GOVT COMMISSION TO LOOK INTO CLAIMS ABOUT DISADVANTAGED CRO WORKERS ABROAD

ZAGREB, Sept 4 (Hina) - Croatian Deputy Labour Minister Bozo Zaja said Monday it was his first to hear about Croatian workers abroad had any problems with the payment of their salaries. Zaja, who chairs a government commission for the allocation of working licences, reacted Monday to a statement by the Croatian Workers' Alliance (HRS) about complaints of Croatian citizens that foreign employers were paying them lesser wages as well as health and pension insurance contributions. Zaja said he had not seen the statement which had been sent to him, among to others, by the HRS at the request of the disgruntled employees. He pledged to look into the matter in detail with his assistants. Asked to comment on the issue, Zaja told a reporter the HRS should have come out with accurate information, since claiming this, that is, the full name of companies damaging Croatian employees abroad. Since he had stepped in office (at the beginning of March) he did not hear of any case of Croatian workers working abroad being paid lesser wages. Asked whether his predecessor had had such problems, Zaja said he did not have that information. In its statement, the HRS also requested that the government commission secure the payment of the contracted material rights in line with inter-state agreements. (hina) lml jn