by the mentioned order No. 1368. It is worth remembering that in July 2015 the form of this certificate changed. It is necessary to use the template valid from now on. Moreover, this sample has a very clear structure, deviations from which are not allowed.
However, it is stipulated that if an employee receives education in a program that is not accredited by government agencies, then he can provide a certificate of a different type.
Since the employer has no legal obligations under the law when training under such a program, there are no requirements for the form of the document. And if there is a corresponding norm either in the employment contract or in the collective agreement, the educational organization can provide the student with a certificate, the form of which is established in it by a local act.
Finding a compromise
If an employer categorically refuses to provide a student with study leave, it is recommended to start by finding a compromise. As a rule, the reason is not tyranny, but some specific reason. This is often a busy workload where your study leave leaves each employee with even more responsibilities.
It is easier to agree when the student lives and works in the same city where he studies. You can adjust your schedule so that you spend most of your time studying and the rest on work. That is, the student reserves the performance of some work responsibilities.
In any case, you need to have an honest and frank conversation with your boss to find out what the reasons for this behavior are, and you need to take any measures to try to resolve the issue in an amicable way. There is no point in spoiling relations with management ahead of time.
Contacting the labor inspectorate
If persuasion does not lead to a positive result, the employer categorically refuses to meet the subordinate halfway; more effective measures must be taken. One of the most effective and efficient ways is to officially contact the labor inspectorate.
This is a government body that is obliged to deal with all cases of violation of employee rights. He always acts on the side of his subordinate; if necessary, his representatives provide not only consulting assistance, but also help in drawing up official appeals to supervisory authorities, for example, to the prosecutor's office, and to the courts.
After the intervention of the labor inspectorate, as a rule, study leave is granted to the employee without any additional difficulties. However, you need to remember and be aware that in such a situation the relationship with the employer will be severely and completely damaged.
Is it possible to leave for a session without permission?
If you don’t have time to wait for the inspector’s decision, and even more so, the court’s decision, and the boss is stubborn and won’t sign the leave application, it’s quite acceptable to just take it and leave for the session. They have no right to fire a student for absenteeism during a session, and after returning, too.
In judicial practice, there are cases when the court acquitted the student and did not consider unauthorized departure for exams as a violation. On the contrary, the violator of the law in such a situation is the employer who deprived the employee of the legal right to sessional leave.
