Lockout procedures and related advisory work in Georgia are fully codified in the Labour Code — specifically in Articles 64, 65, 67 and 68. A lockout is the employer's temporary voluntary refusal, in a case of dispute, to perform in whole or in part the obligations provided by the employment contract, and every procedural condition of it — deadlines, notices, the duration cap and the consequences — is fixed by law. The permanent-replacement models of foreign labour law do not operate in the Georgian system: here the lockout is a strictly temporary instrument that does not constitute a ground for termination of the employment relationship.
The birth of the lockout right and the notice rules
During a collective dispute the right to lockout arises as soon as 21 calendar days have passed from the sending of a written notice to the Minister under the procedure established by the law, or from the appointment of a dispute mediator by the Minister on the Minister's own initiative. Before commencing a lockout the parties to the collective dispute must notify each other and the Minister in writing no later than 3 calendar days in advance of the time, place and character of the lockout and information on the number of persons participating. During a strike or lockout the parties are obliged to continue the conciliation procedures — this duty does not lapse for the duration of the measure. At the advisory level this means every stage of a lockout must be documented: the notice sent to the Minister, the notification of the parties and the fact that negotiations continued.
The duration cap and the question of pay
The law resolves the duration of a lockout with a clear limit: a lockout may not continue for more than 90 calendar days. At the same time, during a strike or lockout the employer is not obliged to pay the employee remuneration — this default rule covers even the period when the employee is ready to perform the obligations but the employer refuses to accept performance. The most significant guarantee, however, is the following: a strike or lockout is not a ground for termination of the employment relationship — after the lockout ends the relationship remains in force, and dismissal of the employee is possible only on other grounds permitted by law.