Kairat Toroev was appointed the Head of the Youth Council of the General Confederation of Trade Unions
Kairat Toroev became the Head of the Youth Council of the General Confederation of Trade Unions. The decision was unanimously adopted by the participants of the meeting of the GCTU Youth Council on December 7 in Moscow. The event was attended by 13 council members from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Belarus, Russia and Kyrgyzstan.
The current Chairman of the Youth Council, Aigerim Berdybekova, spoke about the implementation of the GCTU youth policy in 2025. She summarized the experience of the member organizations and outlined the main achievements.
“The youth policy of the member organizations of the General Confederation of Trade Unions demonstrates a dynamic development and transformation from an auxiliary direction into a key strategic resource. By joining forces, exchanging best practices and focusing on concrete results for the younger trade union generation, we are not only strengthening our organizations, but also making a decisive contribution to building a fair and sustainable future of labor in the CIS space. Generational solidarity, supported by modern approaches and real deeds, is the key to the continued success and development of the trade union movement,” Aigerim Berdybekova noted.
Kairat Toroev addressed in his turn the members of the Council. He thanked his colleagues for their trust and outlined three strategic areas of work for the year 2026. The first one is analytics, youth employment monitoring, and preparation of proposals for intergovernmental bodies. The second one is digital transformation, developing a position on artificial intelligence and the digital economy, and working on a law on platform employment. The third area is solidarity, support for young workers, participation in the resolution of labor disputes and international campaigns. In addition, the Youth Council is planning to hold the GCTU winter and summer schools and establish systematic information work.
“We must become the authors of decisions that will affect the work of young people in the CIS,” said Kairat Toroev.
GCTU News
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For trade unions, March 8 is not just a day of spring and renewal.
For trade unions, March 8 is not just a day of spring and renewal.
For trade unions, March 8 is not merely a day of spring and renewal. Above all, it is an opportunity to once again reflect on the role of women in the world of work and in global development as a whole. Today, women perform 55% of the world’s total labor. They work longer hours than men—by 6 to 13 hours per week—and still earn less: on average, women’s wages amount to 66–84% of men’s wages, depending on the country. There is objective evidence that the more a country values women’s labor and the smaller the gender pay gap, the more developed its economy. A special issue is the “invisibility” of women’s domestic and, as experts call it, reproductive labor. This is why trade unions should continue to fight for justice for working women.
I congratulate all women of the CIS, my colleagues in the parliamentary corps, and women in trade unions on International Women’s Day. I wish you justice, decent work, success, and prosperity!
Viktor Pinsky
General Secretary of the General Confederation of Trade Unions, Member of the State Duma
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General Confederation of Trade Unions Proposes Securing Trade Union Rights in Enterprise Bankruptcy
General Confederation of Trade Unions Proposes Securing Trade Union Rights in Enterprise Bankruptcy
The General Confederation of Trade Unions’ (GCTU) proposals are reflected in the draft CIS model law “On Cross-Border Insolvency and Bankruptcy.”
Trade unions must have the right to represent and protect workers’ interests in the bankruptcy of international companies, according to Viktor Pinsky, Member of the State Duma of the Russian Federation and General Secretary of the GCTU.
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GCTU Launches International Educational Program “Regulation of Labor Relations Based on Social Dialogue Principles”
GCTU Launches International Educational Program “Regulation of Labor Relations Based on Social Dialogue Principles”
The program is designed for specialists and trade union activists involved in collective bargaining at all levels of social partnership. It consists of four modules and will include about two hundred participants from six countries.
The first module—a lecture session—will be held on March 3, 2026. Leading experts from the General Confederation of Trade Unions, educational organizations of four national trade union centers (Belarus, Kyrgyz Republic, Russia, and Uzbekistan), and Lomonosov Moscow State University will deliver lectures.