Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2023, published 112nd ILC session (2024)

Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 (No. 81) - Armenia (Ratification: 2004)

Other comments on C081

Observation

Direct Request

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The Committee notes the observations from the Confederation of Trade Unions of Armenia (CTUA) of 2022 communicated with the Government’s report.

Article 3(1) of the Convention. Activities of the labour inspectorate in the area of undeclared work. The Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that section 11(10)(k) of the Health and Labour Inspection Body (HLIB) Statute empowers HLIB to implement control over maintaining the procedure for concluding and terminating labour contracts; detecting cases of hiring without an individual legal act or a written labour contract (illegal labour); maintaining the adequate duration of working and rest hours; and the calculation and payment of wages. While taking note of these labour inspection functions, the Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the number of cases of undeclared work discovered by labour inspectors and to specify the number of cases of undeclared workers who effectively succeeded in obtaining their rights, including settlement of unpaid wages, social security coverage and the drawing up of an employment contract.

Articles 4, 10 and 11. Reform of the labour inspectorate. Human and material resources available to the labour inspection services. Further to its previous comments, the Committee notes the adoption of the Republic of Armenia (RA) Law “On State Government System Bodies” of 23 March 2018, which establishes the HLIB operating under the Government. The HLIB is the body authorized to perform the functions of state supervision and control of compliance with labour legislation, including occupational safety and health (OSH). The Committee notes that section 27 of HLIB’s Statute provides for its structural division with 9 units, including Labour Legislation Control Department. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that the number of HLIB’s staff positions was increased by 60 (from 280 to 340) by the Decree of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia No. 808-A of 16 July 2020. The Committee requests the Government to indicate whether all labour inspectors previously employed by the State Labour Inspectorate and State Health Inspectorate have been transferred to the HLIB. The Committee further requests the Government to provide detailed information on the budgetary, human and material resources at the disposal of the HLIB, including comparative information on the actual remuneration scale of labour inspectors in relation to other comparable categories of Government employees exercising similar functions, such as tax inspectors or police officers.

Articles 5(a), 17 and 18. Cooperation between the labour inspectorate and the judicial bodies and penalties imposed on the perpetrators of violations. Further to its previous comment, the Committee notes the Government’s reference to section 6(1)(2) of the RA Law “On Inspection Bodies”, which provides for powers to enforce liability measures for violation of the legislation, and section 41 of the Code of Administrative Offences, which stipulates the scope of liability measures for violation of labour legislation. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that by virtue of the Civil Procedure Code, adopted in 2018, the cases of individual labour disputes must be considered and resolved within three months after acceptance for court proceedings. The Government also indicates that the public information system “Data Lex” enables members of the public to obtain information about the judicial proceedings and case outcomes in real time. The Committee notes that the HLIB annual report includes information on the number of violations detected and the number of fines imposed and collected for labour law infringements. However, the Committee notes that the Government report and the HLIB annual report do not include information on the number of cases referred to the judiciary by labour inspectors and the outcome of those cases. Therefore, the Committee requests that the Government provide information on the number of violation notices transmitted to judicial authorities and the action taken as a result, including the penalties imposed. The Committee also requests the Government to indicate the practical measures taken or contemplated to develop effective cooperation between the labour inspectorate and the judicial bodies, such as training activities, courts’ reliance on or reference to labour inspectors’ expertise, inspectorates’ guidance promulgated with regard to interpretation of relevant legal texts, etc.

Article 5(b). Collaboration between labour inspectors and employers and workers or their organizations. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that one of HLIB’s functions includes informing and consulting workers, employers and their representatives on OSH, employment relationship and compliance with law. The Government indicates that the inspection authority held consultations with the Republican Tripartite Committee, in line with the action plan implementing the 2015 Republican Collective Contract, including on joint actions with social partners aimed at the improvement of the inspectorate functions. The Committee notes from the CTUA’s observations that by virtue of the Law “On Inspection Bodies”, the Governing Council of the Inspection Body is composed of representatives of state government bodies, public and scientific organizations, but not of workers’ and employers’ representatives. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on any measures taken or envisaged to enhance collaboration between the labour inspection services and social partners. The Committee further requests the Government to provide its comments with respect to the CTUA’s observations regarding membership of the Governing Council.

Article 7. Recruitment and training of labour inspectors. The Committee notes the Government’s indication, in reply to its previous request, that HLIB’s employees are civil servants within the meaning of the Law “On Civil Service”, which regulates procedures for conducting competition, evaluation of performance abilities and trainings. The Government further indicates that issues related to the training and number of inspectors must be considered in the context of further reforms of institutional, functional and juridical spheres. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the recruitment process, the qualifications required for labour inspectors and the nature of training they receive for this purpose, such as initial training, in-service training and training in some specific subjects, as well as plans for continuous training of labour inspectors, if any.

Articles 19, 20 and 21. Annual report on the work of the labour inspectorate. Following its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that according to section 15 of the Law “On Inspection Bodies”, after submission of the annual report to the Prime Minister for discussion by the Government, the inspection report is then published online. The Committee notes with interest that the annual report of the HLIB is available on its website. The Committee notes that, however, the report does not contain information on: (i) statistics on the number of inspectors (Article 21(b)); (ii) statistics of workplaces liable to inspection and the number of workers employed therein (Article 21(c)); (iii) statistics of industrial accidents (Article 21(f)); and (iv) statistics of occupational diseases (Article 21(g)).The Committee requests the Government to continue its efforts to publish labour inspection reports and to take the necessary measures to ensure that they cover all the subjects listed in Article 21(a)–(g) of the Convention.