Employers cannot fire an employee who is not vaccinated against COVID-19 until the Ministry of Health approves a list of professions for which such vaccination is mandatory, lawyers interviewed by Interfax-Ukraine have said. Iryna Shaposhnikova, a lawyer at the Asters law firm, said that the law on protection of the Population from infectious diseases establishes a list of six mandatory preventive vaccinations, while vaccination against COVID-19 is not on this list, so it is exclusively voluntary.
At the same time, the lawyer said that this law provides that employees of certain professions, industries and organizations are subject to mandatory preventive vaccinations if their activities can lead to infection of other employees or the spread of such diseases. Thus, in addition to the list of mandatory vaccinations for all, there may be others if the work carries the risk of spreading infectious diseases.
For her part, Natalia Shvets, a counselor at the law firm Ario Law Firm, said that “the ideal option for both parties to an employment relationship is to find a comfortable compromise in advance. For example, agree on remote work or a weekly report on the PCR test.”
“In Ukraine, labor relations are regulated by the Labor Code, which clearly indicates the procedure and grounds for dismissing an employee from work. There is no norm on the possibility of dismissing for refusing to get a vaccine,” she said.
At the same time, Shvets drew attention to the fact that according to the law, “citizens have the right to safe working conditions, including the absence of the risk of infection.”
“The Cabinet can establish quarantine-restrictive measures to prevent the spread of infection. And an employee can be fired for violation of labor discipline. This includes non-performance or improper performance of labor duties,” she said.
For their part, the experts of the Omerta Law Firm said that currently there is no requirement that may oblige employers to provide their employees with the opportunity to vaccinate. However, on the initiative of the owner or an authorized body, the employment contract can be terminated if an employee is found to be inconsistent with the job position or work performed due to health conditions.
“Such a dismissal can only be carried out on the basis of evidence that due to the state of health, the employee cannot properly perform the assigned work duties. The dismissal of an employee on this basis is not a disciplinary measure, because vaccination against coronavirus is voluntary for all groups of the population,” the lawyers said.
Omerta experts said that the employer has no legal basis to force employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and to bring them to disciplinary responsibility for refusing such vaccination.
In turn, Kyrylo Kozak, a partner of the KPD Consulting law firm and a member of the council of the labor law committee of the Ukrainian Bar Association (UBA), reminded that the list of professions for which a periodic medical examination is required, includes the categories of workers who, due to their job responsibilities, come into contact with a large number of people or whose activities are associated with the risk of spreading diseases (services, catering, etc.).
The lawyer advises an employee, if such a decision is granted, to make a decision on vaccination if there are no valid reasons for refusing to be vaccinated. If the specified decision is not provided, then the employer will have to provide a written request asking to clarify the grounds for vaccination and the relationship of vaccination with the position held.
At the same time, lawyers interviewed by Interfax-Ukraine do not consider the employers’ requirements for so-called “health books,” which would indicate such vaccination, as an effective mechanism to stimulate vaccination against COVID-19. In particular, Shaposhnikova said that not all workers need a health book (the official name is “personal medical book”), and the Cabinet of Ministers established a list of industries whose workers are required to have such a document – the medical, food, educational spheres, etc.
At the same time, the lawyer considers it illegal to attempt to oblige employees to have health certificates, which will indicate vaccination against COVID-19, since the legislation defines an exhaustive list of diseases for vaccination, and COVID-19 is not included in this list.
“To date, there are no direct legislative mechanisms using which an employer can oblige an employee to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Therefore, the only method is clarification, persuasion and finding understanding, consensus. Any coercion (fine, suspension, dismissal, etc.) will be illegal,” the lawyer said.
Ukraine’s Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal and Israeli President Isaac Herzog met in Kyiv to discuss cooperation in trade, science and technology, and medicine, the Ukrainian government’s press service said on Tuesday.
Shmyhal told Herzog of the projects to create and upgrade irrigation systems in southern Ukraine and invited Israeli companies to take part in their implementation, the service said.
Science and technology is one of the promising areas of cooperation between the two countries, the prime minister said.
Also, Ukraine is keen on sharing experience and to study the Israeli government’s support for the development of new technologies, commercialization of scientific research, creation of startups, and encouragement of investment in scientific research, he said.
“We are also interested in broadening our cooperation on information and latest technologies and implementing joint promising projects in this sphere,” Shmyhal said.
With regard to medical and pharmaceutical cooperation, he said: “Given the significant experience gained by Israel in this sphere, Ukraine is interested in sharing information on psychological rehabilitation of war veterans and combatants, introducing cooperation in the sphere of providing the disabled with rehabilitation services.”
For his part, Herzog reaffirmed his readiness to cooperate on new technologies, adding that the new government of Israel is ready to intensify cooperation with Ukraine in a variety of sectors, the press service said.
Mykolaiv Locomotive Repair Plant has reached an agreement with the leading machine-building company Liebherr on a long-term cooperation involving the installation of diesel engines on locomotives operating in Ukraine, as well as carrying out a number of works on railway transport, the plant reported on its official Facebook page.
The relevant agreements were reached during a visit by the plant management to the Liebherr production base in France and Switzerland.
“Liebherr is the world’s leading company in the mechanical engineering industry, and it was important for them to find a reliable partner in Ukraine in the field of locomotive modernization. Mykolaiv Locomotive Repair Plant has been implementing the most modern technologies in this direction for several years, so our plant was invited to become such a partner,” the founder of the enterprise, Yevhen Simchenko, is quoted in the message.
