Part II. Paid Educational Leave

325. The ILO instruments on paid educational leave and those on human resources development are closely related in many respects. The Human Resources Development Recommendation, 1975 (No. 150), bears witness to the coherence between the two sets of instruments, stating in Paragraph 23(2) that workers receiving training off the job should be granted educational leave in accordance with the terms of the Paid Educational Leave Convention and Recommendation, 1974. Moreover, a policy concerning the granting of paid educational leave fits logically into the context of that pursued under the terms of Article 1(5) of Convention No. 142, to encourage and enable all persons to develop and use their capabilities for work in their own best interests and in accordance with their own aspirations, account being taken of the needs of society. The grant of paid educational leave within the meaning of Convention No. 140 and Recommendation No. 148 is not only a particularly appropriate method of providing vocational training for workers; it may also be for a specific purpose -- trade union education -- or a broader one -- general, social and civic education. Chapter I will examine the different national policies for the promotion of paid educational leave, while Chapter II will deal with the methods of implementing the granting of such leave.

Chapter I. Policies to promote paid educational leave

Section 1. Nature and scope of obligations

(a) Formulation and application of a policy

326. Article 2 of Convention No. 140 obliges ratifying States to "formulate and apply a policy designed to promote, by methods appropriate to national conditions and practice and by stages as necessary, the granting of paid educational leave for the purpose of: (a) training at any level; (b) general, social and civic education; and (c) trade union education". Under Article 5, "the means by which provision is made for the granting of paid educational leave may include national laws and regulations, collective agreements, arbitration awards, and such other means as may be consistent with national practice". Although States are obligated to formulate and implement a policy, they are allowed a certain amount of scope as to the methods they choose: the Convention does not require the immediate introduction of provisions to regulate the granting of paid educational leave. In this case States are not under the residual obligation, provided for in other ILO Conventions, to draft legislation if the provisions of the Convention fail to be implemented by other means. Without requiring States to incorporate paid educational leave immediately into their legislation, Article 5 illustrates the variety of means that might be used, consistent with national law and practice, to apply the policy of granting paid educational leave.

327. The main obligation is contained under Article 2: to formulate and apply a policy to promote the granting of paid educational leave for the purposes stipulated. The Conference Committee on Paid Educational Leave demonstrated its attachment to the idea of a policy by rejecting, during two successive discussions, proposed amendments to delete the obligation (Endnote 1) or the very term "policy". (Endnote 2) A policy presupposes that the public authorities have decided upon a specific course of action that necessarily involves authorities and bodies for a certain length of time.

328. The obligation is nevertheless flexible from many standpoints. For example, the policy is dynamic. It aims at the gradual grant of paid educational leave; time is needed before all its effects may be felt. Taking account of the "stage of development and the particular needs of the country and of different sectors of activity" (Article 4) may result in the grant of paid educational leave being promoted "by stages". From this premise, States may, according to their national priorities, concentrate first on granting paid educational leave for one of the purposes listed in the Convention or in certain branches of activity, only subsequently promoting it for the other two purposes stipulated or in other branches of activity. Furthermore, the definition of paid educational leave is itself very flexible: the regulations pertaining to the grant of paid educational leave, the form it takes and its duration, as well as the nature and amount of "adequate financial entitlements", are to be appropriate to national conditions and practice.

(b) Sources of law on paid educational leave

329. A number of reports mention that paid educational leave is granted in spite of the fact that there are no provisions to this effect. For instance, Chad points out that, although there are no provisions contained in laws, administrative regulations or collective agreements, some enterprises have decided themselves to grant paid educational leave to their workers.

330. Several governments refer in their reports to legal provisions that place employers under obligations which suffice in themselves to create an entitlement to paid educational leave. (Endnote 3)

331. In other countries, the relevant provisions are only found in collective agreements. (Endnote 4) The Government of the Netherlands points out that the matter of leave comes under employment conditions and that these are left up to the social partners to determine. The United Kingdom Government takes the view that voluntarism and collective bargaining are the most efficient means to apply the Convention. The Government of Nicaragua states that it pursues a policy designed to encourage the granting of paid educational leave through the negotiation of agreements at enterprise level.

332. In most countries, paid educational leave is granted through a combination of legal provisions and collective agreements. Either the law and collective agreements apply to different branches of activity, or the law lays down basic standards that may be incorporated into or supplemented by collective agreements.

333. In the United Republic of Tanzania (Tanganyika), provisions on educational leave are contained both in regulations applying to officials and employees in the public sector and in a number of collective agreements in the private sector. In the United States, educational leave, like other types of leave, is a matter for negotiation between employers and workers; it is only subject to government regulations when the federal Government and state governments establish conditions applicable to their respective employees. In Switzerland, the grant of educational leave is provided for in regulations applying to the staff of federal and cantonal administrations and public bodies, as well as in a number of collective agreements.

