Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2006, published 96th ILC session (2007)

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

The Committee notes the Government’s report.

Article 2 of the Convention. Right of workers to establish organizations of their own choosing. In its previous comments, the Committee had noted that, under section 3 of the Act on Trade Unions of 13 December 1990, trade unions must have at least 50 members or represent at least one-quarter of the workforce in an enterprise in order to be registered, and recalled that this requirement was too high. The Committee notes that the Government does not send any information on this respect. The Committee considers that, although this requirement of a minimum number of workers would be permissible for industrial trade unions, it would have the effect of hindering the establishment of enterprise organizations, particularly in small enterprises which appear to be very numerous in the country. In these circumstances, the Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures to amend section 3 of the Act on Trade Unions to bring it in full conformity with the Convention.