TALLINN - The Confederation of Estonian Trade Unions and the Confederation of Estonian Employers were poised to sit down at the negotiating table to hash over the highly controversial draft labor contract bill currently circulating through ministries.
The proposal was headed by the trade union confederation, which on Feb. 5 set up a five member delegation for the talks aimed at finding a compromise over common principles that should appear in the final document.
The controversial labor contract bill was dealt a blow recently after Economic Affairs and Communication Minister Juhan Parts added his name to the list of ministers refusing to endorse its measures. On Feb. 4 Parts sent a letter to Social Affairs Minister Maret Maripuu expressing his support for reform and modernization of the labor law but that the ministry needed to amend several measures first.
Parts pointed out that the term of providing severance notice and the reduction of compensation are insufficient in their current form.
Likewise, Interior Minister Juri Pihl and Finance Minister Ivari Padar, both Social Democrats, expressed their concerns by refusing to endorse the current form of the bill.
Parts gave several suggestions to increase the level of employee security, and he noted that further cooperation should take place in the drafting of these amendments with employers and employees unions.
Chairman of the Confederation of Estonian Trade Unions Harri Taliga has been a fiery opponent of the current version of the bill. The union held a picket outside of the Ministry of Social Affairs and a press conference the following day to voice disapproval of the "unnecessary" level of cuts made to workers' rights and job security.
He has also noted that simply placing the present social guarantees into the new bill would also be unacceptable. "As they say, the devil is in the details," Taliga told the Baltic News Service.
The bill, however, has found widespread support among employers and pro-business advocacy groups, who argue that the deficit of workers in the Estonian market necessitates change to contract law.
Thus far the bill has been supported by the Reform Party and Andrus Ansip, along with the Confederation of Estonian Employers.
The Environment and Defense ministries, as well as the Association of Estonian Cities, have so far been the only groups to fully endorse the measures stipulated in the bill.
The deadline for harmonization of the bill with all ministries was extended by the Ministry for Social Affairs in light of the fierce opposition.
