Introduction. In the framework of the legal regulation of the trade union activities in Russia, a number of regulations cause certain contradictions with regard to establishment of the social and labour relations. Difficulties in interaction of the trade unions with the employers and the state, supplemented by the competition with the private labour, arise the problem of preserving the institution under study as the one aimed at the formation of a system of social partnership, development of the labour environment, national economy and social equality. Therefore, the research strives to investigate the constitutional requirements for establishment and operation of the trade unions to enable harmonization of the social and labour relations. By finding the legislative gaps in the process of implementing the rights of citizens to establish and operate the trade unions, it is possible to modernize the regulatory legal institutions in this field. The aim of the research is to study the specifics of the constitutional right to establish and operate the trade unions.Materials and Methods. The methodological framework was organised based on the selection, analysis and systematisation of the relevant regulatory and legal data and research works in the subject area. The use of a set of general scientific (dialectical, logical, systemic) and specific scientific methods of cognition (comparative legal, dogmatic legal, sociolegal) made it possible to study the principles of state regulation of the trade union activities, identify the gaps in their work and shortcomings due to be eliminated, as well as to summarise the factors of applicability of the constitutional operational procedure to the activities of the trade union organisations in Russia.Results. The constitutional right to establish and operate the trade unions has been analysed. It has been acknowledged that determination of the legal advantages of the trade union members does not correlate with the process of declining the popularity of this institution in the Russian Federation. It has been revealed that this trend is caused by the several problems, i.e.: the multiplicity of the legislative requirements creates a number of contradictions in the relations between the trade unions and employers preventing the full freedom of organisations’ activities; the process of establishing the trade unions is complicated by the need to incorporate the legal entity, the legislative predetermination and formality do not give freedom to the organisations in compiling the charter and making changes to it without permission of the state; the principles of the internal relations regulation must comply with the standard provisions of the Labour Code of the Russian Federation, which also limits the trade union activity; the court defence of the rights of the trade union members needs to be revised and modernized to eliminate the ambiguous provisions and reduce the bureaucratic processes. The use of the variable collective agreements and principles of social partnership aimed at harmonisation of the social and labour relations have been proposed as the solutions to the identified problems.Discussion and Conclusion. The study has identified the key issues and underdeveloped aspects of the constitutional regulation of the trade union activities in the Russian Federation, which could be solved through the optimisation of the excessive legislative requirements, issuing the updated provisions on court defence of the trade union members, establishing the full independence and autonomy of such organisations in the matters of internal regulation, as well as through the development of the system of social partnership. The theoretical and practical conclusions drawn in the paper could be used for further research in the field of improving the legal literacy of the trade union members.
