Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2005, published 95th ILC session (2006)

Employment Service Convention, 1948 (No. 88) - Slovakia (Ratification: 1993)

1. The Committee takes note of the detailed information contained in the Government’s report received in October 2004. It refers to its 1999 direct request, and asks the Government to provide in its next report further information on the number of applications for employment received, the number of vacancies notified, and the number of persons placed in employment by the public employment services (Part IV of the report form).

2. Article 7(a) of the Convention. Specialization within employment offices. Concerning measures taken to facilitate within the various employment offices specialization by occupations and by industries, the Government indicates that while employment services have never been specialized in that regard, the new Act on Employment Services No. 5/2004 does not prohibit such specialization of offices, and the individual offices are free to introduce employment services by occupations and branches. In this respect, the Committee recalls the usefulness of such specialization and asks the Government to keep it informed of any need for specialization which could be identified, and any follow-up action taken.

3. Article 8. Special arrangements for young people. Concerning specific programmes for youth, the Government indicates that adolescents are included in the group of disadvantaged job applicants and as such, the following active labour market measures are targeting their inclusion in the labour market: counselling and guidance; preparation and education for the labour market; school-leaver’s job experience scheme; and subsidy for the employer to hire a disadvantaged job applicant. The Committee takes due note of this information and asks the Government to keep providing information on such programmes, including the number of participants and the results achieved. The Government might consider useful to refer to the conclusions on promoting pathways to decent work for youth, adopted by the International Labour Conference at its 93rd Session (June 2005), in particular on the role of employment services to provide career guidance and counselling, impart up-to-date labour market information and support young people in finding, securing and retaining jobs.

4. Article 11. Cooperation with private employment agencies. With regard to effective cooperation between the public employment service and private employment agencies, the Government indicates that Decree No. 31/2004 regulates the amount that a fee-charging employment agency may charge for its services and that Act No. 5/2004 is in conformity with the provisions of the Fee-Charging Employment Agencies Convention, 1933 (No. 34). In this regard, the Committee refers to its 2004 direct request on the application of Convention No. 34 and trusts that the Government’s intention to ratify the Private Employment Agencies Convention, 1997 (No. 181), will materialize in the near future. It further invites the Government to include in its next report information on the measures taken to secure effective cooperation between the public employment service and private employment agencies.

[The Government is asked to reply in detail to the present comments in 2006.]