Swedish “Union to Union“ support to the Western Balkan trade unions – for healthy jobs – stop pandemics

Following the joint Kick-off meeting, held on 14 December 2020, the implementation of the PERC – Union to Union Regional Project “Actions and campaigns of trade unions for healthy jobs – stop pandemics” began. This support of the Swedish LO Union to Union is intended for trade unions in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, and Montenegro, so that they can use their activities, actions, and campaigns to improve OHS measures applicable to workers during the Covid-19 pandemics.

Trade union leaders, OHS experts, and coordinators in this project participated in the joint online meetings, and they will be, in the process of national activities, the bridge for cooperation and communication between ITUC-PERC Office in Sarajevo and their respective affiliates. Professional contribution in this meeting was provided by our colleagues Tim Noonan – ITUC Campaign expert, Gordana Palajsa and Cvetan Kovač from UATUC and NHS, Croatia, and Anton Leppik – PERC Executive Secretary. Participants in the meeting, coming from trade unions of these countries, discussed the situation surrounding the pandemics in their respective countries, health measures taken to protect general population, special OHS measures applicable to workers in specific sectors, rights of workers in the return to work process and organisation of the work. All organisations have already begun with implementing some activities related to OHS, so that the support from such a project is so significant for the continuation and planning of serious actions / activities / campaigns. Enisa Salimović, project coordinator on behalf of ITUC – PERC Office in Sarajevo has briefly presented the project, project goals, expected outcomes, and budget, so that the trade unions could have a complete picture that this is their Project, and that are completely free, in line with the situation and their wishes, to draft their own strategies and plans of activities, actions, and campaigns, all aimed to ensure the best possible protection of workers’ health in the return to work process during the pandemics, including also to ensure other rights and adequate monetary compensation in cases of absence of leave on the ground of illness or isolation, but also, based on experiences of the colleagues in Croatia, to organise campaigns at the national level to include Covid on the list of occupational diseases.
Next steps, timeframe for planning, coordination and implementation of activities and reporting have also been determined.

ITUC- PERC Office in Sarajevo