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The Committee notes the observations submitted by the CODELCO-CHILE Workers' Union No. 7, El Teniente division, concerning the application of the Convention in the copper mines. In reply, the Government has referred to its report for the period ending 30 June 1990.

The Government has indicated in previous reports that, for technical and economic reasons, the work undertaken in the copper mines cannot be interrupted and is, therefore, excepted from the obligation to provide a weekly rest day on Sundays by virtue of section 37(2) of the Labour Code and point 2 of the Second Category set forth in Decree No. 101 of 16 January 1918. In its comments for 1989, the Committee had noted in this respect that, in the light of the information available to it, the application of the Convention had not been questioned.

The Committee recalls that, in accordance with Article 5 of the Convention, where such exceptions are permitted, section 37 of the Code calls for an equivalent period of compensatory rest to be granted. The Government is requested to indicate the manner in which the Convention is applied in practice by providing, in accordance with Part V of the report form, statistics on the number of workers affected by the exception made for the copper mining industry and copies of the sections concerning weekly rest and any special rotation systems established which form part of the internal orders called for under sections 149 and 150 of the Code.