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Termination of Employment Convention, 1982 (No. 158) - Niger (RATIFICATION: 1985)

Article 2(3) of the Convention. Adequate safeguards against abusive recourse to contracts of employment for a specified period of time. In its previous comments, the Committee requested the Government to provide detailed information on the manner in which section 62 of the Labour Code guarantees adequate protection against abusive recourse to contracts for a specified period of time, as it allows contracts for an unspecified period to be renewed freely and without limitation. The Committee notes that the Government makes general references to sections 61, 62 and 77(4) of the Labour Code, without indicating the manner in which the above-mentioned section 62 gives effect to Article 2(3) of the Convention. The Committee therefore reiterates its request to the Government to indicate the measures taken or envisaged to provide adequate safeguards against abusive recourse to contracts for an unspecified period of time. It also requests the Government to provide detailed information on the manner in which section 62 of the Labour Code gives effect to Article 2(3) of the Convention, and to provide copies of relevant court decisions relating to the application of this provision of the Convention.

Article 10. Granting of compensation, declaring unjustified termination invalid and reinstatement. In its reply to the Committee’s previous comments, the Government attaches three court decisions to its report. The Committee notes that in one of these decisions, the Niamey labour tribunal declared lawful and legitimate the dismissal of a worker for serious misconduct and ordered him to pay damages. In the two other decisions, both the local court and Niamey labour tribunal awarded compensation to the complainant workers for their unfair dismissal. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide relevant court decisions relating to the application of this provision of the Convention and, particularly, decisions declaring unjustified termination invalid and reinstating the worker.

Article 11. Period of notice. In its previous comments, the Committee requested the Government to provide relevant court decisions relating to the appraisal by the courts of the concept of serious misconduct set out in section 90 of the Labour Code which would allow termination without notice, as well as to keep it informed of any developments concerning the adoption of the draft regulations of the Labour Code. The Committee notes that the Government refers to the above-mentioned decisions attached to its report. The Committee notes that in one of these decisions, the local court, referring to the notion of serious misconduct set out in section 90(2) of the Labour Code, ruled that despite the proven serious misconduct, the dismissal of one of the workers was abusive because a double penalty, consisting of suspension and dismissal, had been imposed. Furthermore, the Committee notes that in another decision provided by the Government, the Niamey labour tribunal concluded that the dismissal of the worker was lawful and legitimate, having assessed the serious misconduct attributed to the worker (who, among other things, had reported, with malicious intent, acts of forgery and the use of forged handwriting falsely attributed to some senior staff in the enterprise). The tribunal also observed that the conditions under which a contract for an unspecified period may be terminated and the procedure to be followed are established in sections 78, 79 and 227 of the Labour Code. In addition, the Committee notes the adoption of Decree No. 2017-682/PRN/MET/PS on the regulatory component of the Labour Code, on 10 August 2017. It also notes that the above-mentioned Decree uses, but does not define, the notion of serious misconduct. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide relevant court decisions relating to the appraisal by the courts of the concept of serious misconduct set out in section 90 of the Labour Code.

Application of the Convention in practice. The Committee takes note of the court decisions attached by the Government to its report with regard to the justification for dismissal, the appraisal of serious misconduct and the notice period, whereby the court applied the principle of the prohibition of dismissal without just cause and consequently, awarded damages. It notes, however, that the Government does not provide statistics on the application in practice of the Convention. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing updated information on the application in practice of the Convention, particularly court decisions involving issues of principle relating to the application of the Convention. It once again requests the Government to provide statistics on the number of appeals against termination, the outcome of such appeals, the nature of the remedy awarded and the average time taken for an appeal to be decided.