SCHUTZ DER BEHINDERTEN PERSONEN VOR ARBEITSDIKRIMI- NIERUNG MIT DEM FOKUS AUF SERBISCHE GESETZGEBUNG UND PRAXIS

Like so many European countries, the Republic of Serbia is facing high rates of unemployment among persons with disabilities. This can be explained by various factors, including indirect discrimination of persons with disabilities within the school system and employment procedures, as well as their fear of forfeiture of social benefits upon entering into an employment contract. Law on vocational rehabilitation and employment of persons with disabilities (2009) is promoting employment of such persons in the open market, in accordance with the general conditions or by reasonably adjusting the workplace to their needs, while ‘sheltered’ employment is, as a rule, reserved for persons who, due to the grade of their disability, are unable to fulfil their need for economic security as initially described above. Based on international standards and comparative experience, the legislator prescribed multiple measures, including employment quo- tas, for equal participation of persons with disabilities in the labour market as well as increase in their employment. Although the rate of employment of persons with disabilities has risen slightly since the Law came into force, many of these people are still without work, mainly because employers sought to ‘bypass’ their designated employment obligations any way they could, even pressuring the (existing) staff to register as persons with disabilities. On the other hand, judges are faced with the challange of ’honing down’ reasonable adjustments standard, especially as the corresponding obligation of the employer exceeds the ban for indirect discrimination, and yet differs from positive discrimination. Therefore, the paper shall reasses the limits of the obligation for reasonable adjus- tments, as well as the circle of protected persons, since comparative law recognizes the practise of reserving employment quotas exclusively for people with severe disabilities. Especially so, because limiting the designated employment obligation to persons with severe disabilities is justified when the purpose of the quota system is to facilitate employment for people facing the biggest problems on the labour market. Conversely, the need to reduce the number of users of social benefits speaks in favour of establishing a general obligation for employment of persons with disabilities.Poput mnogih europskih država, i Republika Srbija suočena je s visokom stopom nezaposlenosti osoba sa invaliditetom. To se može objasniti različitim činiteljima, uključujući posrednu diskriminaciju osoba s invaliditetom u oblasti obrazovanja i zapošljavanja, ali i njihov strah od gubitka socijalnih povlastica zbog zaključenja ugovora o radu. Zakonom o profesionalnoj rehabilitaciji i zapošljavanju osoba sa invaliditetom (2009) afirmirano je zapošljavanje ovih osoba na otvorenom tržištu, pod općim uvjetima ili uz razumno prilagođavanje radnog mjesta njihovim potrebama, dok je „zaštićeno“ zapošljavanje, po pravilu, rezervirano za osobe koje, zbog težine invaliditeta, ne mogu zadovoljiti svoju potrebu za ekonomskom sigurnošću na prvi način. Po uzoru na međunarodne standarde i poredbena iskustva, zakonodavac je predvidio i više mjera za ravnopravno sudjelovanje osoba s invaliditetom u tržištu rada i povećanje njihove zaposlenosti, uključujući kvote za zapošljavanje. Iako je od stupanja Zakona na snagu neznatno povećana zaposlenost ovih osoba, značajan broj njih je i dalje bez posla, između ostalog i stoga što su poslodavci težili na svaki način ’zaobići’ obavezu zapošljavanja, čak i uz