Czech.Republic
Background information on industrial relations in Czech.Republic
- 30 Nov 2005
Czech Republic: Labour Code amendments prove controversial<#PDF_LINK>In October 2005, the Czech parliament started debating a set of amendments to the Labour Code proposed by the government. The reform, which aims to bring the Code up to date, has created a rift within the governing coalition and divided the social partners. Trade unions support the changes while employers oppose many of the amendments and complain that their comments have not been taken into account.
- 06 Sep 2005
Czech Republic: Supplementary pension insurance in the Czech Republic<#PDF_LINK>In connection with the reform of the pension system in the Czech Republic, there is a debate over how it should be financed. Discussion particularly concerns the role of the pension system’s first pillar, i.e. the system routinely financed and guaranteed by the state, and the role and form of the second pillar, the involvement of the population itself, for instance by means of supplementary pension insurance.
- 23 Aug 2005
Czech Republic: Reform of pensions system under debate<#PDF_LINK>In summer 2005, reform of the pensions system is high on the political agenda in the Czech Republic. The parliamentary political parties have put forward their proposals and appointed representatives to an expert government team, which has closely analysed the consequences of the various political proposals and assessed the chances of their being put into practice. The team's conclusions support the view that the current pensions system cannot be sustained for long and that it is not possible to delay its reform. Politicians are now faced with a search for a compromise, consensus solution, but in view of the fact that parliamentary elections are due to take place in 2006 this will not be an easy task.
- 15 Aug 2005
Czech Republic: New law on sickness insurance<#PDF_LINK>Health insurance in the Czech Republic does not meet current requirements, is costly and exploited by employees and employers alike. The government has therefore decided to take action. The first step was the amendment to Act No. 54/1956 Coll., which, in 2004, significantly reduced cases of short-term disablement, but led to increased lengths of disablement. In 2005, the government made a further proposal for new legal amendments, which are currently being debated in parliament. These amendments contain substantial innovation, including an obligation for employer’s to pay compensation for the first 14 days of employee disability, an amendment which has elicited opposition. The regulation should be in place from July 2006.
- 12 Aug 2005
Czech Republic: Largest trade union holds congress<#PDF_LINK>The Czech Metalworkers' Federation KOVO (Odborový svaz KOVO, OS KOVO) is the Czech Republic's largest trade union, with some 200,000 members. It held its congress in June 2005, adopting a a new programme and electing a new executive board.
- 14 Jul 2005
Czech Republic: 2004 Annual Review for the Czech Republic<#PDF_LINK>This record reviews the main industrial relations developments in the Czech Republic during 2004.
- 11 Jul 2005
Czech Republic: Wage convergence on the road to EMU<#PDF_LINK>This feature looks at the basic factors underlying wage fixing in the light of integrating the Czech economy into Europe’s internal single market by 2010. It compares wage levels in the Czech Republic with those in Germany and Austria in order to map the gradual convergence of Czech economic parameters (including wages) to those of the European Union. The information presented is based on the average wage in the Czech Republic in 2003, which was CZK 16,920 per month (EUR 531 per month). The comparison with Germany and Austria is based on wages in industry and services, which, according to the Czech Statistical Office (ČSÚ), were CZK 17,770 per month, or EUR 558 per month.
- 05 Jul 2005
Czech Republic: New legal regulation on work inspection <#PDF_LINK>Starting from the beginning of July 2005, the new Work Inspection Act becomes effective. This Act represents a change in the system of inspection activities in the area of labour law. Under this Act, the Labour Offices, which until now have had this activity in their field of responsibility, will retain control of employment and employee protection in the event of employer insolvency. Adherence to other labour law regulations, including safety and protection of health at work, will now be the responsibility of the work inspection offices.
- 28 Jun 2005
Czech Republic: The employment and status of women in the labour market<#PDF_LINK>The situation regarding the employment of women and their ability to succeed in the labour market is different in the Czech Republic from that in western European countries. The key factor influencing differences in the social and work status of women is socio-political: the legacy of the totalitarian regime in the Czech Republic and the democratic, largely social, market-based system in western Europe.
- 07 Jun 2005
Czech Republic: Czech healthcare in search of economic equilibrium<#PDF_LINK>Ever since the formation of the Czech Republic in 1993, the economic conditions of the working of healthcare in the independent Czech state have been the subject of constant and as yet fruitless debate. No government has yet been able to formulate a comprehensive concept for the department to define clear economic rules and help balance the system. Now, in the second half of May 2005, the new government of Jiří Paroubek (Czech Social Democratic Party) is striving to achieve this objective, inviting representatives of insurers, doctors, other healthcare workers and their trade union organisations to the debating table.
