Ratification of ILO Convention on Private Employment Agencies may ruin the developing labor market of Armenia

• Friday, August 10, 17:50

The ratification of the Convention on Private Employment Agencies of the International Labor Organization(ILO) may ruin the developing labor market of Armenia, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Tanger Recruitment Agency, President of the Union of the Private Recruitment Agencies, Ms. Nana Heruni, told ArmInfo.

The expert said that the ILO Convention has a lot of positive aspects. At the same time, some provisions of the Convention are currently unacceptable for the Armenian market. In this context, the expert suggests adopting the document with some amendments adjusted to the peculiarities of the Armenian market.

 "Every market has its own peculiarities that should be taken into account, and the Convention also says that", she said. She added that many CIS countries have ratified the ILO Convention with some amendments, for instance, Russia has not ratified it either. "One cannot ratify the Convention at once, because the following day almost all the employment agencies will stop their activities or withdraw into the shadows", she said. 

 

She said that one of the provisions of the Convention implies licensing of the private employment agencies.  "The labor market really needs to be regulated today, as it is flooded with dishonest players. But will licensing contribute to settlement of the problem of the market oversaturation?" she said. She recalled that in 2000 the licensing of private agencies in Armenia was a compulsory procedure, but the state did not perform its functions of a censor.

"Licensing will change nothing today, so why should a new corruption link be created?" she said.  

 Heruni is also discontent with the fact that when elaborating the Law on Private Employment Agencies, the authorities do not apply to the most respectable labor organizations, thereby, violating certain provisions of the Convention. "We are not yet familiar with the text of the bill, its author, the principles it is based on, we do not know whether the bill takes into account the specificity of our market and its problematic aspects", she said.

 She stressed that, in fact, the Convention does not oblige the companies to licensing, it admits other methods of market regulation,for instance, self-regulation. "We are striving to be on this path.

For this purpose we set up the Union of the Private Recruitment Agencies under the Republic Union of Armenia's Employers", she stressed.

 To note, the decision on adoption of the ILO Convention No.181 is an integral part of Armenia's Strategy of Labor Market Development for 2013-2018.