A meeting of the regional council for labor and social issues was held in a video conference mode, chaired by the Deputy Chairman of the Regional Executive Committee, Anzhelika Nikitina.

The meeting was attended by the co-chairmen of the council, members of the regional executive committee, the regional employers' union and trade union associations, and in the studios – deputy chairmen of city/district executive committees, chairmen of district trade union associations and district employers' unions, heads of departments for labor, employment and social protection of district/city executive committees, heads of departments for organizational and personnel work of city/district executive committees.

The agenda of the meeting of the regional council for labor and social issues included the implementation of Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus No. 278 of July 15, 1995 "On the Development of Social Partnership in the Republic of Belarus", the role of employers in solving the socio-economic development tasks of the Vitebsk region, and topical problems of training and retaining young personnel.

As Anzhelika Nikitina noted, summarizing the preliminary results of the outgoing year, two out of five target indicators will be met in the region: nominal accrued average monthly wages (117.6 percent compared to the 2022 level – target 116) and total consolidated budget revenue (121.4 percent with a target of 108.2). This means that the economy is functioning, and targets for housing construction, energy saving, cargo turnover, import substitution, and others are being met. The implementation of socio-economic development indicators is ensured by the workforces of specific enterprises and organizations. However, the problem of staff outflow is a cause for concern today. Undoubtedly, the trends of natural population aging, the outflow of working-age citizens from the region, and demographic problems are having an effect. For example, over the past ten years, the working-age population has decreased by 9 percent, and the economically active population by 13 percent. Since the beginning of this year alone, more employees have been dismissed from enterprises in the region than hired. Personal responsibility for proper staffing is assigned to the heads of workforces. However, they cannot cope with this problem alone. This is where social partnership plays its role, the basis of which in the Vitebsk region is the trilateral agreement between the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, the Regional Union of Employers, and the Regional Association of Trade Unions.

Yury Derkach, Chairman of the regional trade union association, member of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus, and co-chairman of the regional council for labor and social issues, emphasized the importance of strictly adhering to the Presidential Decree "On the Development of Social Partnership," which clearly states that it is one of the most important state tasks, considering its significant role in implementing reforms, maintaining social stability in society, and coordinating the activities of state administration bodies, republican associations of employers, and trade unions in resolving socio-economic issues. Thus, subjects of social partnership at the local level – trade unions, employers, and local executive authorities – must motivate people to achieve economic targets.

The role of industry trade unions in this is important. In the Vitebsk region, over 381,000 people are currently members of trade unions, along with over 13,000 legal entities, forming nearly 4,000 primary trade union organizations. Collective agreements are concluded and in effect in 2,600 organizations, which clearly stipulate the bonuses that the team receives upon achieving certain targets. Therefore, the more effectively an enterprise operates, the more bonuses its team members receive. Over the past two years, 383 primary trade union organizations have been established in the region, with 362 of them being at enterprises of private ownership. This year alone, 220 primary trade union organizations have been established.

The problem of youth retention in workplaces, the shortage of personnel in industries such as mechanical engineering, machine tool construction, and light industry – all these issues are of concern to industry trade union organizations as well. The issue of personnel deficit is being studied. For example, today the region's education system trains 7 percent more personnel than required for the light industry. However, the problem is that 40 percent fewer young people than required start working after obtaining a profession. Meanwhile, at some enterprises, bonuses for young workers reach 1600 rubles, but today even salary is not the main motivation for their retention in their first job.

The speeches of the meeting participants could ultimately be reduced to this dilemma: what is more important for a modern employer today to achieve production success, generate profit, and maintain social stability in the team? To engage in production automation in conditions of labor resource shortage, or to search for these resources, to motivate young people to turn to working professions?

The Chairman of the Regional Employers' Union, Vladimir Turavinov, spoke about the role of employers in the socio-economic development of the Vitebsk region, as well as his vision of the "youth" problem. Sergey Sidin, Deputy General Director for Ideological Work and Social Issues of RUPTP "Orsha Linen Mill," shared his experience in personnel retention and working with youth.

– We must train not those who failed to get into higher education, but motivated young people who want to work specifically at our enterprise, – stated Sergey Sidin.

This forms the basis of a targeted, serious training program at the flax mill, which can serve as an example. This work is being deepened today not only at the level of its own textile lyceum but also across all 38 city schools and even kindergartens, with the aim of popularizing the enterprise's core professions. They are creating educational and production clusters, and the main goal of this program is to launch a public-private partnership mechanism, encourage the creation of partnership networks between business structures and vocational educational organizations, and stimulate the participation of enterprises in co-financing the educational infrastructure of secondary vocational institutions.

At the council meeting, the draft work plan for 2024 was adopted as a basis, and all the proposals voiced will be included in it.

"Vitbichi".