Observation (CEACR) - adopted 1990, published 77th ILC session (1990)

Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) - Romania (Ratification: 1957)

In its earlier comments, the Committee referred to section 7 of Act No. 24 of 5 November 1976 under which all able-bodied persons of 16 years or more who are not receiving training and are without employment are obliged to register with the Directorate of Labour and Social Security or its regional office, with a view to being placed in employment. The Committee also noted that section 129 of the Labour Code allows a worker to terminate his employment on his own initiative, subject to the fulfilment of certain formalities, but that in so doing, he is obliged, in accordance with Act No. 24 of 1976, to register a request for placement in employment. Act No. 25 of 5 November 1976 provided for compulsory allocation to a workplace and prescribed that persons placed in employment were to go immediately to the enterprise to which they had been assigned in order to take up employment.

1. The Committee notes with satisfaction that Act No. 25 of 1976 has been repealed by section 1, subsection 7, of Legislative Decree No. 9 of 31 December 1989 repealing certain texts. It asks the Government to provide information on the practical application of the above-mentioned provisions of Act No. 24 of 1976 and of the Labour Code, and on all measures taken or under consideration in this respect to ensure compliance with the Convention.

The Committee has also taken note of the information communicated by the Government to the Director-General of the ILO in January 1990 concerning developments in Romania since 22 December 1989 and the objectives being pursued by the authorities with regard to human rights and freedoms. In particular, the Committee notes with interest the Government's indications that a new Constitution is being prepared, and that laws which violated human rights and fundamental freedoms have already been repealed. The Committee hopes that the Government will soon be able to provide information on the measures taken or under consideration concerning the provisions of the legislation and national practice with regard to the other points below, some of which have been the subject of its comments for several years.

2. The Committee noted previously the provisions of section 71-8 of Act No. 24 of 29 December 1981, which amends and supplements Act No. 5/1978 respecting the organisation and operation of State socialist units, under which any worker who leaves a unit to take up employment in legal conditions in another unit is obliged to apply to the executive organ and the trade union body of the unit he is leaving for a report on his activities and cannot be engaged in another unit unless the assessments in the report are also taken into consideration. The Committee asked the Government to supply full information on the scope of the obligation placed on the worker wishing to leave his employment to apply to the executive organ and trade union body for a report on his activities, the period within which this report must be applied for and furnished to the person concerned and the consequences for the worker of the absence of such a report.

The Committee notes the indications in the Government's report communicated in 1988, that the document in question is not a report but a definition of the worker's activity, and that it is not a compulsory prerequisite for recruitment but merely serves to give a clearer idea of his previous activity. According to the Government, there is no prescribed period for the issuance of the definition and the absence of such a definition holds no consequences for future activity in another unit.

The Committee takes due note of the Government's explanations regarding the application, in practice, of the provisions in question. The Committee asks the Government to provide copies of model definitions which are used in assessing workers, and to indicate all measures taken or under consideration to amend the legislation to ensure that the non-issuance of such a definition cannot prevent a worker from leaving his job freely and from being recruited in another unit.

3. The Committee also noted previously that under section 15, subsection 3, of the rules of socialist organisations in agriculture (Decree of the Council of State No. 93 of 28 March 1983), the withdrawal of a member of a co-operative must be approved by the General Assembly. The Committee asked the Government to indicate the practical consequences of a refusal by the General Assembly to approve the withdrawal of a member of a co-operative. In the absence of a reply on this point, the Committee hopes that the necessary provisions will be adopted to ensure that members of a co-operative are free to leave it and that the Government will indicate the measures taken to this end.

4. In its previous comments, the Committee referred to section 1(d) of Decree No. 153 of 24 March 1970 respecting groups of persons with a parasitic or anarchical way of life. The Committee has examined the report submitted to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights at its 46th Session (February 1990), by a special rapporteur concerning the human rights situation in Romania, which refers to the repeal of Decree No. 153/1970. (Document E/CN.4/1990/28, Add.1 of 22 February 1990.)

The Committee also notes the indications contained in the above report to the effect that the Decree governing residence in towns by persons from other localities has been repealed, as has the law on compulsory postings on completion of studies, the assignment of higher-education graduates, being henceforth effected on the basis of a competitive examination. It was, however, emphasised that settlement of the posting question ultimately depended on the long-term trends of the economic system. For a transitional period, commissions have been established in each district to examine and try to deal with applications for re-unification made by members of the same family who are currently posted to different workplaces.

The Committee asks the Government to provide a copy of the provisions repealing the decrees and the law mentioned above, including those repealing Decree No. 153 of 1970, and to provide information on any measures taken to ensure that the Convention is observed on this point.

5. The Committee notes with interest that Presidential Decree No. 208 of 17 October 1985 to proclaim the state of emergency and a military work organisation in the units of the national energy system has been repealed by section 1, subsection 16, of Legislative Decree No. 9 of 31 December 1989 repealing certain texts. [The Government is requested to report in detail for the period ending 30 June 1990.]