The General Collective Agreement was signed

The general collective agreement regulating numerous labor rights was signed in the Ministry of Labour.

This was confirmed by News in the Social Council.

OKU was signed by representatives of the Union of Free Trade Unions, the Union of Trade Unions, the Union of Employers and the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare.

The General Secretary of the Federation of Trade Unions, Duško Zarubica, told reporters after signing the contract that the new OKU represents a measure of compromise because neither the unions nor the employers got everything they asked for.

"This is the first OKU in which none of the employees' rights have been reduced, on the contrary. I think that the employers and the Government have shown a social responsibility," he stated.

The General Secretary of the Union of Free Trade Unions, Srđa Keković, emphasized after signing the contract that a balance between private and professional life is finally being made.

"We have introduced legal institutes - salary increase for readiness to work from home, double work and work on Sundays," said Keković.

The Minister of Labor and Social Welfare, Admir Adrović, signed the OKU on behalf of the Government and pointed out that the OKU represents one of the most important documents for the "world of work".

He said that from the state's point of view, this shows that this government is focused and committed to European integration, because the signing of the OKU is in accordance with the government's policy and contributes to the fulfillment of the final criteria of negotiation chapter 19, which proves the commitment of the state of Montenegro and this government. .

"This contract defines certain benefits that will be achieved by all employees in Montenegro, especially where we have a situation where we do not have concluded Branch collective agreements and Collective agreements at the employer level. Bearing in mind the lack of labor in certain activities, I believe that with this General Collective Agreement contribute to people being more motivated to stay here, to look for jobs with our employers. I believe that this is the interest of everyone in Montenegro, both employers and employees, i.e. trade unions, and certainly the state," said Adrović.

Asked whether media employees will be exempted from the provision of increased daily wages for work on Sundays, Adrović said that the application of this right has been postponed for six months, with the suggestion that employers' unions of media find an agreement on signing a branch collective agreement.

"If that does not happen in the next six months, the provisions specified in the OKU will apply," specified Adrović.

President of the Union of Employers (UPCG) Predrag Mitrović stated that all three social partners showed a high level of social responsibility.

"We believed that we should take social care so that young people do not leave Montenegro. We were guided by the basic interests of the employer... We have to give a chance especially to young people and that is why we also accepted some, perhaps a little "painful" situations regarding the attitudes of certain members, but I certainly think that we have taken a very useful step. We should also keep in mind that the social dialogue is a process that will immediately enter a new round after the New Year," Mitrović said.

Asked to comment on objections by the "Montenegro Employers' Association" that UPCG disputes the right of representativeness in the social dialogue, Mitrović stated that UPCG does its job completely legitimately, seriously, according to all conventions.

"Whether some groups with various interests wanted something else, that is a question for them, not for me... The one who wants to carry out affairs, you should go to that address... The frog saw that the horse was shod, so he will and her," said Mitrović, who was surprised that "any of the journalists could think, let alone ask such a question."

He added that they are always ready to prove their representativeness.

Mitrović also stated that media managements are not threatened by the new OKU because they first agreed with the Government on the type of compensation for the aforementioned provision for working on Sundays.

He said that work on Sundays across Europe is compensated from 50 to 150 percent.

"Quite logically, we found an 80 percent solution," he said.

One of the key novelties of the General Collective Agreement is that the grounds for increasing wages based on work at night, during state and religious holidays, overtime, work on Sundays and double work are not included in the minimum wage, but are calculated on the amount of the minimum wage, which until now was not the case.

The basis for increasing earnings in the section for work on Sundays, double work and work during standby has been improved. Earnings during work on Sundays are increased in the amount of 80 percent per hour, with the fact that due to the nature of the work, certain activities are exempt, i.e. jobs whose nature requires continuous work, employees in the hotel industry and public transport. For employees in the field of media, the aforementioned norm has been postponed for a period of 6 months, during which the competent organizations of the trade union and the employer undertake to negotiate a branch collective agreement for the media.

The new General Collective Agreement for the first time, in accordance with the provisions of the Labor Law, limits the duration of overtime to 250 hours per year, with the possibility of different arrangements at the branch and employer level.

Provisions related to earnings as the basic income of an employee have been improved. Earnings ratios were increased in the range from 3.30 to 7 compared to the current 1.03 to 4.12.