334. In many cases the legislator establishes generally applicable minimum conditions and leaves it to the social partners to negotiate schemes that might be more advantageous. In Spain, the Workers' Charter gives collective bargaining great scope by stating that collective agreements may make detailed provision for the exercise of rights pertaining to educational leave and specify the way in which such rights are exercised. (Endnote 5) In Mexico, the federal Labour Act requires the social partners to include in collective agreements clauses on the employers' obligation to provide training for workers. (Endnote 6) In Hungary, where the entitlement to study leave is incorporated in the Labour Code, its practical implementation is regulated by various decrees: (Endnote 7) however, it has recently been decided, in a spirit of "deregulation", to leave it up to the parties to collective bargaining to regulate freely better conditions than those provided for by the legislation. (Endnote 8) In Sweden, the Act on workers' entitlement to free time for training purposes specifies that its standards prevail over those in collective agreements, as any clause that might restrict workers' rights laid down in this Act is considered null and void. (Endnote 9)

335. In Germany, legal provisions and provisions under collective agreement exist alongside each other within a federal framework. This might raise a number of problems as to the determination of the applicable law: legal provisions relating to educational leave adopted by the Länder may have to be combined with those of industry-wide collective agreements which may include all the Länder or only some of them in their scope. Therefore, collective agreements often contain a clause stating that workers may not benefit concurrently from entitlements laid down by collective agreement and those established by law and that the length of educational leave must be brought into line with that prescribed under legislation.

336. In France, the relationship between the provisions on educational leave in legislation and those in collective agreements demonstrates the legislator's will to make the adoption of legal provisions subject to a previous agreement between the social partners; for instance the Act establishing individual training leave takes up the terms of an earlier national inter-occupational agreement. (Endnote 10) A later Act confirms the system of financing to which the social partners previously agreed. (Endnote 11)

(c) Scope

Private sector and public sector

337. Like all international labour Conventions that apply to workers without any specifications being made, the Convention applies to all workers, irrespective of whether they are in the private or public sector.

338. Unlike a number of international labour Conventions that also require the formulation and implementation of a policy, (Endnote 12) Convention No. 140 contains no specific provisions placing national authorities under particular obligations as regards the areas of employment under their direct control. The government of a ratifying State is not therefore expressly bound to use methods of direct implementation at its disposal or take measures to grant educational leave to public officials or workers in the public sector. Thus, although such measures might not necessarily constitute a first step towards the implementation of a paid educational leave policy, they clearly contribute towards it, bearing in mind national conditions and practice and the particular needs of the countries and various branches of activity.

339. According to available information, provisions relating to educational leave in the public sector exist in many countries, where they are often the only provisions to put into effect, to varying extents, the instruments in question. The marked pre-eminence of the public sector would seem to indicate that governments attach high priority to encouraging the further training of their staff. It would also appear that making provision for the grant of educational leave, more often than not in this case by statutory means, is easier in this sector; it should also be stressed that the public sector is likely to account for a proportion of total employment varying widely according to the country concerned. In Egypt, state officials have long been entitled to statutory paid educational leave. (Endnote 13) In Rwanda, the General Statutes of State Officials stipulate conditions under which an official may maintain his entitlements during the period of training outside normal working time. (Endnote 14) In Tunisia, leave for further training is granted to established employees of the State, local public bodies and state administrative establishments who are called upon to follow a training course organised by the administration. (Endnote 15)

340. Whenever there is generally applicable legislation relating to educational leave, it may be specified that it applies both to the public and to the private sector. In Sweden the legislation stipulates that any worker employed in the public or private sector is entitled to free time for training purposes. (Endnote 16) In Finland, the Act respecting study leave stipulates that it also applies to public servants. (Endnote 17)

341. In Belgium, on the other hand, workers employed by the State and various public bodies, public establishments under these bodies and organisations in the public interest, as well as all teaching staff, are excluded from the scope of educational leave legislation. (Endnote 18)

342. In countries in which their employment conditions are established by specific types of contract or statutory provisions, public employees may be granted educational leave under regulations that differ from those of the general scheme. In France the State applies to public servants a vocational training and training for promotion policy which, by law, is similar in scope and in the methods employed to that extended to other workers -- although taking account of the specific nature of the public service; (Endnote 19) however, the grant of educational leave to these categories of staff, established by decree, differs considerably from that provided for by the Act on individual training leave applicable to all other workers.

