WHAT DOES A GUY HAVE TO DO GET FIRED AROUND HERE?

UNCLAS BRATISLAVA 000946 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS USDOC FOR MROGERS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON ELAB LO SUBJECT: WHAT DOES A GUY HAVE TO DO GET FIRED AROUND HERE? ¶1. (U) Summary. Slovakia's Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs is busy preparing new legislation to overhaul its labor code in early 2007. Business interests are happy with the current law and concerned about forthcoming changes, especially since the drafter of the new proposal, MOL State Secretary Emilia Krsikova, is considered strongly pro-labor SIPDIS and a tough customer in general. Krsikova has not released her plans to anyone, even to high-ranking members of her own party (Smer),and is not meeting with core stakeholders. Expected changes would primarily affect domestic industries, but U.S. investors will likely feel a pinch as Slovakia harmonizes its labor code with EU norms. The Embassy is weighing in by coordinating dialogue between companies and MOL on proposed changes. End Summary. Brief Background -------------- ¶2. (U) Slovakia's labor code has been changed dramatically by each of the past two governing coalitions. In 2001, despite the presence of a primarily center-right coalition led by SDKU, pro-labor voices in the government were able to push through revisions that strengthened the hands of unions. Among other changes, the maximum number of working hours was set at 40, and employers had to get trade union approval in order to fire employees. In 2003, the new, uniformly right-of-center ruling coalition enacted a revised labor code that strongly favored business interests. The new law extended the working week to 48 hours, dramatically liberalized hiring/firing laws, authorized use of rolling indefinite-term contracts without benefits, and limited severance pay, among other changes. Trade unions retained the right to bargain collectively, but lost all mechanisms to provide leverage within the process. Labor Smer, Business Smer -------------- ¶3. (SBU) Further changes are expected from the new government since Prime Minister Robert Fico's Smer party is nominally the party of labor, enjoying support from the trade union confederation KOZ. To satisfy KOZ, the PM staffed the Ministry of Labor with ardent critics of the 2003 labor code reforms, including Minister Viera Tomanova and State Secretary Krsikova, both fellow Smer members. Fico's SIPDIS promises to organized labor have always been vague, however, and the PM consults primarily with the business wing of his party, such as financier Juraj Siroky. (On December 5, Fico met with KOZ president Eugen Skultety for the first time since the June election.) Most coaltion members have limited interest in labor rights issues. In the past week, Smer- and HZDS-appointed State Secretaries at the Ministries of Finance and Economy have told us that they would oppose any significant changes to the labor code. In turn, Tomanova and Krsikova recognize that they have limited allies even within a Smer-led government, and are very secretive about forthcoming legislative changes. All stakeholders are excluded, even unions. For example, when Tomanova's advisor, MP Robert Madej, introduced an amendment earlier this month to change the administration of the social insurance system, KOZ had not been notified in advance and completely disagreed with the proposal. Outlines of a Proposal -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Due to lack of information from the primary source, the contents of forthcoming labor legislation are now a matter of speculation for all parties. Based on conversations with business leaders, labor leaders, Smer MPs, and mid-level MOL officials, there seems to be a generalized consensus about what substantive changes are expected to be introduced as proposed legislation in early 2007. They include the following: - Businesses would not be allowed to employee long-term employees as contractors. The 2003 labor code enables employers to require many classes of employees to acquire tradesman licenses and work as contractors, which allows companies to entirely avoid paying Slovakia's high payroll taxes for health and other social insurance programs. Business associations argue that the current law provides not only greater flexibilty but also results in higher wages for workers as a result of lowered tax burdens. Unions argue that the system has created a growing class of workers ineligible for social benefits. Primary sectors affected by this law include construction, forestry, agriculture, and education -- all of which are domestic industries. While the practice is widespread in Slovakia, international investors looking to attract a talented, stable labor force rarely utilize such contracts. - The 48-hour work week would be retained, but with more limited opt-out options and fewer available overtime hours. It is not expected that the change would fully enforce the 1993 EU directive authorizing the rigid 48-hour work week (as only Italy and Luxembourg have done),but the proposal will more closely resemble countries such as Germany, which offers exceptions for emergency service workers but generally follows the directive. This marks a depature from the previous government, which closely aligned with the British position promoting maximum flexibility. The potential impact on U.S. and other foreign investors is quite real but difficult to assess at this point. - Collective bargaining between unions and employers may be required to reach settlement within the tri-partite negotiating process. According to changes made in the 2003 labor law, businesses are required to bargain with unions but in case of an impasse the dispute can be sent to arbitration courts. Existing labor law broadly enables the courts to decide in favor of employers in case of labor stoppages, as they did during the 2003 railroad workers strike and the 2006 health care workers strike. Proposed changes would have greatest potential affect on unionized businesses, including US Steel, and three major auto manufacturers, Volkswagen, Kia, and Peugeot-Citroen. Other foreign investors such as Dell and ATT&T have non-unionized workplaces. These companies generally have worker councils that do not enjoy collective bargaining rights. - The new legislation would remove the right to dismiss employees working on definite term contracts without stating an official reason. No one expects, however, that unions would regain their right to sign off on hiring and firing decisions. Nor is there any sign that the government would interfere in the hiring and firing process. - Part-time workers on definite contracts would receive health and social benefits equal to those of full-time workers. Reactions and Next Steps -------------- ¶5. (SBU) The domestic and international business communities obviously view the proposed changes above with concern, though they have not been especially aggressive on the issue. Many are not even aware of the changes under discussion. To gain further insight, the American Chamber of Commerce in Slovakia has tried to meet with Ms. Tomanova and/or Ms. Krsikova, but has not been granted an audience as of yet. To facilitate communication, the US Embassy will work to organize a lunch at the Ambassador's residence between Minister Tomanova and various US business interests. During a charity event sponsored by the Chamber on December 5, Tomanova and Ambassador Vallee spoke briefly on the subject. She tentatively agreed to attend a labor-code related luncheon in January. Also, the DCM told State Secretary Krsikova that MOL plans to make the labor code "more like France, Belgium and Germany" could undercut steps that made Slovakia so attractive to investment in the first place. VALLEE