Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2016, published 106th ILC session (2017)

Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87) - Czechia (Ratification: 1993)

The Committee takes note of the observations of the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) received on 1 September 2016, which are of a general nature. The Committee further notes the observations of the Czech–Moravian Confederation of Trade Unions (CMKOS) communicated with the Government’s report and the Government’s comments thereon.

The Committee notes that, according to the CMKOS, the recent reform of the Civil Code and associated regulations has led to changes which do not respect the unique nature of workers’ and employers’ organizations. With regard to the issues covered by the Convention, the CMKOS denounces: (i) obstacles to registration by the registration courts, including delays, and burdensome procedural requirements for registering changes and termination; (ii) refusal by the Government to approve a separate law proposed by the social partners to facilitate registration; (iii) barriers to the functioning of trade unions within small enterprises as, under section 286(3) of the Labour Act, a union can only function if at least three of its members are employed with the employer and it is uncertain whether workers engaged in labour relations outside employment are considered as “employed with the employer” for the purpose of this requirement; and (iv) that Act No. 563/1991 Sb. on accounting, as amended in 2015, requires trade unions and employers’ organizations to publish annual financial reports and curtails the right to strike, as the employer can deduce from the information published whether and for how long a trade union could strike.

The Committee notes that in response to these observations, the Government states that the system of establishing organizations is entrusted to the independent judiciary and the statistics provided demonstrate that very few notifications are refused and that such decisions can be appealed. The Government further indicates that the financial statements to be published concern past periods and would, therefore, be of limited use to employers to predict the possible duration of a strike.

As regards section 286(3) of the Labour Act, the Committee recalls that while a reasonable minimum number of members required to establish an occupational organization is not incompatible with the Convention, the right to organize should be guaranteed without distinction or discrimination of any kind, including to workers without an employment contract (see the 2012 General Survey on the fundamental Conventions, paragraphs 63, 71 and 89). The Committee, therefore, requests the Government to clarify how the requirement for the functioning of trade unions contained in section 286(3) of the Labour Act is applied in enterprises, where workers are engaged both in employment relationships and in relations outside employment, including information on whether the latter are considered as “employed with the employer” for the purpose of section 286(3) of the Labour Act. The Committee further invites the Government to continue to monitor and provide statistical information on the process of formation of trade unions and employers’ organizations, including information as to the time it takes to register a trade union and whether any procedural requirements may lead to obstacles to the registration of unions or of their changes and termination.

Article 3 of the Convention. Right to strike. The Committee’s previous comments concerned the need to amend section 17 of the Act on Collective Bargaining (Act No. 2/1991), which deals with the right to strike in disputes regarding the conclusion of collective agreements and establishes a majority requirement of two-thirds of the votes cast, subject to a quorum requirement of 50 per cent of the employees concerned by the agreement. Having noted that the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs and the Minister of Justice were mandated to commence intensive preparatory efforts in order to regulate legislatively the right to strike, which would provide an opportunity to review possible alternatives to the current voting requirement, the Committee had requested the Government to provide information on these legislative developments. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that due to the current political situation in the country, including the general election, the work on such draft legislation was discontinued. According to the Government, there is no consensus between workers’ and employers’ organizations on the regulation of strikes except with regard to the question of the settlement of disputes concerning the conclusion of collective agreements. Therefore, the work to prepare a bill on strikes and lockouts was abandoned. The Committee observes that while the 50 per cent quorum is a reasonable one, the two-thirds voting requirement can unduly restrict the right of workers to freely organize their activities and programmes. The Committee trusts that the Government will take the necessary measures to amend section 17 of the Act on Collective Bargaining to reduce the required majority to hold a strike and requests the Government to inform it of any developments in this regard. The Committee also encourages the Government to continue its efforts to bring the social partners together for the purpose of legislatively regulating the right to strike in situations other than disputes regarding the conclusion of collective agreements and to provide information on any steps taken or envisaged in this respect.