The first thing to know about an employment contract is that it is an agreement between the employer and the employee. By concluding a contract, the employee undertakes to perform the work, and the employer, in turn, undertakes to pay wages, as well as to provide working conditions for the relevant work.
An employment contract can be (Article 23 of the Labor Code of Ukraine):
1) unlimited, concluded for an indefinite period;
2) for a certain period, established by agreement of the parties;
3) concluded for the duration of a certain work.
A fixed-term employment contract is concluded in cases where labor relations cannot be established for an indefinite period, taking into account the nature of the work ahead or the conditions for its performance, or the interests of the employee and in other cases stipulated by legislative acts.
When employed, an employee submits a passport, identification number, work book, education, health status, documents on children and other documents.
The primary task of the employer will be to notify the employment of an employee to the territorial body of the State Fiscal Service in accordance with the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated June 17, 2015 No. 413.
The employee writes the application in this order: "I ask you to hire me for a position ....... in a unit ....... under a fixed-term employment contract from (date) to (date)".
We take a calendar in our hands when they conclude a fixed-term employment contract, in order to correctly calculate its validity period!
The term of the fixed-term employment contract is established by agreement of the parties. A contract is concluded with the employee in two copies, one of which is handed over to the employee.
An employee is allowed to work under a fixed-term employment contract after the issuance of an order from the employer to hire the employee. The basis in the order will be a statement and this agreement.
The work record does not indicate the urgent nature of the work, the usual entry is made about the hiring, for example: "Hired as a lawyer in the legal department."
Also, upon acceptance, the entire package of documents is drawn up: job description, material liability agreement, consent to the processing of personal data, application for tax social benefits, etc.
Now let's move on to the termination of a fixed-term employment contract.
The employee does not write an application for exemption under this agreement. The expiration of the employment contract is the basis for its termination in accordance with paragraph 2 of Article 36 of the Labor Code. The exemption is formalized by order of the employer.
On the day of dismissal, the employee is issued a completed work book, as well as at his request - a copy of the dismissal order.
An entry in the work book is made in the following order: "Fired from work according to clause 2 of article 36 of the Labor Code of Ukraine".
If the employee, within a short term of the contract, has not exercised his right to annual or additional social leave, he is paid compensation for the unused vacation days on the day of dismissal.
It should be noted that a fixed-term employment contract may be terminated early and on other grounds provided for in the legislation. For example, a conscript worker can be dismissed of his own free will (on the grounds provided for by Article 39 of the Labor Code), by agreement of the parties (clause 1 of Article 36 of the Labor Code), at the initiative of the employer (grounds established by Articles 40, 41 of the Labor Code) the like.
There is an important point, namely, if the employee is not fired at the end of the employment contract, then such an employee remains to work on a general basis. And here a fixed-term employment contract will grow into an unlimited one.
So, in order to prevent the transformation of a fixed-term employment contract into an indefinite one, on the day the contract expires, the employer must issue an order to dismiss the employee from work. If this does not happen, and the employee does not demand the termination of the contract and the next day he goes to work, he will be considered working indefinitely, and he can no longer be fired due to the expiration of the employment contract.

Galina Konyk • partner of InBridge Consulting