Tashkent hosted the Republican forum of primary trade union organizations’ leaders. Taking part in it were heads of sectoral and regional trade union organizations, “grass root” trade union organizations and establishments of different branches of economy.
There are 37,500 primary trade union organizations operating at the establishments and organizations of this country. They protect socio-economic interests and the rights of more than 6.2 million working people. The activities of the “grass root” organizations have gained momentum in recent years. A system of studying the activities of trade union organizations on the ground and rendering them practical assistance was introduced in 2011. This was promoted by the contest-review “The Exemplary Primary trade union organization” conducted in the Republic, noted the forum participants.
Preparation of collective agreements at all enterprises, organizations and institutions turned into a priority direction in the activities of trade unions regardless of their form of ownership with full coverage of social protection of all workers and secured accountability of employers for meeting the obligations specified in these documents. As a result, the indicator of legal entities’ coverage with collective bargaining agreements made up 99.3%. This is a rather high indicator not only in this Republic, but also at the global level. Today the number of collective bargaining agreement signed between a primary trade union organization and an employer equals 122,000 (97,500 in 2013).
New sections and points have been introduced into the documents aimed at strengthening the protection of the rights of women and the youth; additional benefits and guarantees have been created for them. These include additional annual leaves for women, allocation of interest free loans to young families, rendering material and moral support to employees and their children from socially vulnerable families. More than 267,000 citizens and about 246,000 families have received material assistance to the amount of 253.2 billion soums during the period under review. Besides, the primary trade union organizations helped 219,000 citizens with their employment.
Special attention has been paid to social protection of the working people. Everyone has the right to get a voucher to a sanatorium within the trade union system once in two years, not once in five years, as was the case in the past; and the payment amount has also been reduced. Now the vouches allocated on account of the trade unions’ budgets can be used by trade union members’ close relatives – parents, spouses or children.
Prevention of production traumas and professional diseases is among the most important objectives of the trade union organizations. The Trade unions have established a public monitoring over the creation of necessary production and recreation conditions at the enterprises and ensuring the provision of preventive nourishment.
Successes have also been achieved in the development of sport and conducting production gymnastics. This is how the trade unions contribute to popularizing the healthy way of life and to raising the efficiency of labor.
The forum presented the activities of the exemplary “grass root” organizations. Also were discussed the upcoming objectives and a program on the improvement of their activities was adopted at the conference.
“More than 3,000 people work for our company,” says deputy chairman of the trade union organization of the Olmalyq “Ammophos-Maxam” Joint Stock Company Makhsutali Mamatov. “We deal with labor protection, social protection of employees, consolidation of their health and rendering them material assistance. This has a positive impact on the results of the entire enterprise.”