Special cases

343. In their reports, a number of governments refer to legislation relating to apprenticeship. Bangladesh mentions legislation establishing the respective obligations of employers and apprentices. (Endnote 20) Côte d'Ivoire quotes a provision from the Labour Code whereby the master must leave the apprentice the time and freedom to attend the vocational training course required. (Endnote 21) The Conference did not envisage this application of the concept of educational leave but set out primarily to introduce it as a means of continuing education and training within a normal employment relationship: by its very nature, an apprenticeship contract incorporates the training component as an essential feature, and the relations differ from those under an ordinary employment contract.

344. In a number of countries in Latin America, employers are obliged to finance bursaries for workers and their children in proportion to the size of their enterprise. (Endnote 22) These bursaries may be assimilated to paid educational leave when the beneficiaries are workers within the enterprise itself, but not when they provide for children's study expenses.

345. The ordinary meaning of "leave" generally implies that the beneficiary is actively employed. However, the Government of the Netherlands has broadened this concept by allowing unemployed persons to participate in training programmes under its educational leave policy whilst enjoying unemployment benefits.

346. A number of provisions extend paid educational leave to categories of workers not specially envisaged by the ILO instruments. In Luxembourg, the Act relating to the setting up of educational leave stipulates that it may be applied to self-employed persons. (Endnote 23) In France, provisions specific to persons who have been employed under fixed-term contracts regulate the conditions and procedures applicable to their entitlement to educational leave. (Endnote 24)

Section 2. Definition of paid educational leave

347. Article 1 of the Convention defines paid educational leave as leave granted to a worker for educational purposes for a specified period during working hours, with adequate financial entitlements. The actual formula "paid educational leave" appears rarely in national legislation. (Endnote 25) Of course, legislation may or may not conform to the standards of the Convention, independently of the national terminology. It is therefore useful to examine in turn the three elements contained in the definition: leave granted for a specified period during working hours; payment of financial entitlements during the leave; and educational purposes, in the categories set forth in Article 2.

(a) Leave granted for a specified period

348. The concept of leave is to be understood in the very broad sense of any release from work for educational purposes. The determination of the form and duration of such leave is left to national policies in accordance with national conditions and practice. The arrangements mentioned by governments in their reports thus vary considerably. Among the versions of educational leave mentioned as giving effect to the provisions of the Convention and Recommendation, which range in duration from a few hours to several years, are leave of absence for examinations, reduction of daily or weekly working hours to facilitate attendance at evening classes, permission to attend classes during working hours either within or outside the enterprise, leave granted for the duration of an educational course or cycle, and sabbatical leave.

349. All these arrangements meet the essential requirement that educational or training activities should take place during working hours. The time devoted to these activities must be included in working hours if there is to be genuine educational leave within the meaning of the instruments, since they are intended to encourage the development of continuing training by enabling workers to complete their education or training in such a way that the extra effort that they are willing to make for this purpose does not add to the fatigue associated with their normal workload or curtail their hours of leisure.

(b) Payment of adequate financial entitlements

350. For the same reason, educational leave must be remunerated, as workers' education cannot be legitimately promoted if they have to bear the cost represented by loss of income during unpaid leave. However, the Convention does not demand that total earnings and other entitlements be maintained for a worker who has been granted educational leave. In fact, the Conference decided against such an obligation in favour of a more flexible formulation which authorises total or partial compensation for loss of earnings: leave must be accompanied by adequate financial entitlements. (Endnote 26) The determination of the amount and the form of such financial entitlements is a matter for national policy and practice. In respect of the amount, these entitlements should, under the terms of the Recommendation, be such as to maintain the level of earnings and take into account all major additional costs arising from education or training. As regards form, again according to the Recommendation, this could entail continued payment of wages and other benefits or the grant of an adequate compensation.

351. While recognising the right of a worker on educational leave to receive financial benefits, the Convention does not specify the person or body responsible for meeting the corresponding financial obligation. Here again, the appropriate arrangements are a matter for national policy and are likely to vary according to the purpose of the leave in question. The government reports describe various methods applied in various proportions according to country: direct financing by individual employers within their own enterprises; financing by employers in general by means of a mutual insurance system; and financing by the State. Furthermore, in many cases the grant of leave and the payment of financial entitlements are the results of two separate decisions involving different regulations, especially in respect of conditions applying to training: the types of training for which leave may be granted do not all necessarily allow the right to financial entitlements implied in the notion of paid educational leave.

