Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2008, published 98th ILC session (2009)

The Committee notes that the Government’s report has not been received. It hopes that a report will be supplied for examination by the Committee at its next session and that it will contain full information on the matters raised in its previous direct request, which read as follows:

Article 7, paragraph 1, read in conjunction with Article 11(a), of the Convention. The Committee notes section 43(1) of Act No. 70 of 2000, which exempts from the general rule on weekly rest persons performing work in the interest of the community or work necessary to uphold values. The Committee is bound to recall, in this connection, that the Convention provides for special weekly rest schemes to be applied to specified categories of persons or specified types of establishments, regard being paid to all proper social and economic considerations. The Committee therefore requests the Government to provide specific information on the categories of workers or types of establishments subject to special weekly rest schemes. The Government is also requested to provide a copy of Act No. 70.

Article 8. The Committee notes that according to section 45(1) of the Act, temporary exemptions from the weekly rest are allowed when the type of work makes it impossible to delay the work or when special work methods make derogations reasonable. Considering that these exemptions are significantly broader than those prescribed in the Convention, the Committee requests the Government to indicate how the tripartite Working Environment Authority applies the relevant provisions in practice so as to prevent any possible abuse. In addition, the Committee notes that under section 45(4) of the Act, the President of the regional Government may approve derogations from the rules on weekly rest in special occupational fields or in fields where special circumstances apply. In this connection, the Committee asks the Government to indicate whether any such decisions have ever been taken, and if so, whether workers’ and employers’ organizations were consulted in advance. Moreover, the Committee observes that section 43(2) of the Act, which provides for compensatory period of rest in the case of regular work performed on a rest day, apparently does not apply to the derogations permitted under sections 44–46 of the Act. The Committee recalls that, where temporary exemptions are made in accordance with the provisions of this Article of the Convention, the persons concerned must be granted compensatory rest of a total duration of at least 24 hours for each period of seven working days. The Committee therefore requests the Government to indicate any measures taken or envisaged to ensure that full effect is given to the Convention in this respect.

Part V of the report form. The Committee requests the Government to provide all available information on the practical application of the Convention including, for instance, labour inspection reports and statistics on the number and nature of contraventions reported, relevant extracts from annual reports of the Working Environment Authority, etc.