Report in which the committee requests to be kept informed of development - Report No 350, June 2008

Case No 2317 (Republic of Moldova) - Complaint date: 20-JAN-04 - Closed

Allegations: The complainants allege that the public authorities and employers interfere in the internal matters of their organizations and pressure their members to change their affiliation and become members of the trade union supported by the Government.

1. 1409. The Committee last examined this case at its November 2007 meeting [see 348th Report, paras 994–1015].
2. 1410. The Government sent its observations in a communication dated 28 December 2007.
3. 1411. The Republic of Moldova has ratified the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), and the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98).

A. Previous examination of the case

1. 1412. At its November 2007 meeting, the Committee made the following recommendations in relation to this case [see 348th Report, para. 1015]:
   • (a) The Committee requests the Government to conduct a full, thorough and independent investigation without delay into the alleged acts of interference in the internal affairs of the Confederation of Trade Unions of the Republic of Moldova (CSRM) and its affiliate organizations and to provide it with a detailed report on the outcome of the investigation. The Committee further requests the complainant organizations to provide information on the merger agreement between the CSRM and the confederation “Solidaritate” dated 31 January 2007 and the merger contract dated 7 June 2007 and their consequences on the CSRM and its affiliates.
   • (b) The Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures so as to ensure that the SindLucas is granted the same tax exemption benefits as other non-commercial organizations, as decided by the court, and to keep it informed in this regard.
   • (c) The Committee requests the Government to transmit all court judgements relating to Mr Molosag, former President of the Federation of Trade Unions of Public Service Employees (SINDASP).
   • (d) The Committee once again requests the Government to actively consider, in full and frank consultations with social partners, legislative provisions expressly sanctioning violations of trade union rights and providing for sufficiently dissuasive sanctions against acts of interference in trade union internal affairs. The Committee expects that the measures taken by the Government in this regard will not only address violations of the Labour Code, but also other laws concerning freedom of association and collective bargaining rights, such as the Law on Trade Unions. It requests the Government to keep it informed of all steps taken to this end and recalls that the Government may avail itself of the technical assistance of the Office in this regard.
   • (e) The Committee once again requests the Government to conduct immediately an independent inquiry into the allegation of the employers’ refusal to accept the establishment of trade unions at the Ecological College and the Lyceum “Mircea Eliade” and to keep it informed in this respect.
   • (f) The Committee urges the Government to keep it informed of all measures taken to address the question of access of trade union representatives to workplaces in order to carry out legitimate trade union activities, with due respect for the rights of property and management.

B. The Government’s reply

1. 1413. In its communication dated 28 December 2007, the Government states that, after its registration on 3 October 2007 by the Ministry of Justice, the National Confederation of Trade Unions of Moldova (NCTUM) has acquired rights of a legal person and is the only trade union empowered to represent workers at the national level. In the Government’s opinion, the merger of the CSRM and the Confederation of Free Trade Unions of Moldova “Solidaritate” constitutes an important step towards strengthening of social dialogue in the country.
2. 1414. The Government further indicates that the considerations of the newly created organization in respect of trade union rights will be communicated to the Committee separately, in appropriate time.
3. 1415. The Government informs that it cannot provide copies of the court decisions relating to Mr. Molosag, as according to the Code of Civil Procedure, the Court’s obligation to release copies of its decisions extends only to the parties to the trial.
4. 1416. With regard to the SindLucas trade union, the Government indicates that the Supreme Court decision avouched that trade unions, as non-commercial organizations, have a right to benefit from tax exemption. This judgement will be soon put into effect.

