When a dismissal can be challenged
A dismissal is unlawful if the employer had no ground, or had a ground but breached the procedure. Where the procedure has been botched, the court reinstates even a person whose post was genuinely made redundant. The employer must prove the lawfulness of a dismissal on its own initiative, as stated in paragraph 23 of Resolution No. 2 of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of 17 March 2004.
Redundancy is the most frequent subject of dispute. The employee must be warned personally and against signature, no later than two months in advance (Article 180 of the Russian Labour Code). That is not enough. Dismissal is lawful only if there is nowhere to transfer the person with their consent, and the employer must offer all suitable vacancies in the locality, including lower and lower-paid ones (Article 81, part 3). A suitable post became vacant a week before the redundancy date and was not offered? That is already a ground for a claim.
Absenteeism has its own mechanics. Absenteeism means being absent without good reason for a whole day or for more than four consecutive hours, but before issuing an order the employer must request a written explanation and wait two working days (Article 193 of the Russian Labour Code). Dismissed the morning after a call of “where are you?”, with no request and no report? The procedure was breached. Even proven absenteeism is not yet a victory: the court checks whether the gravity of the misconduct and the employee’s prior conduct were taken into account (paragraph 53 of Plenum Resolution No. 2). A person with ten years’ service and no disciplinary record may well be reinstated by a court after a single missed day.
An employee on sick leave or on holiday also cannot be dismissed on the employer’s initiative, unless the company is being liquidated (Article 81, part 6).
“At your own request”, but not of your own free will
The easiest way to part company without severance and procedure is for the employee to leave of their own accord. Hence the requests to write a resignation letter and the hints about a “black mark” in the work record. A signature on a resignation letter decides nothing in itself: resignation on the employee’s initiative is lawful only if it is voluntary (sub-paragraph “a” of paragraph 22 of Plenum Resolution No. 2). But in such a dispute the employee must prove the pressure.
That is why evidence is gathered at once: a manager’s message saying “resign or be dismissed for cause”, an audio recording of the conversation, colleagues’ testimony, the date of a letter written on the day of the conflict by a person with no new job. And until the two-week notice period ends, the resignation letter can simply be withdrawn, unless another employee has been invited in writing to take the post (Article 80 of the Russian Labour Code).
A pregnant employee cannot be dismissed on the employer’s initiative on any ground other than liquidation. A woman with a child under three, a single mother of a child under sixteen or of a disabled child under eighteen cannot be made redundant, although she can be dismissed for gross misconduct (Article 261 of the Russian Labour Code).
A recent example is in Supreme Court Review of Case Law No. 3 for 2026. An employee resigned at her own request, then learned she had already been pregnant at that time, and immediately asked for the order to be cancelled. The employer refused, and the appeal and cassation courts backed it. The Supreme Court (ruling of 13 April 2026, No. 53-KG26-1-K8) decided otherwise: since she asked to be returned to work, there was no voluntary wish to leave, and the prohibition in Article 261 applies. The fact that the employer did not know about the pregnancy is not in itself a reason to refuse.
One month to sue: time limits and where to go
A claim for reinstatement is filed within one month of the day the copy of the order is handed over, or the work record book or employment information is issued (Article 392, part 1 of the Russian Labour Code). For other violations the period is three months, and for unpaid wages one year. The order was handed over on 3 March? The last day for a claim is, as a general rule, 3 April.
A court may restore a period missed for a valid reason (Article 392, part 5). For example, if illness or a business trip got in the way, or the person complained in time to the labour inspectorate or the prosecutor’s office (paragraph 5 of Plenum Resolution No. 2 and paragraph 16 of Plenum Resolution No. 15 of 29 May 2018). But that is the court’s discretion, not its obligation.
Where to go? The commission on labour disputes is not suitable: reinstatement, a change of the wording of dismissal and payment for forced absence are sent by law straight to court (Article 391 of the Russian Labour Code). The labour inspectorate is useful where the violation is obvious, for example if a pregnant woman or someone on sick leave was dismissed. The inspector issues a binding order (Article 357 of the Russian Labour Code), and the Supreme Court has accepted that it may require the order to be cancelled. The inspectorate does not decide whether there really was absenteeism, and the one month for a claim keeps running while it investigates.
The claim is filed in a district court, including at the claimant’s own place of residence (Article 29, part 6.3 of the Civil Procedure Code). The employee pays no state duty (Article 393 of the Russian Labour Code), and under the Supreme Court’s position the employer’s legal costs cannot be recovered from the employee even if the claim fails.
