Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2005, published 95th ILC session (2006)

Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87) - Eritrea (Ratification: 2000)

The Committee notes the Government’s report, according to which, no changes have so far been made with regard to the application of the Convention; however, consultations with the interested parties were under way.

1. Article 2 of the Convention. Right of workers and employers, without distinction whatsoever, to establish and join organizations. In its previous comments, the Committee requested that the Government provide information on and any available statistics regarding any workers’ organizations that have been established by those categories of workers excluded from the application of the Labour Proclamation, in particular as regards judges, prosecutors, registrars, civil service employees and employees in managerial positions. The Committee considered that the right to organize of these workers might be difficult to exercise in practice without a clear legislative framework. The Committee once again requests the Government to keep it informed of any measures taken or envisaged to ensure the full exercise of the right to organize within the meaning of the Convention to these categories of employees and to provide relevant statistics on any workers’ organizations established by the abovementioned categories of workers. The Committee once again requests the Government to transmit a copy of the Civil Servants’ Code as soon as it has been adopted.

2. Article 3. Right to strike. In its previous direct request, the Committee took note of the Government’s indication that even when in an undertaking there was an association that did not represent the majority of the employees, according to section 116(3) of the Labour Proclamation, the agreement of more than half of the employees of the undertaking was necessary to hold a strike. The Committee recalled that although the requirement of prior approval by a certain percentage of workers in order to exercise the right to strike did not, in principle, raise problems of compatibility with the Convention, the ballot method, the quorum and the majority required should not be such that the exercise of the right to strike becomes very difficult, or even impossible in practice. The Committee therefore once again requests that the Government indicate the measures taken or envisaged to amend section 116(3) of the Labour Proclamation in this respect.

3. The Committee hopes that the Government will take the necessary measures in order to improve its legislation in respect of the matters raised above.