On Tuesday, March 28, Chairman of the Federation of Trade Unions of the Republic of Kazakhstan Satybaldy Dauletalin held a meeting with representatives of the StreetNet International Alliance.
Speaking about the purpose of their visit, Jamalladin Ismailov, International Secretary of StreetNet, and his colleague, organizer of StreetNet for Europe and Central Asia, Katerina Yarmolyuk-Kryok, expressed the interest of the International Trade Union Alliance in cooperation with the FPRK affiliate, the YNTYMAQ trade union, and the Federation itself as a whole.
Established in the Republic of South Africa 21 years ago, StreetNet International Trade Union Alliance today has 55 affiliates around the world, reaching out to over 620,000 street and market vendors.
“Today, there are 4 branches of the Alliance: in Latin America, West and East Africa, and Europe. Member organizations operate in Azerbaijan, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova and Kyrgyzstan. We promote the interests of street and market vendors, most of whom are self-employed. We train these people in labor law, negotiation, the basics of social protection, and exchange experience with national trade union centers. In this regard, the experience of Kazakhstan is also important for us,” said Katerina Yarmolyuk-Kryok.
According to StreetNet International Secretary Jamalladin Ismayilov, the International Alliance is interested in cooperation with the Federation of Trade Unions of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
“We are interested in the experience of the Federation of Trade Unions of the Republic of Kazakhstan, which is the undisputed leader in protecting the rights of workers, we are impressed by the strategy of the Federation to build fair labor relations. Without interfering with national legislation, we could exchange practices and recommendations,” said Jamalladin Ismailov.
After listening to the guests, the Chairman of the Federation of Trade Unions of the Republic of Kazakhstan Satybaldy Dauletalin spoke about the activities of the FPRK.
“Today, the Federation of Trade Unions unites about 2 million members, it includes 23 branch, 17 regional and more than 16 thousand primary trade union organizations. FPRK is the largest republican union of trade unions in Kazakhstan and develops relations with the national trade union centers of partner countries, and is also a full member of the International Trade Union Confederation. In 2021, for the first time in the history of the trade union movement, we managed to develop a unified position on the draft General Agreement by combining the efforts of three republican unions of trade unions. In the last election campaign, our trade union activists took an active part as candidates for deputies to representative bodies. We intend to promote changes in labor and trade union legislation with the support of newly elected deputies from trade unions,” said Satybaldy Dauletalin.
The head of the FPRK emphasized that at present the Federation is also concerned about the fate of about 2 million self-employed citizens of Kazakhstan and, together with social partners, intends to continue working on the legalization of informal labor relations.
“The Federation of Trade Unions insists that it is necessary to adopt a new social contract based on respect for work, respect for the working person, respect for fair labor relations. This also applies to the self-employed. Coverage of collective bargaining relations in the sphere of small and medium-sized businesses in Kazakhstan is 46.8 percent. We believe that every working person should know their rights and be able to defend them. Every working person should receive decent wages and work in decent conditions. Therefore, the Federation of Trade Unions supports StreetNet’s interest in cooperation and intends to develop it,” said the Chairman of the FPRK.
The parties agreed to develop joint cooperation within the framework of the Council of Trade Unions of the Central Asian countries, which this year is chaired by the Federation of Trade Unions of the Republic of Kazakhstan.