---
title: "Dismissal \"of Own Free Will\" Under Pressure: Lawyer Explains How to Protect Your Rights"
description: "Lawyer Yevhen Bulimenko explained how employees facing coercion to resign of their own free will should act and what legal protection methods exist in Ukraine."
date: 2026-09-27T05:10:00.000Z
lang: en
url: https://xab.info/en/posts/dismissal-under-pressure-legal-protection
tags: [labor-rights, legal-advice, employment, ukraine]
publisher: "XAB.info"
---

# Dismissal "of Own Free Will" Under Pressure: Lawyer Explains How to Protect Your Rights

![Protection of labor rights during dismissal under pressure](https://xab.info/media/2026/09/27/uvolnenie-pod-davleniem-pravovaja-zaschita/uvolnenie-pod-davleniem-pravovaja-zaschita-1.webp)

## 🎯 Key Points

- Employers have no right to force employees to resign of their own free will
- Under pressure, it is necessary to collect evidence: correspondence, audio, and video recordings
- Dismissal under pressure can be challenged through the State Labor Service or in court

An employer has no legal right to force an employee to terminate an employment contract of their own free will. In modern labor market realities, situations often arise where company management attempts to get rid of unwanted staff without paying proper severance compensation during layoffs, resorting to various methods of psychological or administrative pressure.

### Algorithm of Actions in Case of Management Pressure

If an employee faces pressure from the administration, labor law experts strongly recommend keeping a cool head and immediately starting to collect evidence. Convincing arguments for future proceedings can include audio or video recordings of conversations, official memos, management orders, and screenshots of work correspondence in messengers and corporate email.

### Possibility of Judicial Protection and Appeal to State Authorities

In the event that unlawful pressure bore fruit and the citizen, under psychological pressure, signed an application for dismissal "of their own free will," they retain the legal right to defend their interests. The injured party can send an official complaint regarding the unlawful actions of the employer to the State Labor Service of Ukraine, which oversees compliance with labor legislation.

### Judicial Perspective and Restoration of Violated Rights

In addition, current legislation allows filing a lawsuit in court demanding that such dismissal be declared invalid. A key argument in court will be proof that the termination of employment relations occurred under external coercion and categorically did not correspond to the real will of the employee.

## 🔍 Fact-Check Verification

- [Увольнение "по собственному желанию" под давлением: юрист рассказал, как защитить свои права](https://www.rbc.ua/ukr/news/zvilnennya-za-vlasnim-bazhannyam-pid-tiskom-1790348397.html) - Официальный комментарий юриста Евгения Булименко о защите трудовых прав.

## ❓ FAQ

### Q: Does an employer have the right to force an employee to resign of their own free will?
**A:** No, under general labor law, an employer has no right to force an employee to take such a step.

### Q: What evidence needs to be collected in case of pressure at work?
**A:** Official documents, work correspondence in email and messengers, as well as recorded conversations will work.