Compilation of decisions of the Committee on Freedom of Association

Right of organizations freely to organize their activities and to formulate their programmes9

General principles

1. Freedom of association implies not only the right of workers and employers to form freely organizations of their own choosing, but also the right for the organizations themselves to pursue lawful activities for the defence of their occupational interests.

1. With regard to the rallies and strikes organized by the teachers unions, the Committee firstly recalls that freedom of association implies not only the right of workers and employers to form freely organizations of their own choosing, but also the right for the organizations themselves to pursue lawful activities including peaceful demonstrations for the defence of their occupational interests.

1. Any provision which gives the authorities, for example, the right to restrict the activities and objects pursued by trade unions for the furtherance and defence of the interests of their members would be incompatible with the principles of freedom of association.

1. Employers and workers organizations must be allowed to conduct their activities in a climate that is free from pressure, intimidation, harassment, threats or efforts to discredit them or their leaders, which includes the adulteration of documents.

1. Professional organizations of workers and employers should under no circumstances be subjected to retaliatory measures for having exercised their rights arising from ILO instruments on freedom of association, and especially for having lodged a complaint before the Committee on Freedom of Association.

Political activities and relations

1. In order that trade unions may be sheltered from political vicissitudes, and in order that they may avoid being dependent on the public authorities, it is desirable that, without prejudice to the freedom of opinion of their members, they should limit the field of their activities to the occupational and trade union fields; the government, on the other hand, should refrain from interfering in the functioning of trade unions.

1. In the interests of the normal development of the trade union movement, it would be desirable to have regard to the principles enunciated in the resolution concerning the independence of the trade union movement adopted by the International Labour Conference at its 35th Session (1952) that the fundamental and permanent mission of the trade union movement is the economic and social advancement of the workers and that when trade unions, in accordance with the national law and practice of their respective countries and at the decision of their members, decide to establish relations with a political party or to undertake constitutional political action as a means towards the advancement of their economic and social objectives, such political relations or actions should not be of such a nature as to compromise the continuance of the trade union movement or its social or economic functions irrespective of political changes in the country.

1. The Committee drew attention to the resolution concerning the independence of the trade union movement adopted by the International Labour Conference in 1952, which recalls that it is essential to preserve the freedom and independence of the trade union movement in all countries so that it can pursue its economic and social objectives regardless of any political changes.

1. The Committee has reaffirmed the principle expressed by the International Labour Conference in the resolution concerning the independence of the trade union movement that governments should not attempt to transform the trade union movement into an instrument for the pursuance of political aims, nor should they attempt to interfere with the normal functions of a trade union movement because of its freely established relationship with a political party.

1. Provisions imposing a general prohibition on political activities by trade unions for the promotion of their specific objectives are contrary to the principles of freedom of association.

1. If trade unions are prohibited in general terms from engaging in any political activities, this may raise difficulties by reason of the fact that the interpretation given to the relevant provisions may, in practice, change at any moment and considerably restrict the possibility of action of the organizations. It would, therefore, seem that States, without prohibiting in general terms political activities of occupational organizations, should be able to entrust to the judicial authorities the task of repressing abuses which might, in certain cases, be committed by organizations which have lost sight of the fact that their fundamental objective should be the economic and social advancement of their members.

1. Trade union organizations should not engage in political activities in an abusive manner and go beyond their true functions by promoting essentially political interests.

1. A general prohibition on trade unions from engaging in any political activities would not only be incompatible with the principles of freedom of association, but also unrealistic in practice. Trade union organizations may wish, for example, to express publicly their opinion regarding the governments economic and social policy.

1. There should be no confusion between the performance of their specific functions by trade unions and employers organizations, i.e. the defence and promotion of the occupational interests of workers and employers, and the possible pursuit by certain of their members of other activities that are unconnected with trade union functions. The penal responsibility which such persons may incur as a result of such acts should in no way lead to measures being taken to deprive the organizations themselves or their leaders of their means of action.

1. It is only in so far as trade union organizations do not allow their occupational demands to assume a clearly political aspect that they can legitimately claim that there should be no interference in their activities. On the other hand, it is difficult to draw a clear distinction between what is political and what is, properly speaking, trade union in character. These two notions overlap and it is inevitable, and sometimes usual, for trade union publications to take a stand on questions having political aspects, as well as on strictly economic and social questions.

1. The exercise of trade union rights might at times entail criticisms of the authorities of public employer institutions and/or of socio-economic conditions of concern to trade unions and their members.

1. In specific circumstances regarding certain categories of public servants, activities on issues going beyond socio-economic matters and touching upon national security issues do not fall within the scope of protection afforded by freedom of association principles.

