Jusuf Azemi, president of the Private Sector Workers' Trade Union Federation, has accused the Kurti Government of not fulfilling any promises for the private sector and that its work for workers in this sector is zero.
He has even said that during Kurti's government there has been a "calm and gradual destruction of the economy." He has complained that the prime minister and ministers have rejected his requests for meetings.
"The power of the state is the private sector. Let a prime minister or minister come out and say that we have done this for the private sector. Absolutely nothing has been done. Absolutely they have only been squeezed and squeezed. There is no incentive for them. Maybe someone has an obligation to destroy the economy of Kosovo. It is not destroyed otherwise, in a calm and gradual way. We have requested them to sit down and they do not want to and it cannot be understood otherwise than the destruction of the workforce and unfortunately they have succeeded. They do not see that private sector workers come out and collect bread in different containers. They think that private sector workers have as much as a prime minister and a minister. It is a sin to be paid 250 euros and for 11 years there is not even a payment from the Trust. Someone must be held accountable for what I am saying," he said on the "60 Minutes" show on KTV on Thursday.
Azemi said that while Kurti was in opposition, they had 11 meetings, and after coming to power, according to him, there have been no meetings. "Everything promised has come to naught," Azemi declared.
Azemi said that the conditions of workers in the private sector are dire. He added that 23 workers have died in the workplace this year, which according to him was the highest number. He complained about the penalties imposed on companies.
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However, according to him, the private sector is more responsible for its workers than when it comes to private companies that perform work for public institutions as contractors. He said that "where the state and municipalities are affected, the situation is the most serious."
"The workers who work directly under the management of the company owner alone, the situation is better. We feel good when we say this. The situation is not what it used to be. A manual worker receives an average of 30 euros, a meal and transportation. And in the past, he received 10-15 euros per day without food and transportation. Here we have the best situation. The private sector is more responsible. I don't want to say that the owners did it out of will, but the lack of labor force forces them to pay more. And from the budget from the state and municipal assemblies, over 800 million euros have been left over... this budget has paid 275 euros to private workers," said Azemi.
Azemi stated that over 600 small companies have closed this year alone. He said that even workers from other countries are unable to find themselves in Kosovo.
During the day, this union held a meeting with officials of the Municipality of Pristina. And for this meeting, Azemi said that their request for a salary increase for the private technical sector in schools and family medicine centers has been met. According to him, this "was promised that if this party continues in power in the municipality, as of tomorrow there will be a discussion about next year's budget, for an increase, which has not yet been determined by how much".
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According to him, technical workers in schools in the capital are paid around 400 euros gross, and in other municipalities up to 300 euros. At the University of Pristina, according to him, security workers are paid below the minimum wage. He said that even insurance companies in the country have started to hire only retirees due to the lack of workers.
Azemi said that Europe has taken Kosovo's skilled workers. According to him, the vast majority of the private sector is "working just to survive."
