Demande directe (CEACR) - adoptée 2024, publiée 113ème session CIT (2025)

Convention (n° 81) sur l'inspection du travail, 1947 - Aruba

Article 3 of the Convention. Additional duties entrusted to labour inspectors related to immigration. The Committee notes that, in reply to its previous comment, the Government indicates in its report that, due to Aruba's small scale, multiple departments and directorates are often involved in carrying out government tasks. Specifically, the Committee notes that: (i) the Department of Immigration and Alien Affairs (DIMAS) is responsible for leading investigations related to migrant workers; (ii) safety inspections fall under the purview of the Department for Technical Inspections, which operates within the Ministry of General Affairs, Innovation, Government Organisation, Infrastructure, and Spatial Planning; and (iii) health inspections are conducted by the Department of Public Health, under the Ministry of Tourism and Public Health. The Government indicates that for inspections of larger companies, a task force comprising these departments is formed to conduct labour inspections jointly. With regard to the work of the Bureau of Labor Inspection (BAI), which operates under the Directorate of Labor and Research, the Government indicates that the BAI is responsible for monitoring employers' and employees' compliance with labour laws and that, during BAI's labour inspections, inspectors occasionally encounter violations of the National Ordinance on Admission and Expulsion. At the same time, the Committee notes that according to the information provided by the Government, the labour inspectors of BAI are responsible for monitoring compliance not only of labour laws, but also of the said Ordinance. In this respect, the Committee notes the detailed information provided by the Government concerning the number of registered violations and the business sectors involved. The BAI recorded 11 such violations in 2021, 10 in 2022, and 11 in 2023. The Government indicates that, nevertheless, BAI does not deviate from its core tasks, as the primary source for inspection activities come directly from the Labor Disputes Office Bureau that processes complaints of possible labour law infractions. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the labour inspectorate's activities related to the National Ordinance on Admission and Expulsion and to indicate how it ensures that the additional responsibilities related to this Ordinance do not interfere with the fundamental objective of securing the protection of workers in accordance with the primary duties set out in Article 3(1) of the Convention. Noting the information regarding the registered violations of the National Ordinance on Admission and Expulsion, the Committee requests the Government to provide further information on the number of cases where sanctions were imposed for these registered violations, the receiver of the sanctions (workers, employers or both parties) and the type of sanctions imposed, including expulsion. In addition, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the number of labour rights restored to migrant workers affected by National Ordinance violations, including recovery of wages, overtime, and social security credits.

Articles 10 and 16. Number of labour inspectors and labour inspections. The Committee notes that the number of labour inspectors remained at 8 in 2021 and 2022, before dropping to 7 in 2023. The Committee also observes that the number of inspections rose significantly from 365 in 2021 to 983 in 2023, with detected violations increasing from 175 in 2021 to 969 in 2023. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the reasons for the sharp increase in the number of inspections conducted between 2021 and 2023 and the corresponding increase of detected violations. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the number of inspections conducted, disaggregated by type. The Committee further requests the Government to explain the nature of the violations related to the personnel register (66.7 per cent of the total). Finally, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken or envisaged to ensure that the number of labour inspectors is sufficient to secure the effective discharge of the duties of the inspectorate in accordance with Article 10.

Article 14. Notification of industrial accidents and cases of occupational disease to the labour inspectorate. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the corresponding government agencies are currently working on providing the necessary data. The Committee requests the Government to provide the relevant data once they become available and indicate the manner in which the labour inspectorate is notified of industrial accidents and cases of occupational diseases.It requests the Government to ensure that these data are included in the annual labour inspectorate report.

Articles 20 and 21. Publication, communication to the ILO and content of annual labour inspection reports. The Committee notes that the Government’s report contains information covering some of the subjects required under Article 21 and in particular includes information on the number of full-time employees of BAI, the number and type of inspections conducted, and violations registered for the same period for 2021–2023, as well as the number of employees of audited companies for 2023. However, the Committee once again notes that no annual inspection reports have been received by the Office since 2012. The Committee also notes that the Government points to practical difficulties encountered in the application of the Convention and indicates that an official request for assistance in the context of the labour inspectorate was submitted to the Minister of Social Affairs and Employment of the Netherlands. The Committee once again urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that annual labour inspection reports are regularly published and communicated to the ILO (Article 20 of the Convention), and that they contain information on all the subjects covered by Article 21(a)–(g). The Committee requests the Government to keep the Committee informed of any relevant developments concerning any assistance received by the Government of the Netherlands.