Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2007, published 97th ILC session (2008)

Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 (No. 81) - Ghana (Ratification: 1959)

The Committee notes the Government’s brief reply to its previous comments. It notes with interest the provisions of the 2003 Labour Code which give substantial effect to numerous provisions of the Convention and requests the Government to provide a copy of any text issued under the Labour Code concerning the organization, work and means of action of the labour inspectorate, for the purposes set out in the Convention. It also requests the Government to provide practical information on the action taken by the Labour Department and the National Labour Commission on the results of  inspections brought to their attention by inspectors.

Article 12, paragraph 1, of the Convention. Right of inspectors to enter freely workplaces liable to inspection. The Committee notes that the right of labour inspectors to enter workplaces, as defined by section 124(a) of the Labour Act, is not in conformity with the requirements of Article 12, paragraph 1(a), of the Convention. Their right of entry should be extended so that it can be exercised not only during working hours, but also at any hour, including periods when work is not in progress, in workplaces liable to inspection. Labour inspectors could then carry out technical inspections requiring machinery to be stopped and verify, if necessary, that clandestine work is not being carried out in workplaces during periods when they are officially closed. The Committee therefore requests the Government to take measures to supplement the relevant legislation to extend the right of free entry of labour inspectors to periods that do not coincide with the working hours of the establishment and to keep the ILO informed.

Article 11. Means of action of labour inspectors. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would describe as precisely as possible the material resources of labour inspectors (location and layout of inspection offices, IT resources, telephones and technical equipment), as well as the transport facilities at their disposal to travel to workplaces for inspection purposes. The Committee also requests the Government to describe the procedure for the payment or reimbursement of their travel expenses to that end and to provide a copy of any relevant text, as well as information on the measures taken or envisaged to strengthen the resources of the labour inspection services for the purposes set out in the Convention.

Article 14. Notification to the labour inspectorate of industrial accidents and cases of occupational disease. The Government is requested to indicate the manner in which inspectors are notified in practice of occupational accidents and in which the relevant statistics are produced and used by the inspection services with a view to developing a strategy for preventing risks.

Articles 17 and 18. Impact of labour inspection actions on the extent to which the legal provisions covered by the Convention are applied by employers. In the absence of information on inspection activities and their results, the Committee is not in a position to assess the impact of the new approach to labour inspection which, according to the Government, favours a social partnership attentive to the mutual interests of employers and workers in improved protection for workers with a view to increasing productivity, rather than taking legal proceedings against employers who have committed a violation. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide practical information on the mechanisms established in this regard, specify the role assigned to inspectors and provide information on the impact, in practice, of the new approach of the labour inspectorate relating to conditions of work in workplaces liable to inspection, supported in so far as possible by practical examples backed up by figures.

Articles 20 and 21. Annual report on the work of the labour inspection services. The Committee notes that the annual inspection report for 2006 was not ready when the Government’s report was sent. It hopes that the annual report will be published in the near future and that a copy will be provided to the ILO in good time, in accordance with Article 20 of the Convention. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would also provide with its next report any statistics available on the subjects referred to in Article 21(c) to (g) for previous years so that the Committee can assess developments in the inspection system and the extent of its coverage in relation to the number of workplaces liable to inspection and the number of workers covered.

Labour inspection and child labour. Noting the information provided by the Government in its report on the application of the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182), concerning the measures to combat child labour implemented in the context of various programmes and in different sectors of activity, the Committee requests the Government to provide information in its next report on this Convention on the material, logistical and practical resources made available to labour inspectors to enable them to discharge the duties entrusted to them by the relevant legislation. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would also specify the delay between the notification by the labour inspector to the police of a violation of the legislation on child labour and the implementation by the police of the appropriate action to bring an end to the violation and to punish the person responsible, and if it would provide information on the results of the inspection activities carried out in this regard. Finally, the Government is requested to indicate the manner in which it ensures that labour inspectors are informed of the action taken as a result of their reports in order to ensure the relevant follow-up of the workplaces concerned.