Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2015, published 105th ILC session (2016)

Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87) - Seychelles (Ratification: 1978)

The Committee takes note of the observations submitted by the Association of Seychelles Employers and the Seychelles Federation of Workers’ Unions (SFWU), received on 31 August 2015, which refer to matters already examined by the Committee. The Committee also takes note of the observations provided by the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) in a communication received on 1 September 2015, which are of a general nature.

The Committee recalls that for several years it has been commenting upon and requesting the Government to take the necessary measures to amend several provisions of the Industrial Relations Act (IRA) concerning the issues of trade union registration and the exercise of the right to strike. The Committee welcomes the Government’s indications that: (i) in 2012, the Ministry of Labour and Human Resources Development (MLHRD) established a committee to review the IRA, composed of representatives from the MLHRD, the employers’ and workers’ organizations and other stakeholders from the ministries, departments and a non-governmental organization; (ii) the IRA Committee actively met on four occasions between April and July 2013 during which it proceeded to an analysis of the IRA by order of the sections; and (iii) the social partners in the IRA Committee found that section 9(b) provided discretionary powers to the Registrar and was unnecessary as the issue of trade union activities likely to cause a serious threat to public safety, public order or public health was already covered by section 19 of the Public Order Act, 2013. The Committee further notes that in its report the Government informs that: (i) in relation to section 9(1)(f) of the IRA there are currently no specific qualifications required to hold any office in a trade union; (ii) since the IRA Committee only had a chance to examine sections 1 to 9, the Committee’s remaining comments regarding sections 52(1)(a)(iv), 52(4), 52(1)(b) and 56(1) have not yet been addressed; (iii) although a roadmap was prepared to ensure regular progress in the review of the IRA, priority was given to the review of the Employment Act, while the review of the IRA was put on hold due to the lack of expertise and human resources; (iv) as a result of the delay, the MLHRD contracted a consultancy to review the IRA to ensure its compatibility with the national labour legislation and international labour standards, the main work of which will be undertaken from September 2015 to February 2016, with the validation workshop of the IRA draft scheduled to take place in February 2016; (v) the terms of reference of the IRA consultancy were forwarded to the ILO Country Office in Antananarivo; and (vi) the Committee’s comments will be considered by both the IRA Committee and the IRA consultancy in their review of the legal instrument. The Committee observes that the Government expressed the need for ILO technical assistance and stated that it would forward the IRA draft for the ILO’s comments prior to the validation workshop.

The Committee trusts that the review of the IRA will continue without delay, in consultation with the social partners and with the technical assistance of the ILO requested by the MLHRD, and that the following sections of the IRA will be amended taking into account the Committee’s previous comments:

• -section 9(1)(b) and (f), which confers on the Registrar discretionary power to refuse registration;
• -section 52(1)(a)(iv), which provides that a strike has to be approved by two thirds of union members present and voting at the meeting called for the purpose of considering the issue;
• -section 52(1)(b), which provides for a cooling-off period of 60 days before a strike may begin;
• -section 52(4), which allows the minister to declare a strike to be unlawful if he or she is of the opinion that its continuance would endanger, among other things, “public order or the national economy”; and
• -section 56(1), which imposes penalties of up to six months of imprisonment for organizing or participating in a strike declared unlawful on the basis of the IRA provisions.

The Committee requests the Government to provide information on any developments in this respect.