The employer does not pay wages after dismissal unofficially. What to do if the employer does not provide payment upon dismissal? Consequences of working without an employment contract

We tell you how to receive the required salary from an employer with whom you do not have an employment contract.

- I worked in the company unofficially. At first the pay was stable, then they started to delay me, so I decided to quit. We were asked to work for two weeks. I worked, but I still haven’t been paid. What to do?

The concept of “unofficial work” is not legally established, but in real life you can often find those who work without registration. In this case, a person takes conscious risks, because the absence of an entry in the work book or an employment contract actually deprives employees of any rights and guarantees related to the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. For example, an employer may not pay for vacation, deprive its employees of bonuses and compensation, and delay or not pay wages.

During employment, the employer, following, must conclude an employment contract with the future employee, which specifies all working conditions, and also perform all actions provided for by labor legislation. The law also states that even an agreement not drawn up in writing is considered concluded if the employee, with the knowledge of the employer, begins to perform work at the enterprise.

Therefore, if you clearly fulfilled the assigned tasks, you had a certain schedule, a set lunch break and other attributes of the work schedule, and you were not paid for your work, then you can safely go to court. This, of course, provided that the employer does not want to settle the matter and resolve everything out of court.

- The labor inspection considers only officially concluded labor relations with the employer: an order for employment, an employment contract, an entry in the work book. If this is not the case, you need to confirm the employment relationship in court and prove whether some kind of agreement was established with the employer. For example, about the timing of salary payments, how long the working day lasts, what time is lunch, and so on. If all these agreements were in place and the employer paid you money for all this, then you can recognize this relationship as an employment relationship and oblige the employer to make an entry in your work book and pay all insurance premiums, says state labor inspector Roman Trapitsyn. - Also, the employer can draw up a civil contract to perform a certain type of work, but this is formally no longer an employment relationship.

Before you go to court, make sure you have proof that you actually worked. For example, find witnesses who will confirm your words - they could be the organization's clients or your colleagues. Also, any documents related to you and your employer will serve as evidence: copies of contracts, acts, invoices, printouts of telephone calls to officials of the organization, copies of statements signed by management, and others.

- Payment of arrears will be ordered by the judge if he decides your evidence is convincing and recognizes your relationship as labor or civil law. In general, it is always better to receive and store all the necessary documents related to work, and formalize relations, including labor ones, says an employee of the Labor Inspectorate of the Kirov Region.

For failure to comply with labor laws, the employer may face a fine or suspension of activities for some time. In addition, an employer who does not fulfill the duties of a tax agent (in other words, evades paying taxes) may incur criminal liability under article. In this case, he will face a fine of 100 to 500 thousand rubles or imprisonment for up to six years.

About the main thing - briefly:

Be sure to conclude an employment or civil contract with your employer.

If the employment relationship has not been formalized and the employer does not pay wages, try to resolve the issue first out of court.

If the employer refuses to agree to a settlement, go to court.

Collect all the evidence that will indicate that you really worked in this organization - these are any documents and witnesses.

Contact the Labor Inspectorate with a complaint about the employer’s violation of labor legislation, indicating that the labor relationship has not been properly formalized. You can also indicate about non-payment of salary. Provide as many facts as possible confirming your work activity (witnesses, etc.). If you go to court, you will have to establish the fact of the employment relationship, and then collect the salary.

It will be faster to start with the Labor Inspectorate.

Khromykh Larisa Georgievna (03/05/2014 at 15:06:12)

Your employer may have big problems. Firstly, you were required to conclude an employment contract.

“An employment contract that is not formalized in writing is considered concluded if the employee began work with the knowledge or on behalf of the employer or his representative. When an employee is actually admitted to work, the employer is obliged to draw up an employment contract with him in writing no later than three working days from the date of the employee’s actual admission to work.”(Article 67 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

And secondly, both administrative and criminal liability are established for non-payment of wages. In your case it is already criminal:

Article 145.1. Non-payment of wages, pensions, scholarships, benefits and other payments

1. Partial non-payment of wages, pensions, scholarships, allowances and other payments established by law for more than three months, committed out of mercenary or other personal interest by the head of an organization, an employer - an individual, the head of a branch, representative office or other separate structural unit of an organization -

shall be punishable by a fine in the amount of up to one hundred twenty thousand rubles, or in the amount of the wages or other income of the convicted person for a period of up to one year, or by deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a term of up to one year, or by forced labor for a term of up to two years, or imprisonment for up to one year.

