Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1995, published 83rd ILC session (1996)

Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98) - Latvia (Ratification: 1992)

The Committee takes note of the first report of the Government and of the communication of the Free Trade Union Federation of Latvia (LBAS) dated 31 August 1995.

The Committee notes that section 15 of the Trade Unions Law of 13 December 1990 grants protection to workers in general against acts of anti-union discrimination by not permitting the termination of a trade union member's employment contract on the initiative of the employer and without prior consent of the trade union except when labour discipline or conditions of the contract have been infringed. The Committee also observes that section 16 of the same legislation is aimed at protecting workers' representatives. The Committee wishes to recall the importance it attaches to the necessity to provide adequate protection against acts of anti-union discrimination at the time of recruitment as well as in the course of employment to all workers. Such protection should cover all measures of anti-union discrimination and should be coupled with effective and expeditious procedures and with sufficiently dissuasive sanctions to ensure their application. The Committee therefore requests the Government to amend its legislation in order to put it more in line with the provisions of the Convention.

Finally, the Committee requests the Government to provide it with its comments with regard to the communication of the LBAS of 31 August 1995.

[The Government is asked to report in detail in 1996.]