Hunting 24 SAP еров from integrator in Rusagro: put new details

The Belgorod agro-industrial company "Rusagro-invest" entering into Rusagro Group enticed and hired to itself to the state 24 employees of Teamidea system integrator which helped it to implement the software of SAP since 2015. Teamidea considers that enticement happened to agreement breach, and require from the client to pay 40.9 million rubles.

2015-2016: The beginning of cooperation and the approved transition of the first employee of integrator to the client

Agreements between Rusagro-invest and Teamidea were signed in 2015-2017. According to these documents, Teamidea rendered consulting services within preparation, implementations, development and supports of the project on implementation accounting, tax, to IFRS of the reporting in the system of SAP.

Agreements provided an obligation of the companies not to perform hiring of specialists of each other who were directly or indirectly involved in rendering services during validity period of contracts and also within 12 months after their termination.

The company which violated this condition had to pay to other company compensation equal 12 to the multiple amount of compensation of such specialist for the last month of its work.

In November, 2016 the representative of Rusagro-invest asked the management of Teamidea to release one of the staff of the company for employment. The management of Teamidea met requirements of Rusagro-invest and gave an opportunity to pass to one employee into the state to the client. At the same time the companies agreed that payment of compensation with this employee will not extend to a case, - the representative of Teamidea told TAdviser.

2017: Hunting client of 24 employees of integrator

Having estimated all benefits of employment of the personnel prepared by the contractual partner, Rusagro-invest as assume in Teamidea, made the decision to entice to itself in staff of all key experts of Teamidea without payment of contractual compensation.

As a result of Rusagro-invest enticed to itself 24 employees of Teamidea, having admitted them to staff. 11 more employees, as it was succeeded to find out, were admitted to structures, affiliated with Rusagro-invest. Dismissal of the most part of these staff of Teamidea and their employment in Rusagro-invest took place in September, 2017 and occupied few days, - the representative of Teamidea informed TAdviser.

Dismissal of the most part of skhanchenny staff of Teamidea and their employment in Rusagro-invest took place in September, 2017 and occupied few days, the representative of Teamidea says. (the photo is agrovesti.net)

2018: The integrator takes legal action to receive 40.1 million rubles of compensation from the client

On April 25, 2018 Teamidea sent to Rusagro-invest a claim with the requirement to pay compensation provided by the agreement. Without having achieved payment in October, 2018, Teamidea took the Moscow Arbitration court with claim requirements of 40.1 million rubles.

According to the representative of Teamidea, this claim is unique. Similar trials, according to him, in Russia, according to judicial databases, were not yet.

On similar circumstances there is a world judicial practice on inclusion of compensation conditions in the signed contracts among leading companies of the world. Among them "Yandex", Parallels, Kaspersky Lab, Acronis, "Mail.ru", "Ostrovok.ru", "Wikimart". These conditions are directed to compensation of losses from leaving of skilled staff in which training and professional training were invested heavily the companies. Courts of the countries of the European Union recognize the specified compensations fair compensation of losses from loss of skilled staff, - the representative of Teamidea told.

The general counsel of Rusagro-invest refused to answer questions of TAdviser, having suggested to address questions by the general phone number of the company. TAdviser on it was not succeeded to phone. To publicly available e-mail address of Rusagro also nobody answered.

The representative of Rusagro-invest claims that by consideration of the claim of Teamidea in court of first instance, Rusagro-invest in every possible way tried to hide acceptance of the enticed employees to the state.

Only the judicial request initiated by arbitration court of the city of Moscow in tax authority in the place of accounting of Rusagro-invest confirmed employment in the company of former employees Teamidea, - the representative of integrator noted.

After that, according to him, the behavior of Rusagro-invest in relation to earlier signed agreements with Teamidea which by the time of consideration of the case worked more than 2 years in Arbitration court cardinally changed.

Representatives of the agro-industrial company, according to Teamidea, began to say that provisions of agreements contradict the constitution, the labor code, violate the right to freedom of work. Based on it, in Rusagro-invest made an attempt to dispute actions of provisions of agreements and to nullify them.

However on August 29, 2019 the Moscow arbitration court satisfied in full claims of Teamidea and decided to collect compensation from Rusagro-Invest. Invalid the court of Rusagro-invest dismissed the counter action about recognition of specific provisions of agreements.

