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The salary is below the minimum wage. Why didn't salaries rise to the minimum wage?

In an effort to reduce the cost of production and be competitive in the market, unscrupulous entrepreneurs reduce the salaries of their employees. The state stands up to protect the interests of workers: the minimum wage is prescribed in the legislative acts of the regional and federal levels, below which no company has the right to fall, regardless of the field of activity and location. Violation of this rule entails the imposition of penalties and problems with regulatory authorities.

According to the provisions of the current legislation, the minimum wage is the minimum possible salary of employees, which can be set by the employer. The value is determined at the federal level annually.

What will be the minimum wage for the next period depends on the following macroeconomic factors:

  • the price level in the country;
  • unemployment rate;
  • inflation rate;
  • production indicators;
  • needs of workers from Russia and foreign countries.

From January 1, 2019, the minimum wage in Russia amounted to 11,280 rubles.

The MOT performs the following functions:

  • Used to regulate the income of workers.
  • It serves as the basis for determining the amount of benefits for sick leave, pregnancy and childbirth.
  • Used to calculate insurance premiums.

Important! Labor legislation does not allow the use of the minimum wage for purposes other than those listed.

Art. 133 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation states that the “minimum wage” cannot be set below the subsistence minimum, which is also determined annually at the legislative level. In practice, this provision is not fulfilled: in 2019, the spread between the indicators is more than 10,000 rubles. However, it is expected that in the future the values ​​will equalize due to the efforts of the economic policy of the state.

What is the MRO made up of?

Art. 129 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation states that the following transfers to an employee are included in the minimum wage:

  • salary determined based on the qualifications of the specialist, the complexity and characteristics of work;
  • compensation payments (for example, due for harmful or dangerous working conditions);
  • incentive payments (annual, quarterly, monthly bonuses, etc.);
  • other surcharges received from the company-employer.

If an employee works as an internal part-time job, i.e. in addition to the main duties, performs additional ones, the latter are paid separately. The income of an external part-time worker depends on the agreements reached between him and the company.

If a person worked for 1.5 rates instead of one, he cannot receive a salary in the amount of one "minimum salary". His income will be calculated in proportion to the time worked.

Labor legislation prohibits including in the calculation of the minimum wage payment for work overtime, on weekends and holidays. For this, separate transfers are laid, which are determined at a one and a half rate in the first two hours and at a double rate in the subsequent time. By agreement with a specialist, monetary compensation can be replaced by additional days of rest.

If the employee's salary is less than the "minimum wage", the employer is obliged to make an additional payment. For example, if a specialist is assigned a salary of 5,000, and there are no compensation and incentive payments, the employing company is obliged to transfer to him an additional (9,489 - 5,500) = 3,989 rubles. If she does not do this, the regulatory authorities will apply penalties against the organization.

Can the salary be lower than the minimum wage?

Article 133 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation prescribes that an employee's income received from an employer cannot be lower than the minimum threshold if two conditions are met:

  • a person has worked a full month;
  • fulfilled the duties of the job.

The concept of income includes salary, bonuses, compensation and other payments received from the employing company. If the amount of transfers is more than the minimum wage, there are no violations of regulations.

The enterprise performs the functions of a tax agent, i.e. withholds personal income tax 13% of the income received by employees. The amount received after budgetary transfers may turn out to be less than the “minimum wage”: this does not contradict Russian law.

There may be cases when, legally, an employee of an organization will receive an income less than the minimum wage. For example, if a person works part-time or part-time working week, this fact is spelled out in the contract or an additional agreement to it, there are no violations of the law. The same rule applies to external part-time work, when a specialist devotes 2-3 hours a day to the performance of official duties, and spends the rest of the time at the main place of employment.

What is a regional minimum wage?

According to the provisions of Art. 133 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the authorities of the subject of the federation, in agreement with trade unions and organizations, have the right to introduce their own minimum wage on its territory. It must necessarily exceed the federal value. In 2019, 32 regions of the country use this opportunity. These include the Moscow, Bryansk, Kursk regions, the republics of Tatarstan, Khakassia, Buryatia, the Trans-Baikal Territory and others.

