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SOCIAL PARTNERSHIP IN SYSTEM OF VOCATIONAL TRAINING T. J. Lomakina, I. A. Ivanov
In new social and economic conditions a problem of formation of new system of relations between educational establishments of vocational training and employers, associations of employers and workers, bodies on work and employment of the population - that is with all those who is not just a consumer of "production" of educational establishment, but also a source of its financial well-being becomes more and more actual.
The system of social partnership can help educational establishments to take into account requirements of employers, faster react to changes of labour market condition.
«Social partnership in vocational training may be considered as a set of mutual relations of organizational, educational and economic character between establishments of vocational training and subjects of a labour market, its institutes, authorities providing a purposeful policy in formation and development of manpower on the basis of generality of social and economic interests ».
Among subjects of social partnership may be numbered establishments of vocational training, employers, trade unions and other associations of workers, services of employment of the population, bodies of legislative and executive authority of different levels.
The social partnership can be carried out at various levels. At a federal level the partnership is organized within the framework of the Ministries of Education, Economy, Labour and Finance which develop general frameworks for development of the system of vocational education and training in the field of the contents of financing and normative and legal base. At the same level, as a rule, under the initiative of social partners the various advisory councils and committees which provide connection of vocational training with a labour market, public funds and other structures within the framework of which employers (association of employers) and workers (trade unions) discuss the questions representing mutual interest are created.
Regional councils, committees which are engaged in studying and forecasting of labour market, development of programs, teaching materials, examination qualifications requirements with attraction of the interested subjects of social partnership function at a regional level.
At a level of educational establishment educational institutions or groups of educational institutions cooperate directly with enterprises or a group of enterprises in the field of development of the contents of training on concrete professional qualifications.
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Practice of foreign experience of social partnership and the analysis of developed relations of social partners in the Russian Federation in sphere of vocational education and training allow to list some basic directions of their interaction.
1. In the field of political decisions they come mainly to: (a) definition of national priorities in vocational education and training (to teach who, what, in what amount and to what period); (b) formulation of national (branch, regional) purposes of vocational education and training; (c) definition of a role of the state in regulation of investments of employers to the system of vocational education and training and improvement of professional skill of workers (tax privileges and stimulus); (d) establishment of the rights and duties of trainees, workers and jobless citizens: paid holiday, social support, opportunity of professional skill improvement and professional retraining (regulation, definition of sources of financing, organization of training process).
2. In the questions of administrative decisions, interaction of social partners concern: (a) determination of the current and perspective need of qualified workers and experts preparation in the system of vocational education and training; (b) determination of the funds formed due to tax revenues on vocational education and training, and participation in management of them; (c) participation in management of vocational education and training establishment through representation in the Council of educational establishment; (d) extension by enterprises of paid services in the field of vocational training and retraining of personnel on their base, by their own experts.
3. What is not less important today it is participation of social partners in development of the contents of vocational training. This direction of teamwork of social partners assumes: (a) development of professional qualifications, creation and examination of the state educational standards of vocational training; (b) participation in development and approbation of the basic professional educational programs; (c) participation in development of programs of trainees and graduates testing; (d) participation in intermediate and final certification of trainees and graduates and in assignment of a professional qualification to them; (e) providing establishments of vocational training with qualified employees as engineers - teachers and practice teachers; (f) practical retraining and improvement of professional skill of engineers - teachers and practice teachers by the enterprises in conditions of production; (g) granting (or tenancy) by the enterprises of the equipment to establishments of vocational training for the organization of inservice training.
Necessity of formation of social partnership institute is dictated by the character of democratic development of society and experience of the advanced countries where social partnership is a natural form of existence of vocational
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training system. Interest in the system of social partnership of employers and workers associations speaks the following: the more qualitative vocational training will be, the less social problems, conflicts to employers appears; social intensity will decrease.
Bodies on work and employment have also a big interest in social partnership with professional schools. Discrepancy between graduates' qualifications and requirements of labour market makes them go to the labour exchange. To lower a stream of such unemployed, to cut down expenses on their retraining - is a practical interest of bodies on work and employment in creating a system of social partnership in vocational training.
Strengthening of connections with enterprises, bodies on work and employment, public organizations opens the following additional opportunities for educational establishments: (a) access to the information on a regional labour market (what professions and in what amount are required on a labour market) becomes simpler; (b) requirements of employers concerning the contents of training in educational establishments (professional structure, qualifying characteristics) are taken in account; procedure of updating existing and development of new teaching materials and the programs which are meeting the requirements of employers becomes simpler; more opportunities for the organization of trainees practice open; (c) there are opportunities for the organization of short-term training pedagogical workers with a view of studying the newest types of the equipment and technological processes; (e) opportunities of educational establishments graduates employment extend; new joint commercial projects for updating unappropriated funds of educational establishments (opening of rates on improvement of professional skill of enterprises workers, creation of joint workshops, shops, centers of service of the population, etc.) are initiated.
Thus, development of social partnership in the field of vocational training should promote improvement of training quality of vocational training establishments graduates, and, hence, development of economy in the region due to improvement of reproduced manpower quality.
Wide experience on formation of social partnership system is saved up in regions. So, in the Bryansk regional duma the commission on problems and prospects of initial vocational training development, social protection of workers and trainees of educational establishments is created. Sessions of executive management of Bryansk regional association of the industrial and commercial enterprises (employers) on problems of formation, development and social use of the personnel are annually carried out. The regional co-ordinating committee of assistance of the population employment carries out the program of the basic directions of development of the vocational training system in region.
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Commission on problems of vocational training and vocational orientation is created in Republic Khakassia. It is created at the Government of Republic with a view of increase of efficiency of a state policy on reproduction of manpower and formation of the regional order for the personnel.
In the Yaroslavl area since 2002 works a Commission on coordination of volumes and structures of training in establishments of the initial and secondary vocational training. It includes representatives of the education department of the region, representatives of the department of Federal public service of employment of the population in the region, representatives of noncommercial partnership «Economic council».
In Khabarovsk territory since 2002 decisions of heads of municipal formations authorize Coordination public councils on personnel training in the industrial centres of the territory. The structure of councils includes heads of municipalities, of enterprises and organizations, services of employment, establishments of vocational training. The purpose of councils is coordination of work on the organization of inservice training of trainees and their employment in the enterprises of the territory, carrier guidance to worki ng trades.
In the Saratov region a scientific - methodical center of vocational training has been created with a view of updating the contents of vocational training, attraction of employers and public organizations to development and examination of the teaching-program documentation on the professions, activization and ordering of work on studying and propagation of experience of initial and secondary vocational training establishments.
Example of effective interaction of an educational establishment of initial vocational training and an enterprise are partner relations developed between the Cheboksar professional liceum (the Chuvash Republic) and the enterprise "Elara" INPRO-2. According to their long-term contract the enterprise compensates in part to liceum the cost of preparation of the personnel - machine operators, paying 6,0 thousand roubles for each graduate. Besides the enterprise pays teachers and practice teachers training, carries out a monthly surcharge to the grant of each trainee, and also provides the trainees with a free-of-charge meal, tools, equipment, overalls, pays wages during industrial practice.
The organization of mutual relations of the parties of social partnership in vocational training on the conditions of their mutual duties and competence is carried out in the following fields of activity of educational establishment: professional - educational; (financial and economic; social security and social support; teaching-material resources and material - raw maintenance; scientific and pedagogical and personnel maintenance.
Translated by authors
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