Reaching out to everyone: how labour inspectors are getting closer to employers

Labour inspection practices in Ukraine are becoming increasingly closer to the European model. Labour inspectors are raising awareness of employers and workers all over the country, as part of the State Labour Service's “Go to Light!” information campaign.

Article | 18 February 2021
Besides their role on the control and enforcement of labour legislation, they are also becoming partners of businesses, explaining the legislation, giving technical advice and information, detecting mistakes and helping businesses to correct them properly.



In Soviet times, the labour inspection service was mainly aimed at detecting and punishing offenders. Indeed, its efficiency was evaluated in terms of the number of employers sanctioned. Today, however, besides the role of controlling the compliance and of enforcing the labour legislation, labour inspectors also fulfil other important function, foreseen in the ILO Conventions No. 81 and No. 129, on labour inspection: to provide technical information and advice to employers, workers and their representatives on the most effective means of complying with the legal provisions.

The tasks of the present-day labour inspectors in Ukraine also include helping companies, entrepreneurs and other employers to declare their employment relationships with workers. To explain in a simple and comprehensible way what exactly is required by the law, why and how the law can be better complied with.

It’s a great difference when you come with an inspection referral or when you simply explain that you’ve come or phoned to advise and to help. People begin to understand that labour inspectors are there mainly to help and start treating us with more respect,"

Lviv oblast labour inspector Maria Kuchma believes.
Due to face-to-face communication, inspectors gain a better understanding of vulnerabilities in various economic sectors, be it transport or trade. Employers, meanwhile, obtain answers to the questions they are concerned with.

Such help is particularly needed by small business people, who find it really hard to run everything by themselves. We always emphasize during conversations that they should not be afraid and should certainly approach our reception office for advice – by phone or personally. It’s a pleasure that employers have increasingly more often begun to ask how legislative requirements should not be breached,"

Maria adds.
After the “Go to Light!” information campaign had been launched in January 2019, the number of concluded labour contracts has dramatically increased. Accordingly, receipts of the Social Insurance Fund have grown, meaning sick pay, unemployment benefits, and pensions for an increased number of beneficiaries.

“Owing to the awareness-raising activities, employment relationships were formalized with 11,988 workers in Poltava oblast during 2019. Another 5,834 workers were declared during 10 months of 2020,” inspector Victoria Mukha from Poltava oblast says.

Impressive results are also shared by Olha Omelianchuk, an inspector from Zhytomyr oblast: “We helped formalize 12,813 wage workers in 2019. They were joined by another 7,604 persons, during the first 10 months of 2020.”
However, although most employers took inspectors’ advice seriously, some ignored them.

“Unfortunately, some entrepreneurs turned a deaf ear to us. Hence, while we only warned them and drew up administrative offence reports this time, in case of repeated breaches the negligent entrepreneurs will face a big fine,” says Natalia Morozova, an inspector from Donetsk oblast.

Read more about declared work benefits at the SLS website. If you need advice, approach a labour inspector.

The “Go to Light!” information campaign is supported by the EU-ILO Project “Towards safe, healthy and declared work in Ukraine”.

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