NEWS
Prime Minister Borut Pahor after the meeting with the representatives of the Student Organisation of Slovenia: the act on mini jobs regulates the rights of students and the obligations of employers
The Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia, Borut Pahor, today held a meeting with the representatives of the Student Organisation of Slovenia. After the meeting, which was also attended by Minister of Labour, Family and Social Affairs Ivan Svetlik, the Prime Minister told the media that differing opinions of the participants did not jeopardise the core of the agreement on the issue that had been dividing students and the government for several months: the proposed act on mini jobs which will provide students with numerous rights they did not have in the past.
(Photo: Stanko Gruden/STA)
“The government supports the view that student work is a constituent element of the labour market to be regulated with systemic legislation and in this way provides students with many solutions, namely the pension and health insurance, as well as work experience for future employment. This is the only possible solution for making student work more transparent and meaningful,” commented the Prime Minister and went on to say that the adoption of this act would for the first time impose obligations on employers with respect to students. “Today students are victims of the unregulated brokerage of student work and we would like to enable them to attain their main objective: to finish their education as soon as possible and with flying colours and only then enter the labour market with good education in order to earn well. I would not want to be a Prime Minister of a country in which students are forced to work their way through university.” Student work should be a bonus, an experience, a means of learning and assisting students in their studies. As announced by Minister Svetlik this will be regulated with a new scheme of scholarships enabling everyone from the lowest social and economic class to receive a state scholarship.
(Photo: Stanko Gruden/STA)
At the meeting they also agreed on a 50-day reflection period, arranged to organise a conference on the current status of students in Slovenia and the government promised to submit for further harmonisation the act on mini jobs during this extended period. “The aim of this conference is to reach an agreement on final decisions. It is our desire that all stakeholders are satisfied with the act on mini jobs and to finally regulate the market for student work also in order to prevent exploitation of students in the future. In this case a big party will be held instead of demonstrations. If we are not successful, demonstrations, which are of course legitimate, will be staged but the very fear of demonstrations will not make me change my position,” concluded Prime Minister Pahor.