Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2001, published 90th ILC session (2002)

Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98) - Nicaragua (Ratification: 1967)

The Committee notes the Government’s report.

Article 2. The Committee recalls that in its previous direct request it noted the provisions of the Labour Code (section 17(i)), which lay down the obligation of the employer, inter alia, to refrain from interfering in their establishment and functioning, and that it requested the Government to indicate the sanctions envisaged by the legislation in the event of non-compliance with this provision. In this regard, the Committee notes that the Government refers to section 208(g) of the Labour Code, which provides for the possibility for trade unions to denounce to the Ministry of Labour, without prejudice to the respective judicial measures, any omissions, irregularities or breaches of the Labour Code. The Committee also notes that the Regulations respecting labour inspectors (Decree No. 13 97) provides for the possibility in the event of breaches of the provisions of the Labour Code and failure to comply with the measures ordered by inspectors to remedy them, of imposing fines of from 2,000 to 10,000 cordobas (2,000 cordobas are approximately equivalent to US$147, 10,000 cordobas to US$735). The Committee considers that the fines envisaged can neither be considered as dissuasive nor as adequate protection against acts of interference and therefore requests the Government to provide for the possibility of imposing sufficiently effective and dissuasive sanctions against acts of interference by employers or their organizations in trade union affairs. The Committee considers that a system of fines based on a specific number of minimum wages could give effect to the provisions of the Convention and could be more effective in view of inflation and the devaluation of national currencies. The Committee requests the Government to provide information in its next reform on any measures adopted in this respect.

Article 4. The Committee requests the Government to provide statistical information in its next report on the number of collective agreements concluded in the public and private sectors, including export processing zones, in the period covered by the report (with an indication of whether the agreements are concluded at the enterprise or branch level and of the number of workers covered).