Article 174. Guarantees and compensations for the employees studying in secondary education institutions and for the employees entering these institutions

The employees who were sent to study by the employer or who entered independently a secondary education institution having a state accreditation regardless of their organizational and legal forms of studies: by correspondence, full-time and correspondence (evening), and who study successfully in these institutions are given an additional leave by the employer with preservation of the average wages for:

taking intermediate attestation in the first and second year - 30 calendar days each, and each of the following years - 40 calendar days;

preparation for and defending the final qualification paper and taking final state exams - two months;

taking final state exams - one month.

The employer is obliged to grant a leave without pay to:

employees admitted to entrance tests in educational institutions of higher professional education having a state accreditation - 10 calendar days;

employees taking full-time training in secondary professional education institutions having a state accreditation and combining work and study to take intermediate attestation - 10 calendar days during an academic year, to prepare and defend the final qualification paper and to take final state exams - two months, to take final state exams - one month.

Once during an academic year the employer pays for a return ticket to the place of the location of this education institution to the employees taking training by correspondence in educational institutions of secondary professional education having a state accreditation in the amount of 50 per cent of the fare.

The employees taking training by correspondence or full-time and by correspondence (evening) training in secondary professional education institutions having a state accreditation may have a working week shortened by 7 hours, at their request, for the period of ten academic months before the beginning of preparing a degree thesis. During the period of relieving of work the employees are paid 50 per cent of the average wages for their main work but not less than the minimum amount of remuneration of labour.

On the agreement between the parties of the labour contract the working hours may be reduced by giving the employee one day off a week or by shortening the length of working hours during the week.

Guarantees and compensations for employees combining work and study in secondary professional education institutions which do not have a state accreditation are established by the collective agreement or labour contract.