Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2003, published 92nd ILC session (2004)

Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87) - Haiti (Ratification: 1979)

The Committee notes with regret that the Government’s report has not been received. It hopes that a report will be supplied for examination by the Committee at its next session and that it will contain full information on the matters raised in its previous direct request, which read as follows:

The Committee drew the Government’s attention to certain provisions of the Decree of 24 February 1984 updating the Labour Code of 12 September 1961.

1. The right to organize of minors (Article 2 of the Convention). Recalling that all workers have the right to organize, the Committee notes that, under article 233, parents or other responsible persons may prevent minors of less than 18 years from exercising the right to organize. The Committee recalls that the Convention guarantees to all workers, without distinction whatsoever, the right to establish and join organizations. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the measures taken or envisaged to establish that minors legally entitled to work, including as apprentices, may join trade unions.

2. The right of workers, without distinction whatsoever, to establish and join organizations (Article 2). The Committee notes that, under section 257, the provisions of the Labour Code governing labour relations between workers and employers do not apply to domestic workers. The Committee reminds the Government that the Convention in no way excludes domestic workers and that they must enjoy the right to organize as do workers in the industrial, agricultural and commercial sectors. The Committee requests the Government to grant these workers the right to organize.

3. The right of workers to elect their representatives in full freedom (Article 3). The Committee notes that section 239(a) requires the officers of a trade union to hold Haitian citizenship. The Committee recalls that overly strict provisions regarding nationality can deprive certain workers of the right to elect their representatives in full freedom and that, in its opinion, national legislation ought to permit foreign workers to become trade union officers, at least after a reasonable period of residence in the receiving country. The Committee asks the Government to amend its legislation accordingly.

The Committee asks the Government to indicate in its next report the measures taken or under consideration to bring its legislation into full conformity with the Convention.