pritisak na (postojeće) zaposlene da se prijavljuju kao osobe s invaliditetom. S druge strane, suci su suočeni s izazovom ’brušenja’ standarda razumne prilagodbe radnog mjesta, posebno stoga što odgovarajuća obveza poslodavca nadrasta zabranu posredne diskriminacije, a razlikuje se i od pozitivne diskriminacije. Zbog toga su u radu preispitane granice sadržaja obveze razumnog prilagođavanja, a, zatim, i krug zaštićenih osoba, budući da poredbeno pravo poznaje i primjere rezerviranja kvota za zapošljavanje samo za osobe s težim invaliditetom. Ovo stoga što se ograničavanje obaveze zapošljavanja samo na osobe s težim invaliditetom čini opravdanim u slučajevima kada kvotni sus- tav ima za cilj lakše zapošljavanje osoba koje se suočavaju s najvećim problemima na tržištu rada. I suprotno, potreba da se smanji broj korisnika socijalnih povlastica govori u prilog utvrđivanja općte obveze zapošljavanja osoba sa invaliditetom.Wie andere europäische Staaten, so ist auch die Republik Serbien mit der hohen Quote der arbeitslosen behinderten Personen konfrontiert. Dies kann durch verschiedene Faktoren erklärt werden, einschließlich der mittelbaren Diskriminierung von Behinderten bei der Ausbildung und Beschäftigung, aber auch ihrer Angst, durch Abschluss des Arbeitsvertrags ihre Sozialrechte zu verlieren. Durch das Gesetz über die berufliche Rehabilitation und Beschäftigung von Menschen mit Behinderungen (2009) wurde die Beschäftigung dieser Personen auf dem offenen Arbeitsmarkt unter allgemein geltenden Bedingungen oder auch einschließlich einer vernünftigen Anpassung des Arbeitsplatzes an ihre Bedürfnisse unterstützt, während die sogenannte „geschützte Beschäftigung“ in der Regel für die Personen reserviert ist, welche wegen der Schwere der Behinderung ihre Bedürfnisse an der ökonomischen Sicherheit nicht befriedigen können. Im Vorbild nach internationalen Standards und durch Vergleich mit Erfahrungen anderer Staaten, hat der Gesetzgeber mehrere Maßnahmen zur gleichberechtigten Teilnahme der behinderten Personen am Arbeitsmarkt und zur Förderung ihrer Arbeitstätigkeit vorgesehen, einschließlich deren Beschäftigungsquoten. Obwohl nach dem Inkrafttreten des Gesetzes die Beschäftigung dieser Personen leicht angestiegen ist, ist eine große Anzahl der Behinderten auch weiter arbeitslos, unter Anderem auch dadurch, dass die Arbeitgeber Alles versucht haben, um die Beschäftigungspflicht solcher Personen auszumeiden – sogar auch durch einen Druck auf eigene Arbeitnehmer, sich als behinderte Personen zu registrieren. Auf der anderen Seite sind die Richter mit der Heruasforderung auseinandergesetzt, die Standards der vernünftigen Anpassung des Arbeitsplatzes auszuarbeiten, insbesondere weil die entsprechende Pflicht des Arbeitgebers das Verbot der mittelbaren Diskriminierung übertrifft, gleichzeitig aber von der positiven Diskriminierung zu unterscheiden ist. Aus den oben angeführten Gründen wurden in dieser Arbeit die Inhaltsgrenzen der Pflicht zur vernünftigen Anpassung des Arbeitsplatzes, sowie der Umfang der geschützten Personen überprüft, da im Vergleichsrecht auch Beispiele der Reservierung von Beschäftigungsquoten nur für schwerbehinderte Personen bekannt sind. Die Beschränkung der Beschäftigungspflicht nur auf die Schwerbehinderten scheint nämlich gerechtfertigt in den Fällen, wenn das Quotensystem mit dem Ziel eingeführt wurde, die Personen mit größten Beschäftigungsproblemen auf dem Arbeitsmarkt leichter zu beschäftigen. Und umgekehrt, Anstrengungen um Verringerung der Anzahl von Benutzern der Sozialrechte sprechen für die Festsetzung der allgemeinen Verpflichtung der Beschäftigung von Behinderten

