Definitive Report - REPORT_NO158, November 1976

1. 236. The complaint from the Greek Workers' Anti-Dictatorial Front (AEM) was submitted by a letter of 6 December 1975. The complainants supplied additional information by a communication of 20 January 1976. The Government submitted its observations by a communication of 31 March 1976.
2. 237. Greece has ratified the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87) and the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98).

A. A. The complainants' allegations

1. 238. The complainants, who claim to represent tens of thousands of workers and employees, allege that, in 1975, the employers dismissed over 300 trade union leaders and that dozens of strikes have been organised with a view to obtaining their reinstatement. According to the AEM, this represents a deliberate policy on the part of employers in order to maintain industrial peace as they want it and the Government gives its backing to this tendency on the part of employers to dismiss trade unionists, whereas it could have taken specific measures to ensure the effective protection of those concerned. The complainants mention in particular, as measures which could have been taken to this end, the ratification of the Workers' Representatives Convention (No. 135), 1971, and the extension to other persons of the safeguards provided for in Emergency Law No. 1803 of 26 April 1951 on the protection of trade union leaders. They consider that these recurring dismissals are considerably hampering industrial relations and, as examples, list the dismissals which have taken place in the undertakings Petrola-Latsis (Eleusis), Motoroil-Bardinoyannis (Corinth), Portoda, Fix, Siemens (Athens), Eskimo (Athens), Phyrogenis (Athens), Viamax (Athens), Elarko (Athens), Ceramics Branch (Athens) and Beverages Monopolies (Athens).
2. 239. By a letter of 20 January 1976, the AEM communicated a further list of 35 undertakings which have carried out dismissals since the original complaint was submitted. The AEM adds that on 14 January 1976 police attacked workers in the Pitsos factory who had for some days been exercising their Constitutional right to strike. Twenty workers are said to have been injured and ten trade unionists arrested and brought before the courts.
3. 240. The Government recalls in its reply that Greece has ratified Conventions Nos. 87 and 98 and adds that the Government has introduced various measures to protect trade union rights and establish a truly independent trade union movement. It adds that the legislation provides for sanctions against employers who interfere in the creation, operation or administration of a workers' organisation and the courts have condemned dismissals for legitimate trade union activities. The aforementioned Law No. 1803 of 1951 protects the presidents and general secretaries of unions and Legislative Decree No. 4361 of 1964 extended this protection to the vice-presidents and treasurers of trade unions (central unions, federations and Confederations). Furthermore, the Government is considering the drawing up of a bill on workers' organisations which would extend this protection to other persons.
4. 241. The Government states that it is studying the provisions of Convention No. 135 with a view to its ratification, but that the lack of legislation on this subject is causing difficulty. It also has to take into account the present state of economic development in the country and the situation in the Greek trade union movement. It states that there are 3,400 unions, 97 workers' centres, 75 federations and 5 Confederations.
5. 242. Regarding police action at the Pitsos factory, the Government states that approximately 400 strikers belonging to the enterprise assembled on 14 January 1976 in front of and around the plant and forcibly prevented about 150 workers reaching their workplace. Policemen therefore intervened to prevent a spread of incidents. Subsequently, on the orders of a representative of the public prosecutor's office who was present, 20 persons were arrested, of whom 11 were brought before the courts. The case was heard on 2 February 1976 and four of the accused were sentenced to terms of a few months' imprisonment for violence and, as regards two of them, for insults, blows and injuries. The persons concerned appealed and were released. The Government emphasises that only one of the arrested persons was a member of the administration of the union of the undertaking.
6. 243. Regarding this latter aspect of the case, the Committee notes the Government's statement that the police intervened not to break up the strike, but to prevent strikers violently preventing other workers from proceeding to their workplace. It notes that the arrest procedure was accompanied by the safeguards of regular judicial procedure and that all the arrested persons are now free.
7. 244. Regarding the alleged acts of anti-union discrimination, it should be recalled, first, that under section 23 of the Act of 1914 concerning associations, heads, directors, agents or other employees of any enterprise are prohibited from: (a) preventing workers, employees or other wage-earners, by means of dismissal or threats of dismissal or other illegal means from founding occupational associations, belonging to them or belonging to political parties; (b) obliging them by the same means to found occupational associations or belong to specific associations; (c) demanding from workers in any manner whatsoever a written statement to the effect that they engage not to belong to or to cease to belong to an association of this type, as a condition for the conclusion or the prolongation of an employment contract. Section 41 of that same Act makes provision for fines and imprisonment for violation of these provisions.
8. 245. Moreover, Emergency Law No. 1803, already referred to, prohibits the dismissal of presidents and general secretaries of workers' trade unions with a membership exceeding 100, during their term of office and for one year thereafter, unless there is a serious cause foreseen by the law and the procedure prescribed by it has been followed. This Act was completed in particular, as regards trade unions, by Legislative Decree No. 4361 of 1964, section 12 of which extended legal protection to the vice-presidents and treasurers of such organisations.
9. 246. Convention No. 98, which Greece has ratified, provides safeguards for the protection of workers against acts of anti-union discrimination in respect of their employment. The Committee, for its part, has often emphasised that it is one of the fundamental principles of freedom of association that workers should enjoy adequate protection against acts of anti-union discrimination - dismissal or other prejudicial measures - and that this protection is particularly desirable in the case of trade union officials because, in order to carry out their trade union functions in full independence, they must have the assurance that they will not be victimised by virtue of their trade union office. The Committee has considered that the guarantee of protection of this kind to trade union officials is also necessary to give effect to the principle that workers' organisations should have the right to elect their representatives in full freedom.
10. 247. In the present case, the complainants communicated a long list of undertakings which, they claim, have dismissed trade union leaders and other trade unionists for their union activities. The Government does not provide precise information in its reply regarding the measures taken in these various cases, but merely refers to the legislation in force and states that it is considering the drafting of a bill which would protect a larger number of persons. It also states that the ratification of Convention No. 135 - which relates to protection and facilities to be afforded to workers' representatives in the undertaking - is proving difficult mainly because of the lack of specific legislation on the subject.

B. B. The Committee's conclusions

1. 248. The Committee considers that in view of the number of dismissals of trade union leaders and other trade unionists in the present case, it would be particularly desirable for the Government to carry out an inquiry in order to establish the true reasons for the measures taken. This inquiry might also provide an opportunity of assessing the effectiveness of the present legislation and the measures which might be taken to expand it, as the Government states that it proposes to do, in a bill under preparation.