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

Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98) - Uruguay (Ratification: 1954)

The Committee notes the supplementary information provided by the Government in the light of the decision adopted by the Governing Body at its 338th Session (June 2020). The Committee proceeded with the examination of the application of the Convention on the basis of the supplementary information received from the Government and the observations submitted by the social partners this year, as well as on the basis of the information at its disposal in 2019.

The Committee notes the observations of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), received on 1 September 2019. It also notes the joint observations of the National Chamber of Commerce and Services of Uruguay (CNCS), the Chamber of Industries of Uruguay (CIU) and the International Organisation of Employers (IOE), received on 1 September and 22 November 2019, and also on 30 September 2020 which, like the observations of the ITUC, concern matters addressed by the Committee in this comment. The Committee also notes the Government’s replies to the observations of the employers’ organizations from 2019 and 2020.

Follow-up to the conclusions of the Committee on the Application of Standards (International Labour Conference, 108th Session, June 2019)

The Committee notes the discussions that took place in the Committee on the Application of Standards of the Conference (hereinafter: the Conference Committee), in June 2019, on Uruguay’s application of the Convention. The Committee notes that the Conference Committee urged the Government to: (i) initiate legislative measures by 1 November 2019, after full consultation with the most representative employers’ and workers’ organizations and taking into consideration the recommendation of the ILO supervisory bodies, in order to guarantee the full compliance of national law and practice with the Convention; and (ii) prepare, in consultation with the most representative employers’ and workers’ organizations, a report to be submitted to the Committee of Experts before 1 September 2019, providing detailed information on actions undertaken to make progress in the full application of the Convention in law and practice.

Article 4 of the Convention. Promotion of free and voluntary bargaining. For several years, the Committee, together with the Committee on Freedom of Association (Case No. 2699), has been requesting the Government to revise Act No. 18566 of 2009 (establishing the fundamental rights and principles of the collective bargaining system, hereinafter: Act No. 18566) with a view to ensuring the full compliance of the Act with the principles of collective bargaining and the Conventions ratified by Uruguay in this area. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that, in 2015, 2016 and 2017, the Government submitted to the social partners several proposals for legislative amendments, which the Government indicated had not achieved the necessary agreement between the parties.

In its last comment, the Committee noted from the Government’s report that: (i) on 29 October 2019, following various tripartite meetings, the Government submitted to Parliament a bill amending some aspects of Act No. 18566 of 11 September 2009; and (ii) the bill combined the proposals the Government made from 2015 up to the present time.

The Committee noted that, in their 2019 observations, the CNCS, CIU and IOE indicated that the proposed amendments contained in the bill were insufficient and that some of them should have been drafted differently. They also indicated that in the tripartite meetings the Government indicated that it would prepare a bill, so long as consensus was reached. The Committee also noted that, according to the Government, at the tripartite meetings that took place, the Inter-Union Assembly of Workers – Workers’ National Convention (PIT-CNT) indicated that while it was willing to engage in dialogue, it thought that Act No. 18566 did not warrant amendment. For its part, the ITUC indicated that more than 90 per cent of workers were protected by collective agreements and that care was required when taking measures that could destabilize this effective mechanism.

The Committee noted that the proposed amendments contained in the bill had already been submitted in the Government’s previous report. While recalling that it considered that those amendments were in compliance with the requirement of Article 4 of the Convention to promote free and voluntary collective bargaining, the Committee regretted to observe that, despite its repeated comments, the bill did not propose amendments or clarifications regarding the competence of the Wage Boards in relation to adjustments made to wages that are above the minimum for the occupational category and working conditions (section 12 of Act No. 18566). The Committee noted that the CNCS, CIU and IOE expressed concern in that regard.

The Committee took the opportunity to recall once more that although the establishment of minimum wages may be subject to decisions by tripartite bodies, Article 4 of the Convention seeks to promote bipartite negotiation for the setting of working conditions, whereby all collective agreements establishing working conditions shall result from an agreement between employers or employers’ organizations and workers’ organizations. The Committee also emphasized that mechanisms can be established that would guarantee both the free and voluntary nature of collective bargaining and the effective promotion thereof, while ensuring that the country’s existing collective agreements continue to offer a high level of coverage.

The Committee notes that, in their observations from 2020, after recalling their criticism of the bill, the CIU, IOE and CNCS point out that in March 2020 a new Government took office and that, having reached the close of the legislative session, the bill was shelved, thus losing its parliamentary status without any of its provisions being adopted or even addressed. The employers’ organizations express concern at the Government’s persistent failure to comply with the recommendations that this Committee has now been making for many years, and they highlight the need for the Government to present a new bill, which may or may not build on antecedents.

The Committee notes from the Government’s supplementary report that, 13 days after it took office, a health emergency was declared due to the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in restrictions on activities and meetings and rendering it impossible to make progress with regard to the issues raised in this comment. The Committee notes that the Government, in reply to the observations of the employers’ organizations, reaffirming its commitment to respect international standards, indicates that in November 2019, it set forth the outline of a government plan in a document entitled “Commitment for the Country”, in which includes it undertook to integrate the ILO’s observations into collective bargaining law by amending the current regulations. The Committee also notes, according to the Government, that: (i) it intends to initiate a new phase of dialogue, without ruling out the possibility of recourse to ILO technical assistance; (ii) during this new phase of dialogue, the Government would present a new bill, taking the draft already submitted and now shelved as input, together with the comments made in its regard by the social partners; and (iii) it was in the process of drafting a bill on the legal personality of trade union organizations, which it will shortly share with the social partners, and which will cover some areas of the observations.

While duly recognizing the particular difficulties caused by the pandemic that the Government has had to confront since taking office, the Committee regrets that to date no progress has been achieved in terms of integrating its recommendations into the legislation. However, taking due note of the commitment made by the Government to adjust the legislation in light of the Committee’s comments, the Committee strongly hopes that, after consulting the social partners, the Government will place before Parliament, as soon as possible, a bill that, conforming to the outline proposed in its latest comments, fully guarantees both the free and voluntary nature of collective bargaining and the continued effective promotion thereof, in accordance with the Convention. The Committee requests the Government to report on all progress in that regard and recalls that it can continue to count on the technical assistance of the Office. It also requests it to provide information on the bill on the legal personality of trade union organizations.