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1. The Committee notes with interest the Government’s comprehensive report, including references to the adoption in 2003 of a new National Occupational Safety and Health Policy, and to a series of legislative changes including significant amendments to the occupational safety and health provisions in the Labour Law (Act No. 65/1965, as amended) and the adoption of a new law on Labour Inspection (Act No. 251/2005), all contributing to an increased application of the Convention in the country. The Committee also notes, however, the observations made by the Czech-Moravian Confederation of Trade Unions (CMKOS), reflected in the Government’s report, in which CMKOS regrets that the Government does not further detail how the Convention is applied in practice and that efforts have not been made to enable a ratification of the Protocol to Convention No. 155. Against this background, the Government is requested to comment on the observations of CMKOS in the report to be submitted to the Committee at its next session, including, in accordance with Part V of the report form, a general appreciation of the manner in which the Convention is applied in the country and information about the number of workers covered by the measures giving effect to the Convention, disaggregated by sex, if available, the number and nature of infringements reported, etc. and to supply relevant extracts from inspection reports. The Committee also requests the Government to submit copies of the relevant documents and legislation including, as available, translations into one of the working languages of the ILO, to enable a more detailed examination thereof by the Committee.

2. Article 2 of the Convention. Scope of application. The Committee notes with interest that the Government highlights in its report that the scope of application of the Labour Code also includes homeworkers i.e. employees who do not work at the employer’s workplaces but, in accordance with terms and conditions agreed by the employment contract, perform the agreed work at home under their own distribution of working hours, but that such homeworkers are not subject to the provisions on the distribution of weekly working time, and those on idle time, that they have no right to compensation of wages in the event of impediments to work, and that they are not entitled to pay increases for overtime and work holidays and to other wage components provided by wage regulations. The Committee requests the Government to indicate in more detail the statutory provisions which regulate their working conditions and how these provisions are applied in practice.

3. The Committee is raising certain other points in a request addressed directly to the Government.

[The Government is asked to reply in detail to the present comments in 2006.]