In November 2005, Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung published and promoted the publication on working relations in cooperation with the European Trade Union Institute from Brussels (www.etuc.org/etui) that has given their permission to translate and publish excerpts from three of their current analysis on the issues of flexible-work time and labor dispute settlements in the states of EU and some of the accession states.

This publication compiles three different analyses about European directives that have been elaborated by the European Trade Union Institute in Brussels. Yet, they have not been available in Macedonian language so far. In 2004, on a conference on labour courts, that was organized by Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung in cooperation with SSM we discussed several topics like those that are represented inside this compilation. In the then following discussions about publishing the conference findings, we agreed on a compilation of texts, that deal with some of the major questions related to labour relations and it’s legal basis as it is existing inside the European Union.

Thus, the present texts about the labour dispute settlement, the fixed-term work directive and the part-time work directive / agreement was chosen. All three texts are dealing with measures that the European Commission took to either protect employees, to avoid discrimination or to keep the competition between EU member states fair and equal.

The study on labour dispute settlement is giving an overview on different models of dispute settlement; its conduct and specifically, the settlement by labour courts in different countries in Western Europe and as well in South-Eastern-Europe. A comparative survey on part-time work directive / agreement between EU-Member states and applicant countries shows in which way the main issues of the agreement - Safety and health, working conditions, competition – have been implemented, the legal impact, the de-facto situation, the integration of trade unions into the process of implementation, and also the protection of employees. In addition, a comparative analysis is delivered for the fixed-term work directive.

By publishing this analysis, the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung in Skopje is hoping to serve all interested parties that are dealing with labour rights and work relations and who are trying to define the most appropriate way for Macedonia to conduct the necessary reforms in this field. Reforms that are not just introduced to fulfill criteria defined by the accession strategy to the European Union, but more important, to contribute to a development that takes into consideration the interests and needs of all parties represented in the country, especially the most vulnerable.