CMNT_TITLE

The Committee takes note of the Government’s report.

1. In its previous comments concerning Article 4 of the Convention, the Committee requested the Government to provide information on the nature of the arbitration process under section 16 of the Collective Labour Agreement Act and to indicate how that process could be initiated. The Committee also requested information on the types of disputes covered by the procedures set out in sections 15 to 17 of the Collective Labour Agreement Act, sections 7 to 13 of the Strike Act and section 19 of the Trade Union Act.

The Government indicates that the disputes covered by sections 15 to 17 of the Collective Labour Agreement Act and sections 7 to 13 of the Strike Act are "collective labour disputes", which include disputes concerning the conclusion, amendment or implementation of collective labour agreements, as well as disagreements between trade unions and employers. Section 19 of the Trade Union Act applies to disagreements over the determination or modification of work conditions. Under section 15 of the Act, labour disputes are settled by a conciliation commission, composed of representatives of the parties. Under section 16 of the Act, if the conciliation commission is unable to settle a dispute, the parties may submit it to the court, or to an arbitration board by written agreement, which makes the final decision. The Committee takes note of this information.

2. As regards Article 5 of the Convention, the Committee had emphasized that the staff of the Fire-Fighting Department, Lifesaving Service and Penitentiary Department should enjoy the right of collective bargaining and requested the Government to indicate to what extent the guarantees provided in the Convention apply to these employees.

The Government indicates that prison wardens and employees of the Fire-Fighting Department and Lifesaving Service are not included in the ranks of the armed forces or police, and therefore not prohibited from organizing or joining trade unions.

The Committee notes this information and requests the Government to indicate in its next report whether these employees have the right to bargain collectively and have access to the dispute settlement mechanisms described above, or to other independent and impartial procedures, in case of disagreement on work conditions.