Project «Promotion of rights and representation of workers in informal labour relations» ITUC/PERC-FNV ATUC (AHIK)

I. PROJECT REALIZATION STAGES ● beginning of the project ● scale, tendencies and content of informal economy in Azerbaijan ● awareness raising ● working with social partners ● organizing II. SOME ACHIEVEMENTS. III. SOME DIFFICULTIES. IV. RESULTS. CONCLUSIONS. RECOMMENDATIONS.

I. PROJECT REALIZATION STAGES ● beginning of the project February 2008 meeting of ATUC Congress delegation with President of Azerbaijan Republic

I. PROJECT REALIZATION STAGES ● beginning of the project March 2008 First seminar for the trade union activists with social partners participation (Ministry of Labour, Ministry of Taxes, Ministry of Economy, Social Protection Fund, Employers Confederation) May – December 2008 Working group forming, development of action plan, preparation of brochure on informal economy, analytic report

I. PROJECT REALIZATION STAGES ● scale, tendencies and content of informal economy in Azerbaijan (with reference to analytic report) size of informal economy based on cost indicators official statistics – 16 – 18 % ILO and international experts – 60 % based on number of workers official statistics – 8 – 10 % international organizations – 60 % weight of covered by social insurance % Tendency – reduction (consensus of opinion in different approaches)

I. PROJECT REALIZATION STAGES ● scale, tendencies and content of informal economy in Azerbaijan (with reference to analytic report) I. PROJECT REALIZATION STAGES ● scale, tendencies and content of informal economy in Azerbaijan (with reference to analytic report) State budget expenditures in percent to GDP Percent of contract labourers Informal workers wage in percent to average wage in the country (2005 г.) 91.4 (2005 г.)

I. PROJECT REALIZATION STAGES ● scale, tendencies and content of informal economy in Azerbaijan (with reference to analytic report) Branch structure of informal economy  agriculture  construction  trade and human services  transport

I. PROJECT REALIZATION STAGES ● awareness raising  publication of reference sources – publication of ITUC brochure on informal economy with our addition in Azeri language 2009 – publication of brochure on organizing based on «Solidarnost» edition in Azeri language

I. PROJECT REALIZATION STAGES ● awareness raising  seminars, trainings, round table discussions March 2008 – Baku November 2008 – Baku (working group) March 2009 – Ismailli (branch committee) April 2009 – Imishli (branch committee) February, June 2009 – Baku, round table discussions

I. PROJECT REALIZATION STAGES ● awareness raising  seminars, trainings, round table discussions September 2009 – Qah, regional workshop October 2009 – Baku, round table discussions November 2009 – trainings for branch trade unions

I. PROJECT REALIZATION STAGES ● awareness raising  MASS MEDIA all activities were widely covered in our newspaper; information agencies «RIA –news» and «Trend», Republican Telegraph Agency; some of actions highlighted by TV; terms of competition for journalists and specialists is ready

I. PROJECT REALIZATION STAGES ● working with social partners  practically all project actions were carried out with social partners participation  negotiations on General collective agreement  recommendations about joint efforts at the local level within the framework of the branch collective agreements  suggestions on legislation improvement  agreement about necessity of tripartite structure creation is available

I. PROJECT REALIZATION STAGES ● organizing primary trade union in Association of hotels (34 members). Conference and skeleton of collective agreement is preparing primary trade union of 7 jeweller-handcrafter. Now their membership increase to 77 sewing workshop in Hirdalan (60 members) and workshop on mattress producing (15 members) primary trade union in construction company «Accord» (3500 members), negotiations for collective agreement. We have arrangement with Russian colleagues about working with migrants in years 19 primary trade unions was created in the agroindustrial complex, from which 15 are in private sector (members – 3500 and 2870, accordingly) about 300 bus-drivers were organized in Ganca, in the near future drivers of new bus terminal in Baku is expected to be organized

II. SOME ACHIEVEMENTS  awareness sharply increased, especially trade union activists knowledge  we succeeded in attracting attention of social partners  series of actions were included in General collective agreement  recommendations on branch collective agreements were given  work on legislation implementation have become more intensive  activity in work with migrants is to be observed  we made arrangement with social partners about joint work in frame of planned to creation of tripartite structure II. SOME ACHIEVEMENTS  awareness sharply increased, especially trade union activists knowledge  we succeeded in attracting attention of social partners  series of actions were included in General collective agreement  recommendations on branch collective agreements were given  work on legislation implementation have become more intensive  activity in work with migrants is to be observed  we made arrangement with social partners about joint work in frame of planned to creation of tripartite structure

III. SOME DIFFICULTIES  global crisis  government, its structures with difficulty go to the joint actions («bureaucrat capitalism»), and sometimes hamper  employers organization not for a while yet feel interest  statistics – main and huge problem  working with migrants

1. Informal economy in Azerbaijan, as in many other countries – is reality and widely extend 2. Problems are equally important for each of social partners. Joining efforts 3. Statistics. Quantitative estimations essentially differ. We capable and have to organize joint monitoring (Sponsor ?) 4. Only administrative actions is not enough 5. Significance of informational-propagandistic campaign can’t be overestimated. It is necessary to continue work with accent on young people entering in labour market IV. RESULTS. CONCLUSIONS. RECOMMENDATIONS. 1. Informal economy in Azerbaijan, as in many other countries – is reality and widely extend 2. Problems are equally important for each of social partners. Joining efforts 3. Statistics. Quantitative estimations essentially differ. We capable and have to organize joint monitoring (Sponsor ?) 4. Only administrative actions is not enough 5. Significance of informational-propagandistic campaign can’t be overestimated. It is necessary to continue work with accent on young people entering in labour market

IV. RESULTS. CONCLUSIONS. RECOMMENDATIONS 6. As far as possible (is it possible?) to joint efforts of ITUC and ILO. Anyway ILO capable and should give proper weigh to this question in country’s decent work programmes 7. There is an urgent need to give much more precise recommendations for statistics 8. Cumulative experience should periodically be enlarged and be brought to notice of us and not only in the view of trade unions. And here we also need ILO 9. If this work will continue, then may be it would be well to reconsider priorities. Organizing is important, but more attention must be given to reducing and legalization of informal economy 10. As regards labour migrants, taking into account sizes, most probably we need separate project

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