Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2012, published 102nd ILC session (2013)

Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 (No. 81) - Rwanda (Ratification: 1980)

Further to its observation, the Committee would like to raise the following points.

Article 2 of the Convention. Extension of the labour inspection coverage in law. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in reply to its previous comments, that the Rwandan law applies likewise to informal economy, in the field of occupational safety and health, labour relations and social security, and that labour inspectors work together in order to advise employers and workers on the legal framework in this regard.

The Committee would be grateful if the Government could provide some practical examples of advisory functions performed by labour inspectors in economic sectors, which are by nature prone to informality in the country.

Article 3(2). Additional functions entrusted to labour inspectors. The Committee notes that the Ministerial Order No. 13/07/2010 determining modalities of the functioning of the labour inspectorate under section 159 of Act No. 13/2009 was adopted and published in the Official Gazette in 2010. It observes that the ministerial order, in its section 3, provides that collective disputes are henceforth exempt from mediation by labour inspectors, contrary to what is indicated in sections 141 and 143 of Act No. 13/2009. However, it also notes, that the final legal text confirms mediation duties in the field of individual disputes. In addition, it notes that, by virtue of section 3 paragraph 7 of the order, the labour inspector is held to collect, analyse and make forecasts for labour statistics in his/her area.

The Committee once again stresses that it is necessary for labour inspectors to focus on their primary duties, such as the enforcement of legal provisions on labour conditions and protection of workers while engaged in their work (Article 3(1)) and that any further duties entrusted to them should not interfere with the effective discharge of their primary duties or prejudice in any way the authority and impartiality, which are necessary in their relations with employers and workers (Article 3(2)). It underlines once again, that in the present country specific context, which is marked by penury of resources, which appear to be even exacerbated by the decentralization of administration, an increased attention towards a clear focus on primary duties is necessary, which excludes a possible role of labour inspectors in settling individual and collective labour disputes.

The Committee hopes that the Government will take appropriate measures to discharge labour inspectors of any mediation functions regarding individual and collective labour disputes. It requests the Government once again that the legal framework, sections 141 and 143 of Act No. 13 /2009, as well as section 3(3) of the Ministerial Order No. 7 of 13/07/2010, be amended in this regard, and to keep the Office informed of the progress made in this respect.

The Committee also asks the Government to specify what precisely the duty of collection, analysis and the forecasting for labour statistics in his/her area might entail in a daily work context.

Article 12(1)(a). Scope of the right of free entry of inspectors into workplaces liable to inspection. The Committee recalls again its long-standing comments, in which it had underlined that the right of free access to workplaces should be also granted outside regular working hours. It notes with regret, that the Government limits itself to the repetition of the legal sections of Act No. 13/2009 in question, without detailing if it is intended to bring them in line with Article 12 of the Convention. The Committee highlights again, that the protection of workers and the technical requirement of inspection should be the primordial criteria for determining the appropriate timing of visits, for example to check for violations such as abusive night work conditions in a workplace officially operating during the daytime, or to carry out technical inspections requiring machinery or production processes to be stopped. It should be therefore for the inspector to decide whether a visit is reasonable (General Survey on labour inspection 2006, paragraph 270).

The Committee requests the Government once again to bring its legislation in line with Article 12(1)(a) of the Convention so as to ensure that the powers of entry of labour inspectors are extended to any hour of the day or night regardless of the working hours of the workplaces liable to inspection.

Articles 19, 20, and 21. Reports on the activities of the labour inspection services. The Committee notes that an annual inspection report has not yet been received by the ILO, contrary to what had been announced, and that copies of reports drawn up by the decentralized inspection services on their activities as required by Article 19 and as requested by the Committee in its previous comments, neither were provided. Recalling the importance of making the fullest possible information available on an annual basis on each of the subjects enumerated by Article 21, so that the social partners, the national authorities and the ILO supervisory bodies can assess the effectiveness of the labour inspection system and contribute to its improvement, the Committee requests the Government to ensure that annual reports, as well as the copies of reports pursuant to Article 19, will be communicated to the ILO in the near future.