Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1993, published 80th ILC session (1993)

Article 8, paragraph 1, of the Convention. The Committee notes the indication provided in the Government's latest report that the accumulation of weekly rest permitted under section 5(2) of the Shop and Office Employees Act in cases of unforeseen circumstances is not regularly taken advantage of in practice. In previous comments, the Committee recalled that, under this Article of the Convention, temporary exemptions from weekly rest provisions are only possible in cases of accident or force majeure, abnormal pressure of work or in order to prevent the loss of perishables. The Committee has noted that the condition of "unforeseen circumstances" in order to grant accumulation of weekly rest would appear to be broader than the very limited conditions provided for under Article 8, paragraph 1. The Government is, therefore, requested to indicate the measures taken or envisaged to amend section 5(2) of the Shop and Office Employees Act in order to ensure that the temporary exemptions to weekly rest permitted are limited to the conditions set out in this Article of the Convention.

Article 8, paragraph 2. In its previous comments, the Committee noted the Lanka Jathika Estate Workers' Union's (LJEWU) reference to the need to consult the representative employers' and workers' organizations concerned on any temporary exemptions granted to weekly rest provisions. It also noted the Government's indication that the temporary exemptions provided for under section 5(2) were only applied to residential hotel workers coming from outstations to city resorts who prefer accumulation which is economically advantageous. It notes from the Government's latest report that the workers' consent is obtained prior to the Commissioner's granting the necessary authorization for this accumulation. The Government is requested to indicate the manner in which the workers' and employers' organizations concerned, in particular those in the hotel industry, are consulted concerning temporary exemptions granted by the Commissioner under section 5(2) of the Shop and Office Employees Act.

The Government is requested to provide, with its next report, any statistics available concerning the number of workers for whom temporary exemptions have been granted to the weekly rest provisions and the reasons given, in accordance with point V of the report form.