ZAGREB, Jan 18 (Hina) - Labour and Welfare Minister Davorko Vidovic said on Saturday there was no time to wait for labour legislation reforms as any delay would have far-reaching consequences for Croatia's adjustment to contemporary
labour market requirements and admission to the European Union.
ZAGREB, Jan 18 (Hina) - Labour and Welfare Minister Davorko Vidovic
said on Saturday there was no time to wait for labour legislation
reforms as any delay would have far-reaching consequences for
Croatia's adjustment to contemporary labour market requirements
and admission to the European Union. #L#
Opening a media seminar on labour legislation which his ministry
organised in Zagreb, Vidovic said the government must not postpone
passing a new labour act as the current delay demanded that it
achieve in one term what other countries in transition had 10 years
to do.
The draft labour act which will be forwarded into parliamentary
procedure in two weeks will resolve unemployment, make the labour
market more dynamic and preserve the level of social security, said
the minister.
He added that with the changes, the government had managed to strike
a balance between employers' and workers' needs.
He called on unions, which object to the changes, to join in a public
debate on the draft act, saying that lack of social agreement
significantly undermined the chances of labour reforms
succeeding.
Unions oppose the reduction of severance pays, shorter notice
periods, equating permanent and temporary employment, and
increasing the number of workers with small companies which makes
it easier to fire them.
Presenting the draft act, Assistant Labour Minister Vera Babic said
its adoption would make it easier for the unemployed to get a job,
guarantee the right to severance pays and notice periods for the
temporarily employed, and guarantee all employees the legally
prescribed social rights minimum.
The changes will also enable unions to step up their activity
through collective agreements and give employers a bigger chance to
adapt to the market, added Babic.
Viktor Gotovac, a labour legislation assistant at the Zagreb Law
School, said the labour market needed to become more flexible to
meet market requirements. However, he added, it has to be
accompanied by more flexibility in the government and the tax,
educational, social, and judicial systems.
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