C. The Committee’s conclusions

1. 1417. The Committee recalls that, in its previous examination of this case, which concerns allegations of insufficient protection of trade union rights in law and in practice, as well as of interference by the public authorities and employers in the internal matters of trade union organizations and pressure exercised upon trade union members of the complainant organizations and their affiliates to change their affiliation and become members of the confederation “Solidaritate”, allegedly supported by the Government, it took note of the merger agreement signed between the confederation “Solidaritate” and the complainant organization, the CSRM, as well as of the establishment, on 7 June 2007, of the National Confederation of Trade Unions of Moldova. On that occasion, the Committee expressed its concern that this merger had taken place within the framework of persistent allegations of interference and pressure on trade unions submitted by the CSRM and its affiliates (including the National Federation of Trade Unions of Workers of Food and Agriculture of Moldova (AGROINDSIND) and the SindLucas) to change their affiliation to become members of the confederation “Solidaritate” without any information being provided by the Government on any meaningful investigation into these serious allegations and in the absence of any measures to protect these unions from such acts of interference. The Committee therefore requested the Government to conduct a full, thorough and independent investigation without delay into the alleged acts of interference in the internal affairs of the CSRM and its affiliate organizations and to provide it with a detailed report on the outcome of the investigation.
2. 1418. The Committee deeply regrets that the Government’s communication does not contain any information on steps taken to investigate the alleged acts of interference in the internal affairs of the CSRM and its affiliate organizations. The Committee further regrets the failure of the Government to provide the information it has been requesting since the first examination of this case on the outcome of an inquiry into the allegation of the employers’ refusal to accept the establishment of trade unions at the Ecological College and the Lyceum “Mircea Eliade” and on the measures taken to address the question of access of trade union representatives to workplaces in order to carry out legitimate trade union activities, with due respect for the rights of property and management. The Committee stresses in this regard that governments should recognize the importance of formulating detailed replies to the allegations brought by complainant organizations, so as to allow the Committee to undertake an objective examination [see Digest of decisions and principles of the Freedom of Association Committee, fifth edition, 2006, para. 24]. While further noting with regret that none of the complainant organizations in this case provided information on the merger and its impact on the CSRM and its affiliates, the Committee considers that it cannot pursue its examination of this aspect of the case unless further information is provided and firmly requests the Government once again to instigate the necessary inquiries on all of the previous allegations and to keep it informed in this regard.
3. 1419. The Committee also once again requests the Government to actively consider, in full and frank consultation with the social partners, legislative provisions expressly sanctioning violations of trade union rights and providing for sufficiently dissuasive sanctions against acts of interference in trade union internal affairs. The Committee expects that the measures taken by the Government in this regard will not only address violations of the Labour Code, but also other laws concerning freedom of association and collective bargaining rights, such as the Law on Trade Unions. It draws these legislative aspects of the case to the attention of the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations and recalls that the Government may avail itself of the technical assistance of the Office in this regard.
4. 1420. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that it cannot transmit the court judgements relating to Mr Molosag, former President of the SINDASP, because only parties to the case have access to the decisions. The Committee points out that, in many cases, it has asked the governments concerned to communicate the texts of any judgements that have been delivered. It further emphasizes that, when it requests a government to furnish judgments in judicial proceedings, such a request does not reflect in any way on the integrity or independence of the judiciary. The very essence of judicial procedure is that its results are known, and confidence in its impartiality rests on their being known [see Digest, op. cit, paras 112 and 113]. The Committee expects that the Government will transmit the judgements relating to Mr Molosag without delay and further requests the complainants in this case to transmit these judgements so that the Committee may examine the allegation of wrongful dismissal of Mr Molosag from the post of President of SINDASP in full knowledge of the facts.
5. 1421. The Committee notes from the Government’s communication that the Supreme Court decision, which avouched that trade unions, as non-commercial organizations, had a right to benefit from tax exemption, will be soon put into effect. The Committee trusts that this judgement will benefit all trade unions, including the SindLucas trade union.

The Committee's recommendations

1. 1422. In the light of its foregoing conclusions, the Committee invites the Governing Body to approve the following recommendations:
   • (a) The Committee regrets that the Government failed to provide information on most of the outstanding issues and once again requests the Government to instigate the necessary inquiries into the alleged acts of interference in the internal affairs of the CSRM and its affiliate organizations and the other allegations of government interference in the establishment and functioning of workers’ organizations and to keep it informed in this regard.
   • (b) The Committee also once again requests the Government to actively consider, in full and frank consultations with social partners, legislative provisions expressly sanctioning violations of trade union rights and providing for sufficiently dissuasive sanctions against acts of interference in trade union internal affairs. The Committee draws the attention of the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations to the legislative aspects of this case and recalls that the Government may avail itself of the technical assistance of the Office in this regard.
   • (c) The Committee expects that the Government will transmit the judgements relating to Mr Molosag without delay and further requests the complainants in this case to transmit these judgements so that the Committee may examine the allegation of wrongful dismissal of Mr Molosag from the post of president of the SINDASP in full knowledge of the facts.