Salary payment is a remuneration that the employer is obliged to regularly pay to the employee for the work performed. Let's consider in more detail what the terms and terms should be in Ukraine according to current legislation and what the amount of salary depends on.
Terms and conditions of salary payment
The main conditions for the payment of wages in Ukraine are regulated by the Labor Code (LC) and the Law "On Remuneration". Here are the key points:
- Salary must be paid in cash - in hryvnias. Promissory notes, coupons or any other form of payment are prohibited by the rules for the payment of wages. This guarantees that the employee receives real money, not surrogates.
- Payment of wages in kind (in goods or services) is allowed only as a partial payment and cannot exceed 30% of the amount accrued for the month. Such payment is possible if it is stipulated by the collective agreement and is desirable for employees of certain industries (agriculture, etc.).
- With the personal written consent of the employee, the salary can be paid through a bank to the specified account. In this case, all related expenses, as the salary is accrued (for banking services, money transfer, etc.), are borne by the employer.
- The salary is paid regularly on working days within the terms established in the collective agreement or regulatory act of the employer, but not less than twice a month with an interval of no more than 16 days. Specific payment dates are fixed in these documents.
- The amount of salary for the first half of the month (advance payment) is determined by the collective agreement or regulatory act of the employer, but cannot be less than the payment for the actually worked hours
Employers are required to comply with the rules for calculating wages. Violation is considered serious and entails financial sanctions and administrative liability.
It should be noted that the procedure and terms of payment of wages at enterprises are also regulated by collective agreements and individual employment agreements or contracts. However, they cannot worsen the situation of employees compared to the legislation.
Terms of payment of wages
The Labor Code and the Law "On Remuneration" clearly establish the terms of payment of wages:
- Salaries must be paid at least twice a month. Traditionally, this is an advance for the first half and the basic salary for the second. But other options are possible, for example, 3 times a month. The main thing in the terms of payment of wages and advances is the absence of delays of more than 7 days after the end of the period.
- The time interval between payments cannot exceed 16 calendar days. This means that they should occur approximately every 2 weeks, and not once a month.
- Salary payment must be made no later than 7 days after the end of the period for which it is accrued. For example, if the advance is accrued for the period from the 1st to the 15th, it must be paid by the 22nd inclusive.
- If the day of salary payment coincides with a weekend, holiday or non-working day, it must be paid the day before.
The employer sets the specific dates for accrual and payment of wages independently, but in compliance with the above norms. These dates must be fixed in the collective agreement or other regulatory act of the enterprise (order, regulation on remuneration). They can be “floating” (5–7th, 20–22nd) or fixed (for example, 7th and 22nd of each month).
In case of violation of the salary payment deadline for more than a month, employees are paid compensation - the amount of debt multiplied by the inflation index for the entire time of delay. And the employer is subject to financial sanctions in the amount of 3 minimum wages for each violation.