During the meeting with Irakli Petriashvili, President of the Georgian Trade Union Confederation (GTUC), representatives of the The Danish Confederation of Trade Unions (LO-Denmark) and the ILO Bureau for Workers’ Activities (ACTRAV), Giorgi Margvelashvili emphasized that the existing mechanisms to prevent and minimize risks are ineffective and need coordinated actions of the constituents.
Mr. Sergeyus Glovackas, ACTRAV’s Europe Desk Specialist and Mr. Gocha Aleksandria, Specialist for Workers Activities at the ILO Office for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, underlined the role of trade unions in promoting decent work and indicated to several gaps in Georgia’s legislation and practice. Giorgi Margvelashvili stressed that the role of the ILO is very important in ensuring compliance with the international labour standards and that he welcomes more active cooperation with the GTUC and the ILO.
The ACTRAV specialists reiterated their readiness to continue assist GTUC on the occupational safety and health issues. The President was informed about the new ILO Technical Cooperation project “Inclusive Labour Markets for Job Creation in Georgia” funded by the Danish Government which, among several objectives, pursues the goal of strengthening the labour inspection system in Georgia through enhanced and effective social dialogue.
“We talked about the measures that need to be taken to effectively inspect hazardous workplaces like mines and make appropriate recommendations for that. We have agreed that regarding these issues my doors are always open in order to support trade unions and the citizens they represent who instead of dying on the workplaces should have opportunity to work for better life and sustain their families”, President Margvelashvili said.
