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

Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98) - Mauritius (Ratification: 1969)

The Committee notes the observations from the Confederation of Private Sector Workers (CTSP) dated 31 August 2016 and from the General Trade Unions Federation (GTUF) dated 22 September 2016. The Committee notes that these observations relate to matters examined by the Committee in its present observation, as well as to denunciations of violations in practice on which the Committee is requesting the Government to provide its comments.

Follow-up to the conclusions of the Committee on the Application of Standards (International Labour Conference, 105th Session, May–June 2016)

The Committee takes due note of the debate which took place within the Conference Committee in June 2016 and the ensuing conclusions, according to which the Government is requested to: (i) cease its intervention into free and voluntary collective bargaining between employers and workers in the sugar industry; (ii) take concrete measures to promote and encourage the greater development and utilization of procedures of voluntary negotiations between employers or employers’ organizations on the one hand, and workers’ organizations, on the other, in order to regulate the terms and conditions of employment through collective bargaining agreements. This includes collective bargaining in EPZs, in the garment sector and in the sugar industry; (iii) provide detailed information on the current situation of collective bargaining in the EPZs and on the concrete measures to promote it in those zones; (iv) refrain from infringing Article 4 of the Convention and from committing similar violations in the future; (v) cease all interference in collective bargaining in the private sector with respect to principles related to mandatory arbitration; and (vi) accept technical assistance from the Office to comply with these conclusions.

Article 1. Adequate protection against acts of anti-union discrimination. The Committee notes the allegation of the Worker member of Mauritius before the Conference Committee that, when trade unions are established in export processing zones (EPZs), trade union representatives are often faced with harassment, intimidation, threats, discrimination and unfair dismissals. Similarly, the CTSP alleges in its observations that the right to collective bargaining is undermined in the private sector by frequent acts of anti-union discrimination, in particular that trade union leaders and delegates can be sacked without any justification and without being paid any compensation, that since the 2013 legislative amendments, the number of union delegates that have been sacked for “cosmetic reasons” through disciplinary committee has increased drastically, and that it is hence very difficult to convince union members to accept the responsibility as a union delegate. In this regard, the CTSP also denounces lengthy and cumbersome dispute settlement and judicial proceedings and denial of time-off facilities for the employees concerned to attend the hearings. Recalling that legal standards on protection against acts of anti-union discrimination are inadequate if they are not accompanied by sufficiently dissuasive sanctions and effective and expeditious procedures to ensure their practical application, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the application of this Article in practice, including statistical data on the number of complaints of anti-union discrimination brought before the competent authorities (labour inspectorate and judicial bodies), the outcome of relevant judicial or other proceedings and their average duration, as well as the number and nature of sanctions imposed or remedies provided.

Article 4. Promotion of collective bargaining. In its previous observation, the Committee urged the Government to provide detailed information on the current situation with regard to collective bargaining in the EPZs, as well as on the concrete measures taken or envisaged to encourage and promote voluntary negotiation between employers or employers’ organizations and workers’ organizations, with a view to regulating terms and conditions of employment by means of collective agreements, in EPZs, the textile sector and for migrant workers. Furthermore, the Committee once again requested the Government to take measures in order to compile statistical information on collective agreements in the country and on the use of conciliation services.

The Committee notes from the information provided by the Government to the Conference Committee that: (i) seminars and talks are conducted on an ongoing basis by the Ministry of Labour targeting workers in different sectors including the EPZ/textile sector; between July 2015 to May 2016, 46 training/sensitization activities were carried out, and 1,769 male and 1,344 female employees in the EPZ/textile sector benefited from these sessions, wherein emphasis was laid on legal provisions and rights at work including those pertaining to the right to collective bargaining and unionization as guaranteed in labour law; (ii) sensitization of workers in this regard is also effected on an ongoing basis during inspection visits at workplaces; during the period 2009–15, 757 inspection visits were carried out in the EPZ sector reaching out to 102,127 local workers (38,376 male and 63,751 female), and 2,059 inspection visits in undertakings with 30,468 (20,455 male and 10,013 female) migrant workers employed in the manufacturing sector; and (iii) from the 62 collective agreements registered with the Ministry of Labour as of May 2010 to date, four agreements concern the EPZ sector.

