Who can be a financially responsible person and what are his responsibilities?

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Published: 07/01/2016

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Financial liability according to the law is imposed on any employee guilty of causing damage to the property of his employer. However, the extent of such responsibility is not the same for everyone.

Full compensation for losses is imposed strictly in accordance with the provisions of labor and federal legislation, as well as local regulations (agreements) in force in the organization or enterprise.

In particular, the list of cases serving as the basis for compensation of losses in full is indicated in Article 233 of the Labor Code.

Who can be held responsible?
List of positions and works First list
Second list
Third list

When does full responsibility begin?

Features of concluding an employment contract

Definition

A financially responsible person is an employee who is entrusted with material assets and is fully responsible for them.

Financial liability is regulated by Chapters 37, 39 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation. The list of financially responsible persons under the Labor Code is established by Art. 244, art. 277.

It must be said that all employees are responsible for damage and loss of the organization’s property within the framework of the average monthly salary; such responsibility is partial. The average salary is calculated based on wages for the previous 12 months.

Otherwise, the financially responsible person is responsible for the obligations. Such responsibility is imposed on the team (team) or personally. Team responsibility is introduced when its members carry out activities together, and it is not possible to isolate the share of participation of each. To avoid team responsibility, a person will have to prove his own innocence with evidence.

If the financially responsible person goes on vacation or resigns, a complete inventory of the property entrusted to him is carried out (Part 3 of Article 11 402-FZ of December 6, 2011).

What work does the financially responsible person perform?

Such a document is drawn up with those who deal with the following:

Reception and issuance of cash to citizens and organizations.
Payment of various types of obligatory payments: taxes, utility bills, fines.
Making purchases or sales.
Warehouse work.
Hotel room service.
Receiving household appliances from citizens and performing repairs.
Professions involved in cargo turnover.
Liquidation in accordance with the procedure established by law of old banknotes or securities.
Car repair, sale of spare parts to citizens.
Participation in the circulation of gold and precious metals.
Other professional duties where employees are directly related to the circulation of various valuables.

After completing the relevant documents, the following responsibilities are established for such a person:

Take care of saving things, take measures to prevent possible theft or damage.
If there is a threat of harm, such an employee is obliged to warn the manager about this.
The financially responsible person is obliged to keep records of the items entrusted to him and regularly provide relevant reports.
Such a person must participate in inspections of the property entrusted to him.

The company is obliged to ensure the following:

Provide such working conditions so that he can ensure the safety of property.
The enterprise is obliged to notify of any changes in legislation or local regulations related to the area of liability.
Checks of the presence and condition of items entrusted for preservation should be carried out regularly.

It is important to understand that although the company must provide conditions to maintain the safety of the property, usually many people have access to it. Thus, safety depends not only on who is responsible.

Appointment of financially responsible persons

For the director, liability is provided in full.

The deputy director and chief accountant are appointed responsible; if this does not happen, they bear the same responsibility as other employees of the enterprise. To do this, it is enough to include such a condition in the employment contract.

The full responsibility of the employee or team is established by the agreement on the basis of which the order is prepared. The team responsibility agreement is signed by the manager and all team members.

Mandatory conditions for concluding an agreement are:

the worker has reached the age of majority;
performing work is impossible without maintenance and use of material assets.

Responsibility in a budgetary institution is characterized by the lack of circulation of money and valuable assets. There are no positions related to such activities.

Questions you should and should not ask an employer during an interview

The contract is allowed to be signed with workers in positions or engaged in work specified in Resolution of the Ministry of Labor and Social Development dated December 31, 2002 No. 85.

To avoid contradictions when applying to judicial authorities, the nuances of financial liability should be clarified; they should be contained in the job description. The law does not establish such a requirement.

Financial liability at the enterprise

While doing his job, sometimes an employee can damage the property of his company. In each such situation, the law provides for the presence or absence of an obligation to compensate for the damage caused. It is important to note that the need to pay is not automatic.

