Observation (CEACR) - adopted 1997, published 86th ILC session (1998)

Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87) - Panama (Ratification: 1958)

The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government in its report and confirms that it indicates that it will send a response to the questions raised by the Committee in its previous observation at a later date. The Committee recalls that its previous comments referred to the following provisions:

-- section 174 and the last paragraph of section 178 of Act No. 9 ("establishing and regulating administrative careers") of 1994, which established that there shall be not more than one association in an institution and that the associations may have provincial or regional offices but not more than one office per province respectively;

-- section 41 of Act No. 44 of 1995 (amending section No. 344 of the Labour Code) which requires an excessively high number of members in order to establish an occupational employers' organization (ten) and an even higher number to establish a workers' organization at enterprise level (40).

As regards the fact that it is impossible for there to be more than one public servants' association in an institution, or more than one office per province (section 174 and the last paragraph of section 178 of Act No. 9 of 1994), the Committee reiterates that any system of single trade union organization or monopoly imposed directly or indirectly by the law runs counter to the principle of free establishment of organizations of workers and employers set forth in Article 2 of the Convention. The Committee once again reminds the Government that although it was clearly not the purpose of the Convention to make trade union diversity an obligation, it does at the very least require this diversity to remain possible in all cases. There is a fundamental difference between, on the one hand, a trade union monopoly established or maintained by law and, on the other hand, voluntary groupings of workers or unions which occur (without pressure from the public authorities, or due to the law) because they wish, for instance, to strengthen their bargaining position, or to coordinate their efforts to tackle ad hoc difficulties which affect all their organizations (see 1994 General Survey on freedom of association and collective bargaining, paragraph 91).

As regards the number of members required to establish an employers' and workers' occupational organization (section 41 of Act No. 44, amending section 344 of the Labour Code), the Committee once again requests the Government to reduce the number of members (ten) required to establish an employers' organization and to reduce even further the minimum number of 40 workers required to establish a trade union organization at enterprise level.

The Committee hopes once again that the Government will continue to make efforts to bring the legislation into full conformity with the provisions of the Convention, and requests the Government to keep it informed of any progress made in this respect.

The Committee is also addressing a request directly to the Government relating to certain matters.