Please, be reminded that under Article 81.6 of the Labor Code, an employee may be dismissed on the employer’s initiative for a single gross violation of his/her employment duties, which includes absenteeism, i.e. absence from work without a valid excuse during the entire business day (shift), regardless of its duration, as well as in the case of absence from work without a valid excuse for over four consecutive hours during the business day (shift);

According to the position set out in the Appellate Ruling of the Moscow City Court N 33-18125/2022 dated 27.06.2022, the time before and after lunch do not form a single period and cannot be added up when determining the time of absence from work. Thus, an employee may be dismissed for absenteeism only if he/she is absent for more than 4 consecutive hours.