2. Complete non-payment of wages, pensions, scholarships, allowances and other payments established by law for more than two months or payment of wages for more than two months in an amount below the minimum wage established by federal law. committed out of selfish or other personal interest by the head of an organization, an employer - an individual, the head of a branch, representative office or other separate structural unit of the organization -

shall be punishable by a fine in the amount of one hundred thousand to five hundred thousand rubles, or in the amount of the wages or other income of the convicted person for a period of up to three years, or by forced labor for a period of up to three years, with deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a period of up to three years, or without it, or imprisonment for a term of up to three years with deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a term of up to three years, or without it.

(as amended by Federal Law dated December 7, 2011 N 420-FZ)

3. Acts provided for in parts one or two of this article, if they entailed grave consequences, -

shall be punishable by a fine in the amount of two hundred thousand to five hundred thousand rubles, or in the amount of the wages or other income of the convicted person for a period of one to three years, or by imprisonment for a term of two to five years with deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a term up to five years or without it.

Note. In this article, partial non-payment of wages, pensions, scholarships, benefits and other payments established by law means payment in the amount of less than half of the amount payable.

You can write a complaint to both the prosecutor's office and the labor inspectorate. But first make a dictaphone recording of peaceful negotiations with the employer, on which you record both the period of non-payment and its amount.

For example, this could be your peaceful reasoning with your manager that “I have already worked for 4 months, and the salary was paid only for. The salary in such and such an amount suits me quite well, but I already have a debt in such and such an amount. I would just like to know when will the salary debts be repaid, etc., etc.”

Record it, and then write a complaint.

Find out what to do if you worked unofficially, without registration and your salary was not paid. Advice and expert opinions!

Modern employers are often dishonest in matters of remuneration. Therefore, situations often arise when the question is asked: “I worked unofficially and were not paid my salary, what should I do?” or “what to do if you worked without registration and are not paid?”

To avoid such troubles, when applying for a job, an employment contract must be concluded between the employer and the employee. It is in this document that all essential working conditions are prescribed. Well, if a contract is not concluded, then there is no order for hiring, and therefore no entry in the work book.

This fact also assumes that the employer will not pay sick leave and maternity leave, and is not obliged to pay bonuses and various additional payments. The employer does not have any legal obligations to employees, which means he can delay wages or not pay them at all. But on the other hand, you, as an employee, are not legally responsible for your work.

For violation of the law regarding registration of labor relations, the employer may be punished with an administrative fine or suspension of activities for a certain period. And since he does not officially register employees, this means he evades taxes. This violation is punishable by criminal liability and imprisonment for up to two years.

So what to do if you work unofficially and are not paid? According to Art. 67 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, an unformed contract is considered concluded from the moment when the employee began his duties with the knowledge of the employer. If wages are not paid, you can file a complaint with the prosecutor's office or labor inspectorate. The fact of working for the company (in the absence of an employment contract) will have to be proven. Witness testimony may serve as evidence. If you signed any work documents, this may also be proof that you worked for that employer.

Read also: Name any three legal grounds for termination of an employment contract

What to do if the employer does not pay wages?

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I worked unofficially and were not paid my salary. Where to contact?

Hello. In January I got a job as a warehouse manager for a private entrepreneur, after a month of probation I was fired for personal reasons, they thought that I was not suitable for them. When I was fired, they didn’t pay me my salary for half the term (about 17 thousand rubles), saying that they would pay me when they finished taking inventory of the warehouse, in case I might have messed up there. 4 weeks have passed since the dismissal, they are not giving me the money, they say that they haven’t counted it yet, they are dragging their feet. They didn’t have time to officially hire me, so there is no entry in the work book. I think there will be witnesses that I worked there. Unfortunately, the job advertisement was not preserved on the site, so it is not known whether I can prove that the employer owes me 17,000, and not, say, 3,000. I read that you can contact the labor inspectorate, the prosecutor's office and the court.

