Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2020, published 109th ILC session (2021)

Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98) - Argentina (Ratification: 1956)

The Committee takes note of the supplementary information provided by the Government in the light of the decision adopted by the Governing Body at its 338th Session (June 2020), giving details of the measures adopted as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic (which it also noted in its observation regarding the Freedom of Association and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1948 (No. 87)), as well as providing detailed and updated information on the state of collective bargaining and on the collective agreements approved (in that connection, the Committee refers to its observation regarding the application of the Collective Bargaining Convention, 1981 (No. 154)).

The Committee also notes the observations of (i) the Industrial Confederation of Argentina (UIA), communicated with the Government’s supplementary report; (ii) the General Confederation of Labour of the Argentine Republic (CGT-RA), received on 27 September 2020; and (iii) the Confederation of Workers of Argentina (CTA Autonomous), received on 30 September 2020. The Committee notes that these observations give information related to the role of collective bargaining in the management of the pandemic, as well as its use in the context of the crisis, which the Committee examines in its observation regarding the application of Convention No. 154. In addition, the Committee notes that the observations of CTA Autonomous also contain new allegations of violations of the Convention in practice, especially of anti-union dismissals.

The Committee requests the Government to communicate its comments in respect of the above-mentioned allegations, and hopes that they will be taken up and examined in a tripartite manner within the Social Dialogue Commission.

With regard to other pending issues, the Committee reiterates its comments adopted in 2019, reproduced below.

The Committee notes the Government’s replies to the previous observations of the Confederation of Workers of Argentina (CTA Autonomous), the General Confederation of Labour of the Argentine Republic (CGT RA) and the Federation of Energy Workers of the Argentine Republic (FeTERA).

The Committee welcomes the establishment of the Social Dialogue Commission and refers in that regard to its observation on the application of the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87).

The Committee also notes the observations of the Industrial Confederation of Argentina (UIA), received on 30 August 2019. The Committee also notes the observations of the CGT RA and the CTA Autonomous, both received on 3 September 2019. The Committee notes that the latter observations include allegations of violations of the Convention in law and practice, and particularly restrictions on collective bargaining (with reference, for example, to section 3 of Decree No. 508/18, which allegedly imposes a ceiling on wage adjustments for the voluntary simplified scheme in relation to collective bargaining). The Committee requests the Government to provide its comments in this regard and invites it to address any pending issues in the context of the Social Dialogue Commission.

The Committee also takes due note of the detailed information provided by the Government on the situation with regard to collective bargaining in the country (in this respect, the Committee refers to its observation on the application of the Collective Bargaining Convention, 1981 (No. 154)). The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the number of collective agreements that have been concluded and that are in force, the sectors covered and the number of workers covered by the agreements, as well as on any further measures adopted to promote the full development and utilization of collective bargaining, in accordance with the Convention.