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

Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87) - North Macedonia (Ratification: 1991)

The Committee notes the Government’s first report.

While noting the information provided by the Government, the Committee recalls that in its previous direct request it had raised the following points in respect of the Labour Relations Law of 2005.

1. Right to strike. According to section 236(5) of the Law, the strike notice shall include the indication of duration of the strike. The Committee considers that requiring workers and their organizations to specify the length of a strike would restrict the right of workers’ organizations to organize their administration and activities and to formulate their programmes. The Committee therefore once again requests the Government to take the necessary measures to amend its legislation so as to ensure that no legal obligation to indicate the duration of a strike is imposed on workers’ organizations and to keep it informed of measures taken or envisaged in this regard.

Section 239(3) of the Law provides that an employee may be dismissed if he or she organized or participated in a strike, which was not organized in compliance with the law. The Committee is of the view that workers should not be subject to disciplinary penalty, including dismissal, for, for example, not ending a strike on a predetermined date, as it would restrict the right of workers’ organizations to organize their activities and formulate their programmes. The Committee once again asks the Government to take the necessary measures to amend its legislation so as to ensure that disciplinary penalties cannot be imposed on workers for failure to end a strike on a predetermined date and to keep it informed of measures taken or envisaged in this respect.

Section 238(4) of the Law provides that if no agreement could be reached on the minimum services, the employer or the trade union may demand that the arbitration makes the decision. The Committee recalls that, in the event of a disagreement on the minimum services, a joint or independent body should issue enforceable decisions. The Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the arbitration referred to by section 238(4) and, in particular, on the composition thereof.

The Committee had previously requested the Government to provide the relevant legislation in respect of the right to strike of workers employed in the public sector. The Committee notes that the right to strike of civil servants is regulated by the Law on Civil Servants and that pursuant to section 34 of the Law on Civil Servants, when exercising their right to strike, civil servants are obliged to ensure minimum services. The Committee further notes the Government’s indication that pursuant to section 33 of the Law on Public Undertakings, workers of such undertakings have the right to strike, but must fulfil obligations towards citizens, legal entities and state authorities in order not to jeopardize life, health and economic and social security of the citizens, necessary economic activities in the country and fulfilment of international agreements. According to section 1 of that Law, public undertakings are established for performing activities in the public interest by the Government, municipality councils and the City of Skopje. The founder of the public undertakings prescribes which services cannot be stopped in the case of a strike. The Committee requests the Government to provide a copy of the Law on Public Undertakings, along with the list of the existing public undertakings.

2. Dissolution of an organization. According to section 201(2) of the Law, a trade union or an employers’ association shall terminate its activities if, without any important and justified reasons, it did not hold a meeting of its highest executive body for a period exceeding twice the period provided for in its statutes. According to section 202(1), the activities of an organization shall be banned if its activity is contrary to the Law. In view of the serious consequences which dissolution of a union or an employers’ organization involves for the occupational representation of its members, the Committee considers that it would appear preferable, in the interest of labour relations, if such action were to be taken only as the last resort, and after exhausting other possibilities with less serious effects for the organization as a whole. The Committee considers that not holding a meeting of a highest executive body of an organization for two consecutive times is not a sufficient ground for terminating the activities of a trade union or an employers’ organization. Moreover, the Committee considers that section 202(1) referring to the “activities contrary to the law” establishes excessively broad grounds by means of an open-ended definition for banning activities of an organization. The Committee considers that rather than being subject to dissolution, the organizations should be provided with an opportunity to rectify the absence of certain of the formal requirements established by the legislation. The Committee therefore requests the Government to take the necessary measures to repeal section 201(2) and to amend section 202(1) accordingly and to keep it informed of measures taken or envisaged in this respect.

According to section 201(3), a trade union or an employers’ organization shall terminate its activities if the number of its members decreases below the number of members required for establishment of an organization under the present law. Noting that no section of the Law on Labour Relations provides for a minimum membership requirement, the Committee requests the Government to provide clarification in this respect.

According to section 194(4) of the Law, if a trade union or an employers’ association ceases its activity, its property may not be divided among its members. The Committee considers that when a workers’ or employers’ organization ceases to exist, its assets should be distributed in accordance with its own rules, but where there is no specific rule, the assets should be at the disposal of the members concerned. The Committee therefore requests the Government to take the necessary measures to amend section 194(4) accordingly and to keep it informed of measures taken or envisaged in this respect.