Companies located in the territory of the subject, where the “minimum wage” is increased, are considered to have tacitly acceded to the agreement, even if they did not take part in its discussion. Information about decision is published on the official website of the executive branch for public review.

If an organization does not want to join the initiative, it has 30 days from the date of publication of the decision to send a written refusal to the authorities explaining the reasons. “Silence” obliges the commercial structure to submit to the innovation and raise the wages of employees to the level of the regional minimum wage. Failure to comply with this rule entails the same sanctions as ignoring the federal minimum wage.

Responsibility for paying wages below the minimum wage

The legal minimum is mandatory for companies to comply with different areas activity and scope. Evasion of the requirements prescribed by the legal acts of the Russian Federation entails administrative liability.

In 2019, the amount of penalties for violators is set at the level of:

  • up to 50 thousand rubles - for the organization;
  • up to 5 thousand rubles - for the management of the company;
  • up to 5 thousand rubles - for a private entrepreneur.

If the first punishment does not have the desired effect, and the violator continues to pay wages to staff below the norm, the fines increase. For how long - the inspectors will decide. For example, a legal entity instead of 50 thousand will be obliged to pay 70 thousand rubles to the budget.

If an organization does not comply with the minimum threshold, it becomes an object of increased interest from the tax authorities. She is suspected of paying "gray" salaries and evading the transfer of personal income tax and insurance premiums. For the "re-education" of unscrupulous employers, special commissions are created from representatives of regulatory authorities.

The minimum wage of an employee is a certain amount established by law, below which the employer has no right to pay.

What the law says

Calculation of the minimum wage

The minimum wage is set annually federal law. It is calculated taking into account the increase in prices and payment for services and does not include:

  • awards and promotions;
  • surcharges, coefficients and allowances;
  • payments for work in severe climatic conditions;
  • payments for work in territories that have undergone radioactive contamination;
  • payments for work in difficult and difficult conditions.
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Setting a minimum wage

Can an employer pay less than the minimum wage?

How payments are controlled

  • for officials - 10,000 - 20,000 rubles;
  • for individual entrepreneurs - 1000 - 5000 rubles;
  • on the legal entities- 30,000 - 50,000 rubles.

Repeated violations may result in the following penalties:

  • for officials - 20,000 - 30,000 rubles or disqualification for a period of one to three years;
  • for individual entrepreneurs - 10,000 - 30,000 rubles;
  • for legal entities - 50,000 - 100,000 rubles.

If an employee believes that the employer is underpaying him, he can file a written complaint with the trade union committee or the federal labor and employment inspectorate.

Can the salary be less than the minimum wage?

The minimum wage (minimum wage) is a standard, the amount of which is established by law. Below it, it is impossible to pay wages to employees who worked for a calendar month and completed the work in full.

The minimum wage is used in the calculation:

The employer may be subject to a fine under the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, arrest, corrective work, etc. In addition, officials are suspended from work for 1.5 years if they commit guilty acts.

Can they pay less than the minimum wage?

Earnings of a citizen may not reach the level of the minimum wage.

In this case, the company where he works needs to issue an additional payment to the employee up to the established limit.

If these rules are violated, the employer will be liable as described above.

Article 133 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation establishes that an employer cannot pay a salary less than the minimum wage, provided that the employee works for a whole month, with the completion of the entire amount of work. Is it possible to make a salary less than the minimum wage legally?

Separate nuances

What will be the consequences for the employer if his employee receives “net” wages less than the minimum wage? The answer is unequivocal: nothing threatens the employer.

How to pay salaries to IP employees - step by step instructions

The salary of IP employees happens: The salary, the amount of which depends on the number of hours worked, can be either in the form of an hourly rate or in the form of a certain salary for working the established hours.

Example. IP Ivanov hires a salesperson with a fixed rate of 50 rubles per hour.

The employee worked 180 hours per month. His salary: 180 * 50 \u003d 9,000 rubles.

Is the GIT inspector right: Should an employee receive more minimum wage?

In this definition, there is no indication that remuneration is the amount received "on hand", minus taxes and fees.

Although there is no term "accrued".

