Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2000, published 89th ILC session (2001)

Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 (No. 81) - Malta (Ratification: 1965)

The Committee notes the Government’s successive reports since 1995, and the annual reports of the Department of Labour covering the period from 1994 to 1998. It also notes the legislative texts provided, such as the Conditions of Employment (Regulation) Act, 1952, as amended, and the Occupational Health and Safety (Promotion) Act, 1994 (Act No. VII).

With reference to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s replies and the information provided, as contained in the above annual reports, respecting the application of Articles 7, 12(1)(a) and (d), and 15 of the Convention. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide additional information on the following points:

1.  The Committee notes the data contained in the annual reports of the Department of Labour on the numbers and composition of the staff of the labour inspectorate and would be grateful for further data on the proportion of women in the inspection staff. It would be grateful if the Government would indicate in particular the manner in which effect is given to Article 8, which provides that, where necessary, special duties may be assigned to men and women inspectors, with particular reference to the mission of promoting and enforcing measures needed to promote the employment and advancement of women and their conditions of employment, which were mentioned in the annual reports of the Department of Labour as being included in the role of the Department of Labour.

2.  The annual report for 1995 refers to a joint exercise by labour inspectors and the Employment and Training Corporation with a view to detecting illegal employment and any abusive employment of children or young persons, particularly in tourist localities. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide information on the results of this joint exercise, and particularly on the measures taken in cases in which violations were found in these fields.

3.  According to the Government’s explanations, the expression "at all reasonable times", defining the periods when inspectors have the right to enter workplaces liable to their supervision, must be interpreted as at any time when inspectors have reason to believe that work is being carried out. The Committee notes that the Occupational Health and Safety (Promotion) Act contains a provision with the same scope as the previous text in this respect. The Committee is bound to emphasize once again that the right of inspectors to enter the above workplaces, as set out in Article 12(1)(a) and (b), should not be limited to the hours of work of the workplaces and that they should also be able to exercise this right at any time. This latitude should allow labour inspectors to detect illegal employment outside normal working hours, as well as ascertaining the state of certain machines at rest. The Government is requested to refer in this regard to paragraphs 161 et seq. of the Committee of Experts’ 1985 General Survey on labour inspection, to take the necessary measures to bring its legislation into conformity with the above provisions of the Convention in this respect and to inform the ILO of any progress achieved on this matter.

4.  In addition to the texts to which the Government refers concerning the matters covered by Article 15, the Committee notes that section 39(5) of the Conditions of Employment (Regulation) Act, 1952, as amended, reproduces the exact text of these provisions. The Committee requests the Government to state whether this text remains in force.

5.  The Committee notes that, under the terms of section 8(2)(a) of the Occupational Health and Safety (Promotion) Act, 1994, employers are obliged to inform, in such mode or manner as may be prescribed, the Director of Labour or any person mentioned in the Act or in regulations or orders made under the Act of any industrial accident or injury, or of any work-connected disease, at a place of work under their control. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide information on the measures taken and the texts adopted to apply this provision in practice.

6.  The Committee notes the absence of statistics in the annual reports of the Department of Labour on workplaces liable to supervision by the labour inspection services. It wishes to emphasize the essential nature of such information to assess the extent to which effect is given to Article 16 of the Convention, under the terms of which these workplaces shall be inspected as often and as thoroughly as is necessary to ensure the effective application of the relevant legal provisions. The Government is therefore requested to take appropriate measures to ensure that the annual reports on the work of the inspection services contain in future, in accordance with Article 21(c) and (d), not only statistics of inspection visits, but also statistics of all workplaces liable to inspection.