Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2004, published 93rd ILC session (2005)

Night Work (Women) Convention (Revised), 1948 (No. 89) - Ghana (Ratification: 1959)

The Committee recalls that for several years it has been drawing the Government’s attention to the inconsistencies between certain provisions of its national legislation and the requirements of the Convention, in particular as regards the possibility of suspending the prohibition of night work for women. In its reply, the Government states that measures have been taken to address the Committee’s concerns and refers to draft new labour legislation which is designed to ensure the overall conformity with the Convention. In fact, the Committee notes that the Labour Act, 2003, has in the meantime been enacted and entered into force. It also notes that the general prohibition of night work for women has now been removed and that under section 55(1)(a) of the new Labour Act it would only be prohibited to assign or employ pregnant women workers to do any night work without their consent between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. The Committee is bound therefore to conclude that following the adoption of the new Labour Act, the Convention has for all practical purposes ceased to apply.

In this connection, the Committee wishes to refer to paragraphs 191 to 202 of the 2001 General Survey on the night work of women in industry in which it concluded that there can be no doubt that the present trend is clearly in support of lifting all restrictions on women’s night work and formulating gender-sensitive night work regulations offering safety and health protection to both men and women. It also noted that many countries are in the process of easing or eliminating legal restrictions on women’s employment during the night with the aim of improving women’s opportunities in employment and strengthening non-discrimination. The Committee recalled that member States are under an obligation to periodically review their protective legislation in the light of scientific and technological knowledge with a view to revising all gender-specific provisions and discriminatory constraints. This obligation stems from article 11(3) of the 1979 UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (to which parenthetically Ghana became a party in 1986) as later reaffirmed in point 5(b) of the 1985 ILO resolution on equal opportunities and equal treatment for men and women in employment. The Committee further indicated that the Night Work Convention, 1990 (No. 171), was drafted for those countries which would be prepared to eliminate all women-specific restrictions on night work (except for those aimed at protecting women’s reproductive and infant nursing role) while seeking to improve the working and living conditions of all night workers.

Considering, therefore, that the Convention no longer applies in either law or practice, and also recalling the need for an appropriate legal framework addressing the problems and hazards of night work in general, the Committee once again invites the Government to give favourable consideration to the ratification of the Night Work Convention, 1990 (No. 171), which shifts the emphasis from a specific category of workers and sector of economic activity to the safety and health protection of night workers irrespective of gender in nearly all branches and occupations. The Committee asks the Government to keep it informed of any decision taken in this regard.