Russia: Labor Code is adapted to meet the challenges of teleworking

On 08 December, President Putin promulgated Federal Law 407-FZ on telework. The text, which was adopted on 26 November after its 3rd reading in the Duma, (Parliament), alters the labor code to better take into account issues surrounding telework and to ‘protect workers and preserve jobs,’ says its authors. It establishes a framework for implementing telework whereby (i) employees are able to choose this working arrangement, except in exceptional circumstances, (ii) workers' salaries can be maintained, and (iii) employers are given new grounds for employment dismissal decisions, particularly for the case should employees prove unreachable for prolonged periods.