Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2011, published 101st ILC session (2012)

Hours of Work (Commerce and Offices) Convention, 1930 (No. 30) - Panama (Ratification: 1959)

Article 7 of the Convention. Temporary exceptions – Annual limit on the number of additional hours and overtime pay. The Committee notes with regret that in reply to its numerous comments the Government merely repeats its previous indication that section 36(4) of the Labour Code cannot be amended to conform with the provisions of the Convention owing to a lack of consensus among the social partners. The Committee once again draws the Government’s attention to the fact that, while tripartite consultations are indeed necessary prior to any legislative reform, the Government bears the ultimate responsibility for the fulfilment of its international obligations, including the implementation of ratified ILO Conventions. The Committee again urges the Government to amend section 36(4) of the Labour Code in order to fix a reasonable annual limit to the number of additional hours authorized in the context of temporary exceptions and thereby bring the national legislation into conformity with the Convention on this point.

In addition, the Committee notes the observations made by the National Federation of Public Employees and Public Service Enterprise Workers (FENASEP) concerning the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29), received on 25 August 2011, which refer to overtime work in the public sector, and which are therefore also relevant to Convention No. 30. It also notes the Government’s reply received on 14 November 2011, in particular the reference to Act No. 43 of 30 July 2009, which amends Act No. 9 of 20 June 1994 regulating the administrative career service. The Committee will examine in detail the observations of the FENASEP as well as the Government’s response at its next session. In the meantime, the Committee requests the Government to provide any supplementary information which may be available concerning the measures taken or envisaged in order to ensure that: (i) public employees are authorized to perform additional hours only in the limited cases provided for in Article 7(2) of the Convention; (ii) an annual limit is introduced on the number of additional hours authorized, as required under Article 7(3) of the Convention; and (iii) additional hours are paid at not less than one and a quarter times the regular rate, as prescribed by Article 7(4) of the Convention.

Finally, the Committee draws the Government’s attention to the conclusions of the ILO Tripartite Meeting of Experts on Working Time Arrangements, held in October 2011, according to which the provisions of existing ILO standards relating to daily and weekly hours of work, weekly rest, paid annual leave, part time and night work, remain relevant in the twenty-first century, and should be promoted in order to facilitate decent work. The Experts also emphasized the importance of working time, its regulation, and organization and management, to: (a) workers and their health and well-being, including opportunities for balancing working and non-work time; (b) the productivity and competitiveness of enterprises; and (c) effective responses to economic and labour market crises.