The amendment to the Agreement on the establishment of the Economic and Social Council with the new composition was signed

The amendment to the Agreement on the establishment of the Economic and Social Council with the new composition was signed

The amendment to the Agreement on the establishment of the Economic and Social Council with the new composition was signed
October 15, 2024

Today, the Minister of Economy and Labor, Besar Durmishi, together with the President of the Organization of Employers of Macedonia Vladanka Trajkoska and the President of the Union of Trade Unions of Macedonia Slobodan Trendafilov, as representatives of the social partners, signed the amendment to the Agreement on the establishment of the Economic and Social Council with the new composition.

At today’s first constitutive session of the Economic and Social Council, the Prime Minister Mickoski emphasized that the dialogue between unions and employers and the Government is important in order to create conditions for functioning in which a process will begin that will lead in the direction of a sustainable economy and the rule of law. The government is a partner in which trade unions and employers’ organizations will trust and cooperate, and not as a party that wants to impose itself as an authority.

Prime Minister Mickoski pointed out that for them, as a Government, the main and strategic focus is the economy, that is, improving the performance of the economy, because if we do not have a good and stable economy, then we have nothing in the country.

The demands of the Organization of Employers of Macedonia and the demands of the trade unions were discussed at the session.

President Vladanka Trajkoska emphasized that the minimum wage must follow productivity growth and be in line with the European Minimum Wage Directive.

She also emphasized that the daily operations of the companies are complicated by the lack of qualified staff, for which the companies are dedicatedly undertaking various strategies to attract quality resources. In addition, she pointed out that the need to hire workers from abroad cannot be avoided, which becomes inevitable in these conditions. That is why it is necessary to adopt a new Law on the employment and work of foreigners, the existing one does not correspond to the newly created conditions. It is necessary to increase the quotas for the employment of foreign workers and resolve the cases related to the issuance of work permits more quickly.

President Trajkoska pointed out that the challenge for which we should jointly find a solution is the purification of the list of unemployed persons registered in the ESA – a large number of registered unemployed persons who do not apply for job advertisements, and the private sector is facing a lack of manpower. We can overcome the labor shortage if we create the possibility to employ pensioners for whom only personal tax would be paid.

According to the new agreement, the Minister of Economy and Labor will be the President of the Economic and Social Council, and the other members appointed by the Government will be the Minister of Social Work, Demography and Youth, the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Education.