Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2005, published 95th ILC session (2006)

Holidays with Pay Convention, 1936 (No. 52) - Georgia (Ratification: 1993)

The Committee notes with interest the information supplied by the Government in its first two reports. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide in its next report further explanations on the following points.

Article 2, paragraph 1, of the Convention. The Committee notes that in addition to section 67(2) of the Labour Code, which prescribes a minimum annual paid leave of 24 working days, the Government refers to the annual leave entitlement of specific groups of salaried employees and wage earners, such as public servants (30 calendar days), mine workers (additional leave ranging from three to 12 working days), overseas transport workers (annual paid leave of no less than 18 days for masters and officers and no less than 12 working days for crew members), professors of higher educational institutions and school teachers (48 working days), air transport personnel (48 calendar days at most), educators of kindergarten (36 working days), theatre actors (36 working days), and employees of mental clinics and social security institutions (additional paid leave from 12 to 30 working days). The Committee requests the Government to specify the legal instruments, including any relevant collective agreements, regulating the annual leave entitlement of the abovementioned categories of workers.

Article 2, paragraph 3(a). With reference to the Government’s statement that Sundays and public holidays are not included in the annual paid leave, the Committee requests the Government to specify the relevant legal provision.

Article 2, paragraphs 4 and 5. The Committee notes that the Government refers to sections 41 and 42 of the Law on public service which allow for the possibility of dividing the annual holiday with pay into parts and also make provision for the increase of the duration of the annual paid leave with the length of service. The Committee requests the Government to clarify whether analogous provisions apply to employees other than public servants and, if so, to indicate the relevant legal texts.

Article 3. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, pursuant to Governmental Order No. 595 of 24 August 1992, at the enterprises of the non-budgetary sector the holiday pay is fixed on the basis of the average wage paid for the last three months, whereas for the employees of the budgetary sector the holiday pay is calculated on the basis of new salary rates in accordance with Presidential Decree No. 389 of 28 July 1997. The Committee would appreciate receiving copies of the above texts.

Article 5. While noting the Government’s statement that the labour legislation allows an employee who is on annual leave to be engaged during the period of his/her leave in another paid work without losing the right to holiday pay, the Committee asks the Government to specify the legal text and the exact provision to which reference is made.

Article 7. The Committee notes the Government’s reference to sections 16 and 19 of the Labour Code, according to which the duration of the annual holiday with pay, the period when it is granted and the amount of the holiday pay, should be specified in individual labour contracts. The Committee is bound to observe, however, that this is not sufficient in the light of this Article of the Convention, which requires every employer to maintain an appropriate record, in a form approved by the competent authority, with respect to employees’ annual paid absence. The Committee therefore asks the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that full effect is given to this provision of the Convention.

Article 8. While noting the Government’s statement that the labour inspectorate was established in 1995 and that no violations of the relevant legislation have so far been observed, the Committee requests the Government to supply more detailed information on the organization of the labour inspection services and the system of sanctions provided for infringements of standards in respect of annual leave.

Part V of the report form. The Committee requests the Government to provide in its next report general information on the application of the Convention in practice including, for instance, statistics on the number of workers (classified by gender and age) covered by the relevant legislation, extracts from reports of the inspection services showing the number and nature of contraventions reported, etc. Moreover, the Committee asks the Government to communicate a copy of the consolidated text of the Labour Code and of the Law on public service.

Finally, the Committee takes this opportunity to recall that, based on the conclusions and proposals of the Working Party on Policy regarding the Revision of Standards, the ILO Governing Body has decided that Convention No. 52 should be classified as an outdated instrument and consequently states parties should be invited to denounce it and ratify at the same time the more recent Holidays with Pay Convention (Revised), 1970 (No. 132) which may no longer be fully up to date but remains relevant in certain respects (see GB.283/LILS/WP/PRS/1/2, paragraph 12). The Committee asks the Government to keep the Office informed of any decisions in this respect.