- 18 May 2005
Czech Republic: Trade union officials in the firm<#PDF_LINK>Trade union officials in enterprise are commended by both employees and personnel managers; the latter particularly appreciate their ability to harmonise the interests of management and staff. The assessment of the qualities of trade union officials also drew attention to the lack of younger people holding official trade union posts.
- 12 May 2005
Czech Republic: Thematic feature - unskilled workers<#PDF_LINK>This article gives a brief overview of the industrial relations aspects of the topic of unskilled workers and unskilled work in the Czech Republic, as of February 2005. It looks at: national definitions of unskilled workers or work; the number of unskilled workers and workers in unskilled jobs, and the extent of unskilled work; employment and unemployment among unskilled workers; the regulatory framework; trade union organisation among unskilled workers; pay and conditions; recent initiatives to improve the situation of unskilled workers; and the views of trade unions and employers' organisations on the issue and its implications for collective bargaining.
- 09 May 2005
Czech Republic: Strike at Škoda Auto<#PDF_LINK>By 30 March 2005 management and trade unions at the Škoda Auto plant at Mladá Boleslav had been through thirteen unsuccessful rounds of bargaining on a collective agreement; and the old collective agreement expired on April 1. Wages were at the heart of the dispute - the unions demanding a 10% increase in tariff wages; the management was prepared to add just under 3% to offset inflation. What is more, the management demanded wage restraint for a period of 15 months. Under these circumstances, the trade unions organised a three-hour strike on 30 March 2005. An 80% turnout by workers convinced the management that it had to yield: in the new collective agreement it undertook to raise wages by 7% and guaranteed further increases. The strike was the first ever at the Škoda motor works in its 100 years of existence.
- 21 Apr 2005
Czech Republic: Council of Economic and Social Agreement tightens representativeness criteria<#PDF_LINK>The Council of Economic and Social Agreement of the Czech Republic (RHSD ČR) is the country's main tripartite forum. In the second half of 2004, representatives of the social partners took another look at the criteria for membership of the RHSD ČR, and in September made a number of amendments. Notably, employers' organisations must now represent employers with a total of 400,000 employees, compared with the previous 200,000 . The quantitative criterion for trade union representation on the Council remains unchanged - union federations must have at least 150,000 members.
- 11 Apr 2005
Czech Republic: Discrimination against women with children in the Czech Republic <#PDF_LINK>In the opinion of Czech citizens, women with children are subjected to more discrimination on the labor market than any other group in the country, according to research carried out by the agency Median, s.r.o. in late February and early March of 2005. In particular, illegal behavior on the part of employers (new legislation intended to eliminate discriminatory practices in the treatment of job applicants has been in force since October 2004) takes the form of impermissible questions posed during job interviews: on the average, every second women reports having been subjected to such treatment.
- 01 Apr 2005
Czech Republic: The Difficult Situation of Social Dialogue in Railway Transportation<#PDF_LINK>Collective bargaining on the Czech Railways about enterprise-level collective agreement for 2005 hasn’t finished yet. The five from the six trade organizations operating at Czech Railways reached the agreement after negotiations and signed the enterprise-level collective agreement on 27th January 2005. The Enginedriver´s Federation of the Czech Republic demands greater wage increase for the drivers and refuses to sign the agreement. The agreement is therefore not valid. Employees are loosing the extra benefits provided under the enterprise-level collective agreement.
- 02 Feb 2005
Czech Republic: Dispute over transformation of Czech Railways<#PDF_LINK>A conflict between the management of Czech Railways and trade unions representing its workforce has continued in early 2005. At issue is how the enterprise, with more than 70,000 employees, is to be transformed from a state-run organisation into a functional and economically successful company that can compete in the EU market. A continuing process of major redundancies at Czech Railways is at the heart of the dispute.
- 17 Jan 2005
Czech Republic: Forestry and wood workers' union issues strike warning<#PDF_LINK>In December 2004, the Czech Republic's Trade Union of Workers in the Woodworking Industry, Forestry and Water Management (OS DLV) issued a strike warning. The union is dissatisfied with the state of collective bargaining in the forestry and the woodworking industry, and concerned about employment in these sectors.
- 12 Jan 2005
Czech Republic: Factors constraining social dialogue and social partners’ influence examined<#PDF_LINK>In 2004, social dialogue and collective bargaining in the Czech Republic have been operating in their modern form for around a decade. This article highlights the findings of a recent project examining barriers to social dialogue that restrict the capacity for action of social partner organisations and constrain the capacity for social dialogue. It finds that, besides systemic barriers, chiefly of a legal nature, there are also certain unfavourable aspects in public attitudes towards social dialogue and the trade unions, as shown by the findings of surveys of union membership. The project makes a number of recommendations for improving the situation.