ZAŠTITA MIGRANATA OD SOCIJALNIH RIZIKA U PRAVU EVROPSKE UNIJE

In recent years, much discussion has taken place on the social security of persons moving within the European Union, especially in the context of what has been agreed on the coordination of social security schemes in Regulations No 883/2004, No 987/2009 and No 1231/2010. The main purpose of this article is to analyze the capacity of these Regulations to abolish the obstacles to the free movement of workers that can be created if migration were to lead to discrimination and loss of social benefits in the state hosting EU citizen. The author first analyzes the aim and purpose of international social law protection of migrants, and shows how territoriality and diversity of national social legislations can cause problems when people move from one State to another. In second part of the article, the author comments on the legislative history of Regulations on coordination of social security schemes and personal and material scope of their provisions. She argues that the overall objective of Regulations is to link together the various social security systems in the European Union, so as to prevent migrants from losing out on social security rights on account of their moving, without creating a common „European system of social security“. Special attention is paid to the basic principles of the coordination of social security schemes: the principle of prohibition of (direct and indirect) discrimination on the basis of nationality; the principle of preservation of acquired social security rights and the principle of preservation of social security rights in the course of acquisition. These principles are placed in the context of challenges that (international and comparative) social law will have to face, including the chalenges of protection of new social risks, the importance of private insurance systems and new patterns of migrations.U okviru Evropske unije, duže od pola veka funkcioniše poseban model povezivanja nacionalnih sistema socijalne sigurnosti koji obezbeđuje kontinuiranu zaštitu migranata od osnovnih socijalnih rizika (bolesti, starosti, invalidnosti, nezaposlenosti i dr.). Ovo stoga što razlike koje postoje između socijalnog zakonodavstva država članica Unije, kao i ograničenost važenja njihovih propisa na domaću teritoriju, suočavaju migrante sa rizikom gubitka (stečenih i očekivanih) prava na socijalne prestacije, kao i sa rizikom diskriminacije na osnovu državljanstva. Zaštita migranata od socijalnih rizika, otuda, podrazumeva određivanje merodavnog socijalnog zakonodavstva, pravedno vrednovanje svih perioda rada i osiguranja navršenih u različitim državama, mogućnost isplate socijalnih prestacija u inostranstvu, kao i zabranu (neposredne i posredne) diskriminacije na osnovu državljanstva. Navedeni zadaci ostvaruju se na osnovu pravila o koordinaciji nacionalnih sistema socijalne sigurnosti. Ona ne pretpostavljaju usklađivanje socijalnog zakonodavstva država članica Unije, niti postepenu izgradnju nekakvog unifikovanog „evropskog sistema socijalne sigurnosti“. Svaka država članica je, umesto toga, slobodna da utvrđuje uslove sticanja, ostvarivanja i korišćenja socijalnih prestacija, pod uslovom da vršenjem ovih ovlašćenja ne uspostavlja prepreke za slobodu kretanja lica unutar Unije. U radu su, najpre, analizirani smisao, značaj i domašaj međunarodnih pravila o socijalnoj sigurnosti migranata, a, zatim, i odnos Evropske unije prema materiji socijalne sigurnosti, te „legislativna istorija“ pravilā o koordinaciji Sistema socijalne sigurnosti (pravila br. 3/58, 1408/71 i 883/2004). U posebnom delu rada analiziran je sadržaj i domašaj osnovnih načela koordinacije, dok je u zaključnim razmatranjima učinjen kritički osvrt na najnoviju reformu pravila o koordinaciji, posebno na njihov kapacitet da doprinesu slobodnom kretanja lica unutar Unije

Right to protection against unfair dismissal and obstacles for its effective exercise in times of crisis

The right to protection against unfair dismissal is one of the fundamental rights of employees. It means that an employer cannot dismiss an employee unless there is a valid reason related to the capacity or conduct of that employee or to the employer’s requirements. At the very core of this rule lies an inclination to create a balance between the need to protect employees, as the weaker (economically dependent and legally subordinate) party to the employment relationship, and the need to preserve employers autonomy in matters that affect their business activities. In times of crisis, broad guarantees of employment security are criticized as an obstacle to overcoming the difficulties employers face in the market. On the other hand, the legal systems that give employers absolute freedom to dismiss employees are also criticized, because employees feel a bigger need for protection when they’re facing the risk of (long-term) unemployment. These were the ongoing debates after the flare-up of economic crisis in the autumn of 2008, and certain European countries decided to loosen up the protection against dismissal (simplifying the dismissal procedures, shortening the notice period, decreasing protection against unlawful dismissal). However, there is fear that such solutions may not be able to induce increase in employment rates and that they may lead to a deeper social inequality and marginalization of the most vulnerable categories of workers. Therefore, this paper starts with the examination of the right to protection against unfair dismissal and its place in the corpus of labour rights, as well as the development and contemporary interpretations of the concept of valid reasons for dismissal. After that, the key aspects of the reformed rules on dismissal in European countries are identified, as well as the fundamental challenges and obstacles for effective exercise of the right to protection against unfair dismissal in Serbian legislation and practice. And in the end, we draw a conclusion that economic crisis can be a legitimate reason for amending the rules on dismissal, but that these amendments should not result in excessive insecurity of employees and violation of their fundamental social rights

Prévention et protection contre les discriminations au travail en République de Serbie

La ratification d’un certain nombre de conventions internationales par la République de Serbie a permis au pays de s’engager à ce que sa population bénéficie de toute la protection nécessaire en cas de discrimination, et d’un droit à l’égalité réellement effectif. Par ailleurs, conformément à la volonté de la République de Serbie de devenir membre de l’Union européenne, le processus d’harmonisation de la législation nationale avec les directives n° 2000/43/CE, 2000/78/CE et 2006/54/CE est en ..

Prevention and protection against workplace discrimination in the Republic of Serbia

By ratifying a number of international conventions, the Republic of Serbia undertook to provide everyone on its territory with all the necessary protection in the event of discrimination, so that the right to equality could truly be effectively exercised. Furthermore, the process of harmonizing Serbian legislation and practice with the Directives 2000/43/EC, 2000/78/EC and 2006/54/EC is under way, in accordance with the commitment of the Republic of Serbia to become a member of the European ..