Question 1: Do I need to tell my employer in advance that I am going to take action against him, or is it better to be a surprise to him so that he does not have time to clean up the documents?

Question 2: If you apply, where is it better? If in several places, then in what order, if it matters?

Question 3: What can I count on in my case, punishment from the employer, payment of the money due to me, or is it possible that I will achieve nothing at all?

Lawyers' answers (1)

You need to collect as much evidence as possible, witnesses, documents you signed, passes, etc.

There is no need to warn the employer.

I’m not sure that it will be possible to determine the size of the salary, but you can definitely count on the minimum wage.

First, you need to try to resolve the issue with the help of the State Labor Inspectorate, while at the same time preparing to go to court with a statement of claim, since the period for going to court to resolve an individual labor dispute is three months (for reinstatement - 1 month) from the day the employee found out or should have found out about the violation of his labor rights (Article 392 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

Before going to court, you need to send a letter to the employer demanding payment of your salary and register it in incoming correspondence, or send it by registered mail with return receipt requested.

This letter will be evidence in court of an attempt to resolve the dispute out of court, and if the employer responds, it will possibly be evidence that the employer actually hired you.

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What to do if you haven’t been paid your salary at an unofficial job

Unfortunately, in modern conditions it is impossible to exclude a situation in which you cannot receive payment for your work. It is especially problematic to resolve the issue when you were not officially employed. What to do and what ways there are to force an employer to pay you a salary - let’s try to figure it out in this article.

Tricks of employers

What tricks can employers resort to to avoid having to pay the money an employee earns? Sometimes these are outright fraudulent schemes; in some cases, the employer tries to explain the delay in payments by temporary financial difficulties at the enterprise.

As you understand, the reasons can be far-fetched, and their variety is constantly growing. Let's look at several real examples in which employers either do not pay wages at all, or pay significantly less than the previously agreed amount.

According to staffing schedule

You are in a job search. You respond to a vacancy posted in the media or on the Internet. After a successful interview, you are hired. To do this, you need to write an application, which may include the wording “with salary, according to the staffing table.”

On the day you receive your first salary in this position, its size may be unexpectedly small. The secret is that they paid you a monetary reward in full accordance with the salary provided by the company's staff. And when the advertisement was submitted, the salary was deliberately increased to attract candidates. They will simply tell you that there was a mistake in the ad.

Around the coefficient

Another opportunity for an employer to significantly reduce the salary of its employee is the use of coefficients for the probationary period.

During the hiring process, they will simply “forget” to warn you that for 1-2-3 months, while you, according to the employment contract, are on a probationary period, your salary is a certain percentage of the salary of a full-time employee. Depending on the impudence of the employer, this reduction factor in real payments can vary from 10 to 50 percent.

Captured by the crisis

In an environment of financial and economic crisis, enterprises justify delays in payment by the fact that they do not have the funds for this. Perhaps the company did not receive the planned profit, or the transaction turned out to be unprofitable. Employees are asked to “be patient” for a month, then two...

There are real cases when a person worked for more than one month, hoping to get his earned money. When such a situation arises at an enterprise where you have worked for a long period, you can wait a few months. But if this becomes the norm, and, moreover, you have only recently started working in a new place, then it is better to start looking for another job.

Unofficial employment

Studying the problem of delay or refusal to pay wages if you worked unofficially, you need to start with the fact: Russian legislation does not provide for such a thing as “unofficial employment.”

Despite this, practice shows that relations between an employer and an employee without signing an employment contract are quite common. This negatively affects, first of all, the employee, depriving him of the social guarantees and rights provided by law.

The signing of an employment contract between an employer and an employee is provided for in Article 67 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. The letter of the law requires the employer to draw up this document, which stipulates the relationship between both parties.

In the case when you work unofficially, the document is not issued. Also, the company will not have any documents about you (order of enrollment, etc.), and the corresponding entry will not be made in the work book. You will be paid a “black” salary, without paying taxes and all necessary contributions to social funds.

