On May 18, 2021, a meeting of the Commission for the Protection of the Economic Rights of Workers of the General Council of the Federation of Trade Unions of the Republic of Kazakhstan on topical issues of workers in the real sector of the economy was held via videoconference.
The Chairman of the Commission, the head of the NGO “Branch Mining and Metallurgical Trade Union “Kazprofmetall” A. Nuralin noted that in order to implement the tasks set by the XXVI Congress of the FPRK, the General Council of the Federation of Trade Unions of 25. 09. 2020 established Commissions of the General Council of the FPRK in six main areas of activity. In accordance with the Regulation on the Commissions of the General Council of 23.12.2020, one of the most important areas of activity is assigned to the Commission for the Protection of Economic Rights of Workers, which consists of authoritative and experienced leaders of branch, local and territorial associations of trade unions. The Speaker emphasized that between the FPRC congresses, the General Council is the highest governing body, so the recommendations and proposals of the Commission will be discussed in detail on behalf of the FPRК with all parties of the social partnership.
The participants of the meeting — members of the Commission representing the mining and metallurgical, agro-industrial, transport, oil and gas, budget and other areas of activity noted the importance and relevance of the issues on the agenda and agreed that the issue of increasing wages for workers in the real sector of the economy needs to be resolved in the very near future. The members of the Commission expressed their desire to support the efforts of the trade union side to improve the remuneration system in the Republic of Kazakhstan and the need to accelerate the ratification of the ILO Convention No. 131 “On the Establishment of a Minimum Wage with Special consideration for Developing Countries”. They also expressed a common position on the need for common efforts in addressing the following issues:
– reduction of the retirement age from 63 to 50 years for employees engaged in heavy work, work with harmful and (or) dangerous working conditions;
– exclusion of the restrictive date of January 1, 1998 from the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On the State Special Allowance for Persons Who Worked in Underground and Open-pit Mining, in Works with Particularly Harmful and Particularly Difficult Working Conditions or in Works with harmful and Difficult Working Conditions»;
– increase in the amount of state special allowances under Lists No. 1 and No. 2, approved by the Decree of the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan No. 1930 of December 19, 1999 “On Approval of List No. 1 of Productions, Works, Professions, Positions and Indicators for Underground and Open-pit Mining Operations, for works with particularly harmful and particularly difficult working conditions and List No. 2 of productions, works, professions, positions and indicators for works with harmful and difficult working conditions”, the level of which is now lower than the subsistence minimum, minimum pensions and monthly wages in the Republic of Kazakhstan — ;
– increase in the amount of temporary disability benefits from fifteen times the monthly calculation index to one hundred percent of the average salary.
– determine the position of the members of the FPRC General Council on the problems of regress miners.
Meetings of the Commission for the Protection of the Economic Rights of Workers of the General Council of the FPRK will be held quarterly.