Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2020, published 109th ILC session (2021)

Unemployment Convention, 1919 (No. 2) - Morocco (Ratification: 1960)

The Committee notes the observations of the National Union of Labour in Morocco (UNTM) concerning the application of the Convention, which were sent with the Government’s report in August 2019. It also notes the Government’s reply contained in its 2019 report on the Private Employment Agencies Convention, 1997 (No. 181), indicating that a specific component of the National Employment Promotion Plan (PNPE) 2017–21 has been devoted to improving the functioning of the labour market and conditions of work (governance of the labour market).

Articles 1, 2 and 3 of the Convention. Measures to combat unemployment. Employment agencies. Unemployment insurance. The Committee previously asked the Government to provide statistics and detailed information on trends in unemployment and the measures taken to combat it (Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention). The Committee also asked the Government to provide information on the implementation of the Unemployment Benefit Act (Article 3 of the Convention). The Committee notes the detailed statistics provided by the Government which have been examined in relation to the Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122), particularly as regards trends in employment, which show a slight decrease in the unemployment rate from 10.2 per cent to 9.8 per cent for the period covered by the report. The Government indicates that Act 03-14 of 22 August 2014 amending and supplementing the Dahir issuing Act No. 1-72-184 of 27 July 1972 concerning the social security scheme came into force on 1 December 2014. It also indicates that severance pay, referred to in the last paragraph of section 53 of the Labour Code, derives from employer and worker contributions, which are 0.38 per cent and 0.19 per cent, respectively. The Government adds that unemployment benefit (IPE) is a benefit for persons insured with the National Social Security Fund (CNSS) who have lost their employment involuntarily and who meet the conditions of eligibility. Beneficiaries can receive IPE for a 6-month period. Moreover, they continue to benefit from compulsory health insurance (AMO) and family benefits during the period covered by IPE and are entitled to count the period of IPE coverage towards retirement insurance. In this regard, the Committee notes the statistics provided by the Government concerning the number of IPE applicants and beneficiaries for the 2015–18 period. It also notes that from the start of this operation until the end of 2018, the number of IPE beneficiaries totalled 47,193. The Government indicates that the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the measures taken to combat unemployment, and also the administration of IPE, are assigned to the National Agency for the Promotion of Employment and Skills (ANAPEC) and the CNSS. Under section 530 of the Labour Code, monitoring is entrusted to labour inspectorate employees belonging to the decentralized services of the Ministry of Labour and Employment (MTIP). The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the measures taken to combat unemployment and provide up-to-date statistical data, disaggregated by sex, age and economic sector on the impact of these measures and the number of persons receiving unemployment benefit (IPE). The Committee also requests the Government to continue referring to its comments relating to the Employment Policy Convention, 1964 (No. 122).

COVID-19. In the context of the COVID-19 global pandemic, the Committee recalls the guidance provided by international labour standards. In this regard, the Committee would like to draw the Government’s attention to the Employment and Decent Work for Peace and Resilience Recommendation, 2017 (No. 205), which provides guidelines for formulating and implementing measures that constitute an effective, consensual and inclusive response to the profound socio-economic impact of the pandemic. The Committee invites the Government to provide up-to-date information on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the implementation of policies and programmes adopted with a view to reducing or preventing unemployment.