Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1997, published 86th ILC session (1998)

The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in its report. It has received a communication by the Netherlands Trade Union Confederation (FNV) on the application of the Convention and asks the Government to make its comments in its next report.

Referring to its previous comments, the Committee notes from the Government's report that a draft legislation has been presented to the Parliament, to the effect of amending article 670, paragraph 5, of the Civil Code and providing for a protection against dismissal on the grounds of trade union membership or activities. The Committee hopes that the present draft will provide sanctions, sufficiently dissuasive, so as to ensure the full application of Article 1 of the Convention (please refer to paragraphs 223 and 224 of the General Survey on freedom of association and collective bargaining, 1994). It asks the Government to keep it informed on the matter.

The Committee also recalls that it had asked the Government to indicate the manner in which workers' organizations are protected (in particular through dissuasive sanctions) against acts of interference by employers' organizations and vice versa, in accordance with Article 2 of the Convention. Given that the Government only refers to interference in the framework of the collective bargaining, the Committee asks the Government to give more details on this issue.