Observation (CEACR) - adoptée 2003, publiée 92ème session CIT (2004)

Convention (n° 87) sur la liberté syndicale et la protection du droit syndical, 1948 - Serbie (Ratification: 2000)

The Committee takes note of the observation communicated by the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) dated 7 October 2002 concerning the application of the Convention, as well as the written and oral information provided by the Government representative during the discussion that took place at the Conference Committee in June 2003. The Committee also takes note of the text of the Law on the Termination of the Law on the Yugoslav Chamber of Commerce and Industry which came into force on 4 June 2003.

Article 2 of the Convention. Right of employers to establish organizations of their own choosing. The Committee recalls that in its previous comments it had noted, pursuant to the conclusions and recommendations of the Committee on Freedom of Association in Case No. 2146 (327th Report, paragraphs 893-898), that the Law on the Yugoslav Chamber of Commerce and Industry was contrary to Article 2 of the Convention as it established compulsory membership in, and financing of, chambers of commerce, and vested such chambers with the powers of employers’ organizations in the meaning of Article 10 of the Convention, like the power to sign collective agreements. The Committee recalls that it had requested the Government to repeal these provisions and to refrain from adopting any other legislative measure which would have a comparable effect.

The Committee takes note of the observations made by the IOE, to the effect that the Government had not taken any measures to repeal the above provisions, while the Chamber of Commerce was trying to bypass any obstacles by creating parallel employers’ organizations.

The Committee notes that, according to the written and oral information provided by the Government representative to the Conference Committee in June 2003, the Yugoslav Chamber of Commerce and Industry had been dissolved by the Law on the Termination of the Law on the Yugoslav Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The Committee observes, however, that section 2, paragraph 1, of the repealing law provides that the rights, obligations, financial resources and activities of the dissolved Yugoslav Chamber of Commerce and Industry shall be taken over by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Montenegro. The Committee observes, therefore, that to the extent that these provisions enable the new chambers to continue to have compulsory membership and to exercise powers which pertain to employers’ organizations, the new Law does not depart from the previous legislation but simply reproduces its provisions at the level of the Republic’s constitutive entities.

The Committee once again recalls that it would be contrary to Article 2 of the Convention to establish compulsory membership in chambers of commerce when such chambers have the powers of employers’ organizations in the meaning of Article 10 of the Convention. Moreover, questions concerning the financing of employers’ organizations as regards both their own budgets and those of federations and confederations should be governed by the by-laws of the organizations themselves. Finally, granting the right to sign collective agreements to the Chamber of Commerce which is created by law and to which affiliation is compulsory, impairs the employers’ freedom of choice in respect of the organization to represent their interests in collective bargaining. The Committee therefore requests the Government to take all necessary legislative measures without delay so as to ensure that membership in and financing of the Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Serbia and Montenegro are not compulsory and so that employers’ organizations may be free to choose the organization to represent their interests in collective bargaining. The Committee hopes that the Government will make every effort to take the necessary action in the very near future.

The Committee also takes note of the observations made by the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) in 2002 which raised a certain number of issues dealt with in the Committee’s previous direct request. The Committee requests the Government to provide information as to the progress made in respect of these questions in its report due in 2004.