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Journal of the National Academy of Legal Sciences of Ukraine

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Draft Labor code: monitoring of compliance with human rights

Yuriі F. Ivanov

Received 29.04.2026, Revised 04.06.2026, Accepted 30.09.2026

Abstract

The article emphasizes that the right to work is one of the defining socio-economic human rights, recognized by all states of the world. The emphasis is on the need to adopt a new Labor Code that meets modern social relations and international standards in the field of labor. The purpose of the article is to analyze the draft Labor Code for compliance with the constitutional principles of respecting human rights. The work uses general scientific and special scientific methods, in particular: the system-structural and formal-logical methods were used to analyze legislation; dialectical – allowed to identify factors that influence these processes and determine directions for solving the identified problems; source-based – made it possible to reveal the scientific positions of scientists regarding the norms provided for in previous drafts of the Labor Code. An analysis of normative activity regarding attempts to adopt a new Labor Code was carried out. It is emphasized that the establishment of guarantees for employees in the draft cannot always ensure compliance with their rights due to changes in the regulation of other social relations. It is emphasized that compliance with international and European standards should take into account the practice of regulating labor relations by states with strong economies and high standards in the field of human rights protection. The role of the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine in lawmaking is revealed. It is noted that the Ombudsman of Ukraine, within the limits of his competence, does not have the right of legislative initiative, but can express his position on draft regulatory legal acts and provide recommendations on the compliance of projects with the norms of the Constitution of Ukraine, international legal acts on the observance of human rights. A narrowing of a number of employee rights was revealed, which does not comply with constitutional principles. It was established that the norms of the draft do not fully take into account the consequences of armed aggression, which will lead to a narrowing of the rights of employees who are victims of such aggression. It is concluded that the draft Labor Code requires coordinated actions of social partners, to provide effective guarantees for employees, and to take into account the balance of interests of both employers and employees. Attention is focused on the need to analyze the norms of the draft Labor Code for compliance with the principles enshrined in the Constitution of Ukraine, international legislation, in particular the European Social Charter (revised), EU Directives, ILO Conventions and Recommendations.

Keywords:

constitutional rights; labor rights; labor code; ombudsman

https://doi.org/10.31359/1993-0909.2026.33.3.231

Retrieved from Journal NALSU №3, 2026 year

Pages 231-248

References Suggested citation

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Suggested citation

Ivanov, Yu.F. (2026). Draft Labor code: monitoring of compliance with human rights. Journal of the National Academy of Legal Sciences of Ukraine, 33(3), 231-248. https://doi.org/10.31359/1993-0909.2026.33.3.231