Charged or Paid? And where is the logic? It is calculated not for the number of children, but for the performance of labor duties.

What to do if a fine was issued for this reason?

It is impossible to argue with such inspectors.

What to do if the salary is below the minimum wage

Salary may be less than minimum wage

It is important to note that if, after withholding personal income tax, from the income due to the employee, he receives an amount less than the minimum wage, then this does not threaten the employer.

Supplement to minimum wage

What threatens the payment of wages below the minimum wage

If an employer pays its employees wages below the established federal wage rate, then if labor inspectors discover this fact, the employer faces a fine (Part 1 of Art.

1 st. 5.27 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation):

  • if the employer is a legal entity, then in the amount of 30,000 rubles. up to 50,000 rubles for the organization itself and from 1000 rubles. up to 5000 rub. for its officials;
  • if the employer is an individual entrepreneur, then in the amount of 1000 rubles. up to 5000 rub.

In case of repeated violation, the fine will increase. For example, a company in which, after the initial detection of a violation, the employees will not increase their wages, they will be fined in the amount of 50,000 rubles. up to 70,000 rubles (Part 4 Art.

The question of whether the salary can be less than the minimum wage in 2019 is relevant for both many employees and employers. After all, the current legislation provides a large number of guarantees to workers, including the prohibition of receiving wages less than the minimum wage. However, there are a number of situations in which paying an employee less than the minimum wage is not prohibited - and they should also be borne in mind by each party to the employment relationship.

Can the salary be less than the minimum wage in 2019 - laws and regulations

The current legislation in matters of ensuring guarantees for workers relies primarily on the provisions of the Constitution. The right to decent work and to receive a salary not lower than the legal minimum is enshrined in the provisions of Article 37 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, and is fundamental - both for Russian citizens and for foreigners and stateless persons working on Russian territory. However, the Constitution does not contain direct mechanisms legal regulation the issues it considers.

Therefore, if you want to know if the salary can be less than the minimum wage in 2019, you should first of all familiarize yourself with the provisions of the following regulatory documents and acts:

  • Art. 2 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. Its provisions establish the right of every worker to receive a salary in accordance with the established minimum wage.
  • Art. 130 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. The standards set forth in this article give the state the right to regulate social guarantees for workers, including in matters of establishing a unified federal minimum wage.
  • Art. 133 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. It establishes in its provisions the principles by which the minimum wage is set. Including the fact that the minimum wage, below which the employee's salary cannot fall, is regulated by separate federal laws.
  • Art. 133.1 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. This article regulates issues related to the minimum wage in individual constituent entities of the Russian Federation - in the territory of various regions, the minimum allowable salary may be higher than that adopted at the federal level.
  • Federal Law No. 82 dated 06/19/2000. This Federal Law is the main regulatory document that establishes a specific minimum wage throughout the Russian Federation.

Keep in mind that the minimum wage changes regularly. So, in 2019, from January 1, the minimum wage is 11,280 rubles.

Based on the provisions of the above documents, it may be believed that a salary less than the minimum wage in 2019 is unacceptable, but this is not so.

When the salary can be less than the minimum wage

Before considering directly situations related to wages less than the minimum wage, the very concept of wages should be considered. The current legislation and the provisions of Article 129 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation define the very concept of salary as remuneration for work, which includes both the main part in the form of a salary or tariff rate, and additional payments of a compensatory or incentive nature. At the same time, the requirement to pay wages not lower than the minimum wage level is legally fixed.

The salary is only a part of the salary. Therefore, a salary below the minimum wage in 2019 is absolutely acceptable for employers or employees if the actual salary exceeds the minimum wage - for example, if the employee receives a compensatory or incentive payment up to the minimum wage on a monthly basis.

