About young specialists

Another academic year has ended. Many graduates of educational institutions have become "young specialists," and a new stage in their lives, associated with the commencement of their employment, has begun.

Young specialists are recognized as individuals who have obtained vocational-technical, secondary specialized, or higher education of the first and second stages in a state educational institution through full-time education at the expense of the republican and (or) local budgets, and who have been directed to work by assignment.

Graduates who have been assigned a place of work through distribution and have obtained secondary specialized education or higher education are obliged to work for 2 years; those who have obtained vocational-technical education are obliged to work for 1 year.

Young specialists who have not worked the established period are obliged to reimburse the funds spent by the state on their training to the republican and (or) local budgets.

For voluntary reimbursement of funds, a graduate who has not started working according to the assignment, or who has started such work but subsequently decided to terminate it during the assignment period and has terminated employment relations with the employer, must contact the educational institution to calculate the amount of funds spent.

If the educational institution has information that the young specialist has not started working according to the assignment or has been dismissed before the end of the mandatory working period, it makes a decision on the reimbursement of funds spent, which is formalized by an order of the head. A copy of the order and the calculation of the amount of funds to be recovered into the budget are sent to the graduate with a notification of the need to reimburse them voluntarily within a six-month period. After the expiry of the specified period, in the absence of voluntary reimbursement of funds, the educational institution files a corresponding claim with the court.

The procedure for reimbursement of funds can be either voluntary or compulsory through court proceedings.

As a rule, the amount of funds spent on training is significant.

For example, S. studied at a state vocational lyceum from 01.09.2019 to 30.06.2020.

After graduating, she qualified as a telecommunications operator and salesperson and was assigned to a job with a mandatory term of 12 months. S. was supposed to start working on 01.08.2020. However, she did not report for work as assigned and did not complete the legally mandated term. By court decision, based on a lawsuit filed by the educational institution, S. was ordered to pay 5177 rubles to reimburse the funds spent on her education.

The grounds for releasing graduates from reimbursing funds spent by the state on their training are defined in Article 88 of the Education Code. In particular, paragraph 2 of the specified article includes orphans and children left without parental care who have not worked the established mandatory term, aged 18 to 23, children with disabilities under 18, persons with disabilities of group I or II, if it is impossible to provide a new place of work in their place of residence of parents, husband (wife) or with their consent, another available place of work through redistribution, subsequent assignment to work, taking into account their health status; persons with medical contraindications for work in their acquired specialty, and others.

According to paragraph 3 of Article 88, young specialists who worked under distribution (redistribution) and whose employment contract was terminated due to the liquidation of the organization, termination of the individual entrepreneur's activities, or reduction in staff numbers or штата are also exempt from reimbursement.employees (clause 1 of Article 42 of the Labor Code (hereinafter referred to as the LC)), by the employer's violation of labor legislation, a collective or labor agreement (Article 41 of the LC), by the employee's non-compliance with the position held or the work performed due to health conditions preventing the continuation of such work (clause 2 of Article 42 of the LC), and others.

In clause 4 of Article 88, the grounds for exemption from reimbursement of funds spent by the state on training are indicated as the conscription of a graduate into military service in the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus, other troops and military formations of the Republic of Belarus and dismissal from it.

For example, P. studied at a college from 09/01/2015 to 06/29/2018, after graduation he was assigned to work at an agricultural enterprise. However, he did not start his work activities.

By court decision, based on the claim of the educational institution, P. was ordered to pay 8,540 rubles for training.

However, according to the information from the military unit, P. has been called up for active military service since 11/18/2019 and is currently serving.

Taking into account these circumstances, the court decision was overturned upon the prosecutor's protest, and the educational institution's claims were denied.

Prosecutor of the Department for Supervision
of the Legality of Judicial
Decisions in Civil Cases
of the Regional Prosecutor's Office
Irina Tavtyn