Relationship between the HAVES and HAVENOTS and its impact on the economy in CIS Countries

SUBMITTED BY : ANURAG ANAND APARNA ALAPATI ASHUTOSH RANJAN IRFAN YUNUS MEMON NEERAJA PADMAN SHUBANGEE PATHAK YAMINI CHAMYAL

KYRGYZSTAN Introduction Kyrgyzstan , officially known as the Kyrgyz Republic is a country located in Central Asia . Landlocked and mountainous , Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan in the north , Uzbekistan to the west , Tajikistan to south west and China to the east . Its capital and largest city is Bishkek. It is officially a democratic unicameral federal republic. Although it defines itself to be a democratic country, President Askar Akayev continued to dominate the government through his autocratic and authoritarian government. The country now faces political uncertainty as it attempts to sustain a democratic system. Corruption and instability continue to be noted, however. Relationship between the HAVES and HAVENOTS The highlights of the relationship between the HAVES (capitalists) and HAVENOTS (laborers) have been semi pro-labor which can be elaborated as: 1. International treaties and other provisions of international law ratified by the Kyrgyz Republic are an integral and acting part of the current legislation of the country. And they provide more favorable conditions for the employees. 2. Labor agreements are signed between an employee and an employer under which the employer undertakes to protect the rights of the workers as proposed in the legislation. 3. Transfer of workers across functions or locations within a company or across companies can only be carried out with the written consent of the worker. 4. Working hours should not exceed 40 hours per week. And these differ across various age groups. 5. Workers can take two days off with respect to five working days in a week. 6. Minimum wages and the periodicity of payments are determined by collective bargaining bipartite agreements by the worker unions with no role by the government. 7. Overtime wages are 50 percent of the normal wages. 8. Workers have financial liability to pay for damage in event of a strike at the firm to the employer in the labor agreement. 9. An employer is liable for any work-related injury, occupational disease or another injury to the health of a worker during employment. Impact on the Economy The impact of the semi pro labor policies have been positive in terms of a stable economy .The economic decline in the first half of 1990s was deep; by 1995 the countrys GDP almost halved. In 1996, the economy started to recover driven by reformed agriculture and gold production .The crisis of 1998-1999 resulted in deceleration of economic growth but by 2000 the economy returned to a more sustainable growth path, showing GDP growth rates in the range of 5-7% per

annum. Technological problems faced by the largest enterprise, Kumtor mine and unfavorable climate conditions that affected agriculture took the economic growth to be near zero in 2002 and 2005. The biennium 2007-2008 was, however, good for the economy as during this period of time GDP cumulatively increased by 16.8%. The global economic crisis that erupted during the second half of 2008 affected Kyrgyzstan moderately, mainly through a decline in remittances and exports, but GDP remained positive. UKRAINE Introduction Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It borders the Russian Federation to the east and northeast, Belarus to the northwest, Poland, Slovakia and Hungary to the west, Romania and Moldova to the south west, and Black Sea to the south and south east. It is the second largest country in the European continent. Its capital city is Kiev. With the adoption of a constitution on June 28, 1996, Ukraine became a semi-presidential republic. Relationship between the HAVES and HAVENOTS Employment relations in Ukraine are generally governed by the Labor Code. The Constitution of Ukraine and the Labor Code both preclude discrimination based on color of skin, race, ethnic and social origin, religious, political and other beliefs, sex, property status, place of residence, linguistic or other characteristics. The highlights of the labor relations in Ukraine which are highly pro labor by nature can be elaborated to be as: 1. Ukrainian foreign investment law allows enterprises with foreign investment to hire Ukrainian employees and enter into collective agreements or individual labor agreements. The terms of those agreements may not be worse than conditions guaranteed under the Labor Code. A Labor Agreement may be concluded for an indefinite period of time, a specific term which is settled through mutual consent of the parties, or for the amount of time necessary to perform the work. 2. A Labor Contract may also be signed between the employer and worker which is a version of a Labor Agreement but with some differences. The Contract is executed for a certain term and applicable for the certain termed employees. Also, the contract is always made in the written form. 3. A worker working under Labor Agreement concluded for an indefinite period of time may terminate the employment relationship at any time by giving two weeks' notice in writing unless the cases of sickness or disability . An employer may terminate employment relationships for such reasons as failure of employees to perform their duties, reorganization, loss of trust in employees involved in financial matters, theft; absence without good reason, absence from work for more than four months as a result of a temporary disablement (not including maternity leave)

4. Wages and other payments to Ukrainian workers should be paid in national currency (UAH). Minimum wage levels are prescribed in the annual budget law. 5. The social security system in Ukraine covers pensioners, workers and their dependants for work-related accidents, illness, retirement, death and disability benefits, sickness and maternity benefits, medical care, severance benefit, and for child and family allowances. Obligatory contributions to Ukrainian social security and pension funds only apply if salary is paid through the payroll of a Ukrainian entity. 6. In general, the length of a working week is restricted to 40 hours per week. Usually, it is a five-day working week. 7. Workers are generally entitled to sick leave benefits. Such benefits are based on the worker's wages and vary between 60% and 100%. 8. Women are entitled to paid maternity leave for the 70 days prior to and 56 (sometimes 70) days after childbirth. A woman is entitled to partially paid leave until the child reaches the age of three. Impact on the Economy The impact of the highly pro labor policies have been generally not so positive in terms of a fluctuating economy .Shortly after independence in August 1991, the Ukrainian Government liberalized most prices and erected a legal framework for privatization, but widespread resistance to reform within the government and the legislature soon stalled reform efforts and led to some backtracking. Output by 1999 had fallen to less than 40% of the 1991 level. Ukraine's economy was buoyant despite political turmoil between the prime minister and president until mid-2008. Real GDP growth exceeded 7% in 2006-07, fueled by high global prices for steel - Ukraine's top export - and by strong domestic consumption, spurred by rising pensions and wages. A drop in steel prices and Ukraine's exposure to the global financial crisis due to aggressive foreign borrowing lowered growth in 2008. Now the GDP growth rate of the country is stalled at 5.2% which is pretty stable.