(c) Educational purposes

352. The educational purposes of paid educational leave are specified in Article 2, which distinguishes three types of education and training to be provided by means of such leave: training at any level; general, social and civic education; and trade union education. The Conference Committee agreed that the expression "training at any level" meant training related to employment accessible to every category of worker from the simple labourer to the executive. (Endnote 27) Article 3 defines the major objectives to which the policy for the promotion of paid educational leave should be designed to contribute. The three relatively specific objectives mentioned in paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) correspond to the categories of education or training to be promoted by educational leave under the terms of Article 2. Paid educational leave for the purpose of training at any level refers to the acquisition, improvement and adaptation of occupational and functional skills and the promotion of employment and job security in conditions of scientific and technological development and economic and structural change. Trade union educational leave contributes to the competent and active participation of workers and their representatives in the life of the enterprise and of the community. General, social and civic educational leave should contribute to the promotion of the human, social and cultural advancement of workers. Paragraph (d) relating to the promotion of appropriate continuing education and training, helping workers to adjust to contemporary requirements, covers the three other aims while at the same time enabling other objectives to be attained. (Endnote 28)

353. The order in which these aims are presented, which varies in Article 2 and Article 3 of the Convention, does not imply any classification by priority or any hierarchy. It is for each country to establish its own scale of priorities in respect of the objectives to be promoted by its educational leave policy and the extent to which each of the different types of training and education is to be promoted by this means, in accordance with its special needs and available resources.

354. In some countries, the legal provisions, while not exactly reproducing the categories mentioned by the Convention, assign the same set of educational aims to educational leave. In Finland, the law relating to educational leave stipulates that studies or training for which educational leave may be granted may take the form of primary, secondary or higher education, and participation in vocational training courses or in trade union education. (Endnote 29)

355. The information received shows, however, that in most cases leave for trade union education is covered by separate provisions from those governing educational leave for the purpose of training related to employment or general education. In Canada (Quebec), the definition of educational leave as leave granted to any employee who wishes to complete or improve his or her academic or technical training (Endnote 30) would appear to exclude trade union training. In Germany, the laws and regulations of the Länder, referring to the purposes for which educational leave may be granted, distinguish between general education, political education and vocational training, (Endnote 31) while leave for trade union education is covered by the provisions of federal legislation and collective agreements.

356. Whether or not a distinction is clearly drawn between vocational or technical training and general or academic education, the intention of directing educational leave towards what are considered to be economic or social priorities is frequently reflected in the different conditions applied to the various forms of training or continuing education. This preference is sometimes expressed in adjustments in duration. In Belgium, the maximum annual leave allowed for vocational training is 240 hours, compared with 160 hours for general education. (Endnote 32) In Cuba, the length of educational leave depends on the subject chosen, ranging, for example, from 15 days per year for arts and social studies to 45 days per year for training in mechanical construction or transport. (Endnote 33) Differing levels of financial entitlements may also direct workers towards the type of training considered most useful: in Switzerland, the regulations applying to postal or railway officials provide for total or partial payment of wages depending on the extent to which the department gains from the training undertaken.

Section 3. Functions of paid educational leave

357. In distinguishing between training related to employment and general, social and civic education, the Conference clearly intended paid educational leave not only to be used for the vocational training of workers but also to contribute to the satisfaction of their broader aspirations to human, social and cultural advancement. At the same time, the Conference refrained from proclaiming the right of all workers to be granted paid educational leave for an educational purpose that they themselves have chosen.

358. The preamble to the Convention refers to article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which affirms that everyone has the right to education, and it was envisaged at the time of the first discussion that the Convention should define paid educational leave, on this model, as "a new labour right". The proclamation of such a right, however, was considered unrealistic, in particular in countries that lacked the necessary resources to implement it and not in keeping with the flexibility that was intended to characterise these standards. The Conference ultimately decided to confine itself in the preamble to a recognition of paid educational leave as "one means of meeting the real needs of individual workers in a modern society". The same spirit of realism and flexibility led the Conference to include, in the Recommendation only, the principle that workers should remain free to decide in which education or training programmes they wish to participate.

359. The Conference thus arrived at a very broad concept of paid educational leave, which could accommodate arrangements designed to meet the training needs of the enterprise or the cultural aspirations of the workers, as employers could send workers on training courses or workers take such leave on their own initiative, and the training could be provided either within or outside the enterprise. Thus the various practices described by the member States in their reports can apparently be classified according to two complementary criteria: the closeness of the training course to the job performed by the worker, and the extent to which the worker may choose a training course.

(a) Guaranteeing the rights of workers undergoing training

360. For a large number of countries, the regulations governing paid educational leave are mainly intended to guarantee the rights of workers who undertake training at the request or with the encouragement of their employer, the training course being generally closely related to the job performed.

