The American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine (the Chamber) has been actively involved in the process of discussing changes to the labor law from the outset, providing comments and suggestions, and sharing the views of member companies’ experts. The Chamber Human Capital Committee regularly organizes meetings with representatives from political parties, government agencies, and institutions to discuss changes to the labor law. Also, the Chamber member companies’ experts are involved in activities of the working group of the Parliamentary Committee on Social Policy and Veterans’ Rights.
The Chamber members believe that the current labor legislation should be reformed, as the Labor Code, which is the main legislative act governing labor relations, was adopted in 1971. The Chamber has been actively working on the Draft Law #2708 that was recently withdrawn. It had to be revised, but at the same time, it could liberalize the excessively regulated labor law and make labor relations more flexible. Labor law reform will give businesses much more flexibility to retain current employees and quickly hire new employees.
The most relevant changes that need to be introduced to the legislation identified by the Chamber member companies’ experts include:
Reducing the state pressure and creating opportunities for employers and employees to decide the conditions of employment independently;
Introduction of electronic form of employment contract followed by the cancellation of employment records;
Regulating the types of involvement of third-party employees – outstaffing and outsourcing at the legislative level;
Updating regulations on material liability to meet the present-day demands;
Settlement of labor disputes;
Regulation of employment terms and conditions in the situation of country-wide lockdowns or other forms of restrictions that significantly influence business activity.
The situation with COVID-19 pandemic has also revealed gaps in the existing regulation that need to be addressed urgently to contain the spread of the virus and, at the same time, to keep the business working safely and effectively. The new flexible and distant ways of working shall be recognized and established on a legislative level. We now see that the digitalization of processes is not only a good initiative but a critical need nowadays.
Experts of the Chamber member companies are convinced that the liberalization of the labor legislation will help to create equal rules on the labor market as it will balance the interests of employees and employers. It will also provide incentives for business development, simplify entry-exit from labor relations in combination with effective mechanisms of protection against sudden loss of work, looking for a new job, and reducing unemployment. All these things will contribute to the development of the Ukrainian economy at large, increase investment inflow and business competitiveness.
The mobile communications operator lifecell, under the April Unlimited social promo, has provided subscribers with individual tariff plans with fees of more than UAH 100, with an ability to communicate without restrictions using voice calls to all numbers within Ukraine, namely, lifecell, fixed lines and mobile operators during quarantine.
According to the terms of the promo action, from April 3 to April 30, subscribers who have a package of services that costs UAH 100 and more, after paying for it, will receive unlimited calls to all numbers within Ukraine (fixed line, mobile, other networks and lifecell) for the period of validity of the service package starting from the day of the fee payment.
Under the terms of the promo action, starting from 101 promotional minutes, the duration of each call will be three minutes. However, the number of calls is unlimited.
“This restriction is introduced to prevent the use of unlimited calls for commercial purposes by individual subscribers, which may complicate or make it impossible to provide services to subscribers,” lifecell said.
To use this offer, the subscribers do not need to activate or connect anything else – they just have to pay their current tariff plan service package fee during the period of offer validity. This offer now covers more than 30 active lifecell tariff plans.
For users, whose tariff plan service package less than UAH 100, the operator launched the Advantageous Hundred promo, under which the subscriber can purchase 100 minutes for UAH 15 for four weeks of calls within Ukraine to fixed lines and other mobile operators. The number of purchases during the promotion period is not limited.
“We noticed that since the introduction of measures aimed at combating the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) spread, our subscribers began to make more traditional voice calls. Today, more than ever, it is important to stay in touch with family, maintain remote working communications and have the opportunity to consult if necessary with doctors, and it is important that Ukrainians do not feel the barriers that are familiar to them, which are traditionally determined by the high cost of calls to networks of other operators or fixed lines compared to unlimited calls within the network. That is why lifecell granted more freedom of communication for its subscribers with calls to all other networks amid quarantine,” Chief Executive Officer of lifecell Ismet Yazici said.
Both promo actions are valid for all users with individual tariff plans, but do not cover the operator’s corporate subscribers.
The April Unlimited promo does not apply to the Crazy Year, HandMade and Self-Made tariff plans, while users of these tariff plans can activate the Advantageous Hundred promo.
The National Bank of Ukraine bought $430 million in the market over the past five working days, the hryvnia exchange rate has strengthened from more than UAH 28/$1 to UAH 27.15/$1, NBU Deputy Governor Dmytro Sologub has said. “Only in the last five working days, the National Bank bought $430 million for reserves,” he said in an online interview with Ukrayinska Pravda.
Sologub emphasized that the policy of the National Bank remains unchanged.
“There are fluctuations, we are smoothing them in both directions,” he said.
As reported, over the past week, the NBU bought $ 248 million on the interbank currency
Official rates of banking metals from national bank as of April 7
One troy ounce=31.10 grams
National bank of Ukraine’s official rates as of 07/04/20
Source: National Bank of Ukraine
LCF Law Group has announced the expansion of its business by adding the teams of the Evris Law Firm and the Sheverdin and Partners attorneys association and introducing new practices.
The company said in its press release that it launches such new practices as tax law, antitrust and competition law, intellectual property law, as well as criminal law and cross-border investigations.
As a result of the integration of two law firms, the company’s team will increase to more than 60 lawyers, including nine partners.
The executive team remains unchanged: Managing Partner Hanna Ohrenchuk and Senior Partner Artem Stoyanov.
The integration will be fully completed by the end of May 2020.
