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Turkmenistan - Compensation & Benefit Legislation

CAPITAL

Ashgabat

 

CLIMATE

Subtropical desert.

 

LANGUAGES

Turkmen 72%, Russian 12%, Uzbek 9%, other 7%.

 

LEGAL SYSTEM

Turkmenistan’s legal system is based on civil law system.

 

CURRENCY

Turkmen Manat (1 USD = 5,200.0000 TMM as of March 15, 2002).

 

TURKMENISTAN - COST-OF-LIVING

ERI's Relocation Assessor is a recommended source for cost-of-living data.

 

TURKMENISTAN - EMBASSY/CONSULATES

U.S. Embassy at Ashgabat

9 Pushkin Street

Ashgabat, Turkmenistan 74400

Telephone: [993] (12) 35-00-45

Fax: [993] (12) 51-13-05

http://www.usemb-ashgabat.rpo.at/

 

Embassy of Turkmenistan at Washington D.C.

2207 Massachusetts Avenue N.W.

Washington D.C. 20008

Telephone: (202) 588-1500

Fax: (202) 588-0697

http://www.turkmenistanembassy.org/

 

TURKMENISTAN - HOLIDAYS

 

TURKMENISTAN – LEAVE

Maternity Leave: 140 days (provided by the government). An additional three years, with partial pay, is provided by the government for child rearing.

 

TURKMENISTAN - MINIMUM AGE

The minimum age for employment of children is 16 years; in a few heavy industries, it is 18 years. The law prohibits children between the ages of 16 and 18 years from working more than 6 hours per day (the normal workday is 8 hours).

 

A 15-year-old child may work 4 to 6 hours per day but only with the permission of the trade union and parents. This permission rarely is granted.

 

(Section 6.d. Acceptable Conditions of Work, Turkmenistan – Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)

 

TURKMENISTAN - MINIMUM REMUNERATION

There is no minimum wage.

 

(Section 6.e. Acceptable Conditions of Work, Turkmenistan – Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)

 

TURKMENISTAN - REMUNERATION

ERI's Geographic and Salary Assessors are recommended sources for international remuneration covering 189 countries.

 

TURKMENISTAN - REPORT OF HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES (2001, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE)

Section 6 Worker Rights

 

a. The Right of Association

 

The Constitution and the law do not provide for the right to form or join a union. While no law specifically prohibits the establishment of independent unions, there are no such unions, and no attempts were made to register an independent trade union during the year. The Government controls all trade unions. The Colleagues Union is the only legal central trade union federation permitted, and it claims a membership of 1.3 million; its member unions are divided along both sectoral and regional lines. Unions may not form or join other federations.

 

The law neither prohibits nor permits strikes, and it does not address the issue of retaliation against strikers. Strikes are extremely rare, and no strikes were known to have occurred during the year.

 

There was no information available on union affiliation with international unions.

 

b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

 

The law does not protect the right to collective bargaining. In practice in the state-dominated economy, the close associations of both trade unions and state-owned enterprises with the Government seriously limits workers' ability to bargain. The Ministry of Economics and Finance prepares general guidelines for wages and sets wages in health care, culture, and some other areas. In other sectors, it allows for some leeway at the enterprise level, taking into account local factors. The Government determines specific wage and benefit packages for each factory or enterprise. Workers, including teachers, often went months without pay or received their paychecks late (see Section 5). The law does not prohibit antiunion discrimination by employers against union members and organizers, and there are no mechanisms for resolving such complaints.

 

There are no export processing zones.

  

c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

 

The Constitution prohibits forced labor; however, there were reports in 2000 of prisoners being forced to work in a kaolin mine in Kizlkaya prison, near Dashoguz, under hazardous and unhealthy conditions (see Sections 1.c. and 2.b.).

 

The Government prohibits forced and bonded labor by children and generally enforces this prohibition effectively, with the exception of children who work in cotton harvesting in rural areas (see Sections 5 and 6.d.).

 

d. Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age for Employment

 

The minimum age for employment of children is 16 years; in a few heavy industries, it is 18 years. The law prohibits children between the ages of 16 and 18 years from working more than 6 hours per day (the normal workday is 8 hours). A 15-year-old child may work 4 to 6 hours per day but only with the permission of the trade union and parents. This permission rarely is granted.

 

Violations of child labor laws occur in rural areas, particularly during the cotton harvesting season, when teenagers work in the fields (see Section 5). At times children as young as 10 years of age help with the harvest for up to 2 months. The Government strongly encourages children to help in the cotton harvest, families of children who do not help may experience harassment by the Government. The Government has not signed ILO Convention 182 on the worst forms of child labor.

 

The Government prohibits forced and bonded labor by children and generally enforces this prohibition effectively, with the exception of cotton harvesting in rural areas.

  

e. Acceptable Conditions of Work

 

There is no minimum wage. In 1999 the Government raised the average wage in the state sector to approximately $77 (400,000 manats) per month at the official rate. While the Government subsidizes the prices of many necessities and provides others free of charge, this wage does not provide a decent standard of living for a worker and family. Most households are multigenerational, with several members receiving salaries, stipends, or pensions; however, many persons lack the resources to maintain an adequate diet, and meat is a luxury for most citizens.

 

The standard legal workweek is 40 hours with 2 days off. Individuals who work fewer hours during the week or are in certain high-level positions also may work on Saturdays.

 

During the Soviet era, production took precedence over the health and safety of workers; legacies of this system remain. Industrial workers often labor in unsafe environments and are not provided proper protective equipment. Some agricultural workers are subjected to environmental health hazards. The Government recognizes that these problems exist and has taken some steps to address them, but it has not set comprehensive standards for occupational health and safety. Workers do not always have the right to remove themselves from work situations that endanger their health or safety without jeopardy to their continued employment.

  

f. Trafficking in Persons

 

The law does not prohibit specifically trafficking in persons, but there were no reports that persons were trafficked to, from, or within the country. There were unconfirmed and anecdotal reports of women from the country traveling to Turkey and the United Arab Emirates and working as prostitutes in 1999; however, due to the Government's tightening of exit visas during the year, it was more difficult than in the past for persons to leave the country.

 

The Penal Code prohibits prostitution, which is punishable by 2 years' imprisonment or hard labor. The penalty for involvement of a minor in prostitution or using force, threat, or blackmail to involve someone in prostitution is 3 to 8 years' imprisonment. The penalty for procuring persons for prostitution is 3 to 8 years' imprisonment with the possibility of confiscation of property.

 

The Government does not have programs in place to combat trafficking in persons, but cooperates with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in educational efforts on this topic.

 

TURKEMENISTAN - SOCIAL SECURITY

Social Security Office of International Programs:

 

http://www.ssa.gov/SSA_Home.html

 

TURKMENISTAN - STANDARD WORKWEEK

The standard legal workweek is 40 hours with 2 days off. Individuals who work fewer hours during the week or are in certain high-level positions also may work on Saturdays.

 

(Section 6.e. Acceptable Conditions of Work, Turkmenistan – Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)