What can be recovered from the employer
If the dismissal is found unlawful, the court reinstates the person and awards average earnings for the whole period of forced absence (Article 394 of the Russian Labour Code). They are calculated under the Regulation approved by Government Resolution No. 540, in force since 1 September 2025: average daily earnings are multiplied by the working days of the absence.
Suppose a manager earned about RUB 180,000 a month and the dispute took eight months. For the forced absence alone, that comes to roughly RUB 1.4 million. The court will credit any severance already paid, but will not deduct wages from a new job, sick pay or unemployment benefit (paragraph 62 of Plenum Resolution No. 2).
Not everyone wants to return to a team that showed them the door. In that case, at the employee’s request, the court may confine itself to money and change the wording to “at the employee’s own request” with the date of the judgment, or, if the person has already started a new job, with the day before.
Separately, the court may award compensation for moral damage. There is no fixed amount: the court takes into account the distress suffered, the employer’s fault, and reasonableness and fairness (paragraph 63 of Plenum Resolution No. 2).
A reinstatement decision is enforced immediately
A decision to reinstate is subject to immediate enforcement (Article 396 of the Russian Labour Code, Article 211 of the Civil Procedure Code), and an appeal does not stay it. An award of wages for a period of up to three months is also enforced immediately, although courts apply this rule differently to payment for forced absence. The employer cancels the order and admits the person to work, and dismisses the employee hired in their place under paragraph 2 of part 1 of Article 83 of the Russian Labour Code if there is nowhere to transfer them. Dragged its feet? For the time of the delay, the court will also award average earnings.
Negotiation and settlement between the parties
The court is not the only route, nor always the quickest. When the employee has a strong position, whether a botched redundancy procedure or pregnancy, the employer is often willing to settle. The outcome is recorded in an agreement to terminate the contract (Article 78 of the Russian Labour Code): the date, the wording, the amount and time of payment, and a waiver of mutual claims.
It should be signed without haste. Such an agreement can be cancelled only by mutual consent (paragraph 20 of Plenum Resolution No. 2), so the amount, the deadline and the consequences of delay are fixed in the document itself, not in a verbal “we’ll top it up later”. A payment within three average monthly earnings is, as a general rule, exempt from personal income tax. If a claim has already been filed, the same arrangement can be formalised as a settlement agreement in court.
The employer’s view: how to dismiss without losing
It helps a company to look at dismissal through a judge’s eyes: the burden of proof is on the company, and it wins on documents. For a redundancy, these are a notice signed for, lists of vacancies on different dates with a note of agreement or refusal, and the reasoned opinion of the trade union if the employee belongs to one (Article 373). For a dismissal for misconduct, they are a request for an explanation, a report if no explanation is given within two working days, evidence of the violation and that its gravity was weighed, and then an order signed for within three working days.
A disciplinary penalty is imposed no later than one month from discovery of the misconduct and six months from its commission (Article 193), and final pay is made on the day of dismissal (Article 140 of the Russian Labour Code). And correspondence urging the employee to “leave on good terms” works against the company in court. An honest settlement offer usually costs less than eight months of forced absence with moral damages on top.
When you cannot do without a lawyer
A lawyer is needed when the dismissal itself is being challenged: the month is running, the documents are with the employer, and the position must withstand the very first hearing. Employment dispute lawyers help assess the chances, gather evidence, prepare the claim or conduct negotiations. For employers, we check the procedure before the order, not after the claim.
It is best to start in the first days after dismissal, while colleagues still remember the details. We record the plan and the cost of the work in writing before we begin.
Frequently asked questions
How long do you have to challenge a dismissal?+
One month from the day the copy of the order is handed over, or the work record book or employment information is issued (Article 392 of the Russian Labour Code).
Do I have to pay state duty on a claim for reinstatement?+
No. Employees are exempt from duties and court costs in claims arising from employment relationships (Article 393 of the Russian Labour Code).
What can be recovered from the employer if a dismissal is found unlawful?+
Average earnings for the whole period of forced absence from work, plus compensation for non-pecuniary damage. Instead of reinstatement, the court may, at the employee’s request, change the wording of the dismissal to “resignation at the employee’s own request”.
Can a resignation at the employee’s own request be challenged?+
Yes, if the resignation letter was written under pressure, but the employee will have to prove it: correspondence, audio recordings, witnesses.
Need an assessment of your situation?+
Send us a request: an employment lawyer will review the dismissal order and the correspondence and tell you whether there are grounds for a claim and what can realistically be recovered.