However, the number of possible cases in which the salary as a whole can be less than the minimum wage is quite large. In particular, they include the following situations:

  • Payroll deduction . The legislator requires the employer to comply with the minimum wage actually accrued to the employee - it cannot be lower than this level. However, the employer is a tax agent for each of its employees and withdraws personal income tax from the salary. At the same time, as a result, the employee can receive in his hands an amount that is less than the minimum wage - and in this case there is no violation of the current legislation.
  • . If an employee is deducted from his salary - according to a writ of execution, due to liability to the employer, in payment of alimony, then the total amount he receives may be much lower than the minimum wage. However, such a situation is also not a violation of the law, if the total amount of wages accrued to the employee was initially at the prescribed level.
  • Refusal of the employer to join the regional agreements. In the event that wages are not lower than the federal minimum wage, but lower than the minimum wage provided for by regional legislation, such a situation may be acceptable if the employer duly refused to comply with regional agreements and justified its refusal. However, this requires rather large procedural costs on the part of the employer itself and may eventually lead to conflicts with local authorities and trade union organizations.
  • A part-time employee does not have the right to work at an additional job for more than 50% of the working time at the main place of work. At the same time, employers are required to pay wages within the minimum wage, provided that the employee is fully employed. Accordingly, a part-time employee may receive a salary or salary below the minimum wage, however, in proportion to the minimum wage in accordance with the hours worked.
  • Work part-time or work week. If an employee works part-time - works part-time, then the legislation also does not oblige the employer to keep his salary at the minimum wage level. The employer will only be obliged to provide proportional minimum wage payment according to working days and hours. At the same time, it should be remembered that working in the mode of reduced working hours in situations provided for by law does not give employers the right to cut the wages of employees below the minimum wage.
  • Summarized accounting of working hours. If the employer keeps a summary record of working hours, and the employee, according to his testimony, did not fulfill the monthly norm for working hours, earnings are reduced in proportion to the hours actually worked. And, as a result, it may also turn out to be less than the minimum wage, and these actions of the employer will not be a violation.
  • Finding on . When an employee is on sick leave, the employer does not pay for his work - payment is accrued in proportion to the days actually worked by the employee. At the same time, sick leave compensation, although paid by the employer, is in fact paid at the expense of the FSS fund and is not directly attributed to wages worker.
  • Being on vacation . When an employee goes on leave without pay, the entire period of this leave is not payable, and accordingly, the monthly earnings of the worker may also fall below the minimum provided by law.
  • Simple. If a downtime occurs at the enterprise through no fault of the employer, then the latter is obliged to pay employees only 2/3 of their wages, and, accordingly, the total amount of payment may fall below the minimum wage.
  • . The employer does not have to pay the days of absenteeism of the employee - during their time the employee is deprived of wages, which in the end may lead to the fact that at the end of the month the total amount of payments received by him will also be below the established minimum.
  • Work under a civil law contract. If the person actually performing the work did not conclude an employment contract with the employer, but instead provides services under a service or contract agreement, then the requirements of labor legislation, including those regarding compliance with the minimum wage, do not apply to these relationships.

In some cases, depending on the nature of the work, the salary of employees must be multiplied or increased by a certain factor. In particular, if the employee works in hazardous working conditions. Accordingly, in such cases and without grounds for reducing the total amount of payments, the employee’s salary cannot be not only lower than the minimum wage, but also lower than the minimum wage, taking into account all allowances and compensations due to the worker.

Responsibility for paying wages below the minimum wage

Russian legislation provides for the possibility of holding the employer liable for paying wages below the minimum wage. In particular, such liability is considered by the provisions of Article 5.27 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation. At the same time, a fine will be imposed on the employer, in respect of which the fact of violation of the law is established. The amount of this fine varies depending on the organizational and legal form of the business and is:

  • From 1 to 5 thousand rubles for individual entrepreneurs.
  • From 30 to 50 thousand rubles for legal entities.

At the same time, it should be remembered that administrative proceedings can be initiated directly on the complaint of an employee.

For the performance of their work, each citizen receives a salary from the employer. Its size varies depending on the position held, the amount of work performed, etc. However, one circumstance remains unchanged: the amount of salary should not be less than the minimum established by the legislator. This minimum is called the minimum wage.

What do you need to know?

The minimum wage is a numerical indicator of the minimum wage, which is set, as a rule, once a year and is changed only by the will of the legislator.

The minimum wage is mandatory throughout the Russian Federation. At the same time, the subjects are not entitled to change its size down; they can only increase it. The size of the minimum wage depends on such indicators as the inflation rate and indexation of tariffs.

