Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1999, published 88th ILC session (2000)

Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) - Algeria (Ratification: 1962)

1. Freedom of seafarers to leave their employment. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that section 67 of the model conditions of service of seafarers (Decree No. 88-17 of 13 September 1988) lays down that the employment relationship can in no event be terminated outside the national territory. Section 65 of the above conditions of service lays down a three-month period of notice for hands and supervisors and six months for officers.

The Committee notes that, although section 67 of the conditions of service protects seafarers against dismissal which may result in their being put off the vessel outside the national territory, this provision does not permit seafarers to leave their employment after completion of the period of notice if, at the time, they are not on national territory. After requesting the Government to re-examine this provision and indicate the measures taken to bring it into conformity with the Convention, the Committee noted that Decree No. 88-17 had been submitted for examination to the relevant department of the Ministry of Transport.

The Committee notes the explanations provided by the Government in its last report which confirm that the employment relationship cannot in any event be terminated outside the national territory.

The Committee considers that the provision which prohibits seafarers from terminating their employment, even after the completion of the statutory period of notice, while they are outside the national territory, has the effect of turning a contractual relationship based on the will of the parties into service by compulsion of law for a period without limit of time.

The Committee requests the Government to re-examine Decree No. 88-17 of 13 September 1988 in the light of the explanations provided in paragraphs 67 to 73 of its 1979 General Survey on the abolition of forced labour and to indicate the measures which have been taken or are envisaged to ensure that seafarers can terminate their employment by giving a reasonable period of notice. It would also be grateful if the Government would indicate the nature and provide a list of the commitments undertaken by officers at the time of recruitment, since officers can only leave their employment after fulfilling all the commitments which they have undertaken.

2. Article 2, paragraph 2(a), of the Convention. In its previous comments, the Committee noted the provisions of Act No. 87-16 of 1 August 1987 to set up and determine the functions and organization of the people's defence. The Committee notes that: under sections 1 and 3 of the Act, citizens aged between 18 and 60 years inclusive are subject to the obligations of the people's defence, set up within the framework of the national defence; under section 8, the conditions for the deployment of the people's defence forces in peacetime are set out in regulations; and, by virtue of section 9 with respect to economic defence, the people's defence forces participate in the protection of production units and in strengthening the economic capacity of the country. The application of section 9 of the Act is determined by means of regulations.

The Committee noted the Government's repeated indications that the regulations on the application of section 9 had not yet been adopted and it requested information on the effect given to section 9 of Act No. 87-16 in practice.

In the absence of information on this subject in the Government's last reports, the Committee refers to the comments contained in its observation on the Convention concerning activities undertaken in the context of national service and once again requests the Government to provide information on the effect given in practice to section 9 of Act No. 87-16 and to indicate the activities covered by the strengthening of the economic capacity of the country, in which the people's defence forces must participate.

3. Article 2, paragraph 2(c) and (d). In its previous comments, the Committee noted that under sections 4 and 5 of Executive Decree No. 91-201 of 25 June 1991 determining the limits and conditions of referral to a security centre, issued under section 4 of Presidential Decree No. 91-196 proclaiming a state of emergency, the military authorities, which were assigned the powers of the police, can make detention orders against adults whose activities endanger public order and safety or the normal functioning of public services (section 4(1)) through their refusal to comply with a written requisition order issued by the authority exercising the powers of the police and the maintenance of public order, thereby seriously affecting the functioning of the national economy (section 4(6)), or by opposing the execution of a requisition order issued by reason of the state of emergency and the need for services to be provided by a public or private service (section 4(7)). The period of detention in a security centre was set at 45 days, which could be renewed only once (section 5).

The Committee requested the Government on several occasions to provide information on the effect given in practice to the provisions of Decree No. 91-201 of 25 June 1991.

The Government has not provided the information requested in its last reports.

With reference to the explanations provided in paragraphs 63 to 66 of its 1979 General Survey on the abolition of forced labour, the Committee recalls that it should be clear from the legislation itself that the power to exact labour is to be limited to what is strictly required in order to cope with circumstances endangering the existence or well-being of the whole or part of the population.

The Committee once again requests the Government to provide full information on the effect given in practice to the above provisions in order to enable it to assess their scope.

4. Referring to the general observation on the Convention made in its report to the 87th Session of the International Labour Conference (1999), the Committee requests the Government to include in its next report information as to the present position in law and practice as regards:

(i) whether there are prisons administered by private concerns, profit-making or otherwise;

(ii) whether any private prison contractors deploy prisoners to work either inside or outside prison premises, either for the account of the contractor or for that of another enterprise;

(iii) whether private parties are admitted by the prison authorities into prison premises of any kind for the purpose of engaging prisoners in employment;

(iv) whether employment of prisoners outside prison premises, either for a public authority or for a private enterprise, is allowed;

(v) the conditions in which employment under any of the above conditions takes place, in respect of remuneration (indicating the level and comparing it with any minimum wage normally applicable to such work), benefits accruing (such as pension rights and workers' compensation), observance of occupational safety and health legislation and other conditions of employment (e.g. through labour inspection), and how those conditions are determined.

(vi) what the source of any remuneration is (whether from public or private funds) and for what purposes it must or may be applied (e.g. for the personal use of the prisoner or if it is subject to compulsory deductions);

(viii) how the consent of the prisoners concerned is guaranteed, so that it is free from the menace of any penalty, including any loss of privileges or other disadvantages following from a refusal to work.