YOUTH SECTION
The CATUS Youth Section was founded by the Council’s decision in 2002 with the objective to protect and promote young workers’ rights and their position in families, companies, our own organisation and society in general - especially in the institutions that make decisions concerning the youth. Its members are young workers age 15 to 35 working in all sectors of economy and throughout Serbia. The Section seeks to expand its visibility, contacts and influence through partnerships and cooperation with the Serbian Youth Umbrella Organisation, various student associations, the NGOs dealing with youth and labour issues, the youth sections of other unions (at national, regional and international levels) and the ILO. It is a member of the international networks оf trade union youth, such as the ITUC-PERC Youth, South-Eastern Europe Youth Network (the subregional network of the PERC), and the Board of Youth in the new-founded Regional TU Council “Solidarnost” (whose members are unions on the territory of ex-Yugoslavia). Our main donors are SOLIDAR Suisse/Swiss Labour Assistance SLA – Office in Serbia and Foundation Friedrich Ebert.
Young people in Serbia face the problem of high unemployment preventing them from having normal personal, professional and family lives. When working, young people are often not registered, work in poor conditions, have very low wages (sometimes even none), their contributions to social, health and pension funds are not paid, they have no job security. Particularly vulnerable are the young female and low qualified workers who are often subject to discrimination, work on low-paid positions and have no security at all.
The Section seeks to strengthen the youth structure within the Confederation in order to participate more efficiently in its activities and lobby better for the interests of the youth. It makes and publishes surveys and analyses concerning the status of the young and its participation in the social life. Various round tables and consultations are organised as well as trainings and workshops. Through its everyday activities the Section initiates and facilitates the creation of sub-sections in federations and local TU organisations across Serbia, giving the impetus to their autonomous initiatives and actions.
The Youth Section organises different information campaigns and celebrations of important days such as the International Day of Youth on August 12 and World Day of Decent Work, on October 7 (more on
http://www.sindikat.rs/sekcija_mladih).
We are convinced that by representing adequately the needs of the young men and women working in precarious and indecent conditions and being anxious about what tomorrow brings, the Confederation will get stronger. We need to build up the capacities of the youth through the education, networking and active involvement in the social and TU life. Being an active unionist today means becoming an active citizen in pursuit of social justice.
