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The Committee takes note of the Government’s report.

It notes the Government’s observations on comments sent by the Confederation of Argentine Workers (CTA) in a communication of 19 November 2004. The CTA draws attention to the need to extend the protection (tutela) enjoyed by representatives of organizations that have trade union status (sections 48 and 52 of Act No. 23551) to representatives of trade union organizations that are merely registered and to the founding members of the provisional committees of new trade union organizations, in order to comply with Article 1 of the Convention. The Committee refers the Government to its comments on the application of Convention No. 87 in which it addresses this matter.

The CTA also refers to section 3 of Decree No. 1040/01, which allows employers to set in motion the procedure of establishing the sector within which a trade union operates through the competent authority so that the latter can determine the trade union that is representative in disputes relating to representation by several organizations where such disputes could affect the wage or benefit systems in the enterprise, or where this process could enable asymmetric coverage by collective agreements to be corrected. The Committee observes that the CTA alleges that this provision is contrary to Article 2 of the Convention because it may give rise to acts of interference by the employer. The Committee notes that, according to the Government, the abovementioned procedure may be applied only in the event of an inter-union dispute and there is no possibility of the procedure being set in motion at the wish of the employer alone. The Committee notes that the Government has sent judicial decisions in support of its comment and states that the parties involved in the procedure, namely the trade union associations and the employer, may lodge administrative complaints and appeals and may seek judicial review by the National Labour Appeals Chamber.

The Committee is addressing to the Government a direct request on another matter.