Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2007, published 97th ILC session (2008)

The Committee notes the Government’s report and the reply to the 2005 and 2006 comments of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU, now ITUC – the International Trade Union Confederation), which includes information concerning the registration of a trade union and the Haitian workers’ right to organize. The Committee also notes the comments of the ITUC of 28 August 2007, which refer to the matters under consideration and the imprisonment of and imposition of excessive fines on two trade union leaders from the National Transport Confederation (CONATRA) and the National Dominican Transport Federation (FENATRADO) for having organized a strike in the transport sector. The Committee asks the Government to provide its comments in this respect.

The Committee recalls that it has been commenting for many years on the following legislative matters:

–      the requirement that federations must obtain a two-thirds majority vote by their members to be able to establish a confederation (section 383 of the Labour Code of 1992);

–      the statutory requirement of a majority of 51 per cent of workers’ votes in the enterprise in order to call a strike (section 407(3) of the Labour Code);

–      the express exclusion from the scope of the Labour Code (Principle III) and the Civil Service and Administrative Careers Act of employees of autonomous and municipal state institutions (section 2);

–      the requirement of 40 per cent of the total number of employees in the institution in order for public servants to be able to establish organizations (section 142(1) of the Regulations adopted under the Civil Service and Administrative Careers Act).

With regard to these legislative matters, the Committee notes the Government’s statement to the effect that on 18 July 2007 the Advisory Council of the Secretariat of Labour held a session, within the framework of social dialogue, at which the Government and the social partners decided to work together on the legislative amendments. To this end, a team of three delegates was established for each sector to examine the respective proposals and send them to the National Congress. While emphasizing that the matters in question have been outstanding for many years, the Committee hopes that the working group will submit its proposals to the National Congress in the very near future, so that the legislation can be amended in pursuance of the provisions of the Convention. The Committee asks the Government to provide information in its next report on any measures taken in this respect and reminds it that technical assistance from the Office remains at its disposal.

The Committee has also been referring for a number of years to the following matters:

–      The opposition of certain enterprises in export processing zones to the establishment of trade unions and the disregard for trade union immunity. In this respect, the Committee notes the Government’s statement to the effect that: (1) in the past five years, an average of 12 trade unions have been registered each year in export processing zones; (2) in 2006, within the framework of the “Cumple y Gana” project sponsored by the US Department of Labor, two workshops aimed at employers and workers were held on labour law and satisfactory dispute settlement in the export processing zone sector; (3) a radio and written campaign was launched on labour rights and the fundamental ILO Conventions, with emphasis on freedom of association and collective bargaining; and (4) a dispute settlement system was introduced which allowed for the considerable improvement of relations between enterprises and trade unions.

–      Respect for trade union rights on sugar plantations, in particular the right of trade union officers to have access to and meet with workers in accordance with the principles of the Convention. The Committee notes the Government’s statement to the effect that, in May 2006, the Secretariat of State for Labour launched a campaign for the promotion, dissemination and observance of labour law in sugar refineries; that the director of the National Labour Inspectorate visited all sugar-producing areas, to which two labour inspectors are assigned on a permanent basis; that there has been a considerable improvement in working conditions in sugar refineries and that work-related entitlements have been paid to the workers of the refineries that were closed down. The Committee notes, however, that the Government does not refer in a specific manner to the observance of trade union rights. The Committee asks the Government to ensure that full effect is given to the Convention on sugar plantations.