Read also: Calculation period for calculating compensation for unused vacation

How to get your salary paid

What to do in a situation where you worked without registration and did not receive a salary? Are there real mechanisms that can force the employer to pay the money earned?

Article 67 of the Labor Code contains a provision according to which even an undocumented contract can be considered concluded in a situation where the employee began to work and the employer gave his consent to this. In this case, you will have to fight for your rights with the help of such structures as the prosecutor's office and the labor inspectorate.

First of all, you will have to provide strong evidence that you actually worked for this company. There will be certain difficulties with this, since there is no signed employment contract. Once you file a complaint describing the work without proper documentation, an appropriate investigation will be initiated.

Based on the results of the investigation, the employer will have to be held accountable in accordance with current legislation. In this case, you have the right to demand that the employer pay you the agreed amount of remuneration for the work done.

How to prove the fact of work

In such a difficult situation, the most difficult thing may be to collect evidence that can confirm the fact that the person actually worked and performed certain functions in the interests of the employer. This need will arise if the relevant government agencies are closely involved in considering your complaint.

What to do in such a situation? First of all, the testimony of witnesses will be useful. These can be not only former colleagues and employees of the organization. The witness could be a client or business partner of the company you worked for.

Additionally, you can present documentation that you worked with in this company.

If there are documents processed by you personally, or with your signature, they will certainly defend the fact that you really worked in this organization. Any acts, invoices, even a printout of calls from your cell phone, if it may indicate that you regularly had contact with employees or management of the company.

Features of unofficial work

To be fair, it should be noted that informal work has both positive and negative sides. Negative:

• There are no guarantees of payment for sick leave and maternity leave, there is a high chance of being left without bonuses and additional payments.
• If you recycle, you may also not receive the co-payment due;
• High risk of delayed wages, or even refusal to pay.
• When you receive a “black” salary, you do not accumulate your work experience; it is not taken into account when calculating your pension.
• If you suffer a work injury, you may be left without the required insurance payment and compensation.

But there are also positive aspects to informal employment:

• By paying “black” wages, the employer, and therefore you, saves on tax payments.
• Having a “black” salary, you will not pay alimony or other court-ordered payments from it.
• Working unofficially, you cannot be held legally responsible for the results of your work.
• There is a high probability that the “black” salary will be significantly higher than what you will receive if you officially apply for a job.

Assessing all the pros and cons, everyone must independently decide whether to work under an employment contract or informally. It is important to assess all risks and foresee the possible consequences of the decision made.

How much do actors earn in Russia?

What is “black” wages and what is the employer’s responsibility?

It is very rare when employers conscientiously and honestly want to show their reliable income by paying taxes established by the state on them. Let's understand the intricacies of salary. called “black”, “salary in an envelope” has a similar meaning. What is a salary in an envelope? So, the employee is hired on the condition that his salary is “black”. What should he expect? Since the goal of employers is to minimize tax payments, official registration of an employee with the company is not provided. You need to be prepared that they will not conclude an employment contract with him, or that only the official part of the salary will be indicated in it; as a rule, it is a small part of it. The work book will not include a note about the period of work at this company, although the employer may require you to bring the book. The salary will most likely be paid in an envelope from hand to hand by mutual agreement, concluded literally in words, counting on mutual decency. The employee’s salary will consist of two parts: the first “black”, unofficial, which he will receive in an envelope, and the second – formal, the one that will be indicated in the employment contract. In order to have the potential to evade paying taxes honestly and at will, the employer has to maintain double documentation in the accounting department, while unaccounted profits will go to the black salary.

What to do if your employer does not pay unofficial wages

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I worked unofficially, my salary was not paid: what to do?

It is in this document that all essential working conditions are prescribed.

Well, if a contract is not concluded, then there is no order for hiring, and therefore no entry in the work book. This fact also assumes that the employer will not pay sick leave and maternity leave, and is not obliged to pay bonuses and various additional payments. The employer does not have any legal obligations to employees, which means he can delay wages or not pay them at all.

