The Situation of Workers and the Trade Union Movement in Georgia
08 / 01 / 2019
After restoration of
the independence the most part of the population of Georgia has lived in the
extreme poverty. According to the
official statistics for 2017 the share of those below the line of extreme
poverty made 21.9% of the total population, and the relative ratio was
22.3%. About 41% of the population (1 542 545) consider themselves as the poor and hope to get the social
allowance, which is a miserable in amount – varies between 40 and 60 Georgian
lari per month.
Since 1992, as a
result of neo-liberal economic policy, the system of state industry and related
employment system have been destroyed.
According to the official data from Geostat, in 2017 the share of
unemployed amounts 14,0%, while a half of employed tries to survive through
self-employment. Some of them are taxi
drivers, some of them feed the family with agrarian products harvested from 100
square meter plot, while others are street vendors – getting miserable income
to feed their children through out-of-door trading.
The part of employed
engaged in formal sector, which are considered by state as those engaged in
recruitment, suffer from routine exploitation and degrading treatment from the
side of socially irresponsible employers.
Against the
background of dominated business interests and the weak state, the employed
population is under the constant pressure.
Therefore, it is extremely important for the employed, especially for
the youngsters, to realize the role of the organizing and of trade unions and
get involved in the fighting for social justice, since the Youth brings the
changes in each and every dimension.
The first inception
of trade union movement started in Georgia already in 1896, when the illegal
(workers’) strike ‘Till’ was established.
The Till provided financial support to the workers who went on strike in
different cities and towns of the country. Exactly such support and solidarity to the
workers consolidated impetus for trade unions, which represent non-partisan,
membership oriented public movement.
However, the idea of such organization was considerably distorted during
the Soviet ruling – the trade union lost its protective function for the
workers and became one of the branches of the Soviet authorities. After the collapse of the Soviet Union such
degraded image of the trade union was found useless and, unfortunately,
provided rather grave legacy to the new trade union movements.
Today in Georgia there is only one western-style union –
Georgian Trade Union Confederation, which unites 21 independent sectoral
organizations. Currently the
organization goes through the reform with attempt to develop a decent and
modern trade union movement in Georgia.
Some of the sectoral organizations are very effective in organizing the
workers and protecting their rights.
However, and regretfully, not each organization from that twenty one is
equally successful. Many of sectoral
organizations still have incomplete vision on the genuine idea of the modern
trade unions. They hardly apply the new
methods for fighting and campaigning and prefer to conform to the existing
situation and stay passive; it should be mentioned that the lion share from the
membership fees are used by primary and sectoral organizations, while the Trade
Union Confederation of Georgia, which takes on its shoulders the burden of
protection of the workers operates with a minimum funds.
The Trade Union Youth
Movement
The Trade Union Youth Movement is a union-based group of
volunteers, students and young recruited workers having the aim to encourage
organizing and involvement of youngsters in the trade union activities.
According to 2018 data, about 40% of GTUC members are the
employed persons under 35. Unfortunately
the most of the young members are not engaged in the union activities;
moreover, often they have the wrong information on the role of the trade union.
Against such background it is clear that the level of awareness among the youth
on the role of unions in the public life is rather low, including the students
and pupils. The above described
situation is a result of the lack of information, as the youth at the
educational institutions of Georgia lack with possibility to receive the
information on key aspects of labour relations, either on the role of trade
union and its engagement. The trade
union itself is the only institution trying to make some steps in this direction.
However, some
impediments still exist. Among the sectoral unions still there are some
individuals who find difficult to change approaches according to the
contemporary developments and promote the real democratic reforms, still
oriented towards the old Soviet-style unions.
Such approaches jeopardize the image of the trade union. The GTUC has healthy
ambitionsto provide progressive, durable and open space for each and every
group. The Trade Union Youth Movement
finds the prospective of development of the workers’ organized power through
the union reforms and rejuvenation.
Success in this process may not be achieved without active engagement of
the youth.
Alongside with
improving the internal structural background, the Youth Movement is very active
in providing information to the employees and potential workers on their labour
rights, also about the importance of organizing and protection of their
rights. In addition to the awareness
raising the Youth Movement is equally very active in protesting campaigns.
Since 2013, owing to
the support of Friedrich Ebert Stiftung and other partners, the Trade Union
Youth Movement, together with the GTUCprovided the information to thousands of
young employees and students on the legal and labour issues and the key aspects
of the union-activities. The Youth Movement independently planned and
implemented the following campaigns: ‘Make Your Work Safe’; preparation of
Chiatura strike ‘Chiatura for Decent Work’; protesting rally in Agara ‘Make
Agara Work’; solidarity action‘Solidarity to Railway Workers’; and others.
In order to learn
the key principles ofand skills necessary for the trade union activity, the
young workers, students, pupils and volunteers take part in trainings and
seminars in the country and outside of it.
From 2016 to 2018 the project ‘Trade Union School in Georgia’ was in
operation, which covered one year regular educational course on the union
affairs and other social-economic issues.
Within the frame of this School 10 activists from the Youth Movement
have been trained and then recruited in a number of trade union organizations.
The Youth Movement
identified the following as its major working directions:
- Encourage
the workers’ organizing;
- Establish
and empower the unified working-educational platform for employees, students
and volunteer activists;
- Increase
engagement of young members from the sectoral unions into the common union
activities;
- Increase
public awareness about the strategy and social-economic policy elaborated by
the GTUC;
- Lobbying
the labour-sensitive issues at the different levels;
- Conduct
informational campaigns;
- Conduct
research and analytical activities for visualization of the issues related to
the safe labour, workers’ organizing and equal public order;
- Awareness
rising among older generation, young employees and students (public lectures,
conferences, public discussions, seminars, trainings and video blogs).
The members of the
Trade Union Youth Movement, using every mean at their disposal, are very
decisive in fighting against exploitation and economic suppression and strive
for establishing the social justice.
Their regular activity covers the following topics: implementation of
the labour Code; determination of the minimum decent wage; unemployment
benefits and pension reform; establishment of labour courts; employment of the
youth; introduction of social dialogue at the working places; labour
inspection; labour safety; and others.
Giga Bekauri