Social Partnership
One of the primary lines of activity of the trade unions of the Republic of Kazakhstan is participation in social partnership, specifically in the work of the Republican Tripartite Commission on Social Partnership and the Regulation of Social, Economic, and Labor Relations.
In 2025, two meetings of the Republican Tripartite Commission on Social Partnership and the Regulation of Social and Labor Relations were held: on April 28, 2025, and December 29, 2025 (compared to two meetings in 2024, held on March 1, 2024, and December 3, 2024). During these sessions, the Federation of Trade Unions initiated issues regarding the prevention and resolution of labor disputes and conflicts, and requested hearings from the executives of large enterprises regarding the situation on the ground, including measures being taken to create high-quality and safe workplaces, among other matters.
In the regions, 110 meetings of regional tripartite commissions on social partnership and the regulation of social and labor relations were held during the reporting period (compared to 119 meetings in 2024). In 2025, the initiative of the Federation of Trade Unions regarding co-chairmanship in tripartite commissions on social partnership and the regulation of social and labor relations was continued. Consequently, 18 meetings took place on the platforms of territorial trade union affiliations under the chairmanship of the heads of Territorial Trade Union Organizations (TOPS).
Throughout 2025, a total of 291 issues were considered at the meetings of tripartite commissions. Out of these, TOPs initiated 92 issues for consideration (32%). These included matters regarding occupational health and safety, wage arrears, the employment of laid-off workers, and the prevention of industrial injuries and occupational diseases. They also addressed the organization of insurance against workplace accidents in harmful and dangerous working conditions, the implementation of events dedicated to the "Year of Working Professions", as well as compliance with labor legislation.
During 2025, affiliate organizations—specifically sector-specific trade unions—actively participated in the work of sectoral commissions on social partnership and the regulation of social and labor relations (hereinafter referred to as the sectoral commission). Over the reporting period, 12 sector-specific trade unions conducted 32 meetings of sectoral commissions. A total of 34 issues were considered at these meetings, wherein sector-specific trade unions initiated discussions regarding measures taken to prevent labor conflicts, ongoing work to ensure safe working conditions, the reduction of industrial injuries, and other topics.
A General Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Republican associations (alliances, unions) of employers, and Republican associations (alliances, unions) of professional trade unions for the years 2024–2026 is concluded and currently in force. Throughout 2025, sector-specific trade unions worked on developing and concluding sectoral agreements. These sectoral agreements reflected issues such as wage indexation, the establishment of inter-category wage coefficients, the implementation of unified compensation standards, and the funding of training for technical OHS inspectors at the employer's expense, among other things. Currently, 24 sectoral agreements and 20 regional agreements have been concluded and remain operational.
Collective agreements play a fundamental role in protecting the interests of hired employees. To date, more than 16 thousand collective agreements are active within the trade union organizations of the Federation of Trade Unions. The coverage of collective bargaining regulations at enterprises that have trade unions stands at over 97%.
For Reference: According to data from the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Population (MLSPP), the number of collective agreements in the republic has grown 1.1-fold over the last 5 years (2021–2025), increasing from 145,349 to 169,895. Concurrently, large and medium-sized enterprises in the republic achieve a 94.2% coverage rate via collective agreements.
Overall, the total number of active collective agreements in the republic for the year 2025 amounts to 169,895 (compared to 165,924 in 2024).