Legal Protection of Citizens against Unemployment in Context of Information Technology Innovations in the Field of Labor and Employment

Abstract

The article considers aspects of social protection of citizens against unemployment in the context of globalization and information technological innovations that have led to changes in the sphere of labor and employment and entailed the emergence and development of new, non-standard forms of employment. The subject of the study is legal acts, including those of foreign states, which regulate relations in the field of employment and protection against unemployment, as well as international norms and views of researchers on the issues that arise in this area. The purpose of the study is to research the impact of changes in the workplace upon systems of protection of citizens from unemployment and to determine the best ways to improve them. In Russia, the labor market is characterized still by dominance of standard (typical) form of employment, foreseeing full-time employment on the basis of an indefinite term of employment contract at a fixed workplace under the direct supervision of the employer. However, non-traditional forms of employment — part-time work, fixed-term work, subcontracting, outsourcing, begin to appear and entrench here. In recent years such fundamentally new forms of employment have begun to be widely used, as work on Internet platforms, work “on call” or in the “cloud”. However, not all non-standard forms of employment have received due legal recognition and regulation in the Russian legislation, which does not secure necessary legal protection for the employees. This is the focus of attention in labor law at international level. For example, the International Labor Organization emphasizing its commitment to the goal of full employment, draws attention to the impact of technological innovations in the field of labor and expresses its concern about the impact of the new forms of employment on the social security system, including unemployment protection. The analysis of the experience of foreign countries using similar forms of employment led to the conclusion that they could be applied in the Russia as well. The article puts forward detailed proposals to improve the system of social protection of citizens against unemployment, including those aimed at reducing period of job search; simplification of the procedures required for the recognition of citizens as unemployed persons; raising unemployment benefits, which should all be reflected in the Russian legislation on employment.