2019

The client makes an attempt to nullify contracts

In July, 2019 the employee of the company, affiliated with Rusagro-invest, submitted a claim for recognition of conditions of contracts invalid to district court of the city of Belgorod, the representative of Teamidea tells.

It disputed that, according to agreements, Rusagro-invest had no right to employ employees and asked to nullify conditions of contracts. However the court did not satisfy its claim. At the same time, refusing meeting requirements of the claim, the court noted that initiation by the employee of this dispute in court testifies and is actually directed to that Rusagro-Invest had an opportunity to avoid compensation payments of Teamidea company, - the representative of Teamidea noticed.

Afterwards the employee submitting a claim and also Rusgaro-invest filed petitions for appeal to the Belgorod regional court, but then refused claims and even appealed to dismiss the case.

The client strives for compensation cancellation

In October, 2019 Rusgaro-invest filed a lawsuit appellate instance the complaint with a request of canceling of the decision of the Moscow arbitration court for payment of compensation 40.1 million rubles. At the same time the company attracted to protection of three new lawyers. The appeal of Rusgaro-invest was allowed by court.

2020: Integrator Hunting tries to force the client to compensate employees again, but that is not recognized in their enticement and considers agreements invalid

In January, 2020 Teamidea sent the writ of appeal to arbitration court of the Moscow district. Its consideration had to take place on March 11, 2020. However, having heard arguments of representatives of Teamidea and Rusagro-invest, the court postponed its consideration to April 7, 2020.

Reasoning submission of the writ of appeal at a court session, the representative of TeamIdea Alexey Anokhin said that the agreement signed by Teamidea and Rusagro-Invest according to the conclusion of Court of Appeal, breaks regulations of the labor law. The transaction of the companies should be nullified "in connection with violation of public interests" and "third party rights". At the same time, the bases by which the arbitration court of Moscow was guided, making the decision on TeamIdea compensation payment, were not disproved by Court of Appeal. Also the court did not estimate and did not disprove all arguments adduced to it by TeamIdea.

The Court of Appeal investigated the circumstances connected with the civil transaction based on an agreement liberty principle. The companies provided compensation and prohibition to accept each other workers without compensation payment. The arbitration court of Moscow defined, proceeding from agreement regulations that in it the principle of "take or pay" works. According to it, the Rusagro-Invest company wishing to employ qualified employees of TeamIdea had to pay it compensation, - Alexey Anokhin informed.

According to him, Rusagro-Invest for payment to compensation had no restrictions and obstacles. But, despite it, Rusagro-Invest refused to pay it afterwards.

Rusagro-Invest did not make any active actions for employee involvement of TeamIdea, the representative of Rusagro-Invest assured court.

No speech about freedom of work, about any violations of labor rights in this situation goes. The corporate dispute is considered. The court of appellate instance had no bases to apply a certain deskretion, to interfere with freedom of the agreement and at discretion to exempt one of its participants from accomplishment of obligations for compensation payment. The agreement did not contain any categorical prohibition on acceptance of Rusagro-Invest of staff of TeamIdea. There was prohibition on free acceptance of such employees, - Alexey Anokhin paid attention.

Any provision of the law, according to Anokhin, does not prohibit compensation for enticement of employees. On the contrary – the right to set such compensation to the companies gives an agreement liberty principle.

The representative of Rusagro-Invest during the meeting drew the attention of court that the company was interested in transition to it of the specific employee from TeamIdea about what is "fair" to it and declared.

If, according to the agreement, Rusagro-Invest should not have made active actions for TeamIdea employee involvement, then compensation would be admissible. But the term of the contract consisted absolutely in other and completely it understands TeamIdea. In the explanations TeamIdea notes that in practice situations at which the companies sign the agreement on prohibition on enticement are admissible. But in the prisoner of Rusagro-Invest and TeamIdea the agreement on it it is not told. It is about prohibition on the conclusion of employment contracts, - the representative of Rusagro-Invest noted.

It is Court of Appeal and regarded, according to him, the condition doing the agreement to invalid. Compensation specified in the contract, in fact, all the same is a penalty as means responsibility of the companies.

Also the representative of Rusagro-Invest assured court that Rusagro-Invest did not make any active actions for TeamIdea employee involvement. However bears the administrative responsibility.