Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2013, published 103rd ILC session (2014)

Night Work Convention, 1990 (No. 171) - Madagascar (Ratification: 2008)

Articles 4 and 6 of the Convention. Health assessment – Workers declared unfit for night work. Further to its previous comment, in which it pointed out the absence of any legislative text giving effect to Articles 4 and 6 of the Convention, the Committee notes that the Government refers in its latest report to section 259 of the Labour Code concerning measures relating to cleanliness, occupational safety and health, comfort in the workplace, and preventive and remedial measures. The Government also indicates that in practice, where a night worker, for reasons of health, is certified as unfit for night work, the decision taken by the employer is to the benefit of the worker. However, the Committee recalls that Article 4 of the Convention provides that night workers shall have the right to undergo a health assessment without charge: before taking up an assignment as a night worker; at regular intervals during such an assignment; and if they experience health problems during such an assignment, which are caused by night work. Moreover, Article 6 stipulates that night workers certified as unfit for night work shall be transferred to a similar job for which they are fit or, if such a transfer is not practicable, they shall be granted the same benefits as other workers who are unable to work. The Committee therefore requests the Government once again to take steps, once the situation in the country allows it, to adopt the necessary laws, regulations or other texts to give full effect to these Articles of the Convention.

Articles 5, 7, 9 and 10. Suitable first-aid facilities – Maternity protection – Social services – Consultation of workers’ representatives. The Committee notes the observations received on 2 September 2013 from the General Confederation of Workers’ Unions of Madagascar (FISEMA), which were forwarded to the Government on 19 September 2013. FISEMA indicates that, further to the ratification of the Convention by the Government, no major amendment relating to night work has been brought into the national legislation. A draft decree concerning the conditions of night work, submitted to the National Labour Council in March 2013, is currently under examination but contains various gaps in relation to the provisions of the Convention, particularly as regards suitable first-aid facilities (Article 5), social services (Article 9) and consultation of workers’ representatives (Article 10). In its last report, as regards first-aid facilities and social services, the Government refers to Decree No. 2003 1162 concerning occupational medicine; Decree No. 2007-007 establishing employer arrangements for providing transport for night workers and ensuring their safety; and section 125 of the Labour Code concerning workplace leisure areas. The Government also indicates that the workers’ representatives concerned are consulted with regard to the organization of work schedules, and that staff delegates may submit suggestions and study together with the employer any measures relating to the organization and performance of the enterprise and the provisions of the company regulations. The Committee hopes that the Government, in the context of the drawing up of a decree concerning the conditions of night work, will ensure the full and effective application of the abovementioned Articles of the Convention.