Observation (CEACR) - adopted 1994, published 81st ILC session (1994)

Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98) - Egypt (Ratification: 1954)

The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government in its reports.

With reference to its previous comments on the need to amend section 87 of the Labour Code, as amended by Act No. 137 of 1981, which provides that any clause in a collective labour agreement that jeopardizes the economic interests of the country shall be null and void, the Committee notes with regret that, despite the Government's assurances in a report received by the Office in February 1992 that the national legislation would be revised and that meetings had been organized for that purpose with senior officials of the ILO in order to bring the legislation into conformity with the requirements of the Convention, the Government indicates in its most recent report that section 87 of the Labour Code merely applies the general rules of law concerning the removal of clauses which are contrary to the public order which is constituted by the economic, social and cultural foundations of society.

In these circumstances, the Committee again recalls that requirements imposed under penalty of nullification are likely, by restricting the scope of collective bargaining, to undermine the principle of voluntary negotiations laid down in Article 4 of the Convention. It stresses that in the event of economic difficulties the Government should prefer pursuasion to constraint and that in any event the parties must remain free as to their final decisions.

Recalling that the reference to the economic interests of the country as grounds for the cancellation of a clause of a collective agreement has been removed from section 157(3) of the draft Labour Code, the Committee asks the Government to indicate in its next report the measures taken to amend section 87 of the Labour Code to bring it into line with the draft new Code so that the legislation on this point is fully in conformity with the requirements of the Convention.

REQUESTS The Government is asked to report in detail for the period ending 30 June 1994. #REPORT_DATE:30:06:1994