Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1991, published 78th ILC session (1991)

Termination of Employment Convention, 1982 (No. 158) - Democratic Republic of the Congo (Ratification: 1987)

The Committee takes note of the Government's first report on the application of the Convention. It would be grateful if the Government would provide additional information on the following points in its next report:

Article 2, paragraphs 4 to 6, of the Convention. The Committee notes that certain categories of workers, including established state officials covered by special regulations, are excluded from the application of the Labour Code of 1967 (section 1). The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide information on the special rules which as a whole provide to these excluded categories of workers protection that is at least equivalent to the protection afforded under the Convention. The Committee also asks the Government to provide the information requested in the report form on the requisite consultations concerning such exclusions as well as information regarding the excluded categories required to be given in the second and the subsequent reports.

Article 5(c) and (d). The Committee notes that the provisions of the Labour Code do not guarantee that the fact of a workers' having filed a complaint or participated in proceedings against an employer or having had recourse to competent administrative authorities, shall not constitute a valid reason for his dismissal. It also notes that section 48 of the Labour Code does not include sex, marital status, family responsibilities, pregnancy (section 112 of the Labour Code prohibits termination of work contracts only during maternity leave), and religion among the non-valid grounds for termination of contract. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would indicate in its next report how effect is given to these provisions of the Convention in both law and practice.

Article 12. Please indicate the measures taken to give effect to the provisions of this Article which provide that a worker whose employment is to be terminated shall be entitled, in accordance with national law and practice, to a severance allowance or to other benefits referred to in subparagraphs (a) and (b) of paragraph 1. Where workers are entitled to severance allowance please indicate whether loss of entitlement to this allowance is provided for in the event of termination for serious misconduct and, if this is the case, indicate the definition of serious misconduct for this purpose.

Point V of the report form. The Committee notes from the Government's report that the General Labour Inspectorate has reported a growing number of terminations for economic or similar reasons. It hopes that the next report will contain the statistics which the Government said it would provide on this point, and, more generally, all relevant information on the manner in which the Convention is applied including, for example, information on the activities of the bodies to which appeals may be made.