Labour rights in Azerbaijan. Everyone including foreign and non-citizens has right to work in the Republic of Azerbaijan. Nobody may be deprived of a right to work based on discrimination related to citizenship, sex, race, nationality, language, place of residence, economic standing, social origin, age, family circumstances, religion, political views, affiliation with trade unions or other public associations, professional standing, beliefs, or other similar factors. All persons are free to choose his or her workplace, profession, and activity. Everybody is free to work or not to work. Compulsory labor is forbidden by legislation in force of Azerbaijan. In other words, no one may be forced to work in the country. If one has a status of “unemployed” the state has to pay social allowances to him or her. Furthermore, the state must endeavor to eliminate the unemployment in the country.

Basic rights and obligations of the employees and employers

Rights and obligations of the employees

Labour relations between an employee and employer are set up as from the time the

employment contract An employment contract or contract of employment is a kind of contract used in labour law to attribute rights and responsibilities between parties to a bargain. The contract is between an "employee" and an "employer". It has arisen out of the old ...

carries into force. Labour legislation determines the rights and responsibilities of employees and employers. The workers have right to receive appropriate

salary A salary is a form of periodic payment from an employer to an employee, which may be specified in an employment contract. It is contrasted with piece wages, where each job, hour or other unit is paid separately, rather than on a periodic basis. ...

for his or her work and social insurance paid by employer, to work under safety and healthy conditions, to join

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

s or other organization and others. At the same time, the employees have to abstain from the breach of work discipline, occupational safety requirements, disclose of state and

trade secret Trade secrets are a type of intellectual property that includes formulas, practices, processes, designs, instruments, patterns, or compilations of information that have inherent economic value because they are not generally known or readily asc ...

s, and any other that may cause the violation of labor rights and interests of their co-workers.

Rights and obligations of the employers

Employers have to respect to the rights of employees. They shoulder responsibility to comply with the terms and conditions of the employment contracts, collective agreements and labour legislation in force. All judgments and decisions of judicial or quasi-judicial bodies regarding individual or collective disputes must be executed by employers. Employers have to try to better the social welfare including salary, to establish and maintain safety and healthy work environment, to promote and create equal opportunities for employees only based on their work performance, and to take necessary steps to prevent discrimination, in particular, based on gender and sexual harassment. Employers have a right to impose disciplinary measures on employees because of the violation of labour legislation in force, and employment contract. Additionally, they are right to claim compensation for damage caused by employees.

Criminal liability for violation of labour legislation

It is forbidden to force a person to work by intimidation, harassment, use of force, or the restriction of one’s freedom. This action is punished by imprisonment for the term of four to eight years. The punishment may increase, for example, if the same action causes the death of someone. Infringement of safety precautions regulations or other rules of labor safeties by an appointed person is punished if it causes serious or minor serious harm to health of a person, or the death of a person or persons. The persons cannot be employed unless the employment contract comes into force. The authorities who are responsible for this have to bear criminal liability under the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan. Unreasonable termination of employment contract with a woman because of her pregnancy or 3-year-old child who depends on her results in criminal liability. The regulation is the same for a man who brings up his child alone.

International Labour Organization and Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan became a member of the

International Labour Organization The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is the first and o ...

in May 1992. The ILO opened its local office in Azerbaijan in 2003. Until the end of September 2017, Azerbaijan has ratified 58 Conventions and 1 Additional Protocol within the framework of the ILO. All fundamental and governance conventions of ILO have been ratified by Azerbaijan. On 18–19 November 2010,

Baku Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...

, the capital of Azerbaijan, played host to the 3rd Conference of the Regional Alliance of Labour Inspections. The Ministry of Labour and Social Protection of Population of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the International Association of Labour Inspections, the ILO, and the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Interna ...

together organized the Conference.

References

External links

* http://www.mlspp.gov.az/en/pages/1 * http://www.ilo.org/moscow/countries/azerbaijan/lang--en/index.htm {{Asia topic, Labour rights in International Labour Organization Law of Azerbaijan Right to work