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

Labour Clauses (Public Contracts) Convention, 1949 (No. 94) - Aruba

The Committee notes the Government's first report and the statement that Aruba has adopted the complete national legislation of the Netherlands Antilles and that, therefore, the provisions giving effect to the Convention are the Labour Ordinance, the Holiday Ordinance, the Law on Minimum Wages, the Illness Regulation, the Accidents Regulation and the Security Legislation of 1958. The Government adds that this legislation is applicable both to activities in the private sector and work carried out by the Government.

The Committee recalls, as it has done for many years for the Netherlands Antilles, that the provisions of the above legislation are not sufficient to ensure the application of the Convention in the case of public contracts covering the work set out in Article 1 of the Convention, including work carried out by subcontractors or assignees of contracts. Indeed, special measures need to be taken for this purpose and to ensure, in accordance with Article 2, paragraphs 1 and 2, of the Convention, that these contracts include clauses ensuring to the workers concerned wages (including allowances), hours of work and other conditions of labour which are not less favourable than those established for work of the same character in the trade or industry concerned in the same district.

The Committee therefore hopes that the Government will be able, in its national legislation, to take the necessary measures to give effect to the above provisions of the Convention and that, when formulating these measures, it will also take into account the following provisions:

Article 2, paragraph 3, of the Convention. Consultation with the organisations of employers and workers concerned for the determination by the competent authority of the terms of the clauses to be included in contracts and any variations thereof.

Article 2, paragraph 4. Measures to ensure that persons tendering for contracts are aware of the terms of the clauses of these contracts (for example, by the publication of specifications of the conditions that are applicable).

Article 4(a) and (b). Measures to bring to the notice of the persons concerned the regulations or other provisions giving effect to the Convention. The definition of the persons responsible for compliance with these regulations; the posting of notices at workplaces with a view to informing the workers of their conditions of employment; the keeping of adequate records of the time worked by, and the wages paid to the workers.

Article 5. The sanctions applicable in the event of failure to observe the labour clauses in public contracts and measures to enable the workers concerned to obtain the wages to which they are entitled.

Point V of the report form on the Convention. The Committee also requests the Government to supply information on the practical application of the Convention and to supply, if possible, copies of public contracts containing the clauses referred to in Article 2, and extracts of reports by the inspection services.