1. With regard to legal provisions under which the trade unions shall mobilize and educate workers and employees so that they respect work discipline, they shall organize workers and employees by conducting socialist emulation campaigns at the workplace and the trade unions shall educate workers and employees in order to strengthen their ideological convictions, the Committee has considered that the functions assigned to the trade unions by this body of provisions must necessarily limit their right to organize their activities, contrary to the principles of freedom of association. It has considered that the obligations thus defined, which the unions must observe, prevent the establishment of trade union organizations that are independent of the public authorities and of the ruling party, and whose mission should be to defend and promote the interests of their constituents and not to reinforce the countrys political and economic systems.

1. A law obliging leaders of occupational associations to make a declaration to uphold democracy could lead to abuses, since such a provision does not include any precise criteria on which a judicial decision could be based were a trade union leader to be accused of not having respected the terms of the declaration.

Other activities of organizations (protest activities, representation of members, sit-ins, public demonstrations, etc.)

1. The right of petition is a legitimate activity of trade union organizations, and persons who sign such trade union petitions should not be reprimanded or punished for this type of activity.

1. Trade unions should be free to determine the procedure for submitting claims to the employer and the legislation should not impede the functioning of a trade union by obliging a trade union to call a general meeting every time there is a claim to be made to an employer.

1. Denouncing to the competent authorities insufficient occupational safety and health measures is in fact a legitimate trade union activity and a workers right which should be guaranteed by law.

1. If a government takes reprisals, directly or indirectly, against trade unionists or the leaders of workers or employers organizations for the simple reason that they protest against the appointment of workers or employers delegates to a national or international meeting, this constitutes an infringement of trade union rights.

1. Legislation which permits the competent authorities to ban any organization which carries on any normal trade union activity, such as campaigning for a minimum wage, if that activity has at time figured in the programme of trade union or other organization which has been declared to be unlawful, is incompatible with the generally accepted principle that the public authorities should refrain from any interference which would restrict the right of workers organizations to organize their activities and to formulate their programmes, or which would impede the lawful exercise of this right.

1. The expression of an opinion by a trade union organization concerning a court decision relative to the killing of trade union members is in fact a legitimate trade union activity.

1. By threatening retaliatory measures against workers who had merely expressed their intention to hold a sit-in in pursuance of their legitimate economic and social interests, the employer interfered in the workers basic right to organize their administration and activities and to formulate their programmes, contrary to Article 3 of Convention No. 87.

1. The extent to which the part played by the trade unions in organizing work competition and undertaking propaganda for production or the carrying out of economic plans is consistent with the fulfilment by the trade unions of their responsibility for protecting the interests of the workers depends on the degree of freedom enjoyed by the trade unions in other respects.

1. The Committee has considered that, while it is not called upon to express an opinion as to the desirability of entrusting the administration of social insurance and the supervision of the application of social legislation to occupational associations rather than to administrative state organs, in so far as such a measure might restrict the free exercise of trade union rights, such questions might be within its mandate: (1) if the trade unions exercise discrimination in administering the social insurance funds made available to them for the purpose of exercising pressure on unorganized workers; (2) if the independence of the trade union movement should thereby be compromised.

1. Neither legislation nor the application thereof should limit the right of employers and workers organizations to represent their members, including in cases of individual labour complaints.

1. The right of workers to be represented by an official of their union in any proceedings involving their working conditions, in accordance with procedures prescribed by laws or regulations, is a right that is generally recognized in a large number of countries. It is particularly important that this right should be respected when workers whose level of education does not enable them to defend themselves adequately without the assistance of a more experienced person, are not permitted to be represented by a lawyer and so can rely only on their union officers for assistance.

1. The restriction imposed on trade unions to represent their members in cases of appeal at the highest level or the restriction imposed on members to be represented by a lawyer rather than by their trade union, does not in itself constitute undue interference with the right to pursue lawful activities for the defence of workers or employers occupational interests.

1. The right of trade unions to organize their own administration and activities and to formulate their own programmes is not affected by the introduction of compulsory representation by a lawyer in the national courts. However, the introduction of a costly and previously non-existent obligation to be represented by a lawyer of the Court of Cassation, in other words a specialized lawyer, could, among other things, result in limiting the number of appeals lodged by trade unions or workers. This decree could also affect the rate of trade union membership, because fewer workers might be interested in joining trade unions if one of the trade union functions was removed.

1. The boycott is a very special form of action which, in some cases, may involve a trade union whose members continue their work and are not directly involved in the dispute with the employer against whom the boycott is imposed. In these circumstances, the prohibition of boycotts by law does not necessarily appear to involve an interference with trade union rights.

1. The choice of unionists to take part in purely union-organized training courses, wherever held, should be left to the workers organization or educational institution responsible for such activities and not be dictated by any political parties.

1. The question of the fixing of a private enterprise day by a central employers organization is a matter which should be decided freely by the occupational organization concerned and there should be no need for an administrative authorization of this kind of commemoration or the fixing of its date.