Form and Duration of the Employment Contract
Under the Labour Code of Georgia, an employment contract is concluded in oral or written form, for a fixed or an indefinite term. Where the employment relationship lasts longer than 1 month, the contract must be concluded in written form. A properly drafted document therefore begins with the question of the form and the term of engagement, because the entire subsequent architecture of the contract follows from that choice.
A fixed-term contract — unless its term is 1 year or more — may be concluded only where a statutory ground exists: performance of work of a specific volume, seasonal work, a temporary increase in the volume of work, temporary replacement of an employee whose employment relationship is suspended, wage subsidization under the Law on the Promotion of Employment, or another objective circumstance that justifies a fixed term. A fixed-term contract concluded without any of these grounds is deemed to be concluded for an indefinite term.
The rules on successive contracts are equally important. If the term of the contract exceeds 30 months, or if the relationship continues through two or more successive fixed-term contracts and its total duration exceeds 30 months, the contract is deemed concluded for an indefinite term. Fixed-term contracts are considered successive if the existing contract was continued immediately upon expiry, or if the next contract was concluded within 60 days of the expiry of the first. A special exception applies to startup enterprises: for an entrepreneur less than 48 months from its state registration that meets additional conditions set by the Government, the restrictions on fixed-term contracts do not apply, although for this purpose the duration of a fixed-term contract may not be less than 3 months. If the relationship began within that 48-month window and the term then expired, the contract is regarded as indefinite. The employer must also inform a person employed under a fixed-term contract about existing vacancies, so that they have the same opportunity to hold positions under indefinite contracts as other employees.
The Pre-Contractual Stage and the Exchange of Information
The relationship between the parties before conclusion is separately regulated. The employer is entitled to obtain information about the candidate, except information that is not connected with the performance of the work and is not necessary for assessing the candidate’s ability to perform the specific job. The employer may also verify the accuracy of the information submitted. The candidate, for their part, must inform the employer of any circumstance that may prevent them from performing the work or threaten the employer’s interests.
Confidentiality is protected: information obtained about the candidate may not be made accessible to a third party without the candidate’s consent, except in cases provided for by Georgian legislation. If the employer does not conclude a contract, the candidate has the right to demand the return of the documents submitted. The employer, in turn, must provide the candidate with information about the work to be performed, the form of the contract (oral or written) and its term (fixed or indefinite), the working conditions, the employee’s legal status in the employment relationship, and the remuneration. The pre-contractual relationship ends when the contract is concluded or when the candidate is informed of the refusal; the employer is not obliged to justify a refusal to hire.
The guarantee of equal treatment is also born at this stage: before concluding the contract, the employer must introduce to the candidate the provisions on the principle of equal treatment of persons and the means of its protection, and must reflect anti-discrimination provisions in the internal labour rules, collective agreements and other documents, and ensure their enforcement.
The Essential Content of the Contract
The Labour Code lists the essential terms that must be reflected in the contract. A well-built draft means a concrete, unambiguous formulation of each of these points:
- information about the parties to the contract;
- the start date of work and the duration of the employment relationship;
- working time and rest time;
- the place of work, or information on the various places of work if no permanent or principal place is defined;
- the position (with rank, category and similar attributes, where they exist) and the type or description of the work;
- remuneration (salary and, where applicable, supplements) and the procedure for its payment;
- the procedure for remunerating overtime work;
- the duration of paid leave and unpaid leave and the procedure for granting them;
- the procedure for termination of the employment relationship by the employer and by the employee;
- the provisions of collective agreements where they regulate the employee’s working conditions differently.
At the employee’s request the employer must issue a certificate of employment, indicating the work performed, the remuneration and the term of the contract. The contract may provide that the internal labour rules form part of it — in that case the employer must introduce the rules to the person before conclusion, and must notify the employee of any amendment to the rules within 14 calendar days of its introduction. If several contracts concluded with an employee merely complement rather than fully replace one another, all of them remain in force and are considered a single contract; where they cover the same condition, the last contract prevails. A condition of an individual contract is void where it contradicts the law or a collective agreement concluded with the same employee — unless it improves the employee’s position.
Changing Conditions and Protective Guarantees
The essential terms of a concluded contract may be changed only by agreement of the parties; a change conditioned by an amendment to Georgian legislation does not require the employee’s consent. The employer may, by notice, specify individual circumstances of the performance of the work that do not change the essential terms. A change of the place of work is not regarded as a change of essential terms if reaching the new place from the employee’s residence and back by available public transport takes no more than 3 hours per day in total and does not involve disproportionate costs; the same applies to a change of the start or end time of work by no more than 90 minutes. A simultaneous change of both of these circumstances, however, is regarded as a change of essential terms and requires consent.
Separate guarantees protect pregnant women, women who have recently given birth and breastfeeding women: where, according to a medical conclusion, their state of health does not allow the work stipulated by the contract to be performed, they have the right, within the bounds of reasonable accommodation, to demand appropriate work with the same employer. If easing the working conditions or transfer to lighter work is impossible, they are relieved from performing the duties defined by the contract for the period indicated in the medical conclusion; that period is not counted as temporary incapacity, and remuneration for the period of release is determined by agreement between the employee and the employer. After the end of maternity, childcare or adoption leave, the employee returns to the same job under the same conditions and also benefits from any improved conditions that they would have been entitled to had the leave not been taken.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is the written form of an employment contract mandatory?
Whenever the employment relationship lasts longer than 1 month. The contract may be concluded orally or in writing, but a relationship exceeding 1 month is permissible only in written form.
On what grounds may a fixed-term contract be concluded?
Unless the term is 1 year or more, only on a statutory ground: work of a specific volume, seasonal work, a temporary increase in workload, temporary replacement of a suspended employee, subsidized remuneration under the Law on the Promotion of Employment, or another objective circumstance. A fixed-term contract without a ground is deemed indefinite.
What happens if fixed-term contracts are concluded successively?
If the total duration of successive contracts exceeds 30 months, or a single contract exceeds 30 months, the relationship is deemed indefinite. Contracts are successive if continued immediately upon expiry or if the next one is concluded within 60 days.
What information must the employer provide to a candidate before conclusion?
Information about the work to be performed, the form and term of the contract, the working conditions, the employee’s legal status and the remuneration. The employer must also introduce the principle of equal treatment and the means of its protection.
Which changes are not treated as changes of essential terms?
A change of the workplace that does not require more than 3 hours per day of commuting by public transport and does not involve disproportionate costs, and a shift of the start or end of the working day by no more than 90 minutes. Both changes together are treated as a change of essential terms.
How We Help on Legal.ge
On Legal.ge you can find labour law lawyers who will help you draft an employment contract that reflects every essential term required by the Labour Code, takes into account the risks of term limitations, and balances the interests of both the employer and the employee. Choose a specialist, review your existing or planned employment relationship, and receive a final, law-based version of the contract.