Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2019, published 109th ILC session (2021)

Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87) - Serbia (Ratification: 2000)

The Committee notes the observations, received on 26 September 2019, made by the Confederation of Autonomous Trade Unions of Serbia (CATUS), the Serbian Association of Employers (SAE), and the Trade Union Confederation “Nezavisnost” (TUC Nezavisnost), concerning matters addressed in the present comment. The Committee requests the Government to provide its reply to the TUC Nezavisnost’s allegations of violations of trade union rights in practice.

The Committee takes due note of the Government’s comments on the observations made by the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and the CATUS in 2012, and by the TUC Nezavisnost in 2013.

Article 2 of the Convention. Right of employers to establish and join organizations of their own choosing without previous authorization. The Committee recalls that, for a number of years, it has been commenting upon the need to amend section 216 of the Labour Law, which provides that employers’ associations may be established by employers that employ no less than 5 per cent of the total number of employees in a certain branch, group, subgroup, line of business or territory of a certain territorial unit, in order to establish a reasonable minimum membership requirement. In its previous observations, the Committee had noted the Government’s indication that the Committee’s comments on section 216 would be taken into consideration in the course of the amendment of the Labour Law. The Committee had also observed that, in its conclusions, the 2011 Conference Committee considered that the Government should accelerate the long-awaited amendment of section 216 of the Labour Law and expressed concern at the lack of full participation of the social partners in the legislative review. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that: (i) the adoption of a new Labour Law by the Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Affairs is foreseen for 2020; (ii) apart from harmonizing the existing Law with the relevant EU Directives and other “acquis”, the new Law will specify more closely the provisions which have proved objectionable or insufficiently clear in practice; and (iii) the Ministry will take into consideration the Committees’ comments related to the amendments of the Labour Law, and consider their adoption in cooperation with other stakeholders and social partners. The Committee trusts that, in the process of revising the relevant legislation, which should be conducted in full consultation with the most representative workers’ and employers’ organizations, due account will be taken of the need to amend section 216 of the Labour Law so as to retain a reasonable minimum membership requirement that does not hinder the establishment of employers’ organizations. The Committee requests the Government to provide a copy of the new Labour Law as soon as it is adopted.

The Committee is raising other points in a request addressed directly to the Government.