Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2010, published 100th ILC session (2011)

Nursing Personnel Convention, 1977 (No. 149) - New Caledonia

Article 2(1) and (2) of the Convention. National policy on nursing services and nursing personnel. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that a reform of conditions of work in the nursing profession is currently in progress. It requests the Government to keep the Office informed of all progress made in this sphere and to supply copies of any new legislation once it has been adopted.

Article 5(1). Participation of nursing personnel in the planning of nursing services and consultation of nursing personnel on decisions concerning them. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that no measures have been taken to strengthen the participation of nursing personnel in the planning of nursing services and the consultation of nursing personnel on decisions concerning them. It recalls that, since the constitutional amendment of 2003, it is up to local authorities to organize, where appropriate, active consultations with occupational organizations regarding public health issues. Recalling that Article 5 of the Convention requires the adoption of measures to promote the participation of nursing personnel in the planning of nursing services and consultation with such personnel on decisions concerning them, the Committee again requests the Government to indicate the measures which it expects to take to give effect to the provisions of the Convention on this point.

Article 5(2). Determination of conditions of employment and work through collective negotiation. Further to its previous comment concerning the measures taken to harmonize the situation of the public and private nursing sectors, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that a draft Decision relating to the exercise and professional regulation of the nursing profession is being drawn up and that it provides for the establishment of a nursing association grouping together all accredited nursing personnel in New Caledonia, and also an association council composed of elected members representing nursing personnel in the public and private sectors and in independent practice. The Committee requests the Government to keep the Office informed of any developments in this sphere and to supply a copy of the Decision once it has been adopted. The Committee also requests the Government to supply information on the collective agreements in force in the sector and on any changes to the methods for determining conditions of employment and work for nursing personnel.

Article 5(3). Procedures for the settlement of disputes arising in connection with the determination of terms and conditions of employment. The Committee again requests the Government to supply information on procedures for the settlement of disputes arising in connection with the determination of terms and conditions of employment, especially in the public sector.

Article 6(a) and (b). Conditions at least equivalent to those of other workers. Hours of work and weekly rest. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that there are no specific provisions concerning hours of work of nursing personnel in the public sector but that no complaints have been recorded in this sphere. Recalling that Article 6 of the Convention prescribes that nursing personnel shall enjoy conditions at least equivalent to those of other workers, including with regard to hours of work, compensation of overtime, inconvenient hours, shift work and weekly rest, the Committee again requests the Government to supply detailed information on all aspects of working time arrangements for nursing personnel in view of the special nature of the profession. In this regard, the Committee draws the Government’s attention to Paragraphs 30–43 of the Nursing Personnel Recommendation, 1977 (No. 157), which provide useful information in this area.

Article 7. Occupational safety and health. Further to its previous comments, the Committee notes that the Social and Health-Care Agency of New Caledonia has adopted a multi-sectoral plan for 2008–13 (PMT 5), one of the priorities of which is the training of health-care professionals and the civil population on various subjects connected with HIV/AIDS and sexually transmissible infections (STIs), in accordance with the Joint ILO–WHO Guidelines on Health Services and HIV/AIDS, published in 2005, which aim to assist health services in reinforcing their capacity to provide their workers with a healthy and decent working environment, this being the most effective means for reducing HIV transmission and improving the provision of care to patients. The Committee also wishes to refer in this regard to the HIV and AIDS Recommendation, 2010 (No. 200), adopted by the International Labour Conference in June 2010, and in particular Paragraphs 31 and 37 thereof, which provide for the adoption of occupational safety and health measures, particularly in occupations most at risk including in the health sector, and also for the implementation of national HIV/AIDS policies and programmes through sectoral strategies, with particular attention paid to the sectors in which workers are most at risk. The Committee therefore requests the Government to supply detailed information on the impact of PMT 5 on the conditions of work of nursing personnel and to keep the Office informed of any new measures adopted or contemplated with a view to improving the protection of nursing personnel against infectious diseases, including HIV/AIDS.

Part V of the report form. Application in practice. The Committee requests the Government to continue to supply general information on the manner in which the Convention is applied in practice, including, for example, statistics on the numbers of nursing personnel – if possible, by levels of training and functions, sex and age – the nurse-to-population ratio, the number of persons joining and leaving the profession each year, copies of official reports or studies relating to nursing services, and information on any practical difficulties encountered in the implementation of the Convention, such as understaffing, migration of nursing personnel, etc.