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

Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87) - Latvia (Ratification: 1992)

The Committee notes the information contained in the Government’s report.

Article 2 of the Convention.  Right of workers to establish organizations of their own choosing.  The Committee had noted in its previous request that under section 3 of the Act on Trade Unions of 13 December 1990, trade unions must represent not less than one-fourth of the workforce in an enterprise, etc., in order to be registered, and recalled that the requirement laid down in this law was too high. The Committee notes that the Government plans to elaborate a new law on trade unions, where the number of persons required in this respect would be determined according to the economic situation, which is characterized by a low density of large undertakings. Noting that the Government had made this announcement in its previous report, the Committee hopes that this legislation will be drafted in the near future and requests the Government to send it a copy of the Bill as soon as possible.

Articles 3 and 10.  Right of workers’ organizations to formulate their programmes and to further and defend the interests of workers without interference from the public authorities.  The Committee notes that section 11(1) of the Act on Strikes of April 1998, requires both a quorum and a majority of three-quarters of the union members in order to call a strike. The Committee notes that the Government plans to amend the law on strikes with a view to decreasing the numbers in question and that these amendments will be discussed with the social partners. The Committee requests the Government to send it a copy of the Bill in the near future.

As regards its previous request concerning section 37 of the Act on public organizations and their associations, which authorizes in some instances the dissolution of associations and confiscation of their assets, the Committee notes from the Government’s report that such dissolution may occur only through judicial process and in a limited number of cases (refusal to comply with a court decision to suspend their activities; knowingly tolerating or inducing criminal activities; promoting hatred based on racial, national or spiritual distinctions). The Committee recalls, however, that, under Article 8 of the Convention, while workers and employers and their respective organizations, like other persons or organized collectivities, must respect the law of the land, the latter should not be such as to impair, or be so applied as to impair, the guarantees provided for in the Convention (General Survey on freedom of association and collective bargaining, 1994, paragraph 181). The Committee requests the Government to provide in its future reports information on the application of these provisions, including court decisions, if any.

The Committee notes with interest the Government’s indication that the recourse to arbitration provided for in section 16 of the law on collective labour agreements of 26 March 1991 can only be initiated by agreement of both parties.

The Committee reminds the Government that it may avail itself of ILO technical assistance when drafting legislation, and requests it to provide, in its future reports, information on the application of the Convention in practice.