ZAPOŠLJAVANJE RADNIKA MIGRANATA – PRETPOSTAVKE, USLOVI I OGRANIČENJA

Although the need to provide decent working conditions is at the heart of the labour law rules on protection of migrant workers, a significant challenge for modern countries remains to create such conditions for their decent employment. The article discusses assumptions (legally entering a country), requirements for employment of foreigners (stay visa and work permit), as well as the employment limitations (quotas for employment of foreigners, limiting the catalogue of jobs that can be entrusted to foreigners, etc.). Regulation of these issues is closely related to the needs and the state of the domestic labour market (general and/or in specific professions), as well as the goals of migration, demographic, economic and employment policies. The author concludes that by establishing certain assumptions and special requirements for establishing employment relationships with foreigners, a number of diferent migrant positions are established for migrant workers, some of which are extremely precarious. Implementation of the relevant legal regulations should therefore be accompanied by (legal and extralegal) measures aimed at efectively protecting the dignity of migrant workers and preventing their labour exploitation. Among much else, this can be facilitated by establishing authorizations for employment of foreigners, as a special condition to be fulfilled by the employer, which can only be issued to the employers who respect labour and immigration regulations. Although this prevents employers who violate the rights of migrant workers from hiring new workers, there are no instruments in place to protect vulnerable categories of persons from labour exploitation in the period until the application for renewal of the employment authorisation or the application for a new employment authorisation is submitted. This is especially true as the dependence of migrant workers on the employer often discourages migrants from initiating the proceedings for protection of rights.Premda se u srcu radnopravnih pravila o zaštiti radnika migranata nalazi potreba za obezbeđivanjem dostojanstvenih uslova rada, poseban izazov za savremene države predstavlja stvaranje uslovā za dostojanstveno zapošljavanje ovih lica. U radu su, otud, razmotrena pitanja pretpostavki (uredan ulazak u određenu državu) i uslovā za zasnivanje radnog odnosa sa strancima (odobrenje za boravak i dozvola za rad), kao i pitanje ograničenja njihovog zap ošljavanja u odabranim državama (kvote za zapošljavanje stranaca, ograničavanje kataloga poslova čije se obavljanje može poveriti strancima i dr.). Autor polazi od hipoteze da se utvrđivanjem odgovarajućih pretpostavki i specijalnih uslova za zasnivanje radnog odnosa sa strancima, za radnike migrante uspostavlja i niz različitih migrantskih položaja, od kojih su neki izrazito prekarni. Primena merodavnih pravnih propisa bi, otud, morala biti praćena (pravnim i vanpravnim) merama upravljenim ka delotvornoj zaštiti dostojanstva radnika migranata i sprečavanju njihove radne eksploatacije

Functional Outcome Assessment of Lower Limb Amputees and Prosthetic Users with a 2-Minute Walk Test

The aim of this study was to assess the functional outcome of a population of lower limb amputees supplied with prosthesis. The research was conducted from June to September of 2010 at the Center for Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine, of the Clinical Hospital Center Rijeka, Croatia. The study included 50 adult subjects of both genders with a unilateral transtibial or transfemoral lower limb amputations. The 2-minute walk test (2MWT) was used to assess the functional outcome of these individuals. Data were statistically analyzed. Subjects were divided into groups according to age. The best results were obtained by subjects between the age of 45 and 59 years. The difference between groups was statistically significant (p<0.001). Taking into account the cause of amputation, there was a statistically significant difference in the results of the 2 MWT between subjects in whom the cause of amputation was circulatory and those where the cause of the amputation was not due to circulatory problems. The best results were obtained in subjects in whom the cause of amputation was not circulatory (p=0.009). Considering the level of amputation there was a statistically significant difference in the results of the 2MWT between subjects with transtibial and those with transfemoral amputations. Better results were obtained in transtibial amputees (p=0.039). Considering the first prosthetic supply, better results were obtained in subjects using prosthetic devices over 9 years (p=0.031). Our research confirmed that age, gender, level and cause of amputation, including the time from the first prosthetic supply have an effect on the 2MWT results

EFFECTIVENESS OF LABOUR LEGISLATION AND THE ROLE OF LABOUR INSPECTION IN LIGHT OF INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANIZATION STANDARD

