ZAGREB, April 27 (Hina) - Changes to the Labour Act will help make employment faster and reduce the time unemployed persons spend at the Employment Bureau, Labour and Welfare Minister Davorko Vidovic said on Saturday.
ZAGREB, April 27 (Hina) - Changes to the Labour Act will help make
employment faster and reduce the time unemployed persons spend at
the Employment Bureau, Labour and Welfare Minister Davorko Vidovic
said on Saturday. #L#
Croatia lags behind European countries in terms of labour
legislation and to become competitive, it has to adopt European
standards, Vidovic told a seminar on labour and welfare
legislation.
He said trade unions did have cause to protest on Labour Day, due to
400,000 unemployed people, violations of workers' rights, and the
non-payment and amounts of salaries, but also reason for
satisfaction because of the direction the government has taken.
Demand for labour in 2001 was 50 percent higher than the year
before, Vidovic said.
He added Croatia had between 100,000 and 150,000 unemployed who
could not be registered as such under criteria of the International
Labour Organisation.
Finance Minister Mato Crkvenac announced inspections in state and
private companies to see how financial commitments to the state
were being met, all in view of reducing grey economy.
In 2000, 8,592 persons were found illegally employed, including 803
foreigners. The figure was 7,948 in 2001, including 1,192
foreigners, it was said at the seminar.
Justice Minister Ingrid Anticevic-Marinovic said courts were full
of labour-related lawsuits. The Penal Law has to be changed so that
workers' rights can be adequately protected, she added.
Deputy Finance Minister Damir Kustrak announced that next year, the
non-taxable salary amount would be increased and tax relief
introduced to open new jobs. The taxation rate for fees will be
reduced from 35 to 15 percent starting July 1, while the amount of
annual income for students will not be restricted, he said.
(hina) ha sb