Every trade union at an enterprise may demand that the employer terminate the employment contract with the head in the event of a significant violation of labour legislation by the latter in order to protect the collective interests of employees – SC GC

If several primary trade union organisations operate at an enterprise, each of them, regardless of membership in a joint representative body and participation in the conclusion of the collective agreement, has the right to independently apply to the owner or the body authorised by him with a demand to terminate the employment contract (agreement) with the head of the enterprise in accordance with Article 45 of the Labour Code of Ukraine.

The trade union’s demand must be substantiated, contain an indication of specific facts of the head’s violation of labour legislation, and relate to the protection of the collective interests of the enterprise’s employees.

These conclusions were reached by the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court in a case concerning the cancellation of a decision by a trade union committee to terminate the employment contract with the acting director of a state-owned enterprise.

The claimant considered the trade union’s decision to be unsubstantiated, unlawful, and subject to cancellation. He claimed that he had not committed any violations of labour legislation, and that the respondent, not being a member of the joint representative body of trade unions and not having participated in the conclusion of the collective agreement of the state-owned enterprise for 2018–2020, therefore had no right to demand the termination of the employment contract (agreement) with the head of the enterprise.

The courts of previous instances dismissed the claim, noting that the claimant had violated labour legislation and that the circumstances set out in the trade union committee’s decision were confirmed by court rulings in labour disputes.

The Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court disagreed with these conclusions, overturned the decisions of the previous courts, and adopted a new decision granting the claimant’s claim.

The Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court concluded that if several primary trade union organisations operate at an enterprise, each of them (through an elected body or a trade union representative), regardless of membership in a joint representative body and participation in the conclusion of the collective agreement, has the right to independently apply to the owner or the body authorised by him with a demand to terminate the employment contract (agreement) with the head of the enterprise.

At the same time, the trade union must prove the existence of legal grounds for terminating the employment contract with the head. This demand must be based on a significant violation by the head of the enterprise of the provisions of labour legislation, collective agreements and contracts, and the Law of Ukraine “On Trade Unions, Their Rights and Guarantees of Activity”, as a result of which the collective interests of the enterprise’s employees were violated.

Such a demand is an exceptional measure used in cases of violations of labour legislation by the head, who is simultaneously an employee of the enterprise and has corresponding labour guarantees.

The trade union’s demand for the dismissal of the head of the enterprise is subject to judicial review, in particular as to the substantiation of the demands, their compliance with the requirements of the law, and the purpose of applying the mechanism for terminating the employment contract with the head of the enterprise at the initiative of the trade union — namely, the protection of the collective interests of the enterprise’s employees.

Resolution of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court dated January 21, 2026, in case No. 359/8573/20 — https://reyestr.court.gov.ua/Review/134124018.

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