The manager is interested in the following:

employees took care of property that belonged not to them, but to the company;
in case of damage, loss or destruction of valuables, receive equivalent compensation.

The legislation provides for the possibility of signing a certain agreement with the employee, suggesting that from now on his responsibility is full. The employee cannot be forced to put his signature on it. By refusing, he does not receive increased responsibility, but also does not have the opportunity to continue to fulfill his production duties.

The scope of liability depends on the following circumstances:

Legislative provisions relevant to this area.
The presence of the employee's fault.
Did he sign a liability agreement?
What type of harm are we talking about?

Regarding the last circumstance, you need to know that only direct immediate damage is subject to compensation. If it is indirect, then we are not talking about material liability. In particular, when resolving the issues under consideration, lost profits should not be compensated.

At each work site, activities related to the accounting and use of material assets may occur, but not all employees will be fully responsible for their loss or damage.

Responsibility of this kind can be individual or collective. The latter option is used when it is not possible to distinguish between the culpability of individuals in the event of loss or damage to property. In the latter case, it is possible to avoid punishment or reduce it by proving your complete or partial innocence.

Responsibilities

Responsible persons of the organization must:

protect the organization’s property and prevent its damage;
promptly inform management about the threat of damage;
keep records of values and compile reports;
participate in checking the availability of property and its condition.

In this case, the administration must:

provide the required environment for employee work and property preservation;
familiarize the employee with laws, regulations, other documents relating to liability, local acts;
check the availability of property and its condition.

Who bears full responsibility

The worker is liable in full if:

he is given full responsibility;
a shortage of valuables was discovered, the administration drew up a document according to which the worker received these valuables;
harm was caused with intent, while in a state of intoxication, as a result of the use of alcohol, toxic, narcotic substances, property was damaged or lost as a result of a crime, administrative violation;
information has been disclosed, the non-disclosure of which is protected by law;
the worker did not fulfill his duties.

Those who have not reached the age of majority bear full responsibility in the third case listed above.

In what cases can full financial liability be applied to an employee?

While performing their immediate duties, many employees have to deal with material assets for which the employer is responsible.
Naturally, if something breaks or disappears, the employer will want to recover damages from the employee who caused the losses. But this cannot always be done. In labor legislation, the issue of employee financial liability is described in detail. So, when it comes to financial liability, it can be established by law or contract. Moreover, contractual liability has its limitations: the employer’s liability cannot be underestimated, and the employee’s liability cannot be overestimated in relation to that established by law. In fact, the parties to the contract can specify those conditions regarding financial liability that are written in the law.

According to Art. 241 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the financial liability of an employee has a limit set at the level of one average monthly salary. And liability can be increased only in cases expressly prescribed in Art. 243 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, namely:

When it is expressly stated in the law.
When there was a special agreement between the employee and the employer (such an agreement may be one-time or permanent).
When the damage was caused intentionally.
If the employee who caused the damage was drunk or under the influence of drugs.
If the action that resulted in the damage was officially recognized as a crime or administrative offense.
If the employee who caused the damage was not performing his job duties.

The list of positions of financially responsible persons can be used in cases where an employee signs a special agreement with the employer, thereby assuming full financial responsibility.

On labor relations with financially responsible persons

When an employee is released from liability

If the damage occurred due to:

floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, other natural disasters, military actions;
when there is a threat to the life of an employee, other citizens, or the state, and it was impossible to eliminate this danger in a different way;
defense, if such defense was necessary;
natural risk, when tasks cannot be performed in any other way, the worker acted in accordance with the experience and knowledge accumulated by society, performed duties as required;
management did not create the required storage conditions.

Recovery of damages

Management has the right to claim damages from the employee; claiming lost income is prohibited by the legislator. The amount of damage is calculated based on average market prices, but not less than the value indicated in the documents, taking into account wear and tear. The legislator may provide another way to determine damage. The need to prove the extent of the damage lies with the person to whom it was caused.

