The VRU Committee supported the draft of the new Labour Code

The Verkhovna Rada Committee on Social Policy recommended that Parliament adopt as a basis the government’s draft of the new Labour Code of Ukraine No. 14386, taking another step towards a full reform of labour legislation.
What exactly the Committee supported.
On 4 February 2026, the VRU Committee on Social Policy and Protection of Veterans’ Rights considered the government’s draft Labour Code of Ukraine and unanimously recommended that it be included in the session agenda and adopted as a basis. The document, submitted by the Cabinet of Ministers and registered in Parliament under No. 14386, is positioned as a key step towards the “de‑Sovietisation” of labour legislation, which is currently based on the 1971 Labour Code.
Goals and philosophy of the new Code.
The purpose of the draft law is to update labour rules in line with international standards, reduce legal uncertainty and informal employment, and balance the interests of employees and employers. The Code is intended to implement more than 30 EU directives on working time, transparent and predictable working conditions, gender equality, reconciliation of work and family responsibilities, and occupational safety and health. A transition is declared from an overly formalised model to more flexible but transparent rules, in which the rights and obligations of the parties are clearly codified.
Key changes for employees.
The draft codifies individual and collective labour relations, strengthening protection against unfair dismissal and discrimination and reinforcing the principle of equal pay for work of equal value. It is planned to introduce clear criteria distinguishing employment relationships from civil‑law arrangements so that it becomes harder to disguise hired work as “sole‑proprietor contracts”. Special emphasis is placed on transparent dismissal procedures, mandatory written justification, and the possibility of effectively challenging the employer’s decisions.
New opportunities and constraints for employers.
For businesses, the draft promises less bureaucracy through digitalisation of procedures and greater flexibility in designing employment contracts. The Code systematises and expands the types of employment contracts (fixed‑term, flexible, remote, hybrid, etc.), legalising work formats that already exist in practice but fit poorly into the current Labour Code. At the same time, employers will have to adapt to more formalised rules on minimum pay standards, working time and rest regimes, and documentation of HR decisions, which increases the cost of errors in HR processes.
Digitalisation of labour relations.
One of the systemic innovations is equating electronic documents with paper ones and enabling employment contracts to be concluded electronically via state registers or authorised platforms. This paves the way for full‑fledged electronic HR administration, from e‑employment contracts to electronic recording of working time, leave, and disciplinary sanctions. For companies, this means both potential savings on paper document flow and higher requirements for cybersecurity and protection of employees’ personal data.
Minimum wage and remuneration.
The Committee and the government place special emphasis on reforming the approach to setting the minimum wage, including hourly and monthly measures and a transparent calculation formula aligned with international standards. This should reduce political arbitrariness in revising the “minimum” and make this indicator more predictable for business planning. At the same time, the rules for calculating allowances, supplements, and bonuses are unified, which should reduce the scope for manipulation and labour disputes over “grey” payments.
Impact on flexible forms of employment.
The new Code seeks to provide a legal framework for remote, home‑based, flexible, and project‑based work, which has expanded massively during the war and the digitalisation of the economy. It envisages detailed regulation of conditions for freelance‑type models, secondary employment, part‑time work, and shift schedules, with clear guarantees regarding rest time and the right to “disconnect”. For the IT sector, creative industries, and service businesses, this may mean legalisation of practices that have so far hovered between employment and civil‑law contracts.
What this means for the labour market overall.
If the draft is adopted, it will not enter into force immediately but only after a transitional period linked to the end of martial law, giving businesses time to adapt. In the medium term, the Code may reduce informality, increase employee protection, and at the same time lower regulatory uncertainty for employers, which is an important signal for investors and EU partners. However, many practical challenges are expected at the implementation stage, from updating HR policies and contract templates to training HR departments and developing case law under the new rules.
If you have questions or issues related to applying the draft new Labour Code in your company, analysing labour‑dispute risks, or adapting HR documents to the upcoming changes, you can request an individual consultation — we will help you understand the provisions of the draft law and prepare for its implementation.

Author – Svitlana Krutorohova, attorney at the law firm “Legal Company ‘WINNER’”.