The requirement to pay the minimum wage is established only for labor relations. If the parties decide to conclude a civil law contract, then payment for the work occurs by agreement. In this case, the condition on the minimum wage should not be observed.

As mentioned earlier, there are 2 types of minimum wages: federal and regional. The latter may be more (for example, close to the subsistence level. How should the employer in this case: not pay wages below the federal or regional minimum wage?

Let's start with the fact that it's still worth relying on the feds. However, if a law has been adopted in the region to establish a larger minimum wage, then, as a rule, at the local level, all employers conclude an agreement among themselves that they will take into account the regional minimum wage in their activities. This is not a mandatory action, therefore, any employer has the right not to put his signature on the document and declare a corresponding refusal no later than 30 days when he was approached with an offer. In this case, he will set a salary not lower than the federal minimum wage.

In some cases, employers confuse two concepts: the minimum wage and the cost of living. Despite the fact that the legislator establishes the rule that the minimum wage should not be lower than the subsistence minimum, at present these two values ​​have not yet been equalized, but, according to the provisions of Art. 421 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, it is planned to gradually bring these values ​​to a single figure. Therefore, the employer should focus only on the minimum wage.

When is a salary below the minimum wage legal?

An employee's salary may consist of various kinds of allowances and other payments, which together form the total amount of earnings. If it is more than or equal to the minimum wage, then the labor inspectorate will have no questions for the employer. In addition, if a citizen is paid a salary that is not lower than the minimum, but after the deduction of personal income tax it becomes less than the minimum wage, then the employer will also not be liable, since the legislator, when establishing the rules on the amount of wages, did not take into account tax and other deductions, but had kind of total income.

In addition, even if the salary is below the minimum wage, personal income tax will still be charged in full; The Tax Code of the Russian Federation does not provide for any exemptions in this regard.

However, the legislator allows for the possibility of not paying wages at the minimum wage level and at the same time not incurring any punishment. Below we consider this issue in more detail.

Allowed by the legislator cases of payment of wages below the minimum wage

However, the legislator has provided options for calculating wages below the minimum wage. These are the following cases:

  • part-time work;
  • work on the terms of combination or combination.

In the first case, we can talk, for example, about women who are on maternity leave, but decided to go to work part-time. In this case, their salary may be less than the minimum wage by agreement with the employer. The legislator allows this option, since in this case we are talking about a “free” schedule, that is, the employee does not work out the full norm of working time.

In the second case - similarly. Part-time work assumes that a citizen will work several hours a day. Therefore, he is paid a salary based on the fact of hours worked.

When considering the issue of combining in the context of the minimum wage, it must be borne in mind that this work must be performed in their spare time. Therefore, it can also be carried out for only a few hours or days a week. Therefore, the minimum wage rule does not apply to such work.

Please note that all this must be recorded in the employment contract with the citizen, because otherwise, if only a verbal agreement is observed, the employee has the right to apply to the labor inspectorate or to the court for the protection of his rights.

In addition, there may be cases when an employee is on sick leave, on unpaid leave, that is, as a result of the fact that he did not work for a full month, his salary will be less than the minimum wage. But in this case, the employer is also not responsible, because the norm of time has not been worked out.

And, finally, the last option is the conclusion of a civil law contract with a citizen. Despite the fact that he can work on the territory of the enterprise and even receive a salary, he will not be a member of the labor relations with the employer and, accordingly, the norms of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation will not apply to him.

How to equalize salary and minimum wage?

When an employer finds out that an employee's wages are below the established minimum wage, he must take steps to equalize these amounts.

The first thing to do is to analyze the salary and find out if all the allowances and payments have been assigned to the employee. When recalculating (for example, by length of service, etc.), the amount of earnings may become more than the minimum wage, and then you should not take additional actions.

One of the options for the equation of wages and the minimum wage is the calculation of additional payments up to the size of the minimum wage. For example, an employee receives 6,000 rubles. per month. The minimum wage in 2017 leaves 7,500 rubles. Accordingly, he must be credited with the amount of 1500 rubles. At the same time, such an innovation must be brought to the attention of the employee by drawing up an additional agreement to the employment contract and issuing an appropriate order. In this case, this accrual is made from the date of entry into force of the current value of the minimum wage, since the law will not have retroactive effect.

