URSH TO DEMAND ASSESSMENT OF CONSTITUTIONALITY OF UNION REPRESENTATION LAW

ZAGREB, Feb 9 (Hina) - The Association of Workers' Trade Unions of Croatia (URSH) on Tuesday announced it would request the Constitutional Court to assess the constitutionality of certain articles from a law on ways of determining the representation of union associations in the Economic Social Council (GSV). The GSV includes representatives of the government, employers, and unions who harmonise their interests. URSH president Boris Kunst told a press conference on Tuesday the URSH would participate in social elections, despite the drawbacks of the said law, in order to help establish a new GSV. At the social elections, employees would vote on which union association will represent them in the GSV. The URSH believes the law's provision stipulating that the condition for a union association's membership in the GSV is at least 15,000 paying members. Kunst believes the provision is discriminatory, as it infringes upon the constitutional principle on equality of each citizen before the law. He said not all members were able to pay the membership fee. Another disputed provision according to the URSH is the one stipulating that a union association with less than at least three work agreements signed on national level cannot become a GSV member. For Kunst, this is a form of pressure on unions to sign work agreements at any cost, which may even be unfavourable for employees. The URSH also disagrees with a provision stipulating that employers are obligated to forward data to the Labour and Social Welfare Ministry on members who were paying membership. Kunst believes this is a violation of the law on labour according to which the employer is not allowed to interfere with the work of unions. (hina) it jn/ha