Conditions and procedure for changing the terms of an employment contract

There are four ways out of the situation depending on the circumstances.

Management has the right to forgive the damage in full, part of it. The owner has the right to impose restrictions. The decision may be influenced by: the amount of damage, the degree of guilt of the worker, his or her reaching the age of majority, the existence of an agreement on full liability. The right not to be used in favor of some, to the detriment of others.
When the damage does not reach the average monthly salary, compensation is deducted by order of management. This must be done within a month after the damage was determined.
When the time has expired, the worker refuses to compensate for damage that is more than the average monthly salary; compensation can only be obtained through the court.
The employee has the right to offer compensation, either partial or full.

The administration has the right to provide an installment plan: the culprit undertakes in writing to compensate for the damage, and a payment schedule is drawn up. If someone who undertakes to compensate for the damage, but refuses, is fired, then it will be possible to recover only through the court.

With the consent of the administration, the employee compensates for the damage with his property and repairs what is broken.

Who needs a liability agreement?

Almost every employer has at least one employee who, according to his job responsibilities, is responsible for the safety of the employer’s property entrusted directly to him.
Being a person primarily interested in ensuring that his property is intact, used rationally and for its intended purpose, the employer initiates the preparation of an agreement (contract) with such employee (or employees) on full financial responsibility (Article 244 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). The purpose of such a document is:

Increasing the degree of employee responsibility for property that does not belong to him.
The opportunity to receive compensation from the employee for the damage caused in full.

Drawing up such an agreement is the right of the employer. The law does not oblige him to do this. However, the absence of this document, even if the employee’s guilt is obvious and proven, will not allow the employer to recover from him more than one average monthly salary in payment for the losses caused (Article 241 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

List of materially responsible positions

The list of positions is as follows:

cashiers, controllers;
everyone working with deposits, bank cards and discount cards; carrying out expert assessment of banknotes and securities; involved in the circulation of money, securities and precious metals; servicing ATMs and clients who place valuables in vaults; collecting and transporting cash and other valuables; cash register attendants; forming and counting cash;
employees of all levels of management of trade, food and service enterprises, and the hotel sector;
management personnel in organizations engaged in the construction of buildings and structures, installation production;
management staff of warehouses, pawnshops, storage rooms, supply managers, commandants, wardrobe maids, storekeepers;
senior nurses of medical organizations;
agents involved in procurement, delivery, forwarders;
heads of pharmaceutical organizations, pharmacists, technologists and pharmacists;
laboratory assistants, methodologists at universities, heads of libraries.

Who can be appointed financially responsible?

An agreement providing for the full amount of financial liability can be signed, in accordance with the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, only with those who occupy positions included in the following list:

employees performing the duties of cashiers or controllers;
managers, as well as their deputies, employees who are engaged in depository activities related to securities or banknotes;
managers, heads of organizations or departments that relate to trade, catering, hotels, consumer services, as well as their deputies, sellers working in this area, professional commodity experts;
bosses and employees working in the warehouse sector, servicing storage lockers, pawnshop employees, persons at enterprises and departments involved in procurement, transportation, recording availability, ensuring storage, issuing various valuables;
managers and some pharmacy employees;
laboratory assistants in universities and employees who manage libraries.

However, liability provided for by law is also possible. To implement it, you need to determine for which category of loss and to which employees the norm applies. Here is one example. The mail item was lost. The one who received it is responsible for it. This norm is enshrined in the “Law on Communications” (No. 126-FZ).

The document in question is also signed with the chief accountant, if necessary.

It must be taken into account that assigning a high level of responsibility to a person is possible only with his consent. The document in question must be drawn up with it. Minors cannot sign such an agreement. It is beneficial for the enterprise that they are regulated in detail. Sometimes they are added to job descriptions.