Uređivanje radnih odnosa praćeno je preduzimanjem mera od značaja za obezbeđivanje delotvorne primene radnog zakonodavstva. Među tim merama poseban značaj ima nadzor koji vrši inspekcija rada. U prošlom veku, u većini država razvijen je solidan pravni i institucionalni okvir inspekcijskog nadzora u svetu rada, pri čemu su mnoge države kao inspiraciju ili model za njegovu izgradnju koristile standarde sadržane u konvencijama Međunarodne organizacije rada br. 81 i 129. Uprkos tome, inspektori rada suočavaju se s brojnim izazovima i preprekama, između ostalog i stoga što proliferacija radnopravnih propisa i pojava novih profesionalnih rizika i novih formi rada nisu praćene odgovarajućim mehanizmima za obezbeđivanje delotvorne zaštite radnih prava. Ovo vredi i za izbijanje ekonomskih i finansijskih kriza, koje su redovno skopčane s nastojanjima poslodavaca da snize troškove rada zaobilaženjem primene radnopravnih, socijalnopravnih i poreskopravnih propisa. Ne treba gubiti iz vida ni to da u savremenom svetu rada ozbiljnu prepreku za delotvoran inspekcijski nadzor predstavlja i činjenica da nemali broj radnika ostaje izvan personalnog područja primene radnog zakonodavstva. Takođe, nemali broj radnika radi „na crno”, dok je tzv. eksternalizacija rada zamaglila pravni položaj radnika, dovodeći u pitanje tradicionalno razlikovanje radnog odnosa i nezavisnog rada za drugog, ali i tradicionalnu (unitarnu) koncepciju poslodavca, budući da njegova ovlašćenja sada vrše dva ili više subjekata. Ozbiljnost navedenih izazova postaje veća ako se ima u vidu problem nedovoljnog broja i neodgovarajuće obučenosti inspektora rada, što redovno ima za posledicu sprovođenje nadzora samo nad neprihvatljivo skromnim delom (registrovanih i neregistrovanih) subjekata podložnih inspekcijskom nadzoru. Mala verovatnoća da će kod njih stvarno biti realizovana inspekcijska poseta dodatno ohrabruje poslodavce da nastave sa zaobilaženjem primene merodavnih propisa. Na to se nadovezuju i blage kazne koje inspektori rada imaju na raspolaganju, kao i činjenica da njihov rad neretko biva obesmišljen neažurnošću prekršajnih sudova. Konačno, poseban problem predstavlja i izostanak specijalizacije inspektora rada za pojedina radnopravna pitanja, odnosno za zaštitu određenih posebno osetljivih kategorija radnika. Autorka nastoji da ciljeve, funkcije i ovlašćenja inspekcije rada razmotri u svetlu standarda Međunarodne organizacije rada, kao i da ih preispita u svetlu aktuelnih tendencija u razvoju radnog prava, počevši od ekonomskog i političkog zaokreta ka neoliberalizmu, preko ekonomskih i finansijskih kriza, do intenzivnih međunarodnih migracija stanovništva.Regulation of labour relations is accompanied by adoption of measures pivotal to ensuring effective implementation of labour legislation. One of the most important measures is labour inspection. During the last century, a solid legal and institutional framework for labour inspection had been developed in most of the world, with many countries using the standards contained in the International Labour Organization conventions no. 81 and 129 as inspiration or model. Nevertheless, labour inspectors face many challenges and obstacles, because the proliferation of labour regulations and the emergence of new occupational risks and new forms of work are not accompanied by appropriate mechanisms to ensure effective protection of labour rights. This also applies to the emergence of economic and financial crises, which are regularly linked to employers’ efforts to reduce the cost of work by bypassing the labour, social and tax regulations. We should not lose sight of the fact that a large number of workers are outside of the personal scope of application of labour legislation, which, in the contemporary world of work, is a serious obstacle to successful labour inspection. In addition, a large number of workers performs undeclared work, and the so-called externalization of work has blurred the legal position of workers, calling into question the traditional distinction between employment and independent work for others, but also the traditional (unitary) concept of an employer, as its prerogatives are now exercised by two or more entities. The seriousness of these challenges becomes even greater if we take into account the insufficient number of labour inspectors and their inadequate training, which often results in the unacceptably modest number of (registered and unregistered) entities being inspected. The low probability of inspection actually taking place will further encourage employers to continue to circumvent the applicable regulations. This is bolstered by the lenient penalties that the labour inspectors have at their disposal, as well as the fact that their work is often rendered meaningless by the negligence of the misdemeanor courts. Another problem is the lack of specialization of labour inspectors for certain labour issues, such as the protection of particularly sensitive categories of workers. The authoress seeks to examine the goals, functions and prerogatives of labour inspectors in view of the International Labour Organization standards, as well as to review them taking into consideration the current trends in labour law, like economic and political turn towards neoliberalism, economic and financial crises as well as the intense international migrations