Effect given to the recommendations of the committee and the Governing Body - Report No 323, November 2000

Case No 1931 (Panama) - Complaint date: 12-JUN-97 - Closed

Effect given to the recommendations of the Committee and the Governing Body

1. 69. At its meeting in June 1999, referring to its request that the Government consider amending certain provisions in its legislation which presented problems in terms of conformity with Conventions Nos. 87 and 98, the Committee had noted that the Government had begun general consultations with the social partners and had requested it to keep it informed of the outcome of these consultations [see 321st Report, para. 54].
2. 70. In its communication dated 6 September 2000, the Government reports a divergence of views among the social partners concerning the amendment of certain legislative provisions and points out that the Government does not have the necessary majority in Parliament to pass a bill amending the Labour Code. The Government states that in order to carry out legislative reform consultations first had to be held and a consensus achieved among the social partners. Faced with this complex situation, the Government reaffirms its determination to make every effort to enable the representative organizations of employers and workers to reach, through dialogue, the agreement that would make it possible to present draft legislation covering all of the points raised by the Committee on Freedom of Association. To this effect, the Government deems it appropriate to request technical assistance from the San José Multidisciplinary Team, which would help reach a favourable solution to this case, and hopes that once such assistance has been obtained this will open the way to the tripartite consensus necessary to resolve the matter.
3. 71. The Committee notes this information and hopes that such technical assistance will make it possible to register progress in the near future.