What to do if your employer does not pay unofficial wages

In accordance with Article 57 of the Code, the terms of remuneration, in particular the amount of wages, must be included in the employment contract with the employee. In practice, some employers are officially prepared to pay only part of the real wage and indicate only this figure in the employment contract. For the rest of the amount stated at the interview, as a rule, no legal documents are drawn up, such as additional agreements or orders for additional payments.

It will be unpleasant for every person if their salary is not paid. Where to turn when such an incident actually occurs? After all, this issue cannot be left unresolved. Well, there is an answer to this case.

We don't go to work

When a person does not know where to turn if his salary is not paid, then the first thing he should understand is that the first authority in this case is his immediate management. Article No. 142 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation states that every employee has the right of self-defense. And he can express this by refusing to go to work if his work has not been rewarded according to all the rules.

In this case, the delay in payment must be more than 15 days. However, if a person decides to take such a step, he will have to draw up a written notice about this, which he will give to his employer. And, as soon as the employee receives a message from the boss that he is ready to pay the debt, he will be obliged to return to his duties the next day.

Who is prohibited from “rebelling”

Of course, this can be done if wages are not paid. What should those people do who are forbidden to “revolt” in this way? There is a way out for them too. But first, we should list workers in specialties who do not have the right to stop working:

1. Workers directly related to the life support sector. These are communications, ambulance and emergency medical care, energy, body and gas supplies.
2. Also, civil servants and people involved in servicing hazardous industries and equipment cannot cease their activities.
3. This list includes persons serving in emergency rescue, armed, search and rescue and firefighting forces. And also people working in territories where the military or

Contacting the labor inspectorate

The labor inspectorate is where to turn if the employer does not pay wages. This is the most effective method, which, by the way, is convenient for many workers. And all because the named body was created to ensure the implementation of labor legislation. Inspectorate specialists supervise this.

For them to come to the rescue, you just need to make a written request. And let it be accepted in free form, but the situation must be described in all details. After all, it is on the basis of this document that the inspection will be carried out. And based on its results, after a violation is discovered, appropriate sanctions will be applied to the employer.

In addition, the inspection staff will assist the applicant in drawing up the documents that will be required to go to court. In general, this is where you can turn if your salary is not paid.

Court assistance

The court is a government body. And it is he who will help best of all if your salary has not been paid. Where to turn besides the court was mentioned above. But if all this does not work (and this happens), only the last method remains.

The court will help, but not to punish the culprit, but to return honestly earned money. Appropriate sanctions will be applied to the dishonest boss, and this will be dealt with by the authorized bodies, which have all the rights to do this.

But the employee cannot relax in this case. The main task is to get your money back. But not only this requirement can be indicated in the statement of claim - the applicant has the right to demand compensation. And the employer will be obliged to pay it, since he used someone else’s money. And this is an article.

Such compensation is calculated starting from the first day of delayed wages. If, for example, it was supposed to be accrued on the 1st, then interest will come from the 2nd.

Prosecutor's office

This is a supervisory body that is authorized to conduct appropriate checks on applications submitted by citizens. This is where you can go if your wages are not paid.

What to do? First, come to the prosecutor's office. At the entrance, find out the name of the employee on duty and the number of the office in which he is located. And then you need to explain to him the essence of the problem, in as much detail as possible. And write a statement in front of him. This will be the best option. Many people send applications by mail due to lack of time for personal visits. But the issue will be resolved faster if you still come. By the way, complaints against employers are among the most common.

The application is drawn up in two copies. One remains with the prosecutor's office, and the other with the victim. When contacting this body, you need to stock up not only with evidence, but also with witnesses. There is no point in lying or embellishing - it is punishable. One of your colleagues may act as witnesses.

The application is written in a standard form. Its “header” indicates the applicant’s full name, as well as his address and telephone number. And the main part describes the situation and states a request to take action. At the end there is a date and signature.

So the prosecutor's office is the place to go if wages are not paid on time, not only is it possible, but it is necessary!

What awaits the employer?

We told you what to do if your salary has not been paid. It’s also clear where to go. But a couple more words need to be added regarding what punishment awaits an unscrupulous employer. This is similarly written in Article 5.27 of the Code of Administrative Responsibility.