As the plant’s press service told Interfax-Ukraine, the main advantages that allowed Liebherr to make a choice in favor of the enterprise were the experience in modernizing diesel locomotives in Ukraine and the availability of highly qualified workers.
“Mykolaiv Locomotive Repair Plant has modernized more than 40 diesel locomotives with the installation of various diesel engines, such as Cummins, ABC and Caterpillar. Also, a great role was played by the fact that we have our own design bureau, which develops all modernization projects,” the press service said.
According to it, the share of modernization of locomotives in the company’s total turnover is gradually increasing, and this year it is about 70%.
“In Ukraine, only industrial enterprises [ArcelorMittal Kryvyi Rih, Ferrexpo, Metinvest] modernize the locomotive fleet. Ukrzaliznytsia has not yet decided whether it will follow the path of modernization, the effectiveness of which is shown by world practice, or will ‘reinvent the wheel,'” the press service said.
At the same time, the company stressed, modernization is becoming more and more important given the aging of equipment, and intensive wear of the main components that need to be replaced.
“Since most of the locomotives were designed and built back in the USSR, now they are morally and technically outdated. In addition, the main components are of Russian origin. Therefore, we believe that today in Ukrainian realities the only correct and effective option is modernization of locomotives with the installation of modern systems and components, which are used all over the world,” the plant notes.
The agreement with Liebherr also provides for co-financing of projects in Ukraine, however, the company does not disclose details, citing confidentiality.
Mykolaiv Locomotive Repair Plant, established in 2010, specializes in maintenance, current and overhaul of diesel locomotives, as well as traction units (industrial electric locomotives).
Established in 1949, the family-owned company Liebherr currently has 13 production areas (including refrigeration and freezing technology, construction, mining, transshipment equipment, port equipment and wind energy). It includes more than 140 enterprises all over the world and employs about 48,000 people.
LIEBHERR, MODERNIZE, MYKOLAIV LOCOMOTIVE PLANT, RAILWAY LOCOMOTIVES
Ukraine is waiting for the arrival of investors from Israel and guarantees the protection of their investments, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said.
“Ukraine is waiting for Israeli investors, and the government and I personally guarantee the protection of all their investments. In addition, Ukraine is interested in studying and using Israel’s significant experience in the field of innovation,” Zelensky said during joint statements with Israeli President Isaac Herzog to the media.
He added that Israeli campaigns, in turn, can use Ukraine’s colossal potential as a new European technological hub.
Zelensky noted that today the volume of direct Israeli investments in Ukraine does not meet the potential of the two countries.
“New technologies, innovations, cybersecurity, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, space programs, banking, finance, construction, agriculture are just some promising areas for the development of investment cooperation between Ukraine and Israel,” the President of Ukraine said.
Zelensky also said that the Free Trade Agreement between Ukraine and Israel opens up new opportunities for strengthening bilateral economic interaction. The countries intend to increase trade volumes to the level that had been before the spread of COVID-19.
Icebreaker “James Clark Ross” arrived under a blue and yellow flag at Odesa seaport on Tuesday, according to the website of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine.
“From Denmark to Ukraine through three seas, North, Mediterranean and Black, our handsome man was brought by two captains: Ukrainian captain Oleh Novosilny and British captain-mentor Simon Wallace,” the ministry said.
The department said that in the next weeks the paperwork and technical inventory of the vessel will be carried out. After that the official presentation of the icebreaker for the media will take place and its new name will be announced. Time is also planned for an excursion visit to the ship.
Ukraine acquired the British icebreaker James Clark Ross on August 19, and on August 30, the ship was officially handed over in the port of Frederikshavn (Denmark), and a blue and yellow flag was raised over it.
“Own oceanographic icebreaker opens up a whole range of new opportunities for Ukrainian science and scientists. First of all, it will allow: after a long break to return to the study of the World Ocean; solve logistical problems at the Antarctic Akademik Vernadsky station and expand the possibilities of seasonal logistic consortia with other countries; conduct research not only in Antarctica, but also in the Arctic, and, if necessary, in other regions of the ocean,” the ministry said.
The Education Ministry also said that in 2021 the number of those wishing to work on the winter expedition at the Antarctic Akademik Vernadsky station increased by 30%.
Ukraine does not plan to negotiate with Russia to conclude a direct agreement for the supply of natural gas, Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal has said.
“Such negotiations are not planned,” he said in an interview to the lb.ua portal released on Tuesday.
The prime minister said that over 18.5 billion cubic meters of gas have already been accumulated in the underground storage facilities (UGS) of Ukraine [already 18.7 billion cubic meters], the country also has its own gas production, which will allow the coming heating season to pass.
According to him, one should not expect a significant re-export to the European market of gas owned by foreign traders, which is stored in the Ukrainian underground storage facilities.
“In any case, the first proposal is always made to Ukraine. With a probability of 100%, gas that is in Ukraine will be used here,” Shmyhal said.
The Ukrainian authorities will seek to maintain gas transit through the Ukrainian GTS in the future. “Surely, we will insist on maintaining the current level of transit for at least 15 years,” the head of government said.
According to JSC Ukrtransgaz, as of October 1, 2021, foreign service customers store 2.8 billion cubic meters of gas in the customs warehouse mode, while resident companies some 800 million cubic meters.
