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The Committee notes the observations sent to the ILO Office for Central America and Panama by the Costa Rica Inter-Federal Committee. A copy of these observations was sent to the Government on 12 September 1997. The above-cited Committee alleges non-observance of ILO Conventions Nos. 81, 87, 98, 105, 111, 122, 135 and 144. As regards Convention No. 144, it alleges that the Government does not give effect to the provisions of Article 5, paragraph 1(d), under which the tripartite consultations provided for in the Convention must cover questions arising out of reports to be made to the International Labour Office under article 22 of the ILO Constitution.

The Committee notes the additional information supplied by the above-cited Committee in support of its allegations. Noting the information on the exchange of communications between the Committee and the Ministry of Labour, it is bound to remind the Government that, in its General Survey of 1982, it pointed out that under Article 2 of the Convention the consultation procedures on each of the matters listed in Article 5, paragraph 1, must be effective, in other words they must enable the employers' and the workers' organizations to comment usefully on the matters in question. For that to be so, the consultations must take place before the Government comes to a decision. In view of the foregoing, the Committee asks the Government to bring national practice into conformity with the provisions of the Convention.

The Committee also notes that the Government's report has not been received. It hopes that a report will be supplied for examination by the Committee at its next session and that it will contain full information on the points raised in this direct request and the previous one which read as follows:

1. The Committee notes the Government's report for the period ending June 1994, received in February 1995, and the supplementary information sent by the Government in a report received in October 1995.

2. With reference to the observations made by the Association of Customs Officers (ASEPA) in November 1994 in respect to the application of Convention No. 144, the Committee observes that the type of consultations held in a round table (mesa de concertación) are not of the type which must be conducted under the Convention.

3. Article 5, paragraph 1(c), of the Convention. The Committee takes due note of the consultations held in the framework of the Supreme Labour Council on the proposals related to the submission of Conventions and Recommendations. The Government has indicated in a communication dated 2 March 1995 to the ILO Office for Central America and Panama that a large group of Conventions adopted by the ILO which had not been the subject of consultations in the Supreme Labour Council has been withdrawn from the agenda of the Special Session of the Parliament. Having rectified this error, the Government proceeded to hold consultations in the framework of the Supreme Labour Council on a number of Conventions and Recommendations. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would continue to supply specific information on the results achieved in the Supreme Labour Council in the consultations held and on the subsequent treatment by the Legislative Assembly, for consultations on the submission of Conventions and Recommendations, in accordance with article 19 of the ILO Constitution.

4. Taking the aforegoing into account, the Committee notes that the information supplied by the Government does not allow it to ascertain in what way the other consultations required by the Convention were held, on the replies to questionnaires concerning items on the agenda of the International Labour Conference (Article 5, paragraph 1(a) of the Convention) and questions arising out of reports to be made to the International Labour Office under article 22 of the ILO Constitution (Article 5, paragraph 1(d)). The Committee is bound to repeat its previous direct requests, asking the Government to supply in its next report specific information on the consultations held on each of the matters set out in Article 5 of the Convention, including particulars on the frequency of consultations and indicating also any reports prepared or recommendations made as a result of these consultations.