GENEVA (ILO News) ─ The Governing Body of the International Labour Office (ILO) elected H.E. Mr. Zdzislaw Rapacki, Ambassador of Poland to the Conference on Disarmament and Permanent Representative of Poland to the United Nations Office in Geneva as Chairperson for its 2008-09 Session.
The 302nd session of the Governing Body also considered a range of other business, including a report of the ILO Committee on Freedom of Association.
Ambassador Rapacki replaces H.E. Mr. Dayan Jayatilleka, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations in Geneva, who served as Governing Body Chairperson during the 2007-08 Session. Prior to his appointment to Geneva, Mr. Rapacki had worked for 10 years as foreign policy advisor of the President of Poland. In 2006, he was the President of the Conference on Disarmament.
Sir Leroy Trotman, General Secretary, Barbados Workers’ Union and spokesperson of the Workers’ Group in the Governing Body, was re-elected Workers’ Vice-chairperson. Daniel Funes de Rioja, President of the Social Policy Department of the Argentine Industrial Union and Chairman of the Employers’ Group of the Organization of American States from 1995 to 1998, was re-elected as Employer Vice-chairperson.
The three will serve as Officers of the Governing Body during its 2008-09 Session. The Governing Body is the executive council of the ILO and meets three times annually in Geneva. It takes decisions on policy and establishes the program and budget of the 182 member States of the ILO.
The International Labour Conference of the ILO elected new members of the 302nd Governing Body on 2 June during the 97th International Labour Conference, which concluded its work earlier today.
Freedom of association
The Governing Body approved the 350th report of the ILO Committee on Freedom of Association. At its present meeting, the Committee examined 40 cases. Altogether there are currently 128 cases before the Committee.
The Committee drew special attention to the cases of Guatemala, Republic of Korea, Indonesia, Islamic Republic of Iran and the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.
In the case of Guatemala, the Committee deplored the murder on 23 September 2007 of trade union leader Marco Tulio Ramírez Portela, General Secretary of the Finca Yuma sub-branch of the SITRABI trade union, and expected that the investigation under way will allow to bring to justice the perpetrators of this homicide. It also requested the Government to provide the brother of the murdered union leader who is also General Secretary of SITRABI with the necessary protection, and to investigate the allegations that on 20 July 2007 armed soldiers entered the headquarters of the union concerned, and interrogated the workers regarding the union leaders names and activities.
The case of the Republic of Korea concerns obstacles to the exercise by dispatch, or subcontracted workers of full freedom of association and collective bargaining rights normally guaranteed to them under the generally applicable legislation. The Committee requested the Government to develop appropriate mechanisms, in consultation with the social partners concerned, aimed at strengthening the protection of subcontracted workers rights to freedom of association and collective bargaining and preventing any abuse of subcontracting as a way to evade in practice the exercise of these rights. It invited the Government to have recourse to ILO technical assistance in this respect.
As regards the specific allegations concerning the metal sector raised in this complaint, the Committee condemned the overall climate of violence, criminal sanctions and disproportionately heavy pecuniary penalties and urged the Government to promote in the future social dialogue and collective bargaining as a way to restore a peaceful industrial relations climate.
In the case of Indonesia, the Committee deeply regretted the allegations of extensive army involvement in an industrial dispute at PT Cigading Habeam Centre Company leading to the dismissal of all 481 workers of the company and its subsequent reopening the following day as a joint operation with a cooperative run by the army. It requested the Government to take appropriate remedial measures with regard to the anti-union dismissals and to investigate and punish the alleged acts of intimidation and violence by the army towards the dismissed workers.
The Committee also dealt with three cases concerning the Islamic Republic of Iran – two emanating from workers organizations and one complaint concerning interference in an employers’ organization. The Committee expressed its deep concern with the seriousness of the situation prevailing in the country and requested the Government to accept a direct contacts mission in respect of the matters raised in relation to all of the pending cases concerning the Islamic Republic of Iran.
As regards the specific case of lengthy detention of Mansour Osanloo, president of the Independent Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs United Bus Company, the Committee urged the Government to ensure his immediate release from prison and the dropping of any remaining charges and raised particular concern over the state of his health and the necessity of providing him with urgent medical attention.
In the case concerning extensive government interference in the activities of the Employers’ Confederation of Iran (ICEA), the Committee urged the Government to immediately re-register ICEA and to ensure that it can exercise its activities without hindrance. The Committee urged the Government to adopt a position of non-interference and neutrality in the exercise of freedom of association employers must have in relation to the ICEA and to provide no formal or informal preference or favouritism to other employers’ organizations.
Generally, the Committee observed that the root of many of the difficulties in these cases arose from the absence of a legislative framework permitting trade union pluralism. The Committee, while noting the Governments statement of its ongoing efforts to amend the labour legislation, urged it to deploy all efforts so as to allow for trade union pluralism in the country. It reminded the Government of the availability of ILO technical assistance in this regard.
In the case of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, the Committee expressed its profound concern as to the seriousness of the allegations submitted by the International Organization of Employers (IOE), which demonstrated a climate of violence and intimidation surrounding leaders of employers’ organizations and their members. It requested the Government to effectively ensure the security of the FEDECAMARAS headquarters and its leaders and to fully guarantee freedom of expression in general as well as that of employers’ organisations. It urged the Government to expedite the investigations into the bomb attack at FEDECAMARAS headquarters, and to ensure that the competent authorities prosecute and punish those responsible.
The Committee urged the Government to establish a national, high-level joint committee to examine each and every one of the allegations in this case in order to resolve problems through direct dialogue. It further invited the Government to request technical assistance from the ILO with a view to the establishment of a forum for social dialogue, having a tripartite composition which duly respects the representativeness of workers and employers organizations.
The Governing Body is the executive body of the International Labour Office (the Office is the secretariat of the Organization). It meets three times a year, in March, June and November, and takes decisions on ILO policy, the agenda of the International Labour Conference, and the draft Programme and Budget of the Organization for submission to the Conference.
It is composed of 56 titular members (28 Governments, 14 Employers and 14 Workers) and 66 deputy members (28 Governments, 19 Employers and 19 Workers). Ten of the titular government seats are permanently held by States of chief industrial importance (Brazil, China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States). The other Government members, and the worker and employer members, are elected by the Conference every three years.