While welcoming that, as reported to the Conference Committee, certain steps have already been taken to favour collective bargaining in the EPZs, the Committee observes that the Government did not provide in its report any supplementary information in relation to the issues raised in the Conference Committee’s conclusions. The Committee requests the Government to redouble its efforts, in particular in EPZs, in the garment sector and in the sugar industry, to promote and encourage the greater development and utilization of procedures of voluntary negotiations between employers or employers’ organizations and workers’ organizations to regulate the terms and conditions of employment through collective bargaining agreements. It also requests the Government to continue to supply, or if necessary to compile, statistical information on the functioning of collective bargaining in practice (number of collective agreements concluded in the private sector, especially in EPZs; branches and the number of workers covered), as well as on the use of conciliation services.

Interference in collective bargaining. With regard to the alleged Government interference in collective bargaining in the sugar sector, the Committee had firmly hoped that, in the future, the Government would make every effort to refrain from having recourse to compulsory arbitration with the effect of bringing to an end collective labour disputes in the sugar sector.

In this regard, the Committee notes that the Government indicated to the Conference Committee that: (i) intervention by the Government in collective bargaining in the sugar sector in 2010 and 2014 was recognized, although the Government had intervened in good faith, at the request of one party, in order to assist the parties to obtain an agreement; and (ii) since the conclusions of the Conference Committee in June 2015, the Government was avoiding any intervention in collective bargaining between employers and workers. The Committee further notes the Government’s indication in its report that, in 2014, following requests made by both parties, the Government had intervened to provide a conciliation service to address the strike, and an agreement had been reached between parties according to which work would resume and three outstanding issues would be referred to the National Remuneration Board (NRB) whereas other issues including wage increase would be referred to an independent arbitrator; and that the Government had never intervened on its own volition and never imposed a referral to the NRB or arbitration. The Committee also takes note of the view of the GTUF that the Government’s interventions in collective bargaining in 2010, 2012 and 2014 do not amount to interference contrary to Article 4 of the Convention, and notes in particular that, according to the information supplied by the GTUF, the parties had explicitly agreed in the framework of the 2012 and 2014 collective agreements concluded following the Government intervention, to refer the unresolved issues to the NRB or to appoint an independent arbitrator. The Committee observes however that, with respect to 2010, the referral of 21 unresolved issues to the NRB did not form part of the relevant collective agreement.

The Committee recalls that the imposition of a compulsory arbitration procedure if the parties do not reach agreement on a draft collective agreement through collective bargaining is incompatible with the voluntary nature of collective bargaining and is only acceptable in relation to public servants engaged in the administration of the State (Article 6 of the Convention), essential services in the strict sense of the term and acute national crises, conditions that the Committee had considered were not fulfilled at the time. At the same time, the Committee emphasizes that recourse to public authorities, like the NRB, agreed voluntarily by both parties would not raise problems in relation to the application of the Convention. The Committee trusts that, in the future, the Government will, within the parameters provided above, continue to refrain from having recourse to compulsory arbitration with the effect of bringing to an end collective labour disputes in the sugar sector, and that in any event it will give priority to collective bargaining of a voluntary nature as the means of determining terms and conditions of employment in that sector.

Technical assistance of the Office. Recalling that, in its conclusions ensuing from the debate in June 2016, the Conference Committee requested the Government to accept technical assistance from the Office to comply with the conclusions, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that any request for technical assistance of the Office in relation to the issues raised by the Committee will be made under the second generation Decent Work Country Programme (DWCP) for Mauritius, the preparation of which is under way. Noting that the DWCP in force will expire at the end of 2016 and that in the framework of the current labour review, the proposals for legislative amendments are expected to be finalized by the end of 2016, the Committee once again encourages the Government to consider availing itself of the technical assistance of the Office in relation to the issues raised in this observation, including as regards the labour review, so as to ensure that the final version of the proposed amendments is in full conformity with the Convention.

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