Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2004, published 93rd ILC session (2005)

Labour Inspection (Agriculture) Convention, 1969 (No. 129) - El Salvador (Ratification: 1995)

Further to its previous comments, in which it noted the Government’s report for 2002 and took note of comments made by the Inter-union Commission of El Salvador, received by the ILO on 13 September 2002 and forwarded to the Government, the Committee notes the information sent by the Government in reply to these comments in a letter of 20 December 2002, and in its simplified report for 2004.

The Inter-union Commission raises a number of objections to the manner in which the Government discharges its obligations deriving from the ratification of Conventions in general and of this Convention in particular.

The abovementioned organization regrets that a copy of the reports on the application of instruments under article 22 of the Constitution are not sent to it systematically, as required by article 23(3) of the Constitution. The commission states that unions are neither consulted on nor informed of measures, projects, actions or activities envisaged to ensure systematic inspection of agricultural enterprises. Furthermore, the labour administration even tends to favour the employer in the context of inspections, illicit practices having been identified in this area. The commission is of the view that the Government either breaches the Convention or fails to apply it.

In response to the commission’s comments, the Government refers to various programmes and projects, and in particular the technical and financial support provided under the MATAC/ILO project to modernize labour administration, which includes a labour inspection sub-project. The Government states that a diagnosis of the inspection service was prepared by an independent consultant enabling strengths and weaknesses to be identified. A reform of the organization and functions of the inspectorate was embarked on to make the labour inspection system more flexible, rational and professional with a view to covering the immediate and long-term needs and meeting the challenges of globalization. During the period up to May 2003, the General Directorate of the Inspection Service carried out 20,000 inspections of workplaces in all sectors and by the end of June 2004, 10,000 additional visits should have been conducted, covering some 170,000 workers. Relevant legal sanctions were applied to offending employers reluctant to heed the advice and instructions given by labour inspectors; "comprehensive" inspections targeting application of the social security and pensions system were carried out in coordination with the Social Insurance Institute and the Pensions Supervisory Authority; the number of inspectors increased from 40 in 2002 to 60 in 2003 and was to be increased further by the recruitment of nine new inspectors in 2004.

The Government also refers to the implementation of strong "zero tolerance" anti-corruption measures.

The Committee observes that the information supplied by the Government concerns the general labour inspection system and supplies no details of use to an assessment of its working in the agricultural sector, covered by the present Convention. Nor does it reply to the matters raised by the Inter-union Commission. The Government is therefore asked to provide specific and separate information on the effects of its reported efforts on the ethics of the labour inspectorate (Articles 8 and 20 of the Convention), its human resources (Articles 9, paragraph 3; 10 and 11), its financial and logistical resources (Article 15, paragraphs 1(b) and 2), and on the supervisory activities of labour inspectors in agricultural enterprises (Articles 6, paragraph 1(a) and (c), and 21) and on employers, workers and their respective organizations (Articles 6, paragraph 1(b) and 13).

The Government is also asked to provide specific and detailed information on developments regarding the extent to which the legislation supervised by labour inspectors is applied, and on the nature of the corrupt practices detected and the administrative and judicial measures taken to sanction them and prevent or contain them.

The Committee raises other matters in a request addressed directly to the Government.