And, finally, the last option is the transfer of an employee to a part-time job, a reduced working day, or the conclusion of a civil law contract with him. However, all these actions should be carried out only with the mutual consent of the parties to the employment relationship. Often, this scenario can be convenient for an employee, for example, for family reasons. However, all changes must be documented: by signing an additional agreement to the employment contract or by concluding a new agreement.

Who is responsible for non-compliance with the minimum wage?

If, for some unreasonable reason, the employer pays wages to employees below the minimum wage, and the latter applied to the labor inspectorate for protection of their rights, then the head of the organization may be fined for violating the labor rights of employees under Art. 5.27. Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation in the amount of 1,000 to 50,000 rubles. In the event of a repeated similar offense, the amount of fines is doubled.

If illegal schemes for reducing wages are discovered, then a criminal case may be opened against the employer under the article fraud.

In addition, if the head of the organization came into view tax authorities on the issue of calculating wages below the minimum wage, then he may become the object of additional checks when paying taxes, and his activities may come under scrutiny in the commission for the legalization of the tax base. However, to accuse the employer of a violation of Art. 122 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation 0, that is, an underestimation of the tax base in this case is impossible, since there is no subjective side of the offense.

We draw your attention to the fact that only the labor inspectorate is entitled to control the size of wages. The Federal Tax Service does not have the authority to fine employers on this basis. If a citizen goes to court, he will restore only the violated right.

Thus, all full-time workers should be paid more than the minimum wage. Otherwise, they have the right to file a complaint with the labor inspectorate.

