OREANDA-NEWS. January 12, 2011. Belarus’ employment policy priorities are shifting from artificial preservation of jobs to making employment more efficient, Marianna Shchetkina, Minister of Labor and Social Security, said at a session of the Presidium of the Council of Ministers which considered the draft government employment assistance program for 2011.

The new government program has a new section, namely, the assistance to employers in the context of economic modernization, Marianna Shchetkina said.

According to her, the main feature of the new program is the shift towards cooperation with employers. This is due to the fact that some enterprises employ more workers than it is economically justified. Along with the labor surplus, there is still a deficit of skilled workers and professionals. There is a problem of aging staff, lessening appeal of manufacturing jobs for young people, a high level of personnel turnover (in 2010 36,000 people quit on their own, about 45,000 on the agreement of the parties). Training and staff development programs are not very efficient, the Minister of Labor and Social Security.

“If the program in 2010 focused mainly on problems of part-time employment, preservation of jobs and labor collectives, the goal in 2011 is to provide jobs in the context of economic modernization, to employ those who are not able to compete equally with other workers in the labor market,” Marianna Shchetkina said.

The draft program provides for preventive measures to reduce social costs in the context of economic modernization and upgrade of working places. Amendments and additions will be introduced to relevant laws.

The program stipulates an increase in scholarships for retraining people who have lost their jobs due to modernization. Employment assistance services are to cover the expenses of employers on organizing additional training courses for employees who are at the risk of losing a job. Among other plans is to increase the size of subsidies for the unemployed who start their business related to implementing new technologies in production.

The Labor and Social Security Ministry will provide scientific support to the enterprises that are restructuring their manufacturing schemes. Employers will receive assistance regarding the personnel policy, programs of socially-responsible restructuring, additional training courses for their staff.

The provisions on HR departments of organizations are to be revised. They will be made more responsible for elaboration and implementation of measures to increase the quality of personnel and labor stimulus.