CMNT_TITLE

The Committee notes the detailed information contained in the Government’s reports for the period ending in September 2003.

1. Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. The Committee notes the detailed statistics included by the Government in its report which covers: jobseekers registered with the Croatian Employment Service, disaggregated unemployment statistics by age and gender, statistics on underemployment as a share of total employment and data by sector and economic activity. The Government reports that unemployment for the second half of 2002 was approximately 15.8 per cent down from 16.3 per cent for the same period in 2000. The employment situation for women and youth has deteriorated with unemployment reaching 18.7 per cent and 41.7 per cent, respectively. Please continue to provide detailed statistics on the level and trends of the active population, employment, underemployment and unemployment in the various sectors of activity and for the different categories of the population.

2. The Committee notes that Law No. 32 of 28 March 2002 concerning mediation during employment and rights during the time of unemployment, governs activities such as mediation during employment or hiring, professional orientation, education for the purpose of increasing the employment of labour, unemployment insurance, an active effect on the labour market for the sake of increasing vocational and geographical mobility of the labour force, and new employment and self-employment. The Government also states that, although the legislative modifications introduced have not modified the rights guaranteed by the old Employment Law in terms of social protection of unemployed persons, the actual definition of an unemployed person has changed which might lead to changes in the structure and extent of registered unemployment. The Committee has taken note of this information and would appreciate receiving further details in the Government’s next report on the recorded changes, as a result of the new law, in trends and levels of employment and unemployment. Please also describe how the new legislation contributes to the promotion of the objectives of full, productive and freely chosen employment.

3. Pursuant to Law No. 32, a number of regulations have also been adopted that cover, inter alia, regulations concerning the undertaking of activities in connection with employment outside the Croatian Employment Institute. The Committee requests that the Government indicate what impact these activities have had on the functioning of the labour market. The Government may deem it useful to consult the instruments on the public employment services (Convention No. 88 and Recommendation No. 83) and on private employment agencies (Convention No. 181 and Recommendation No. 188) adopted by the Conference at its 31st and 85th Sessions (1948 and 1997).

4. The Government describes in its report the principal measures of its active employment policy. It states that as regards social policy, employment promotion has been pointed out as the fundamental instrument for solving social problems and combating poverty. The document entitled "Foundations of the economic and social policy for 2002 and 2003" specified two main macroeconomic goals in the medium and in the long term: growth of employment and reduction of unemployment and a rise in the standard of living. To promote these objectives and finance active labour market policy the Government has established the Development and Employment Fund. Beginning in March 2002, the Employment Promotion Programme, which includes active labour market and training measures, has been implemented through the Croatian Employment Service. The programme’s main objectives are the reduction of unemployment, job creation, restructuring of the economy, reduction of the structural difference between the labour force demand and supply and to provide employment for disadvantaged groups within the labour market. The Committee notes the efforts made by the Government to develop varied employment strategies and policies addressing sectoral development, the employment market and education and training. In order to fully assess the benefit of this strategy, the Committee would appreciate receiving further information on the evaluation of policies and programmes implemented, including any indication as the extent to which the employment objectives set out in the two-year programme (2001-02) have been or are being attained. Finally, the Committee requests that the Government indicate the manner in which the implementation of these policy measures takes into account other economic and social objectives, and the conditions under which these measures are decided on and kept under review within the framework of a coordinated economic and social policy.

5. Article 3. With reference to its previous request, in which it noted there was no formal procedure for consultations and that no consultation had taken place with the social partners concerning employment policies, the Committee again requests further details on the manner in which consultations are held with representatives of employers, workers and other groups, such as rural and informal sector workers, and on the outcome of these consultations.