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Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87) - Grenada (RATIFICATION: 1994)

Other comments on C087

Observation

Direct Request

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The Committee recalls that for several years it had been commenting on the following issues:

-Articles 2 and 4 of the Convention. Minimum membership requirements. The Committee had requested the Government to reduce the number of members (ten) required for the registration of an employers’ organization (sections 5(2) and 9(1)(e) of the Labour Relations Act of 1999). The Committee had recalled that the minimum requirement of ten employers to form an employers’ organization was excessive and capable of hindering the creation of employers’ organizations, particularly given the relatively small size of the country.
-Article 3. The Committee had requested the Government to amend section 24(2) of the Labour Relations Act, which permits the registrar to require the delivery of detailed accounts of the revenue, expenditure, assets, liabilities and funds of an organization at any time. The Committee had noted the Government’s proposed amendment to section 24(2) which would limit the possibility for the registrar to request periodic financial reports only when there are serious grounds for believing that the activities of an organization are contrary to the rule of law.

The Committee had noted that section 45(3) of the Labour Relations Act grants the minister the power to refer to compulsory arbitration disputes in essential services, and that the second schedule to this Act, which establishes the essential services, includes sanitation, seaport and dock services. It had recalled that it did not consider sanitation, seaport and dock services to be essential in the strict sense of the term – that is to say, services, the interruption of which would endanger the life, personal safety or health of the whole or part of the population. This notwithstanding, the Committee had considered that a minimum service could be appropriate as a possible alternative in these situations, where a substantial restriction or total prohibition of the right to strike would not appear to be justified and where, without calling into question the right to strike of a large majority of workers, one might consider ensuring that users’ basic needs are met or that facilities operate safely or without interruption. In any circumstance, workers’ organizations should be able to participate in defining such a service in the same way as employers and the public authorities.

Noting the absence of information in relation to these matters in the Government’s report, the Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that the requested amendments will be adopted without delay in accordance with the principles set out above. It requests the Government to indicate in its next report the progress made in this respect.

Article 2. Right to establish organizations. In addition, the Committee notes that the Government indicates in its report that the minimum membership requirement for the registration of a trade union is seven. However, sections 5(1) and 9(1)(e) of the Labour Relations Act provide for a minimum membership of 25 for the registration of a trade union. The Committee requests the Government to indicate whether there has been an amendment to the abovementioned provisions.

Finally, the Committee notes that the Government indicates in its report that prison officers are prevented from joining organizations of their own choosing. The Committee recalls that, in accordance with Article 2 of the Convention, the right to establish and join occupational organizations should be guaranteed for all public servants and officials, and that, under Article 9(1) of the Convention, the only authorized exceptions from the scope of application of the Convention concern members of the police and the armed forces. The Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that prisons officers benefit from the rights and guarantees provided for in the Convention and to provide information on any developments in this regard in its next report.