361. In Côte d'Ivoire, these rights are very clearly presented as being the compensation to the worker for the obligation to undertake training imposed by the employer; for training in the interests of social and economic advancement, the employer is entitled to demand that staff members attend vocational training or retraining courses necessary for the performance of their duties and for their adjustment to economic developments. However, during the time of vocational training or retraining, the worker receives full wages and related benefits, with the exception of benefits specific to the actual performance of the duties. (Endnote 34) Similarly, in Bulgaria, the obligation under the Labour Code for workers to participate in training courses to update and improve vocational skills is discharged during the job's hours of work, while the gross wage and other entitlements arising out of the employment relationship are maintained. (Endnote 35) In Mexico the law recognises the right of every worker to be given training by his employer to update the worker's knowledge and skills in his particular occupation, to keep him informed of new technology, to prepare him to fill a vacancy or newly created post, to prevent occupational hazards, to increase productivity and, in general, to improve his abilities. This training, the programme for which is drawn up by common accord between the employer and the trade union or the workers, must be provided during the worker's hours of work. (Endnote 36)

362. In cases where continuing training is necessary for the performance of the job and meets a need of the enterprise, which organises the training for its own workers, it is seen as a special type of work assignment and there is no reason to refer to it in terms of leave. Where it is specified that the training is provided during working hours, as in Mexico, it is not even necessary, for example, to state that these hours of work are remunerated.

363. The concept of training courses is sometimes used to refer to the period of training, as in Guinea, where the law states that employees undertaking a training or advanced training course continue to receive the wages they would have received if they were working as usual, during the entire course, and also continue to receive all social benefits to which they are entitled as workers. (Endnote 37)

364. Leave, however, is usually the term used to indicate the time that workers devote to training and not to the performance of their normal duties at their place of work. In Ethiopia, the law provides that any worker who participates in a training programme organised by or through the enterprise has to be granted leave with full pay for the period so required. (Endnote 38) In Tunisia, public-sector officials and workers required to undertake a programme of continuing training organised by the administration are entitled to educational leave for the duration of the programme. (Endnote 39)

365. In countries where a worker may be granted such leave without being ordered by the employer to undertake training, educational leave may none the less be restricted to training of a strictly vocational nature. In Yugoslavia, the law provides for leave for vocational and further training. (Endnote 40) In the Netherlands, collective agreements organise special leave to enable workers to undertake specialised training related to the occupation in which they are engaged. Public service employees in Canada may, at their own request, be granted educational leave to attend a course of studies in some field of education in which special preparation is needed to enable them to fill their present role more adequately, or to undertake studies in some field in order to provide a service which the employer requires or is planning to provide. (Endnote 41)

366. The requirement of a relation between the training and the worker's occupation is in some countries, while still an essential condition, expressed more flexibly. In Iraq, educational leave is granted to every government official admitted to higher education, provided that the studies in question have a bearing on the duties of his office or the competence of the ministry in which he serves. (Endnote 42) In India, educational leave may be granted to a government servant for the pursuit of studies which may not be closely or directly connected with his work but which are capable of widening his mind in a manner likely to improve his abilities as a civil servant. (Endnote 43) In Egypt, public servants may obtain leave to undertake scientific, technical or practical studies or receive practical training, on condition that such studies or training meet a requirement of public interest. (Endnote 44)

367. Several reports referred to the difficulty of making it compulsory for private or public employers to grant their workers leave to enable them to engage in an educational or training course which is not of direct advantage to the enterprise, for example in terms of increased productivity. The paucity of resources and the difficulty of offering the workers thus trained the promotion to which they would be entitled often lead enterprises to confine their efforts to providing the types of training that they consider will produce a quick return on investment. This approach is clearly revealed in a Circular transmitted by the Nigerian Government with its report. (Endnote 45) In Canada, the federal government manual on public personnel training specifies that training is not an employee entitlement but an investment which should be encouraged to the extent that it is based on organisational needs. (Endnote 46)

(b) Enabling workers to carry out autonomous training plans

368. In a small number of countries, European for the most part, there is an increasingly prevalent idea that paid educational leave only means leave granted at the worker's request for a training or educational course which takes place outside the enterprise. Paid educational leave is thus conceived as a worker's right to leave the enterprise for training during working hours for a specified period, with financial benefits and without the leave being deducted from annual vacation entitlement. In this concept of paid educational leave the initiative is taken by the worker, who is free to choose educational purposes, broadly or narrowly defined, which need not be closely related to the job performed. Under the terms of legal provisions or collective agreements, workers thus have a right for educational leave to be granted by their employer, regardless of whether the enterprise stands to gain from the particular training or education that the worker intends to undertake during the period of leave. This results in workers being able to carry out education plans which are autonomous and distinct from those of the enterprise.

