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

Rural Workers' Organisations Convention, 1975 (No. 141) - Costa Rica (Ratification: 1991)

The Committee recalls that in its previous observation it requested the Government to supplement the administrative directive issued by the Ministry of Labour on 18 January 1999 with a text that sets out more clearly the right of trade union representatives to have access to farms and plantations and to meet with workers. In this respect, the Committee noted the Government’s undertaking to consider the Committee’s recommendations and it urged the Government to take the necessary measures to guarantee the right of trade union representatives to have access to farms and plantations and to meet with workers. In this respect, the Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that: (1) the administrative directive referred to was issued further to the recommendations of the Committee on Freedom of Association in the context of Case No. 1966 and on that occasion the Ministry of Labour and Social Security directly instructed the National Directorate of Inspection and the Directorate of Labour Affairs to engage in out-of-court conciliation action or, failing that, to undertake administrative investigations; (2) accordingly, the instruction was reiterated to the competent directorates to comply with the ruling of the Constitutional Chamber with a view to guaranteeing the application of the administrative settlement of cases of anti-union persecution or discrimination; (3) the content of the administrative directive referred to does not encompass all the existing provisions on trade union freedoms, but consists of a specific instruction issued in relation to a particular situation; (4) Costa Rica has a comprehensive system for the protection of workers’ trade union rights at the national level, encompassing all sectors of the economy, for which reason it is not currently necessary to amplify the provisions contained in the directive; (5) the protection of trade union rights is a priority of the State as they consist of rights that are understood and acknowledged to be fundamental (the Government refers to the provisions of the Constitution and of the law guaranteeing trade union rights and affording protection against their violation); (6) with regard to the matters raised in the comments, labour inspectors have the right to visit workplaces, of whatever nature, at the various hours of the day and even the night, with a view to carrying out inspections, and the Manual of Procedures of the Labour Inspectorate (the 2008 Directive) establishes the procedure for cases of unfair labour practices. The Committee notes this information.

The Committee also requested the Government to provide information on the complaints received and/or reported by the Ministry of Labour relating to violations of trade union rights in the agricultural sector, and particularly with regard to the question of the access of trade union leaders to farms and plantations. In this respect, the Committee notes the Government’s reiterated indication that there are no records of denunciations relating to these matters to the labour inspectorate, but that the Electronic Case System (SEC) established in the National Directorate of Labour Inspection and in regional inspection offices is currently being tested and inspectors are at the training stage. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that in the near future it will be possible to provide more detailed information on the nature of violations of labour provisions, and to generate more statistical data. The Committee hopes that once the SEC comes into operation, the Government will be able to provide the information requested.