Remote Work (Belarus)

Legal regulation of remote work

The Labor Code of the Republic of Belarus (hereinafter referred to as the Labor Code), in Chapter 25-1, regulates the specifics of the labor of workers performing remote work.

Concept, mechanism of remote work, special responsibilities of the employer and employees

According to Article 307-1 of the Labor Code, remote work means work that an employee performs outside the employer’s location using information and communication technologies to perform this work and interact with the employer.

Distinctive features of remote work.

1. Remote work is a type of hired labor, that is, the employee is subject to social and labor guarantees, compensation, rights and obligations established by the general norms of labor legislation (providing vacations, established working hours, wages, compensation payments, etc.).
2. A remote worker performs his or her labor function outside the employer’s location, which means that the employment contract does not contain a workplace clause, and the employee has the right to choose it at his own discretion. In this regard, the employment contract must indicate that the work is remote. The place of concluding an employment contract (additional agreements on changing the terms of the employment contract determined by the parties) is the location of the employer.
3. To carry out his labor function and interact with the employer, a remote worker uses information and communication technologies (Internet, various data transmission systems, computer devices (computers, tablets, smartphones, etc.).

Thus, remote work will be considered work that allows you to transfer the results of your intellectual work through the use of information and telecommunication networks, including the Internet. Remote workers will perform work, the result of which is not a material product, but information, information, and intellectual property. Such workers are, for example, accountants, IT sector workers, lawyers, teachers, and marketers.

During the period of remote work, the employer:

• has the right to provide the employee with equipment that is the property of the employer, to install software and hardware, information security tools and other means necessary for the employee to perform his job functions on the employee’s personal computer;
• is obliged to regularly calculate and pay wages;
• is obliged to familiarize the employee with the labor protection instructions, as well as with the requirements for maintaining safe work with equipment and tools provided by the employer

During the period of remote work, the employee is obliged to use equipment that is the property of the employer, software and hardware recommended by the employer, solely for the purpose of performing his job duties, and not transfer or allow use by third parties.

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Authors: Oksana Shakhlay, Head of Labor Law Practice and Vladislava Kuznetsova, Junior LawyerGRATA International, Belarus