369. Educational leave should therefore be distinguished from vocational training organised to meet the needs of the enterprise, and this distinction is a basic element in its definition. In so far as the right to educational leave is regarded as the workers' right to undertake training on their own initiative during a specified period, it is important that this period should not be confused with the time devoted to training courses required by the employer. In Switzerland, the section of the print workers' collective agreement concerning vocational training leave contains a clause whereby retraining in connection with technological change cannot be counted as part of educational or training leave: (Endnote 47) it is the employer's responsibility to organise work-related training within the enterprise, while educational leave should be reserved for other purposes. In Finland, the law provides that the period of study leave must not include any period in which the worker follows a course of training or study on instructions from the employer; or in respect of which provision has been made in a contract of employment or collective agreement for the training or study to be equated with work; or during which the worker takes part in a statutory course of training prescribed for his occupation, if he has not agreed to it in writing: (Endnote 48) in this case the worker would merely be fulfilling a duty pertaining to his employment, whereas, in fact, the same Act defines "educational leave" as any period for which an employer has released a worker from the performance of the duties pertaining to his employment to enable him to pursue a course of training or study. In France, training leave, typified by the worker's individual initiative, should be distinguished from attendance at training courses in the context of training prescribed by the employer in accordance with the aims of the enterprise: by law, the purpose of educational leave is to enable any worker, in the course of his working life, to participate in educational schemes on his own initiative and in his individual capacity, irrespective of any periods of training forming part of the training plan of the undertaking in which he is employed. (Endnote 49)

370. This form of educational leave usually allows for participation in vocational training and general educational programmes. In Finland the law stipulates that instruction or training in respect of which study leave is granted may take the form of study required for primary or secondary schooling or further study, or participation in vocational instruction or further training. In Sweden, the Act concerning the right of workers to time off for training purposes contains no conditions on the type of training allowed; the choice is left to the worker's discretion. One of the characteristics of laws and collective agreements in Germany is that they provide for leave for the purpose of political education as well as for vocational training and general education.

371. In France the law assigns a very broad objective to educational leave. Training or educational activities undertaken under the terms of educational leave can enable workers to acquire higher qualifications, to change their jobs or occupations and to gain a greater awareness of cultural and social matters; (Endnote 50) the right to such leave is not contingent on the choice of education or training, which may serve cultural, occupational or redeployment objectives; however, leave will not be remunerated unless, the training or education chosen is approved by the competent authorities. In Belgium, the law lists the various vocational or general education courses for which paid educational leave may be granted: an Approvals Commission has been established for the purpose. (Endnote 51)

372. While based on a different logic, the provisions of some countries awarding privileges or facilities to workers pursuing their studies arrive at the same result -- that the granting of paid educational leave is not conditional on the usefulness of the course attended in respect of the worker's occupation. Pursuing a course of study is usually sufficient justification in itself for the granting of educational leave, irrespective of whether the studies in question come under the definition of general or vocational education, and whether they are related to the worker's occupation in the enterprise or not. In the USSR (RSFSR), the Labour Code stipulates that manual and non-manual workers who combine work with study at general educational establishments and vocational institutions are entitled to a shorter working week or shorter daily hours of work, while drawing their normal pay. (Endnote 52) In Cuba, university students are allowed a shorter working week without loss of earnings. (Endnote 53) In Hungary, workers who pursue studies while in employment are entitled to study leave and to a reduction in hours of work; (Endnote 54) the same is true of Czechoslovakia. (Endnote 55)

373. Several countries provide for this type of facility in one form only: that of a limited period of leave of absence for examinations. Such leave of absence is designed to encourage workers to carry out individual education plans, for which most of the preparation takes place outside working hours. In Spain, the law provides that a worker is entitled to any necessary time off to sit an examination, (Endnote 56) even if the examination in question is in a field which bears no relation to the occupation referred to in the contract of employment. (Endnote 57) In Argentina, a worker is entitled to special leave to take a secondary school or university examination, the one condition being that the examination is related to an official teaching programme or to one authorised by the competent authority; this special leave is remunerated in the same manner as ordinary leave. (Endnote 58)

(c) Leave for trade union education

374. Leave for purposes of trade union education is guaranteed in a number of countries by law or collective agreements. Usually, however, workers are entitled to such leave only if they are trade union officials or staff representatives, and it is thus strictly functional in character. Provisions entitling all workers to leave for trade union education are still rare.

