Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2012, published 102nd ILC session (2013)

Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 (No. 81) - Haiti (Ratification: 1952)

Offer of technical assistance. The Committee notes the Government’s report, which focuses on the priorities established in the context of the efforts to revive the country following to the earthquake of January 2010, including through the promotion of employment, particularly in the construction sector, and on the obstacles encountered in the application of Convention No. 81.

The Committee further notes the observations of 31 August 2011 from the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), according to which the abrupt deterioration in working conditions which followed the earthquake highlights the existence of increasingly precarious and even dangerous forms of work, including for young children, and underlines the urgent need for a sound employment policy which focuses on strengthening labour inspection services in the capital and the provinces, including in the construction sector, which is likely to be the main source of jobs in the years to come.

Aware of the difficulties faced by the Government and the efforts which the latter must make to create the necessary conditions for application of the Convention, the Committee reminds the Government that it may avail itself of technical assistance from the ILO if it so wishes, including support for seeking the necessary resources in the context of international cooperation with a view to the progressive establishment of a labour inspection system which meets the requirements of the Convention. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on any formal steps taken to this end.

Articles 3, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17 and 18 of the Convention. Discharge of primary duties of the labour inspectorate. Further to the Committee’s previous comments, the ITUC stresses the need to reform the Labour Code, especially section 411, which stipulates that labour inspectors shall provide employers and workers with technical information and advice “where necessary”. The ITUC calls for full effect to be given to Article 3(1) of the Convention, despite the difficulties faced by the country. It refers to the information provided by the Confederation of Haitian Workers (CFOH), according to which labour inspectors have not produced any report since 1992 on any action taken and that they show a certain partiality with regard to enterprises, even where there are clear violations of workers’ rights. The ITUC also underlines the importance of activities linked to the export processing zone in terms of jobs created, especially for young women.

The Committee notes the Government’s proposal to modify the expression “where necessary” in section 411 as part of the revision of the Labour Code, which is due to take place with technical support from the ILO, with a view to harmonizing the Labour Code with the international labour Conventions ratified by Haiti. The Government also emphasizes that, despite the wording of section 411 of the Labour Code, inspections have been conducted regularly over the last three years in Port-au-Prince and certain departments of the country.

The Committee recalls that the role of the labour inspectorate must not be limited to reacting to requests from workers or employers, and that inspections of workplaces, whether scheduled or not, should be conducted as often and as thoroughly as necessary throughout the country (Article 16), in order to enable the labour inspectorate to discharge its primary duties, as provided for in Article 3(1). The Committee notes that the effectiveness of the inspection system and the credibility of inspectors for employers and workers depends largely on the manner in which inspectors exercise their prerogatives (right to enter workplaces, direct or indirect powers of injunction, reporting infringements, initiating proceedings, etc.) and meet their obligations (such as displaying probity and observing confidentiality), as established by Articles 3, 12, 13, 15, 17 and 18 of the Convention.

The Committee requests the Government to keep the Office informed of any progress made regarding the revision of section 411 of the Labour Code, so that the provision of technical information and advice to employers and workers is recognized as a permanent function of the labour inspectorate in conformity with Article 3(1)(b).

The Committee also requests the Government to supply detailed information together with statistics on the planning and implementation of systematic inspections throughout the country, including in the export processing zones, and also their results (identification of infringements or irregularities, technical advice and information, observations, injunctions, notices of infringement, legal proceedings initiated or recommended, penalties imposed and enforced), and to indicate any obstacles to the full application in practice of the prerogatives and obligations of labour inspectors.

Finally, the Committee requests the Government to send a copy of the report form on violations and of some of such reports which have already been completed.

Article 6, 8, 10 and 11. Human and material resources available to the labour inspectorate. The Government refers to the obstacles encountered in the application in practice of the Convention which, according to its report, are numerous: inadequate numbers of labour inspectors in view of the number, nature and size of workplaces liable to inspection and the complexity of the provisions of the Labour Code in force; lack of logistical resources; insufficient budget resources for paying reasonable salaries to labour inspectors; lack of mobile resources to facilitate the transportation of inspectors and enable them to fully perform their duties; premises inaccessible to certain persons (especially persons with disabilities).

According to the ITUC, the labour inspection services continue to lack the resources to be fully operational and show deficiencies in terms of supervision on the ground. According to the information supplied by the CFOH to the ITUC, as regards the total number of 100 serving labour inspectors, more than half (53 inspectors) are in a single department in the west of the country, while the numbers of inspectors in the other nine departments range from six to 20.

The Committee requests the Government to supply detailed information on the measures taken or envisaged, including having recourse to international financial aid, to obtain the necessary funds to build the capacities of the labour inspection system, especially by increasing the number of labour inspectors and the material and logistical resources available to the labour inspectorate.

