Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2009, published 99th ILC session (2010)

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

Article 4, paragraph 1, of the Convention. Need to re-establish a central authority entrusted with control and supervisory powers in the labour inspection system. According to the Government’s vague indications in reply to the observation made by the Committee on the basis of the recommendations of an ILO technical mission which visited the country in May 2006: (1) the labour inspection system is in the process of being developed in consultation with social partners; (2) the Ministry has already started putting in place measures to come up with a labour inspection policy and set guidelines, and a meeting was held in 2009 to kick-start the process; (3) the Ministry has placed emphasis on the planning of inspections, and sweeping inspections have been carried out in the major cities, while some joint inspections with labour inspectors and safety and health inspectors have been undertaken, for example in the northern region of the country; (4) the functional review of the Ministry, under which the Inspection Services Unit is to be strengthened to enable it to set annual targets and conduct inspections in the field, is awaiting approval; and (5) the Ministry has undertaken supervisory visits to field offices and organized some training for inspectors, including those responsible for occupational safety and health with a view to developing an integrated inspection system.

In addition, the Committee notes from the Government’s report under the Labour Inspection (Agriculture) Convention, 1969 (No. 129), that the budgeting and funding of labour inspection is decentralized in such a manner that each office is allocated funds directly by Treasury according to the latter’s priorities. Consequently, offices with motorcycles or motor vehicles cover fuel and maintenance, while the Ministry only receives reports on the activities performed. Based on this information, the Committee observes that the very notion of a central labour inspection authority seems to have become devoid of all substance, as the Ministry’s only residual role consists of receiving activity reports from labour inspection offices, without any power to determine the needs of the labour inspection services in terms of financial and material resources with a view to their proper operation. The objective of the ILO technical mission was to help the Government to anticipate the effects of globalization on working conditions and workers’ rights, to secure the commitment of the social partners to the principle that an effective labour inspection service allows the twofold interests of social protection and improved productivity, and to raise the Government’s awareness of the importance of the tripartite dimension of labour administration. Although it made no reference to a decentralized labour inspection system, the mission emphasized, on the contrary, that there were no inherent or structural barriers for the operation of an effective and efficient labour inspection service; and that there was considerable room for improvement, in particular in policy, planning, management procedures, communications, equipment and training, and that this could be done by rationalizing, streamlining and consolidating the inspection functions of the Labour Directorate in the field structure. The decentralized operation of the labour inspection system, as described by the Government in the report on the application of Convention No. 129, is not such as to meet the economic and social objectives of the labour inspection Conventions. The obligations deriving from the ratifications of a Convention in any event remain the responsibility of the State. Consequently, the Government is bound, among other obligations, to: (i) observe the principle of placing the labour inspection system under a central authority, pursuant to Article 1; (ii) ensure that the number of labour inspectors is determined on the basis of the criteria listed in Article 10; and (iii) make the necessary arrangements to equip labour inspectors with the material means and transport facilities, and to reimburse any travelling and incidental expenses necessary for the performance of their duties (Article 11). The Government is also bound under the Labour Administration Convention, 1978 (No. 150), which has also been ratified by Malawi, to ensure that the staff of the labour administration system have the status, the material means and the financial resources necessary for the effective performance of their duties. Consequently, the allocation to labour inspectorates of material means and financial resources should be left to the discretion of the decentralized authorities, but should be determined by the Government at the central level in accordance with the priorities of labour inspection and national economic and financial possibilities. Only if the central labour inspection authority is entrusted with the powers laid down in the Convention can the Government’s commitments, as reaffirmed in its report, be fulfilled and an annual report on labour inspection activities, as provided for in Articles 20 and 21, be published and serve as a basis for the assessment by the central authority of the respective needs and priorities. The technical assistance mission recommended the strengthening of the Office of the Chief Labour Officer in order to allow it to play a more important role in the setting of annual targets, the monitoring of performance by both the field and headquarters and the evaluation of the quality of inspections themselves. It added that more work is required in Malawi if the goals of decent work are to be achieved and expressed the view that as the country has embarked on a process of attracting foreign investment in agriculture and manufacturing, especially textiles, there is a need to strengthen institutions that will promote a good and fair labour market.

The Committee urges the Government, to provide details of the measures announced in its report as a follow-up zo the recommendations of the ILO technical mission and to provide copies of all relevant texts or documents. It also urges it to adopt all the necessary measures to secure an inspection system operating under the supervision and control of a central authority (Article 4) that is provided with adequate human resources in terms of both numbers and skills (Articles 6, 7 and 10) and the material conditions necessary for the exercise of its functions in relation to labour inspections (Article 11), and to keep the ILO informed of any developments in law and in practice in this respect.

Articles 20 and 21. Annual report on labour inspection activities. The Committee notes with concern that the statistics of inspections covering all the sectors of the economy, as published in the Labour Statistics Yearbook, show a significant decrease from 3,043 in 2006 to 1,088 in 2007. Recalling that an annual report on labour inspection activities, which has to be published and communicated to the ILO in accordance with Article 20, shall contain information on each of the topics listed in Article 21, the Committee observes that the above statistics do not allow any appraisal of the effect of this decrease in inspections on compliance with the legislation covered by this Convention. It draws the Government’s attention to Paragraph 9 of the Labour Inspection Recommendation, 1947 (No. 81), which provides guidance on the manner in which such information could be presented. The Committee therefore asks the Government to provide the available statistics on the types of industrial and commercial workplaces and indications of the legal areas targeted by inspections and the results achieved during the period covered by the next report. It also asks the Government to indicate the measures taken to ensure the publication of an annual report, as provided for in Articles 20 and 21.

Labour inspection activities targeting child labour. According to the Government’s report, 3,000 children were removed from employment in the framework of the ILO–IPEC programme, instead of the target of 1,500. Noting that the project mostly targets child labour in agriculture, the Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide the ILO with the latest statistics on labour inspection activities pertaining to child labour, specifically in industrial and commercial workplaces, and the action taken as a result.