Remote worker - employer's dream

How to arrange an employee? Today, employers are used to choosing between labor and civil contracts. Meanwhile, for a couple of years now, the opportunity has appeared to recruit a "remote worker". This option has its significant advantages: the employee is not obliged to constantly sit in the office, but remains on the “short leash” of the employment contract. Let's see if this type of cooperation is right for you and see how to avoid potential problems.

We learn in comparison

What is the difference between all three types of contracts? Let's take a quick look at their features.
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Employment agreement vs civil contract

In labor relations, the nature of work is permanent, the performance of the contract is not limited to a specific task or the achievement of a result. In civil contracts, the work goes according to specific tasks of the customer.

If you prefer civil contracts, we strongly recommend that you review your choice again. Since 2014, the procedure for recognizing civil law contracts as labor contracts (Article 19.1 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation) has been simplified in connection with the adoption of the law “On special assessment of working conditions”.

Remote worker vs "ordinary" worker

In the employment contract, the employee is obliged to obey the rules of internal labor regulations. The remote worker usually sets the working time and rest on their own. But it is easier to dismiss him at the initiative of the employer (details below).

Remote worker vs homeworker

Until now, the remote worker is often confused with the homeworker. The homeworker is fundamentally different in that he performs work at home from materials and using tools and mechanisms allocated by the employer or purchased by the homeworker at his own expense (Art. 310 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Thus, the homeworker must "do something with his hands" and produce a tangible product. Usually, people with disabilities who cannot work at ordinary workplaces take such work. Unlike homeworkers, a remote employee works mainly with his head and does not produce a real result.

Evaluate the result, not the time

How to consider how much time the employee actually spent on the job? How to determine the mode of his working day? There are two options here:

• Do not provide for a specific schedule of work, give the employee the right to decide when to work and when to rest (article 312.4 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).
• Set a specific mode of working day and rest time in the employment contract (or refer to the employer's internal documents).

Of course, fixed working hours do not guarantee that the employee will not abuse his time away from the office. That is why try to evaluate his work not by time, but by result - this is the main thing in remote work. Therefore, read the next section of this manual, set exact tasks, define clear deadlines and demand their implementation!

Accept the results of the work

The employer can determine in what form to receive information from the remote employee on the work done. It should be fixed in the employment contract or in its regulations. For example, you can bind an employee:

• send work results by e-mail or upload to the server of the employer (in a special program);
• to come to the employer's office at the request of the manager, in order to present the results of the work in person and sign the corresponding acceptance certificate for the work.

Such clarity is especially useful if you work creative people who create works of intellectual activity. With proper paperwork, you can get the rights to the results of this work.

Relieve pain: easy dismissal

The obvious advantage of an employment contract for remote work is that it can be terminated by the employer not only on general grounds, but also on the grounds stipulated by the employment contract itself (Article 312.5 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Thus, the employer can rather tightly control his remote employee. For example, to dismiss an employee for failure to comply with instructions, failure to fulfill a task, disruption of deadlines or violation of the procedure for providing work results.

Dismissal is made according to the usual rules - the order of the employer about the termination of the employment contract with the indication of the grounds, with the entry in the workbook (only if information about teleworking has been entered into it).

If the teleworking contract is terminated on the grounds stipulated additionally in the contract, then the subparagraph should be indicated as the basis of the dismissal. 14th century 81 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

Bonus: how to simplify document flow

Get a digital signature in the form of an electronic key to facilitate the life of your company. With its help, you can remotely conclude an employment contract (Art. 312.2 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation), familiarize an employee with local regulations, and receive statements from him.

In some cases, the exchange of documents online is possible and using a regular text signature (for example, in e-mails). This should indicate in the contract that the documents received by e-mail can be used as evidence in court.

Thus, the design of current documentation, working relationships, notifications, messages and correspondence can, if desired, be fully digitized.

(c) Kirill Mityagin