Introduction of electronic staff document circulation in Russia

In accordance with the decree of the President of the Russian Federation dated from May 9, 2017 № 203 «On the strategy of development of the information society in the Russian Federation for 2017 – 2030», modern business is faced with the task of introducing electronic document management, including personnel issues, into the company's life.

Already at the beginning of April 2020, a large-scale project prepared by the Ministry of labor and social protection on the introduction of electronic document management on personnel issues was launched. As a part of this experiment, all participants were given the opportunity to conduct electronic personnel document management on the portal "Work in Russia" - a state information platform that provides employment services in electronic form, including using the Unified Portal of State and Municipal Services.

The main task of the experiment is to implement the mechanisms for maintaining and applying electronic documents related to work, as well as to prepare proposals for amendments to the legislation of the Russian Federation.

The system includes a section on the procedure for creating, using, and storing electronic documents, which avoids their registration and duplication on paper. The experiment involves 129 employers, of which 18 are already using the innovation in the pilot mode. Among the proposals made by the project participants, it is worth paying attention to the request to introduce templates of standard documents for employers and the function of automatical filling in personal data of potential employees when forming an electronic employment contract using the information contained in the profile on the public Services.

This is not the first project in Russian practice to introduce electronic document management. A similar experiment was conducted by the Ministry of labor and social protection in the Russian Federation in 2018. Among the participants were 11 large employer companies (Russian Railways JSC, Gazprombank JSC, AVTOVAZ PJSC, ROSBANK PJSC, Mechel PJSC, Severstal Management JSC, Rostelecom PJSC, SIBUR LLC, Alfa-Bank JSC, Tatneft PJSC, Agrotorg LLC). Based on the results of the 2018 experiment, the following problems of electronic personnel document management were identified:

1) The high cost of purchasing and using a digital signature per employee, especially in companies with high staff turnover;

2) Lack of normative regulation of the use of electronic signatures in personnel records management;

3) Lack of ready-made software for personnel workflow automation;

4) The need to provide continuous technical support for electronic personnel document management;

5) Risks of data loss, unauthorized use of data by third parties, software errors when transmitting or processing information;

6) Low computer literacy of some employees and distrust of electronic documents.

When dealing with the specifics of a new project, it should be noted that any organization that has expressed a desire can take part in it. At the same time, employees take part in the project only on a voluntary basis, while retaining their right to refuse to participate, having previously notified the employer of their decision in writing.

Electronic personnel document management on the portal «Work in Russia» is free of charge for employers, which allows you to reduce to zero the cost of implementing your own information systems. This project creates additional opportunities for both employees and employers. The experiment allows you to expand the scope of job search, as well as save a significant amount of time. When applying for a job, the potential employee gets the opportunity to choose an employer from another region, pass an interview using remote technologies, and sign an employment contract. Employees will be able to sign personnel documents submitted by them or intended for them from their gadget using an electronic signature without visiting the personnel service, which significantly increases the efficiency of obtaining the necessary information.

GRATA International St.Petersburg.