Union Rights, Kazakhstan, Austria

(January 2017) The International Trade Union Confederation is committed to support its affiliate the CNTUK confederation in the face of the courts' decision to withdraw registration of the confederation and two of its affiliates in the health and social services sector. The authorities have also taken action against the general secrerary and seized confederation documents. The ITUC had previously written to the President complaining of the government's failure to comply with ILO Convention 87 in relation to the CNTUK.

(April 2017) The European and International Trade Union Confederations wrote a joint letter to EU High Representative Federica Mogherini calling on the EU to raise the serious attacks on trade union rights in the EU-Kazakhstan Cooperation Committee. The ETUC highlighted the detention, intimidation and arbitrary interrogation by the police of trade unionists because of their union activities urged the EU to demand that the Kazakh government ensure full respect for the right to freedom of association.

The GPA-djp private services union has strongly attacked the VKKJ organisation that provides care to disabled children for using an injunction to try to prevent its works councils from organising any kind of strike or protest to secure improvements in pay and conditions. The VKKJ has not signed up to the social services sector agreement and the works councils had successfully campaigned to bring pay at the organisation in line with that agreement but that's when VKKJ took the legal step. The union has offered to go to mediation but the employer has rejected this. The GPA-djp will strongly