2016 Annual Review of Labour Relations and Social Dialogue Slovenia GORAN LUKIĆ February 2017  Slovenia’s main economic indicators improved in 2016 while the labour market situation has been giving mixed signals. The number of people in paid employment in September 2016 was more than in September 2015. However, there is a clear rise in the number of persons who work as self­employed“service providers” or persons who work for companies that provide workers on a temporary basis but who are not officially registered as Temporary Agency Workers(TAW).  The year was heavily defined by several cases of severe breaches of labour and social legislation by some private companies.  On the level of tripartite social dialogue, there has been quite a lot of tension regarding the work of the Economic and Social Council(ESC). In June, the Employers Association of Slovenia announced its decision to no longer attend the sessions of the ESC until conditions that would enable tripartite social dialogue on a suitable level were met. The other employers' organizations and chambers of commerce joined this decision. This led to new rules for the functioning of the ESC presented in December, bringing the employers’ organisations back to the table.  There were several trade union actions and strikes in 2016; an energy workers strike in April; a doctor ’s strike in November; kindergarten assistant teachers’ protests in September; and protests by the lowest paid public servants in November.  On 21 December 2016, the government and public sector trade unions signed an agreement to phase out the remaining austerity measures affecting pay and to tackle pay disparities over the next two years.