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

The Committee notes that the Government’s report contains no reply to previous comments. It must therefore repeat its previous observation which reads as follows:

Further to its previous observation, the Committee notes the Government’s repeated reference to section 57 of the Labour Code (Act No. 137 of 1981) for the application of Article 2 of the Convention.

The Committee once again points out that the requirement of the Convention under Article 2 is to ensure the insertion of a labour clause in public contracts so as to guarantee to the workers employed by the contractor, the prevailing labour conditions which have been established in any of the three ways specified in Article 2(1), items (a), (b) and (c). The Committee also recalls that these three items do not stipulate the manner in which the Convention should be applied. The principal aim of a labour clause is to protect fair conditions of labour from the consequences of competitive practice of tendering for a public contract, in which firms tendering for a public contract may feel the temptation to calculate labour costs at a level lower than the prevailing conditions. In addition, the provision of penalties in the labour clauses, such as the withholding of contracts, makes it possible to impose effective sanctions directly in case of violations.

The Committee recalls that section 57 of the Labour Code concerns the equality of treatment between a subcontractor’s own workers and those of the employer. In the case of a public contract, for example, for the construction of some public works, when there is no employee of the public authority (the employer) engaged in construction work, "the equality of treatment" cannot guarantee any protection for the employees of the subcontractor. Therefore, this section 57 does not ensure the above-mentioned purposes of labour clauses in public contracts, and does not suffice for the application of Article 2 of the Convention.

The Committee recalls that the Government once indicated in its earlier report certain actions taken by the Central Body for Management and Administration to circulate instructions that a clause should be included in all public contracts in order to guarantee to the workers concerned conditions of labour not less favourable than those of other workers performing the same work. The Committee notes with regret that no further information has been supplied in this regard.

Recalling that it has been commenting on the application on the Convention since its ratification by Egypt, the Committee again expresses the hope that the Government will take appropriate measures (whether by way of legislation or administrative instructions) to provide for the insertion of a labour clause in public contracts in accordance with the provisions of the Convention.

The Committee hopes that the Government will make every effort to take the necessary action in the very near future.