CROATIAN VICE PREMIER ON CHANGES TO LABOUR LAW

ZAGREB, Dec 18 (Hina) - Changes to the Labour Law are necessary and they are not firmly connected with the programme of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Croatian Deputy Prime Minister Goran Granic said on Wednesday after a session of the Economic and Social Council (GSV). #L# At the session members of the GSV - the government, unions and employers - discussed an agreement between the Ivica Racan Cabinet and the IMF on a new stand-by arrangement. Unionists previously expressed dissatisfaction with the document, claiming that according to their information, the agreement bound the government to change the Labour Law next year, which would result in cuts in severance pays and duration of notice. "The arrangement with the IMF is not necessary, the government can do without it, but it regards it useful and has therefore proposed that the parliament and the GSV accept it," Granic said. Employers support the agreement on the new stand-by arrangement, but insist on its consistent implementation with regard to the growth of the national economy and the stability of the system. Unionists, on the other hand, do not back the agreement, as they believe that the government should not have assumed the obligation of amending the said law without previous discussions with social partners, Granic explained. He announced the beginning of intensive consultations between the labour ministry and all social partners on the matter for early 2003. (hina) ms sb