Demande directe (CEACR) - adoptée 2000, publiée 89ème session CIT (2001)

The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government in reply to its earlier comments.

1.  In its earlier comments the Committee noted the Government’s indications that the restrictions placed on the freedom of public servants and members of the armed forces to leave their employment under the provisions relating to resignation contained in section 71 of Act No. 40 of 1974 regarding service in the armed forces, and in section 108 of Act No. 55 of 1976 regarding public service, which are contrary to the Convention, had been submitted to the competent authorities with a view to their modification.

The Committee notes from the Government’s report that measures have already been taken to amend the abovementioned provisions. The Government states that there is to be a new Bill entitled "Public Service Code" which has already been prepared and will be transmitted to the general people’s congress with a view to their consideration and promulgation. The Committee notes that section 91(1) of the new Bill provides that an employee may resign by applying in writing and that the competent authority must accept the application within 60 days of its submission. However, paragraph 2 of the same clause stipulates that, if the resignation is linked to a condition or restriction, the employee’s service may end only when a favourable response is given to the application, otherwise the resignation will be cancelled 30 days after its submission; during that period, the resignation may be accepted with a deferment (section 91(3)). The Committee refers to the explanations given in paragraphs 67-73 of its 1979 General Survey on the abolition of forced labour, and observes that the provisions of paragraphs 2 and 3 of section 91 of the new Bill contain restrictions on the freedom of employees to terminate their employment, which affect observance of the Convention. It asks the Government to describe the nature of the conditions or restrictions to which resignation may be linked under paragraph 2 of section 91, so that the Committee may ascertain whether they are consistent with the Convention. It trusts that the provisions in question will be so drafted as to ensure that the various categories of persons in the service of the State are free to leave the service at their own initiative within a reasonable period of time, either at specified intervals or with previous notice. It hopes that the Government will shortly be in a position to provide a copy of the provisions adopted to this end. Please also provide information on the measures taken to amend section 71 of Act No. 40 of 1974 with regard to service in the armed forces, to which the Government refers in its report.

2.  In its earlier comments, the Committee recalled the discussion that took place in the Conference Committee in June 1992 during which the Worker members of the Conference Committee observed, regarding the freedom of workers to leave their employment, that the information on the situation of Sri Lankan women employed in the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya was disquieting. It noted that the Conference Committee had expressed the hope that the Government would keep the Office informed by means of a report containing detailed information.

The Committee notes the Government’s statement in its report that there are no cases pending concerning Sri Lankan women employees in the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya. The Government also indicates, concerning the regulations applying to domestic workers pursuant to section 1(b) of the Labour Code that this clause has been amended by the new draft of the Labour and Employment Code which will be submitted to the general people’s congress with a view to its promulgation. According to the Government, section 3 of the draft provides that the Code applies to all the parties involved in work, including all domestic workers. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide the text of the new Code as soon as it is adopted, and continue to provide detailed information in its future reports on the situation of Sri Lankan women employed in the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya in connection with the freedom to leave their employment.

3.  With reference to its general observation on the Convention contained in its report submitted to the 87th Session of the Conference in 1999, the Committee notes that the Government’s report does not contain the information requested in its previous comments concerning prison labour. Consequently, it again asks the Government to provide information on the present position in law and practice as regards:

(i)  whether there are prisons administered by private concerns, profit-making or otherwise;

(ii)  whether any private prison contractors deploy prisoners to work either inside or outside prison premises, either for the account of the contractor or for that of another enterprise;

(iii)  whether private parties are admitted by the prison authorities into prison premises of any kind for the purpose of engaging prisoners in employment;

(iv)  whether employment of prisoners outside prison premises, either for a public authority or for a private enterprise, is allowed;

(v)  the conditions in which employment under any of the above conditions takes place, in respect of remuneration (indicating the level and comparing it with the minimum wage normally applicable to such work), benefits accruing (such as pension rights and workers’ compensation), observance of occupational safety and health legislation and other conditions of employment (e.g. through labour inspection), and how those conditions are determined;

(vi)  what the source of any remuneration is (whether from public or private funds) and for what purposes it must or may be applied (e.g. for the personal use of the prisoner or if it is subject to compulsory deductions);

(vii)  for whose benefit is the product of prisoners’ work and surplus profit deriving from it, after deduction of overheads, and how it is disbursed;

(viii)  how the consent of the prisoners concerned is guaranteed, so that they are free from the menace of any penalty, including any loss of privileges or other disadvantages following from a refusal to work.