Russian Gov't To Discuss 4-Day Work Week Plans With Labor Relations Commission

Mohammad Ali (@ChaudhryMAli88) Published September 13, 2019 | 09:01 PM

The Russian Trilateral Commission (RTC) on the Regulation of Social and Labor Relations, which represents the government, employers and employees, will continue to discuss a potential transition to a four-day work week, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said Friday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th September, 2019) The Russian Trilateral Commission (RTC) on the Regulation of Social and Labor Relations, which represents the government, employers and employees, will continue to discuss a potential transition to a four-day work week, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said Friday.

Earlier in the day, Medvedev held a meeting with Chairman of the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Russia Mikhail Shmakov, during which the prime minister suggested discussing the idea of a four-day work week. Shmakov, in turn, told the head of the government that the RTC would establish a working group for this initiative.

"Let's continue this work, both in the format of a trilateral commission and in the format of meetings that I will be holding several more times," Medvedev said.

Shmakov agreed that the labor law should be more flexible, but noted that it should also protect the interests of the employee.

"Today, those who work in new formats, such as remote or platform-based work, practically remain without protection, because neither their workplace and employment contracts, nor the tools explaining how to implement this protection in case of violation of their rights, are described," the official said.

Shmakov also emphasized that, although new technologies reduce the amount of human labor, people should still receive at least the same amount of pay that they would for a five-day work week.

Earlier, Medvedev said that Russia's labor law does not correspond to the demands of today's world. He noted that remote jobs need to be regulated and more flexible rules for working hours are needed. The State Duma will soon discuss the proposals for switching to a four-day workweek and prepare draft laws accordingly, based on discussions with the government, trade unions and employers, Russia's lower house speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said Wednesday.