ITUA starts a campaign against precarious work in Russia

RUSSIA: On August 29 at 9 am the Interregional Trade Union of Autoworkers (ITUA), an IMF affiliate, rallied in front of the office of the employment agency Adecco on Gagarin street, Kaluga, Russia. The action marked the beginning of the union campaign against precarious work.

According to ITUA, employment agencies have developed deep roots in Kaluga. Over ten major players operate in the city, including Adecco, Kelly Services and the Russian company Kariera (Career).

Many companies, especially TNCs, eagerly introduce precarious work to limit workers' rights. At the Volkswagen plant in Kaluga, where there is an ITUA local, an employee can not be hired directly. Before getting permanent employment, the worker has to undergo a six-month "probation period" -- despite the fact that the Russian Labour Code limits such a period to three months. The precarious workers at the main production line are almost as numerous as the permanent employees, they constitute roughly 45 per cent of the work force. During the "probation period" Adecco signs a temporary work contract with the worker, and the decision to renew the contract lies solely in the hands of the administration.

The Russian parliament approved the first reading of the bill banning precarious work, introduced by Andrei Isaev and Mikhail Tarasenko.

ITUA states that the last straw was the firing by Adecco of Igor Skachko, a union member who worked at Volkswagen. Because of occupational injuries Skachko was transferred to light work on health grounds.

"ITUA filed a number of suits against Adecco. Simultaneously we started a campaign against precarious work," stated Olga Masson, editor of the ITUA newspaper Autoworker and a union activist in Kaluga.

"We plan to hold several pickets in front of the offices of employment agencies in Kaluga, distribute leaflets and carry out an awareness-rising campaign at Volkswagen," she added.