Definitive Report - Report No 355, November 2009

Case No 2682 (Panama) - Complaint date: 13-OCT-08 - Closed

Allegations: Delays in granting of legal personality to a trade union in the public healthcare sector

1. 938. The complaint is contained in a communication sent by the National Council of Organized Workers of Panama (CONATO), dated 13 October 2008. The Government submitted its observations in a communication dated 26 March 2009.
2. 939. Panama has ratified the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), and the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98).

A. The complainant’s allegations

1. 940. In its communication dated 13 October 2008, CONATO alleges that, in January 2007, the National Association of Occupational Health Workers (ANATSO) filed an application with the Ministry of Government and Justice for legal personality, which had not been granted at the time the complaint was presented.
2. 941. CONATO states that on 21 May 2007, the Ministry of Government and Justice ordered the union to amend its statutes, drawn up in January 2007, which the applicants did. On 11 July 2007, the amendments were submitted to the Ministry of Government and Justice. On 24 September 2007, the same amendments had to be resubmitted, together with new amendments requested by the Ministry, because the Ministry of Government and Justice “had misplaced them”. On 9 April 2008, the Ministry of Government and Justice once again requested amendments to the draft statutes. On 14 April 2008, these amendments were submitted to the Ministry. On 22 May 2008, however, the Ministry of Government and Justice requested further amendments to the draft statutes, to conform with the observations of the Social Insurance Fund (CSS), which the Ministry of Government and Justice had consulted regarding the content of the statutes, and which had submitted its observations on 2 April 2008 (in other words, on 9 April the Ministry of Government and Justice had been aware of the CSS’s observations, but had not included them in the observations which it requested on that date).
3. 942. According to CONATO, most of the observations and requests for amendments by the CSS, which the Ministry of Government and Justice asked the union to carry out in May 2008, had already been incorporated.
4. 943. CONATO cites Article 2 of Convention No. 87 relating to the freedom to establish trade union organizations without interference from the public authorities, and highlights the constant requests for amendments and the negligence of the authorities which, in its opinion, resulted in a violation of freedom of association.

B. The Government’s reply

1. 944. In its communication dated 26 March 2009, the Government states that, in a decision dated 9 March 2009, the Ministry of Government and Justice granted legal personality to ANATSO. The Government encloses a copy of the decision, which states that the trade union had welcomed the observations and recommendations made in relation to its statutes, and that the documentation submitted was in compliance with the applicable legislation.
2. 945. Lastly, the Government considers that the complaint presented by CONATO is now groundless.

C. The Committee’s conclusions

1. 946. The Committee observes that in the present complaint, the complainant organization alleges a delay of more than two years in the granting of legal personality, due to successive requests for amendments to the union’s statutes by the Ministry of Government and Justice (the complainant organization encloses the relevant documentation and stresses that some of the amendments concerned points on which no objections had previously been raised) and the negligence of the authorities, who even requested amendments that had already been made.
2. 947. The Committee notes with interest the Government’s statement that ANATSO was granted legal personality on 9 March 2009. However, the Committee regrets the excessive delay in processing the application, given that the request for legal personality was first submitted in January 2007.
3. 948. The Committee also observes that this delay was partly due to the fact that the Ministry of Government and Justice sent the ANATSO statutes to the CSS, so that it could offer its observations, which the Committee considers to be contrary to the principle that employers or their organizations should not be involved in the procedure for granting legal personality to trade unions. The Committee requests the Government to refrain in the future from asking an employer to provide observations concerning the statutes of a trade union which the workers have decided to establish.
4. 949. Lastly, the Committee requests the Government to ensure in the future that applications for legal personality are handled rapidly and without undue delays in regard to amendments which need to be made to statutes to ensure compliance with the applicable legislation.

The Committee's recommendations

1. 950. In the light of its foregoing conclusions, the Committee invites the Governing Body to approve the following recommendations:
   • (a) Regretting the excessive delay in the granting of legal personality to ANATSO, the Committee requests the Government to ensure in future that applications for legal personality filed by trade unions are handled rapidly and without undue delays.
   • (b) The Committee requests the Government to ensure in future that, when trade unions apply to the authorities for legal personality, the latter do not ask employers or their organizations for their observations.