The Committee also refers to paragraph 209 of its 2006 General Survey on labour inspection. While being fully aware of the problems faced by the Government, it is bound to emphasize the importance that it places on the treatment of labour inspectors in a way that reflects the importance and specific features of their duties and takes account of personal merit. The Committee requests the Government to indicate all the measures taken or envisaged to improve the status and conditions of service of inspectors, so that they correspond to the conditions of public officials performing comparable tasks, such as tax inspectors.

Articles 5(a) and 21(e). Effective cooperation with other government departments and with employers’ and workers’ organizations. The ITUC underlines the need to provide statistics that make it possible to assess any cooperation and procedures for such cooperation with other government departments and with employers’ and workers’ organizations. The Government, for its part, refers to cooperation between the labour inspectorate and other government departments, such as the National Office for Old-Age Insurance (ONA), the Office for Occupational Accident, Sickness and Maternity Insurance (OFATMA), the Office for the Protection of Citizens (OPC), and also civil society organizations for the defence of human rights. The Committee requests the Government to provide details of this cooperation and its impact on the effectiveness of the action of the labour inspectorate, with a view to the application of the legal provisions relating to conditions of work and the protection of workers while engaged in their work.

The Government also refers to cooperation between the labour inspectorate and the labour tribunal, to which files are referred for the imposition of penalties provided for by the law further to a report of non-compliance. The Committee recalls its general observation of 2007, in which it stressed the importance of measures enabling effective cooperation between the labour inspection system and the justice system, in order to encourage due diligence and attention in the treatment by judicial bodies of violations reported by labour inspectors, and in the disputes concerning the same fields which are submitted directly to them by workers or their organizations. The Committee requests the Government to provide statistics on the follow-up to reports of infringements submitted by the labour inspectorate to the judicial bodies and to state whether measures have been taken or envisaged to strengthen cooperation between the labour inspectorate and the justice system, for example by the creation of a system for the registration of judicial decisions accessible to the labour inspectorate, to enable the central authority to use this information to achieve its objectives, and to include them in the annual report, in accordance with Article 21(e) of the Convention.

The Committee also requests the Government to indicate the measures taken or envisaged to strengthen collaboration between the labour inspectorate and employers’ and workers’ organizations (Article 5(b)), including in the construction sector, which, in the opinion of the Government constitutes a priority for the revival of the country. The Committee recalls the guidance given in Paragraphs 4–7 of Labour Inspection Recommendation, 1947 (No. 81), regarding collaboration between employers and workers in relation to safety and health.

Article 7(3). Training of inspectors. Further to the Committee’s comments on this subject, the ITUC notes certain gaps in the area of training, whereas the Government refers to a number of training courses in 2008 and 2011 with the support of the ILO and international donors. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the measures taken or envisaged to develop a training strategy, and to provide information on the frequency, content and duration of training given to labour inspectors, and also on the number of participants and the impact of this training on the effective performance of labour inspection duties.

Article 14. Notification and registration of industrial accidents and cases of occupational disease. The Committee notes the comments of the ITUC on the need to provide data on this subject and the information provided by the Government according to which industrial accidents are notified to the general inspectorate of OFATMA. The Committee requests the Government to describe in detail the system for the notification of industrial accidents and cases of occupational disease and to indicate the measures taken or envisaged following the earthquake, in order to collect and supply statistics on this subject, including in the construction sector.

Articles 20 and 21. Annual inspection report. The ITUC also underlines the need to provide detailed statistics with a view to the publication of an annual report, as provided for in Article 20, containing information on the subjects listed in Article 21(a)–(g). The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government according to which the statistics were lost in the aftermath of the 2010 earthquake, but that efforts have been made since then to establish a new statistical database.

The Committee draws the Government’s attention to its general observation of 2010, in which it underlines the importance that it attaches to the preparation and publication of an annual report on the work of the labour inspection services. When properly drawn up, the annual report is an essential basis for evaluation of the operation in practice of the labour inspectorate and, consequently, for determining useful resources for improving its effectiveness. The publication of the annual inspection report, especially via modern technological means, can also facilitate the development of exchanges in the areas of conditions of work and protection of workers at regional and international levels, including through technical and financial cooperation. The Committee also recalls its general observation of 2009, in which it underlined the vital importance of the availability of a register of workplaces and enterprises liable to inspection, containing data on the number and categories of all workers employed there.

The Committee urges the Government, as a preliminary stage in the preparation of an annual inspection report and in order to evaluate the situation of the labour inspection services in terms of their needs, to compile an inventory and register of industrial and commercial workplaces liable to inspection (number, activity, size and geographical situation) and of the workers employed in them (number and categories), and to keep the Office informed of any progress made in this field.