So, the official and private entrepreneur will have to pay a fine. Its size can range from one to five thousand rubles. Legal entities will have to pay from 30 thousand to 50 thousand rubles. There is another penalty - if an official again commits a violation of this nature, he is suspended from office for three years. The period may be shorter, but the maximum is 3 years.

Severe penalties

If the fact of complete non-payment of wages for two months (or more) is recorded, then the provision of Article 145.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation comes into force. And the violator will be given a more severe punishment. The fine will amount to 100-500 thousand rubles or an amount equal to the victim’s salary for three years. The perpetrator may also be imprisoned for the same period.

True, if the salary was not paid for good reasons, events will develop differently. For example, if the delay did not occur at the will of the employer. Although he will still have to pay compensation at the so-called refinancing rate.

Knowing where to go if the employer does not pay wages, the main thing is to do this, and the issue will be resolved by the relevant authorities.

In case of dismissal

It is important to talk about what to do if your salary has not been paid after dismissal. Where to go in this case? More on this later. To begin with, we need to pay attention to several important nuances.

Firstly, a person can count on several types of payments:

• the salary he has worked for the last time;
• means that compensate for it;
• severance pay.

The employer must give all the money to his employee on the day he quits. In addition to the amount, a work book and a certificate in form 2-NDFL will also be issued. And also a document indicating the amount of earnings used to calculate payments and dismissal benefits.

What if wages are not paid? Where to go was stated above. And the procedure is the same, only the reason for going to court or the prosecutor’s office will be slightly different.

In case of unofficial registration

Many people are still interested in where to turn if they do not pay “black” wages. And this is where problems can really arise. If a person is not officially registered, then he will not be able to influence the employer by legal means. They are outside the legal field. Therefore, the boss may not pay him his salary with impunity.

So, there are no places where to turn if wages are not paid unofficially? Be that as it may, first of all - to the boss himself. You need to talk to him and try to get things moving. If it works out, then we still need to insist on official registration in order to have guarantees in the future.

And finally, the trial. It’s just that you won’t be able to go there just like that. Before this, you will still need to hold a meeting with the employer. Having previously equipped yourself with a turned on voice recorder and a hidden camera. The entire conversation will be recorded on audio and video media. And during the conversation, you will need to ask the boss leading questions, answering which, he will also tell you about how long the person has been working for him unofficially, how much he owes, etc.

This will require the worker’s skill in conspiracy and the ability to formulate questions exactly as needed in order to get the desired answer. And then you can go to court. This is where to go if you don't get paid.

What a person working in Ukraine should know

This is also worth talking about. As well as where to turn if your salary has not been paid. Ukraine is a country with different legislation, albeit in many ways similar to Russian legislation. Its Constitution contains article number 43. It clearly states that every employee has the full right to receive payment for his work on the basis of an employment contract. This is also described in Article 21 of the Law of Ukraine, which talks about remuneration.

The remuneration, judging by it, should be paid to the person regularly and on working days. Within the period specified in the collective agreement. And if the day on which payments are made is a weekend or holiday, then the reward is issued the day before.

According to Ukrainian laws (as, by the way, also according to Russian ones), if a person is not given his salary, he must first contact the employer, demanding an explanation. If even after this the salary was not paid along with compensation, then you can file a claim in court.

And this must be done in any case - both in case of a long delay, and if the salary was not paid upon dismissal. Where to contact? There is a choice. This country also has the State Labor Inspectorate of Ukraine.

What to do after?

If the boss paid the bills and paid the salary, then you can calm down. It seems so. But in reality it is better to leave and look for another place. If an employer fails to pay a debt once, it is not a fact that he will not do so in the future. It is better to look for another job, since a long one here indicates that the boss does not value his employees and is not able to provide them with stability.

“I worked unofficially, my salary was not paid” - unfortunately, many people face such an unpleasant situation. How to prove the presence of black wages and the fact of non-payment or delay of earned money - read on our website.

