Weekly Rest (Commerce and Offices) Convention, 1957 (No. 106) - Gabon (RATIFICATION: 1973)

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Article 6 of the Convention. Right to weekly day of rest. The Committee notes that section 1 of the Labour Code stipulates that persons appointed to a permanent post in a public administration are not covered by the Code. The Committee also notes that Act No. 002/2005 establishing the general statute for the public service does not provide for the right to a weekly day of rest. The Committee therefore requests the Government to indicate whether and how it plans to guarantee that public employees with a permanent contract benefit from weekly rest of at least 24 consecutive hours in each period of seven days. Noting that the Office has not received a copy of the collective agreement for the commerce sector, the Committee again requests the Government to send the entire text of the collective agreement, along with a copy of any other sectoral collective agreement dealing with the weekly day of rest that is currently in force.

Articles 7 and 8. Permanent and temporary exceptions. The Committee notes the adoption of Decree No. 0933/PR/MTEPS establishing the daily distribution of the working week, which provides for a legal working week of 40 hours spread over five days, from Monday to Friday, except in establishments operating round the clock and those where social implications call for a different distribution. The Committee also notes that section 7 of the Decree stipulates that sectoral and/or work agreements must be adopted, as required, to introduce any practical arrangements that may be necessary to comply with the legal provisions regarding the working week. The Committee requests the Government to provide additional information on the application of section 7 of Decree No. 0933/PR/MTEPS and to transmit a copy of any sectoral and/or works agreement that may be in force which deals with practical arrangements for the weekly day of rest in commercial establishment.

The Committee further notes that Decree No. 726/PR/MTEFP of 29 June 1998 made under section 165 of the Labour Code, which appears to be still in force, provides for the possibility of permanent and temporary exceptions to the legal hours of work, for example in sectors where there may be normal seasonable reductions in the workload because of the conditions in which they operate so as to permit the execution of preparatory or complementary work, or in the case of urgent work so as to avoid accidents or to cope with an unexpected increase in the workload. Recalling that, according to Articles 7(2) and 8(3) of the Convention, compensatory rest is compulsory and not optional in the case of exceptions, the Committee requests the Government to inform it whether the normal weekly rest of at least 24 consecutive hours in commerce and offices may be affected by these exceptions and, if so, to indicate the steps that have been taken or envisaged to guarantee compensatory rest as required by the Convention.

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Article 6 of the Convention. Right to weekly day of rest. The Committee notes that, in application of section 183 of the Labour Code, Decrees Nos 726/PR/MTEFP and 728/PR/MTEFP of 29 June 1998 establish specific procedures for fixing weekly hours of rest for certain branches of activity. Furthermore, it notes that the weekly rest period is also regulated under numerous collective agreements. It requests the Government to send the entire text of the collective agreement covering the commerce sector, as only Annex 1 was enclosed with Government’s last report.

Furthermore, the Committee notes that, according to the Government, workers in the public sector, despite their exclusion from the scope of application of Decree No. 728/PR/MTEFP, benefit in practice from a weekly rest period of 48 hours on Saturdays and Sundays. It requests the Government to keep the Office informed of any project to adopt legal provisions or regulations applicable to this group of workers, thereby giving effect to the Convention.

Article 7. Special weekly rest schemes. The Committee notes that sections 3 and 10 of Decree No. 726/PR/MTEFP provide for permanent exemptions to statutory working time in order to make up for hours of work lost or to carry out preparatory or additional work. Given that such exemptions might have an impact on the weekly rest period, for example by establishing a special scheme for certain categories of workers or certain types of establishments, the Committee would be grateful if the Government would clarify how effect is given to the provisions of this Article of the Convention, and especially to the obligation to grant a compensatory rest period.

Article 8. Temporary exemptions. The Committee notes the possibility, provided under sections 3, 8 and 9 of Decree No. 726/PR/MTEFP, of making up for hours of work lost in return for pay at the normal hourly rate. It also notes that, according to section 14 of the Decree, the employer may, inter alia, extend working time without restrictions during one day, in the event of urgent work needed to prevent accidents or do repairs after accidents, for which workers are paid the normal hourly rate; the employer may also ask his/her workers to do overtime of up to 20 hours per week, in the event of work justified by a lack of labour, and the hours of work are considered as overtime. Recalling that Article 8 of the Convention only authorizes temporary exemptions to the weekly rest period in strictly defined circumstances and that it provides for the granting of a compensatory rest period of a total duration of at least 24 hours to all workers whose rest period has been temporarily suspended or reduced, the Committee would be grateful if the Government would indicate whether the weekly day of rest might be affected by these exemptions to the statutory limits on working time.

Part V of the report form. Practical application. The Committee requests the Government to provide general information on the practical application of the Convention, especially statistical data concerning the number of workers covered by the legislation giving effect to the Convention, extracts from reports of inspection services indicating the number of violations of the regulations pertaining to weekly rest which have been recorded and the penalties imposed in this respect, copies of relevant collective agreements, etc.

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The Committee notes the Government’s report and the information given in reply to its previous comments.

Article 2 of the Convention. The Committee notes that Decree No. 728/PR/MTEFP of 29 June 1998 establishing the distribution of working hours repeals, among others, Decree No. 174/PR/MTERHFP of 14 February 1990 on the same issue, which explicitly includes the public sector. Since Decree No. 728/PR/MTEFP only covers the para-public and private sectors, the Committee reiterates its former request and asks the Government to indicate the national provisions applicable to weekly rest within the public sector, the Convention covering the sectors listed in Article 2, irrespective of whether they are public or private.

Articles 6, 7, 8, 9 and 11. The Committee again requests the Government to provide a copy of the Collective Agreement on Commerce.

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Article 2 of the Convention. The Committee notes the promulgation of Act No. 12/2000 of 12 November 2000 amending Act No. 3/94 of 21 November 1994 concerning the Labour Code. It also notes the abrogation of Decree No. 140/PR/MTERHFP of 14 February 1990 by Decree No. 728/PR/MTEFP of 29 June 1998 establishing the distribution of weekly hours of work. The Committee points out that the latter, unlike the one previously in force, is only applicable to the para-public and private sectors. The Government is therefore asked to indicate the national provisions applicable to weekly rest within the public sector, the Convention being applicable to the sectors listed in Article 2, irrespective of whether they are public or private.

Articles 6, 7, 8, 9 and 11. The Government states in its report that special schemes, exemptions and other variations with respect to weekly rest are laid down pursuant to the aforementioned Decree and the collective agreement on commerce. The Committee asks the Government to provide a copy of the collective agreement with its next report.