375. Leave for trade union education is frequently included among the facilities granted to workers' representatives, in line with the 1971 Workers' Representatives Convention (No. 135) and Recommendation (No. 143). Recommendation No. 143, to which reference is made in the preamble to Convention No. 140, stipulates that, in order to enable them to carry out their functions effectively, workers' representatives should be afforded the necessary time off for attending, among other things, trade union courses and seminars. In Germany, a federal law stipulates that members of the works council and the youth delegation must be released from their work without loss of pay to attend training and educational courses, in so far as the knowledge imparted is necessary for their activities. (Endnote 59) Similarly, in the Netherlands, the members of the works council are entitled to be released from their work for the purpose of the education and training they consider necessary for the performance of their duties. (Endnote 60) In the United Kingdom, the training received must cover aspects of industrial relations relevant to the carrying out of trade union duties. (Endnote 61) In Australia, arbitration awards establishing the right of a worker representing personnel or appointed by the trade union to attend trade union training courses during working hours frequently specify that the content of such courses should be such as to contribute to a better understanding or improvement of labour relations. In France, the law entitles permanent members of the works committee to attend training courses in economics during working hours. (Endnote 62) In all of these countries, similar provisions entitle members of the health and safety committees to attend training courses to prepare them for the performance of their duties during working hours. (Endnote 63)

376. Even when not subject to the worker exercising a particular responsibility in the enterprise or the trade union, entitlement to leave may be limited to trade union members. In Egypt, the Trade Union Act stipulates that any time spent by a member of a trade union organisation on training or educational courses counts as study leave on full pay. (Endnote 64)

377. Leave may be granted to attend workers' education courses organised by trade unions or their institutions created for that purpose. In Ethiopia, every worker who participates in a training programme organised by a trade union is entitled to leave for the required time, during which the level of remuneration is to be agreed between the union and the enterprise. (Endnote 65) In Iraq, workers who follow a programme organised by the Workers' Education Institute retain their right to full pay for the duration of the programme. (Endnote 66) In France, workers wishing to take part in courses or seminars devoted exclusively to workers' education or trade union training and organised either by centres attached to trade unions that are recognised as representative at the national level or by specialised institutions are entitled, if they so request, to one or more periods of paid leave. (Endnote 67) In Belgium, the law on paid educational leave treats courses organised by organisations representing workers as equivalent to general education.

Section 4. Co-ordination with general policies

378. Article 4 of the Convention stipulates that the policy to promote the granting of paid educational leave should take account of the stage of development and the particular needs of the country and different sectors of activity. The Recommendation adds that it should also take account of other social objectives and national priorities. It should be co-ordinated with general policies concerning employment, education, training and hours of work.

379. Since the first part of this survey examined methods of co-ordinating policies concerning continuing training with policies for education and employment, this section will merely give brief indications from some reports as to the role played by educational leave as such in these policies.

(a) Education and training policy

380. The Recommendation states that it should be recognised that paid educational leave is not a substitute for adequate education and training early in life, and that it is only one of a variety of means for continuing education and training.

381. Some countries recognise the special responsibility of the employer for the general training of the workers he employs, beginning with the campaign to combat illiteracy: in Afghanistan, the hours during which reading and writing are taught are considered hours of paid work. (Endnote 68) In Brazil, an employer whose enterprise employs minors aged under 18 years is obliged to allow them the time necessary to attend school, and establishments located more than two kilometres from the nearest school and permanently employing more than 30 minors who cannot read or write must provide a suitable room where they can be given elementary instruction. (Endnote 69) In Mexico, literacy courses, like primary and secondary-school courses, are recognised as training for work and may therefore be attended during working hours.

382. Paid educational leave is sometimes conceived as a means of enabling young people who have recently begun working life to complete their initial training. In Luxembourg, the law on educational leave was originally designed for civic and social education and vocational training for young adults. In France, young employees under the age of 25 years who have left the school system or apprenticeship with incomplete or inadequate training are entitled to training leave specifically intended for young workers. (Endnote 70) In Venezuela, young persons aged under 18 years who work in factories or commercial establishments are required to attend the vocational further training courses organised by the National Institute for Educational Co-operation (INCE), and employers must ensure that they continue to attend their training courses. (Endnote 71)

383. In Sweden, all workers as a matter of principle have the right to remedial education or training and the Government is hoping to turn training leave into a genuine second chance to go to school. One of the main objectives of the policy to promote paid educational leave is that of providing equality of opportunity: it should be a means of compensating for the disadvantages suffered by those who have had a poor education and should primarily help the under-educated or those who work in arduous and unpleasant conditions.

(b) Employment policy

384. Unlike the vocational guidance and vocational training policies, which governments include within their general training policies in most cases, none of the measures to promote paid educational leave described in the reports appears to have been co-ordinated with employment policy as required by Article 4 of the Convention. The Committee notes that employment policy was expressly mentioned by Governments only as an obstacle to a policy designed to encourage the granting of paid educational leave.

