Third session of Working Group 2 took place on 06.12.2018 in the club of deputies. The topic was: “The Social Dialogue in the Republic of Macedonia: Between new concept and old Practices”. There were over 40 participants from all relevant stakeholders in the society, representatives of the authorities, non-governmental organizations, experts, trade unions, employers’ organizations. Prof. Dr Mileva Gjurovska, gave a short introductory speech about the lack of attention dedicated to a key topic such as social dialogue.
Nano Ruzin, professor, noted that at the moment that there is no generally accepted definition of the term social dialogue. He pointed out that we are far from European standards, and as the main reason he highlighted crime and corruption.
Slovak expert Miroslav Haynosh explained the process in Slovakia and explained the structure of the Economic and Social Council. He briefly explained all the levels, and later addressed the problems they face. As the main problem, he pointed out the lack of sufficient human capital.
Mare Ancheva, from the trade union for industry, energy and mining, believes that social dialogue must be institutionalized.She made an comparison between Macedonia and Slovenia, as two countries that emerged from the same system. As a mistake, she pointed out the desire to clear up completely with everything from the previous system, although even then there were good things that should be preserved as a collective agreement.
Angel Dimitrov, from the organization of employers of Macedonia,focused on our reality. According to him, the desire of the Minister of Labor and Social Policy is most important for social dialogue. A key factor in improving social dialogue is the “PR” of the government.
Andon Majhoshev, professor, believes that the social dialogue in Macedonia resembles a social monologue, as the government draws all the moves. He presented several studies that measured the power of each body and the negotiating position. He pointed out that there is an ideological paradox, where left-wing governments and politicians represent right-wing policies and vice-versa. He criticized the socio-economic council that should be in line with the EU,but noted that the council plays a key role and should be given a chance. However it must become more transparent and visible.
Mirjanka Aleksevska, from the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy, believes that social dialogue is a key tool for development and social rights. As part of the ministry for many years, she has presented several activities to promote and strengthen the social dialogue that have been implemented, as well as activities that need to be implemented in the future.
Svetlana Trbojevic, professor, explained the basic goal of social dialogue, and that is reaching an agreement between the parties concerned. Aging, migration, the structure of people working and looking for work are part of those social trends. Politicalization in every sphere of society also affects social dialogue. Finally she presented the draft recommendations, which with minor modifications were adopted at the session.