How to get an unofficial salary if your employer refuses to pay

If there is no formalization and the salary is received “in an envelope,” the employee may face many troubles. The most pressing is the inability to influence an employer who is delaying wages using legal means. Often, gray wages are not paid upon dismissal; this is perhaps the most common consequence of missing registration. Labor relations are outside the legal framework and the employer can refuse to repay the employee’s arrears of wages with impunity. Since it is not easy to get a gray salary if problems arise at work, it is better, of course, not to risk agreeing to work without registration. But, nevertheless, the applicant often simply cannot refuse a successful offer with a salary “in an envelope”.

There are still some methods for solving the problem of “how to get an unofficial salary.”

First, the best way is to talk to the employer, in the case of good personal relationships, this can move the situation from a dead point and the payment of black wages will still occur.

Secondly, you can start insisting on official registration in accordance with the Labor Code.

The third approach involves further appeal to the court. Before going to court, you need to organize a meeting with your employer and come to it fully armed, with a voice recorder or video camera (if, of course, you can hide it). During such a conversation, the employer needs to ask leading questions, from the answers to which it will be clear how long you have been working unofficially, what is the volume and duration of the outstanding wages. Of course, due to certain realities, the last advice is not always reasonable and suitable for a specific situation when the employee was not paid an unpaid salary.

How to prove illegal wages if the case goes to court

Along with the method described above, there are other, less exotic ways to prove a gray salary. To be fair, we note that it is often simply impossible to prove the existence of an employment relationship between an employee and an employer in the absence of documentation. The employer, as a rule, still has the opportunity to deny in court any involvement of the employee in the enterprise. Since it is difficult to prove unofficial wages after non-payments begin, evidence collected before the critical period of delay or refusal to pay wages works best. These include copies of pay slips, albeit unofficial ones, documents from the company’s internal circulation, which include the name and signature of the employee and, one way or another, mention the unofficial salary. Collected in advance, they can serve well in the event of conflicts with the employer and help ensure that the payment of gray wages becomes a reality.

If such documents cannot be found and presented to the court, then two options remain. The first and rather unpromising one is to contact the company’s accounting department with a request to provide documents that are in one way or another related to you and prove that you have received wages. The second, which often helps in practice, is to find witnesses who are ready to confirm your labor involvement in the activities of the enterprise. If such people are found, the chances of a court decision in your favor increase significantly.

And, returning to recording evidence by recording conversations with management or an accountant, it is worth noting that such effective and compelling arguments should be collected before the conflict with the employer becomes acute. In principle, this also applies to all other methods of collecting evidence of “black” wages, since when an employee displays a tough and decisive position, management often simply prohibits other employees from communicating with him as “unreliable.”

Considering the issue of the legality of collecting information by secretly recording personal conversations with an employer, we can conclude that such an act does not entail any legal consequences for you. But it should be remembered that this applies specifically to personal communication and the installation of listening or intercepting devices is unacceptable - at best, the court will not accept evidence collected by this method.

Should you expect to be paid maternity leave with an unofficial salary?

In many ways, the issue of paying maternity benefits with a “gray” salary depends on whether the employer is interested in further cooperation with you. Unfortunately, in most cases, employers are not ready to take on such a burden, and paying maternity leave with an unofficial salary is rather an exception to the rule. It is also worth considering that maternity and child care benefits are paid from special funds, contributions to which must be deducted from the official salary. This approach provides social insurance and guarantees of benefit payments to a woman on maternity leave.

