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The Committee notes with regret that the Government’s report has not been received. It further notes the comments submitted by the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) in a communication dated 29 August 2008 referring to employers’ interference in trade union activities, violation of collective agreements and insufficient protection against violation of trade union rights (insufficiently dissuasive fines). The Committee requests the Government to provide its observations thereon.

The Committee notes the Labour Code of 2004 and wishes to raise, in this respect, the following.

Article 4 of the Convention. The Committee had previously noted that sections 3, 5 and 10 of the Law on Collective Agreements provided that, in collective bargaining, workers were represented by trade unions and other workers’ representatives, including enterprise councils. The Committee notes that according to sections 29 and 31 of the Labour Code of 2004, the interests of workers, including in collective bargaining, are represented by trade unions and other elected bodies. It appears from section 31 that other representatives can be elected where no trade union represents at least 50 per cent of the workforce, but according to the same section, such other representative bodies shall not obstruct trade union activities. The Committee requests the Government to amend the relevant provisions of the Law on Collective Agreements as well as those of the Labour Code (2004) so as to ensure clearly that it is only in the event where there is no trade union at the workplace that an authorization to bargain collectively can be conferred to other representative bodies. It requests the Government to indicate the measures taken or envisaged in this respect.