Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2022, published 111st ILC session (2023)

Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87) - Switzerland (Ratification: 1975)

Article 3 of the Convention. The right of organizations to organize their activities and to formulate their programmes. The Committee notes the decision of the Federal Court of 9 October 2018, ruling unconstitutional the prohibition of the right to strike for all cantonal health care personnel, given that the law adopted by the cantonal parliament did not distinguish between categories of personnel of public healthcare establishments, that is between those whose presence was or was not essential for the preservation of the life and health of patients. Referring to its previous comments relating to the denial of the right to strike in the public service in two cantons, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that there have been no new developments in this matter. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on this matter and to indicate, where relevant, any initiatives of the competent cantonal authorities concerned to ensure that the prohibition of the right to strike in the public service is limited strictly to officials exercising authority in the name of the State, or any applications for review by the courts on this subject.