Coronavirus and the labor market: Uzbekistan and European countries share experiences on countering the pandemic
02/07/2020 14:48
Coronavirus and the labor market: Uzbekistan and European countries share experiences on countering the pandemic
02/07/2020 14:48
Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 1 July, as part of the ILO Global Summit, a regional session of Europe and Central Asia was held to discuss the fight against the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic for labor markets.
The ministers of labor and heads of organizations of workers and employers of countries such as Switzerland, Sweden, Portugal, Belgium, Croatia, Spain, Russia, Georgia took part in the online meeting. The Central Asian region was represented by the Minister of Employment and Labor Relations of Uzbekistan, Nozim Khusanov, who acquainted participants with local experience in dealing with the consequences of the pandemic for the country ‘s labor market.
Opening the meeting, ILO Director General Guy Ryder said that “exactly one year ago, the International Labor Organization celebrated its 100th anniversary, heading for a better field of work, in the center of which is the person and his right to decent work”. “Such a people-centered approach should remain our beacon in the course of further work,” said Guy Ryder.
Heinz Koller, Regional Director of the International Labor Office for Europe and Central Asia, noting the importance of tripartite dialogue between governments, employers ‘and workers ‘ organizations, emphasized that in order to find common solutions to the COVID-19 pandemic and its consequences for the labor market, the Summit brought together tripartite ILO partners “from Lisbon to Tashkent, from Vilnius to Malta”.
According to ILO estimates, in the Europe and Central Asia region 3% of working time (equivalent to 12 million full-time jobs) was lost in the first quarter of 2020 and up to 12.9% of working time (corresponding to 50 million jobs in full time) may be lost by the end of the second quarter. In this regard, the international community is making collective efforts to combat the devastating consequences of the pandemic for humans, as well as for the economy and society. “Everyone was in an unexpected and unprecedented situation, which is a difficult challenge for governments, social partners and international organizations, which have an incredible responsibility for the lives and destinies of millions of people,” said H. Koller, presenting a regional view of the world of work in today ‘s context pandemic COVID-19.
During panel discussions, representatives of the states of the region presented the country context of measures taken to support and stimulate the labor market during the pandemic.
Presenting the experience of Uzbekistan, the Minister of Employment and Labor Relations N. Khusanov informed the Summit participants in detail about the large-scale anti-crisis measures undertaken by the Government of Uzbekistan to stimulate employment, preserve jobs and incomes of workers, ensure local safety and health, prevent discrimination and social exclusion.
With the support of the ILO, the Ministry is conducting a study on the impact of COVID-19 on the labor market, and now, according to the results of the polls, it can be said that the crisis had a very strong negative impact on the employment of workers in a number of key sectors of the economy (services, construction, etc.), especially vulnerable were young people and women, mostly employed in small businesses.
The anti-crisis measures adopted by Uzbekistan are fully consistent with the four main principles of the ILO to combat the pandemic, i.e. aimed at stimulating the economy and employment, supporting enterprises, jobs and income, protecting workers in the workplace and social dialogue. At the initiative of the President, an anti-crisis fund in the amount of 10 trillion soums and the Fund for the Support of Poor Families “Mercy and Support” were created.
In addition, the Government approved a temporary procedure for providing employment to family members whose social status and standard of living deteriorated in the context of the coronavirus pandemic. About 230 thousand unemployed citizens were employed at the expense of the Temporary Employment Public Works Fund; more than 33 thousand families are provided through the mechanism of subsidizing low-income families for the development of personal plots and the creation of agricultural cooperatives; 3 thousand unemployed are employed through subsidies for the development of entrepreneurship among the population; 20 thousand unemployed received unemployment benefits. Thus, 374 thousand citizens are provided with employment and regular income for three months of work.
In his speech, Nozim Khusanov separately dwelled on measures taken to protect workers in the workplace. First of all, the State Labor Inspectorate of Labor, together with the Epidemiological Service, established system monitoring of ensuring sanitary standards and labor safety at enterprises. To date, monitoring groups of labor inspectors have visited 5,757 enterprises, and 892 of them have identified violations of safety and health standards. For each individual case, the Inspectors gave recommendations on eliminating the existing shortcomings.
The coronavirus pandemic also showed the need for a qualitative review of the current Labor Protection Law. The regulatory framework should maximize the organization of protection and decent working conditions for workers in accordance with the requirements of the current situation and international standards. Minister of Employment and Labor Relations N. Khusanov expressed hope for cooperation with the ILO in the development of a new law “On labor protection”.
During the pandemic, questions of illegal dismissals arose sharply, and refusals to pay wages and maternity benefits became more frequent. During the COVID-2019 pandemic, the State Labor Inspectorate examined 8.2 thousand complaints from citizens regarding violations of labor laws and discrimination at the workplace, of which 3 thousand were complaints from women. Based on the results of inspections, the labor rights of 3.6 thousand citizens were restored, including 1.2 thousand women.
Many companies and enterprises have adapted their activities under quarantine-restrictive measures, switching to the remote work mode. To ensure the correct transition and compliance with all standards, the Ministry of Labor has developed and implemented the “Regulation on the temporary procedure for the transfer of workers to work in remote work”.
In Uzbekistan, work will continue to implement international labor standards in the country ‘s legislation to ensure the rule of law, gender equality, protection of the rights and freedoms of workers in all sectors of economic activity.
In 2019, Uzbekistan became the only country from Central Asia to ratify the Protocol to the ILO Forced Labor Convention No. 29. Three more ILO Conventions No. 144 “On Tripartite Consultations”, No. 129 “On Labor Inspection in Agriculture” and No. 81 “On Labor Inspection in Industry and Trade” were ratified, which made it possible to strengthen monitoring of employment and labor in these areas. At the moment, preparatory work is underway to ratify three more ILO Conventions: No. 17 "On Compensation for Workers in Industrial Accidents", No. 183 "On the revision of the 1952 Convention on the Protection of Maternity", No. 187 "On the fundamentals that promote safety and health."
Summing up the results of the panel discussions, H. Koller emphasized that, in contrast to the financial crisis of 2008-2009, today the Governments are ready to allocate appropriate large-scale investments to ensure decent working conditions for everyone. “In this difficult period, the ILO Centennial Declaration and the 2030 Agenda remain lighthouses for us, first of all, it is the support of enterprises and the protection of workers in the world of work,” concluded the Regional Director.
Next week, discussions at the ILO Global Summit will continue at the level of senior heads of state and government, representatives of international institutions and organizations.
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