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Termination of Employment Convention, 1982 (No. 158) - Morocco (RATIFICATION: 1993)

Other comments on C158

Direct Request

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The Committee notes the observations made by National Union of Labour in Morocco (UNTM) on the application of the Convention, and the Government’s reply, received on 29 August 2019.

Articles 4 and 11. Valid reasons for termination of employment. Period of notice. In its previous comments, the Committee requested the Government to provide information on the manner in which Act No. 19-12 guarantees domestic workers the protections afforded by the Convention, particularly in relation to the period of notice, valid reasons for termination of employment, and compensation. It also requested the Government to provide information on the measures adopted or envisaged concerning the application of the Convention to workers covered by the Act. The Government indicates that Act No. 19-12 on the conditions of employment and work of domestic workers, promulgated by Dahir No. 1.16.121 of 10 August 2016, entered into force on 2 October 2018. According to the Government, the Act supplements the regulation of domestic work sector pursuant to section 4 of the Labour Code. It thus provides domestic workers with legal protection by establishing a model contract of employment that binds them to the employer and requires both parties to have it validated by the labour inspection services, and even to file a certified copy with the labour inspection offices. This allows labour inspectors to check at the outset the conformity of the employment relationship between the employer and the domestic worker. The Government also indicates that Act No. 19-12 in section 22 empowers labour inspectors to: receive complaints from workers against employers and vice versa; convene the two parties with a view to finding a consensus for the resolution of disputes arising from a breach of the contract of employment; and issue an official report when the conflict cannot be resolved to allow both parties to take legal action. The Committee notes that, in the event of termination of employment after one year of effective work, the domestic worker is entitled to a severance allowance, and section 21 of the Act establishes the amount of the required allowances. However, the Committee notes that the Act contains no provisions on the valid reasons for termination of employment or the period of notice in the event of the termination of employment of domestic workers. The Committee also notes the Government's indication that the labour inspectorate has not registered any cases of the termination of employment of domestic workers. With regard to court decisions on valid reasons for the termination of employment of employees, the Government’s report refers to the rulings of the Court of Cassation, in particular, Judgment No. 194, issued on 13 February 2014, concerning termination of the contract of employment and the requirement for the employer to provide justification for termination of employment, and Judgment No. 389, issued on 20 March 2014, which recalls that it is not sufficient to claim that an employee refuses to sign or to acknowledge receipt of the termination documents. In such a situation, it is the employer's responsibility to have recourse to the labour inspector, pursuant to section 62 of the Labour Code and Judgement No. 18 issued on 8 January 2015 concerning the method of calculating compensation for unfair dismissal. Nevertheless, the Committee understands that the Labour Code does not cover domestic workers and that the cited case law exclusively concerns the provisions of this code. Noting in this connection that the Government does not provide information on the provisions relating to valid reasons for the termination of employment and for a period of notice in the event of the termination of employment of domestic workers, the Committee invites the Government to provide information on these points in its next report. The Government is also requested to provide updated information on the application of the Convention in practice, including extracts from inspection reports, and to indicate the number of inspections carried out and their results

Articles 4, 7, 8 and 11. Court decisions concerning valid reasons for termination of employment, procedure prior to termination, appeals against unjustified termination, and serious misconduct. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in response to its previous request concerning the communication of court decisions illustrating the effect given to Articles 4, 7, 8 and 11 of the Convention.

Articles 13 and 14. Terminations of employment for reasons of an economic, technological, structural or similar nature, The Committee previously asked the Government to indicate whether the statistics provided corresponded to terminations for reasons of an economic, technological, structural or similar nature and to provide information on other sectors of activity. The Government indicates that in 2018, labour inspectors carried out 33,362 inspections in the industrial, commercial and services sectors and 1,535 inspections in the agricultural sector, after which they drew up two reports concerning termination of employment for reasons of a structural nature. The Committee also notes the UNTM’s observations that the Government’s response regarding Articles 13 and 14 of the Convention does not meet the requirements of the Committee of Experts and also lacks data on the authorizations granted by the Governor of the prefecture or province in the event of a collective labour dispute, in accordance with sections 66 to 71 of the Labour Code. The Committee also notes the Government's response to these observations, that most collective terminations of employment are of a structural nature The Committee requests the Government to continue providing specific information on the application of Articles 13 and 14 of the Convention, including available statistics on the number of terminations of employment for reasons of an economic, technological or structural nature.