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The Committee notes the Government's report and recalls that its previous comments concerned the obligation that collective agreements, in order to be approved, should not contain "clauses which infringe the norms of public order or standards issued in the protection of the general interest" (section 3 of Act No. 23545 of 22 December 1987). The Committee requested the Government to inform it of any measure which is envisaged or adopted to encourage the voluntary negotiation of terms and conditions of employment without impediment in both the public and the private sectors.

In this respect, the Committee notes with interest that section 3bis (c) of Decree No. 470/93 of 18 March 1993, respecting collective labour agreements, provides that works collective labour agreements concluded by a trade union association covering the occupation in which the enterprise is active do not require approval. The Committee also takes due note of the indication in the report that the Government is endeavouring, to the extent that it is possible under the current economic conditions, to bring together the parties to the various collective labour agreements, particularly in the public sector, with a view to developing agreed standards through direct negotiations which are adapted to the current and more permissive social and economic circumstances, and to the potential of each sector. In this respect, the Government points to the ratification in 1993 of the Collective Bargaining Convention, 1981 (No. 154).

Nevertheless, the Committee regrets to note that other agreements, when they are concluded at the enterprise level, have to be approved by the Ministry of Labour in order to enter into force, in accordance with section 6 of Act No. 23546 of 22 December 1987, and also that under section 3ter of Decree No. 470/93, for the purposes of approval, the Ministry of Labour has to take into account whether the collective agreement contains clauses infringing the norms of public order and the criteria of productivity, investment, the introduction of technology, the system of vocational training as well as the provisions of the legislation that is in force.

Furthermore, the Committee recalls that in its previous comments it referred to the observations made by various trade union organizations from different sectors criticizing the restrictive Government policy with regard to the negotiation of wages, which were conditional on increases in productivity. These included the comments of the United Teachers' Trade Union of Buenos Aires, of March 1992, the Trade Union of United Seafarers (SOMU), of March 1993 and December 1994, and the Argentinian Congress of Workers (CTA), of June 1993, concerning the restrictions on collective bargaining in various sectors (public enterprises, the maritime and education sectors and the private sector), and particularly concerning Decree No. 1334/91 of 15 July 1991, which restricts any wage negotiations to the increase in productivity, with the exclusion of any other parameter; Decree No. 1757/90 of 5 July 1990, which permits the nullification of clauses in collective agreements which in the opinion of the State are prejudicial to the productivity and efficiency of public enterprises; Decree No. 435/90 of 4 March 1990, which fixes a maximum wage for all public activities, irrespective of whether or not they are covered by a collective agreement; and Decree No. 817/92 of 26 May 1992, which suspends the application of clauses in collective agreements or in legislation which establish conditions of employment that are prejudicial to productivity in the merchant navy and port sector; and Decree No. 1264 of 24 July 1992, which suspends collective labour agreements covering the maritime, river and lake transport sector for passengers, cargoes and fishing, as well as all port activities.

In this respect, the Committee also takes due note of the information supplied by the Government, particularly regarding the restrictions on collective bargaining in the shipping sector, to the effect that the Ministry of Labour and Social Security has adopted a policy of dialogue in the framework of the Tripartite Consultation Commission for the Application of International Labour Standards (Convention No. 144). The objective in this respect is for the parties to sectoral collective agreements who would be affected by Decree No. 817 to conclude agreements through direct and voluntary negotiation to resolve the differences that currently exist, particularly through the adaptation of agreements to the current social and economic circumstances and the potential of the shipping industry.

The Committee notes the detailed information provided by the Government, and particularly the developments in the system for the registration of enterprise level collective agreements without the need for approval, and the policy adopted by the Government with regard to collective bargaining, based on free discussion with the parties concerned, especially in the context of the Tripartite Consultation Commission for the Application of International Labour Standards (Convention No. 144) as they relate to the shipping sector. The Committee hopes to be able to note concrete results in the near future in both law and practice for the encouragement and promotion without impediment of the voluntary negotiation of terms and conditions of employment, in both the public and the private sectors, without interference by the public authorities.

The Committee requests the Government to inform it in its next report of any developments in this respect.