As a general rule, an employee's monthly salary must be no less than the minimum wage established by federal law (part 3 of article 37 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation. The minimum wage is one of the main state guarantees for the remuneration of employees. But there are situations when an employer can pay employee wages below the minimum wage on a completely legal basis.
The salary of a particular employee is established in the employment contract in accordance with the wage systems in force with the employer (Article 135 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). At the same time, the monthly salary of an employee who has fully worked out the norm of working hours for this period and fulfilled labor duties cannot be lower than the minimum wage (part 3 of article 133 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).
The Labor Code of the Russian Federation distinguishes two concepts: the minimum wage, which is established by federal law throughout the territory of the Russian Federation, and the minimum wage in the constituent entity of the Russian Federation (Articles 133, 133.1 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). In practice and in various normative documents the minimum wage in the constituent entity of the Russian Federation is also called the minimum wage.
The size of the federal minimum wage from January 1, 2015 is 5965 rubles. The minimum wage in a constituent entity of the Russian Federation is established by a regional agreement and cannot be lower than the federal minimum wage (Article 133.1 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). There is no upper limit for the regional minimum wage.
The rules on the minimum wage apply only to relations with those employees with whom an employment contract has been concluded. . Therefore, when signing a work contract, paid services, etc. with an individual contractor, payment for his services does not need to be linked to the minimum wage. The amount of payment (price) under such an agreement is established solely by agreement of the parties.
The federal minimum wage has not yet been brought up to the subsistence level. Therefore, employers should rely on agreements concluded in the constituent entities of the Russian Federation.
Salary below regional minimum wage
The Labor Code gives the employer the right to set a salary in their organization below the regional minimum wage (Article 133.1 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). But this is not so easy to do.
After the conclusion of a regional minimum wage agreement, its text is officially published. At the same time, the head of the executive authority of the constituent entity of the Russian Federation for labor publishes a proposal to join the agreement for those employers who operate in the territory of the constituent entity, but did not participate in the conclusion of the agreement. Within 30 calendar days from the date of such publication, the employer may submit to the authorized executive body a written reasoned refusal to join (part 8 of article 133.1 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). It must be accompanied by a protocol of consultations with the primary trade union organization (if any) and proposals on the timing of raising the minimum wage of workers to the amount provided for by the regional agreement. As a rule, the difficult financial situation, the formation of the company, etc. are indicated as reasons for the refusal. If the described procedure is followed, the employer can set the salary for employees below the regional minimum wage. But it should be borne in mind that the payment of wages below the regional minimum will attract increased attention of the inspection bodies - both the State Tax Inspectorate and the tax inspectorate.
The regional agreement on the minimum wage automatically becomes mandatory for employers who, in the prescribed manner, have not refused to join it.
It must be remembered that, taking into account the regional minimum wage, the salary of workers who work in the territory of the corresponding subject of the Russian Federation should be set. If the organization has branches in different subjects, it needs to clarify whether the regional minimum wage is set in each of them. Of decisive importance is the fact that employees work in the territory of the corresponding subject of the Russian Federation, and not the location of the employer.
Salary below minimum wage
The salary of an employee for a fully worked month must not be less than the minimum wage. However, it can be divided into several components:
- salary - a fixed amount of remuneration of an employee for the performance of labor duties of a certain complexity for a calendar month, excluding compensatory, incentive and social payments;
- compensation payments - additional payments and allowances for work in conditions deviating from normal, special climatic conditions, in territories exposed to radioactive contamination, etc.;
- incentive payments - additional payments and allowances of a stimulating nature, bonuses and other incentive payments.
Consequently, the employer has the right to set a salary in the amount of less than the minimum wage if the employee's salary consists of several components and in general its size will not be lower than the minimum wage.
Salary "on hand" below the minimum wage
Remuneration for the performance of labor duties is subject to personal income tax (Article 208 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). The general tax rate is 13 percent (clause 1, article 224 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation).
The employer, as a tax agent, is obliged to calculate and withhold income tax from the employee's salary (Article 24 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation). The employee is actually paid the amount minus personal income tax. Therefore, an employee can receive a salary below the minimum wage.
The employee works part-time
The salary of employees employed on a part-time basis is calculated in proportion to the time they have worked or depending on the amount of work performed (Article 93 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Part-time workers, as a general rule, work no more than half of the norm of working time for the accounting period established for the corresponding category of workers (Article 284 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Therefore, part-time workers are accepted for a maximum of 0.5 rates and work 20 hours a week (at a rate of 40 hours). Their work is paid in proportion to the time worked, depending on the output or on other conditions determined by the employment contract.
Remuneration for work on a part-time basis must not be lower than the minimum wage, calculated in proportion to the hours worked. That is, the salary actually received by the employee may be less than the minimum wage. But as a result of recalculating wages for full-time conditions, an amount equal to or greater than the minimum wage should be obtained.
The employee has not fully worked for a month
Wages are paid to the employee for those days when he actually performed labor duties. If an employee did not work, but was on vacation, on sick leave, etc., his monthly salary is proportionally reduced. In this case, it is calculated based on the number of days worked in a month. That is, it is divided by the number of working days in a month according to the employee's schedule and multiplied by the number of days actually worked by him in a month. In this case, the salary accrued to the employee may be lower than the minimum wage.
Is the surcharge for combination included in the minimum wage?
Sometimes an employee, along with the main work, performs additional work in the order of combination and he is paid an additional payment. The question arises whether the monthly salary of an employee should not be lower than the minimum wage, with or without this additional payment. There are two positions on this. Supporters of the first believe that the payment for extra work can be taken into account as part of the minimum wage, since the salary includes surcharges and allowances, which include the surcharge for combining.
Adherents of the second position believe that the additional payment for combining should not be taken into account when calculating the monthly salary in order to comply with the minimum wage requirements. This is due to the fact that the work on combining is performed in excess of the duties of the main labor function. That is, the salary paid for the performance of the main work should not be lower than the minimum wage. To exclude questions from regulatory authorities, we recommend sticking to the second position.
In this way:
1. The salary of employees may be lower than the regional minimum wage if the employer duly refused to join the agreement on the minimum wage in the region.
2. An employee's salary may be lower than the minimum wage if the monthly salary, taking into account its other components, is equal to or exceeds the minimum wage. Compensation for work in adverse climatic conditions is taken into account in excess of the minimum wage
3. If an employee does not fully work out the norm of working hours, his salary in terms of full time must not be lower than the minimum wage.