Good afternoon.
Article 84.1 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation
On the day of termination of the employment contract, the employer is obliged to issue the employee a work book and make payments to him in accordance with Article 140 of this Code. Upon written application by the employee, the employer is also obliged to provide him with duly certified copies of documents related to work.
In case of non-payment of wages to an employee, the employer is obliged in accordance with Art. 236 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, pay delayed wages with interest in the amount of not less than one three hundredth of the refinancing rate of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation in force at that time on amounts not paid on time for each day of delay.
Write a complaint to the labor inspectorate and the prosecutor's office.
In accordance with Art. 392 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, an employee has the right to go to court to resolve an individual labor dispute regarding dismissal within one month.
Missing the deadlines established by this article for good reasons can be restored by the court.
Warn your employer about these possible troubles, either verbally or in writing. If he doesn’t understand, sue the employer, with all the ensuing interest on the payment of settlement money to you.
The claim is filed in the district court at the location (legal address) of the employer. According to Art. 392 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation (LC), a claim for recovery of wages must be brought within three months from the day the employee learned or should have learned about the violation of his right. According to Art. 393 of the Labor Code, you are exempt from paying fees and court costs.
Proving the existence of an employment relationship in your case will be problematic, since there was no formalization of the employment relationship. Consequently, referring in court to their existence (labor relations) in the absence of evidence will be pointless. I recommend that if the dispute is not resolved, you contact the labor inspectorate with a complaint against the employer. Perhaps this will help you achieve your rights.
I suggest that you send the application to the employer yourself by registered mail with a certified return receipt and a list of the attachments. The text of the statement will be here
such:
“I, full name, worked at “…….” (indicate the name of the employer's organization and
its organizational and legal form of ownership (LLC, individual entrepreneur, OJSC, etc.)
for the position “………..” from “___” _______________ 20__ to “___”
______________ 20___
During the period of work, the employer did not pay me wages even once, in violation of Article 136 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation - indicate the amount for each month worked. (i.e. October 2014 - …, November 2014 - ….., December 2014 - ………..)
Upon dismissal, the employer did not issue a pay slip, which is a violation of Articles 84.1, 127, 136, 140 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
I remind you that in accordance with Article 67 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, an employment contract that is not formalized in
in writing, is considered concluded if the employee has begun
work with the knowledge or on behalf of the employer or his representative.
However, I would like to resolve this situation peacefully and receive payment upon dismissal without official registration for work. If the calculation
will not be issued to me, I will be forced to contact the appropriate
authorities, which may result in undesirable consequences
for the organization, because the employer not only did not pay the settlement when
dismissal and did not formalize the employment relationship properly, but also underestimated
tax base for wages and base for accrual
insurance contributions to the Pension Fund of the Russian Federation, which also resulted in the fact that
the corresponding reports were not submitted to the Tax Inspectorate and the Pension Fund.
For violation of labor legislation, the employer bears administrative responsibility under Article 5.27 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation, parts 1 and 2.
Criminal liability under Article 145.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for non-payment of wages, pensions, scholarships, benefits and other payments.
Criminal liability for underestimation of the tax base and non-payment or
incomplete payment of taxes under Article 199 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, and administrative
liability under Article 122 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation.
Article 47 of the Federal Law of the Russian Federation dated July 24, 2009 No. 212-FZ provides for liability for
non-payment or incomplete payment of insurance contributions to the Pension Fund as a result of
understatement of the base for calculating insurance premiums, other incorrect
calculation of insurance premiums or other illegal actions
(inaction) of insurance premium payers in the form of a fine of 20
percent of the unpaid amount of insurance premiums. And if these actions
committed intentionally, then entail a fine of 40 percent
unpaid amount of insurance premiums.
In court, I will demand payment of the settlement with interest, Article 236 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, and compensation for moral damages to me, Article 237 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
The corresponding settlement amount (specify the amount) with compensation for unused vacation (Article 127 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation) in the amount of 4.66 days should
be paid to me no later than the next day after receiving this
letters, or no later than the next day after returning to my address
notification of delivery of this application."
If, nevertheless, this letter does not bring the desired result, then
You will have to contact the following authorities: labor inspectorate, prosecutor's office, police, court, tax office, Pension Fund, using a list of evidence of work with this employer, as well as signs of the presence of “gray” and “black” wages.
The text of the appeal to the tax office and the State Tax Inspectorate, you use according to the sample application letter
employer, simply indicate additionally at the end of the text that you
worked without drawing up an employment contract, but the employer is obliged to pay you for the work performed, Article 67.1 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, and what you are asking is to bring the employer to administrative responsibility, as well as oblige him to pay you wages and payment upon dismissal for the period worked.
To the tax office and the Pension Fund you again use the text of the letter
to the employer. Indicate that the employer employs unregistered
employees for whom the employer does not pay taxes.