385. Thus, several governments stated in their reports that an active policy to promote educational leave would be incompatible with the priorities currently assigned to their employment policies. The Government of Ireland considered that it would be inadvisable to impose new responsibilities on employers at a time of high unemployment. In Canada, recent surveys conducted by the Government of Quebec show that, up to the present, government intervention on manpower issues has been chiefly directed at income support programmes, such as social assistance and unemployment insurance, rather than towards active measures to enhance the skills of workers already in employment. The Government of Austria maintains that, in the present economic situation, the only workers who would benefit from educational leave would be those in secure employment, whereas a high proportion of workers would not apply for such leave for fear of losing their jobs.

386. Although the reports do not mention direct links between employment policy and the promotion of paid educational leave, a certain concern with employment is still evident from some provisions. In France, for example, employees who have changed jobs as a result of redundancy can obtain training leave under more favourable conditions: if they have not followed a training course between the date of their redundancy and the date of their re-employment, their application for leave is not subject to a seniority requirement. (Endnote 72)

(c) Policy concerning hours of work

387. The information received does not mention the co-ordination provided for by the Convention between the policy to promote paid educational leave and that concerning hours of work. Thus, Austria only mentions its policy concerning hours of work to explain that priority is given to the reduction of working time for all workers, and that this would be undermined by the introduction of legislation on educational leave. In this respect, the Committee recalls that the policy to promote paid educational leave should, under Article 4 of the Convention, be co-ordinated in particular with general policies concerning hours of work, having due regard as appropriate to seasonal variations of hours of work or of volume of work.

Section 5. Involvement of employers' and workers' organisations in the paid educational leave policy

388. Article 6 of the Convention specifies that the public authorities, employers' and workers' organisations, and institutions or bodies providing education and training must be associated with the formulation and application of the policy for the promotion of paid educational leave.

389. Several reports state in very general terms that employers' and workers' organisations are consulted when policy is being formulated, and that they participate in its implementation; but they fail to supply any further details on the manner in which such organisations are associated. In some countries, tripartite co-operation on policy relating to paid educational leave is ensured through a national body responsible for training in general. Since the types of institutional arrangements have already been examined in the first part of this survey, it may suffice here to examine the terms under which employers and workers are associated with matters of paid educational leave.

390. In Belgium, the law which introduced paid educational leave established a committee responsible for the approval of training programmes and for monitoring the financial aspects of the system: this committee, whose general function is advisory and supervisory, is a joint structure with equal representation of employers and workers under the chairmanship of a representative of the Minister of Employment and Labour; in addition, one representative of each minister concerned with national education sits on the committee in an advisory capacity. (Endnote 73) In France, the policy concerning educational leave is formulated by national inter-occupational agreements, which are generally ratified by law; however, the law leaves it to collective bargaining to settle, by inter-occupational or collective agreement, how the costs relating to paid educational leave are to be defrayed by the joint structures, and to decide on the composition and powers of the national body responsible for implementing the said agreement; (Endnote 74) joint structures approved by the State play a central role in the administration of educational leave, whether they are responsible for collecting employers' contributions or for approving the types of training during which workers on training leave are entitled to remuneration. In Sweden, an adult education commission at county level is responsible for examining applications for a study allowance; this commission comprises nine members, of whom five are trade union representatives and four are county councillors.

391. At enterprise level, worker consultation on the granting of paid educational leave can be organised through bodies responsible for general conditions, such as the works council in Germany, which is responsible for matters of training as well as leave. In Mexico, joint training committees, on which employers and workers are equally represented, are responsible for supervising procedures in each enterprise.

392. Recommendation No. 148 specifies that the policy of promotion, with which the public authorities and the employers' and workers' organisations are associated, should involve measures to encourage workers to make the best use of education and training facilities available to them, and encourage employers to grant paid educational leave to workers. There should be adequate systems of information and guidance regarding opportunities for paid educational leave.

393. In Sweden, the responsibility for informing workers of the types of study and the opportunities for educational leave available to them falls to a specially trained studies organiser, elected by the workers. In France, a tripartite body providing information on continuing training disseminates information on training leave. In Poland, the public authorities publish brochures containing detailed information on the facilities and benefits granted to workers undertaking studies or improving their skills outside the formal system of education.

394. It is essential to underline the enormous importance of information on paid educational leave, as a genuine policy of promotion should not only lead to the adoption of appropriate measures but should also publicise them widely to enable every worker to benefit from them.

Endnotes

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Legislation

See related national legislation from Natlex

Hungary: Labour Code

Cross references
Constitution: Article 19
Constitution: Article 22
Constitution: Article 35
Conventions: C135 Workers' Representatives Convention, 1971
Recommendations:R143 Workers' Representatives Recommendation, 1971