U-LEAD experts provided clarification on donor guarantees to employees of local self-government bodies who voluntarily donate blood and its components. These include an additional day of rest and leave on the day of examination and donation. What to do if the employee must be present at the workplace on the day of blood donation?

The Regional Office of U-LEAD with Europe in the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast held an info session on organisational and personnel issues of the local self-government.

“We received more than 30 questions from municipal professionals of the oblast regarding new legislation, labour relations under martial law, leave and evacuation, etc. Our team processed them and provided answers. We plan to practice this new format every month,” said Olena Tertyshna, Head of the Office.

The event featured her and Victoria Trotsenko, Adviser on Local Self-Government and Decentralisation of the Regional Office, as the speakers.

One of the questions concerned the procedure for granting a one-day leave to an employee who is a blood donor.

In 2021, the Law of Ukraine No. 931-IX “On the Safety and Quality of Donor Blood and Blood Components” dated 30 September 2020 entered into force. It includes a number of provisions to encourage voluntary free donation and promote being a blood donor, including the retention of the average daily wages on the donation day and a one-day rest to the employee.

If an employee wishes to become a donor, there is a specific procedure: for instance, no later than one working day before the day of donating blood and/or blood components, they must notify their supervisor in writing of their intentions. In turn, the employer must release the employee from work on this day while preserving the average wages.

The employer can refuse if the absence of the employee at work may threaten the life or health of people, result in failure to perform tasks related to ensuring the defence and security of the state and public order or cause significant material damage or other serious consequences.

If the employee returns to the workplace on the day of the donation at the request of the employer, they are entitled to a rest day. The law does not establish a statute of limitations when the employee can exercise this right.

An important consideration when executing a decree (order) on granting a rest day in connection with the donation is the availability of a certificate from the facility that collected the blood.

U-LEAD experts recommend that the employee provide the certificate on the day of donation or record in writing when they are to bring it so that the administrative documents are issued on time and without violations. Adding a bonus rest day, to which an employee is entitled for donating blood, to the annual leave is a right rather than an obligation of the employee: the rest day can be used either immediately after donating blood or at another time by adding it to the annual vacation. If an employee donates blood during annual leave, the leave should be extended by 1 day.