What are the changes in terms of applying to the court in labour disputes?

As a general rule, a three-month period is established for an employee to apply for a resolution
of a labour dispute directly to the court. Such a period is calculated from the day when the
employee learned or should have learned about the violation of his right.

Peculiarities regarding the term are defined for disputes in dismissal cases, namely: a
one-month period from the date of delivery of a copy of the dismissal order.

It is important that the rule regarding an unlimited term for applying to the court with
lawsuits for the recovery of salary has been excluded from the Labour Code of Ukraine.

Thus, in cases of payment of all sums due to the employee upon dismissal, a three-month
period is provided from the date of receipt by him of written notice of the sums accrued and
paid to him upon dismissal.

The limitation of the period for applying to the court with lawsuits regarding the recovery of
salary is a rather significant change because previously such lawsuits were not limited in
time.

In addition, in case of missing the specified terms for valid reasons, the court may renew these
terms, if no more than one year has passed since the date of receipt of a copy of the dismissal
order or a written notification about the sums accrued and paid to the employee upon
dismissal. Previously, there were no such restrictions on the procedure for renewing the term.

At the same time, during the quarantine established by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine to
prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), the above-mentioned deadlines for
applying to the court in labour disputes are extended for the duration of such quarantine. As
of today, quarantine has been imposed on the territory of Ukraine until 30 April 2023.