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The RA NA Standing Committee on Labor and Social Affairs organized parliamentary hearings on May 10. The core of the discussion was the package of draft laws on Voluntary Work and related laws.

In the opening speech, the Committee Chair Heriknaz Tigranyan underlined that there is a great public interest in the initiative regarding voluntary work. She highlighted the collection of proposals and viewpoints at this stage, many of which will be included in the draft as a result of revision.

According to Heriknaz Tigranyan, a new institute is being introduced in our country: although volunteering has certain legal regulations, there is no comprehensive and universal legal act that will define the state’s policy in this area and give volunteers the opportunity to be more motivated and involved in any kind of volunteer work.

The Committee Chair noted that the Armenian O ffice of the International Republican Institute supported the organization of the hearings, with the help of which various working discussions were held.

The deputy thanked the RA Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs for carrying out work on the development of the draft, as well as the partners of the Government for maintaining important observations and feedback.

The Director of the International Republican Institute James De Witt made a welcome speech at the parliamentary hearings. He mentioned that the initiative was made possible by the programme of the US Agency for International Development Strengthening of Electoral Processes and Political Accountability , whose partner is the International Republican Institute.

“The institute pays a lot of attention to inter-departmental cooperation and communication, as well as to inclusive and participatory processes, and today’s meeting is a vivid example of this,” James De Witt underscored. The rapporteur recorded that as an international partner of the National Assembly and the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, the International Republican Institute was actively involved in the process of developing the legislative initiative. “We supported the organization of a number of meetings with target groups and today we are proud to be here,” the speaker stated.

James De Witt expressed hope that the hearings will be useful for all parties. He thanked the NA Standing Committee on Labor and Social Affairs and the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs for their willingness to cooperate with the I nstitute.

According to James De Witt, the International Republican Institute is ready to provide any assistance in having legislation that meets the needs of the concerned parties.

The RA Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Ruben Sargsyan presented the draft law on Voluntary Work authored by the Government, which will provide an opportunity to support and develop volunteering in Armenia.

According to the Deputy Minister, although the ideology of volunteering has long been developed in Armenia without waiting for legislative regulations, we still do not have a law on Volunteering. It was mentioned that since 2006 there have been attempts to give legislative regulations to the issue, but they did not succeed. “This is the first time that the draft law is presented for discussion in the National Assembly,” the Deputy Minister said.

It is expected that the adoption of the draft law will contribute to the establishment of the institution of volunteering in the country, the effective exchange of education and the labor market, the formation of a qualified labor force, the increase of competition in the labor market, the improvement of the quality of life of the population, lifestyle, the formation of a self-organizing and civically active society. Ruben Sargsyan presented the current state of volunteering in Armenia and the circumstances hindering its development.

The draft law regulates the relations, principles, subjects of voluntary work, their main objectives, rights and responsibilities, payment of expenses regarding voluntary work, as well as the legal bases and other features of voluntary work. The principles of volunteering are fixed. They are: the justification of the fact and experience of volunteering, the consideration of the volunteering work period as work experience for the volunteer, the volunteer’s status, the judicial protection of their rights and exemption from state duties in that regard, the right to reimbursement of expenses, the guarantees of ensuring their health and safety, the opportunity to acquire new knowledge, professional experience and informational, methodical, consulting support.

The Deputy Minister also introduced the aims of volunteering, which are 14. Volunteers can be citizens of the Republic of Armenia, foreign citizens and stateless persons. Every citizen over 16 years of age can do voluntary work. There are certain features in involving under 14 and 14-16 year olds in voluntary work.

The volunteers should do volunteer work on the basis of the contract of civil-legal character, which will be signed between the volunteer and the organization involving the volunteer.

The state structures, public power body, including state or local self-government body or state or community non-commercial organization or a legal person or institution not pursuing aim for profit, as well as a legal person pursuing aim for profit, having share by the right of property to the state 100% can involve the volunteers with volunteer work.

“In direct meaning the volunteering will not be considered as a length of service, but the volunteer work period will be considered as a work experience for the volunteer,” the rapporteur said.

A number of amendments conditioned by the adoption of the law are also envisaged in a number of laws.

The Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Ruben Sargsyan also answered the participants’ numerous questions, which mainly refer to the provisions of the legislative package, the principles of volunteer work, payability, taking into consideration the international experience, the compensation of the expenses incurred by the volunteer, etc.

In response to the question if awareness process is designed before the adoption of the law, the Deputy Minister noted that awareness platform has been worked out and awareness campaign is envisaged.

Touching upon the fact of not setting maximum term of volunteer work, how long the volunteer can work within the framework of one contract, Ruben Sargsyan stated that the main principle of volunteering is freedom, what regulates and excludes any risk.

The Deputy Minister also mentioned that the volunteer work will be considered work experience not length of service. According to him, everything will be done in order the volunteer work will be evaluated.

Ruben Sargsyan also documented that the international experience is included in the draft law.

“We have tried by legislation not to regulate the sphere, which will give an opportunity to do the light work openly,” Ruben Sargsyan said, answering the question on overregulating the sphere by legislation.

Speaking about the payment for the volunteer work, the Deputy Minister mentioned that the volunteer work does not pursue any profit, it is not paid, and the incurred expenses by the volunteer based on the relevant document compensates the given organization with whom the contract has been signed.

The participants exchanged ideas, mainly welcomed it and positively assessed the legislative package, and the attempts of the elaboration works, according to Ruben Sargsyan, have already begun in 2006.

Various proposals were sounded, which related to setting the volunteer work as professional length of service, proposing distinct mechanisms of encouraging the volunteer for avoiding the corruption risks and setting minimum threshold for the volunteer’s rest.

The Head of the Labor and Employment Department of the RA Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs Zhora Sargsyan reflected upon the questions and proposals sounded in the speeches.

The Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Ruben Sargsyan thanked the NA Head Committee for organizing the hearings, underscored the importance of the participation of especially the young people and the schoolchildren in the discussion. “We are open for discussion of any issue,” the Deputy Minister said.

The Chair of the NA Standing Committee on Labor and Social Affairs Heriknaz Tigranyan, thanking the participants of the parliamentary hearings for the concerned discussion and presented proposals, underlined the importance of joint elaboration of the volunteer work legislation. “I admire the quality of discussions,” Heriknaz Tigranyan said.