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

Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98) - United Republic of Tanzania (Ratification: 1962)

The Committee notes the Government’s report. It also notes the comments submitted by the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) in a communication dated 26 August 2009. The ITUC alleges that collective agreements must be submitted to the Industrial Court for approval and may be refused registration if they do not conform to the Government’s economic policy. It further alleges employees in privatized industries are denied freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining, despite difficult working conditions. The Committee requests the Government to provide its observations in respect of these matters.

The Committee takes note of the Government’s statement that the Public Service (Negotiating Machinery) Bill is now an Act of Parliament and is referred to as the Public Service (Negotiating Machinery) Act, 2003. The Committee requests the Government to provide a copy of the said Act in its next report.

In respect of the Public Service (Negotiating Machinery) Act, 2003, the Committee notes that according to the Government section 4 of the said Act establishes the service joint staff councils as negotiating and consultation mechanisms for the civil service, the teachers’ service, the local civil service and the health service, and section 9 of the Act provides for the establishment of the public service joint staff council as the highest participatory negotiating and consultative body in the public service. The Government also indicates that section 17(1) of the Act provides that the minister, upon receipt of an agreement reached by the public service joint staff council, may either accept the agreement or remand the matter to the council if he considers further negotiations necessary. In light of these indications, the Committee requests the Government: (1) to indicate whether the Act covers all civil servants, without exception; (2) to indicate whether the Act makes express provision for protection against acts of anti-union discrimination and interference, including through the use of sufficiently dissuasive sanctions; (3) to provide information on the subjects that may be negotiated under the Act, particularly wages, as well as on those matters that may only be the object of consultation; (4) to indicate whether all agreements and decisions of the public service joint staff council require the approval of the minister or another authority; (5) to indicate whether the Act contains any provisions respecting the duration of collective agreements; (6) to indicate in which cases compulsory arbitration may be imposed under the Act; and (7) to indicate whether all the individual public services each have the right to conclude collective agreements.

Zanzibar

Article 4 of the Convention. Trade union recognition for purposes of collective bargaining. Previously, the Committee had requested the Government to amend section 57(2) of the Labour Relations Act of 2005 (LRA), which provides that in order to be designated as representative (and thus be accorded exclusive bargaining agent status), the union concerned must be registered and represent “the majority of employees at the appropriate bargaining level”, which corresponds in fact to 50 per cent of the members of a bargaining unit. While noting the Government’s indication that the Committee’s comments have been noted and will be taken on board in the Rules and Regulations for the implementation of the Act, the Committee must once again recall that such a system denies the possibility of bargaining to a majority union which fails to secure this absolute majority (see 1994 General Survey on freedom of association and collective bargaining, paragraph 241). The Committee once again requests the Government to take the necessary measures to amend section 57(2) of the LRA so that if no union covers more than 50 per cent of the workers, the minority unions in the bargaining unit are not denied collective bargaining rights, at least on behalf of their members.

In its previous comments, the Committee had requested the Government to provide full information on the procedures and criteria by which the disputes resolution authority, in cases brought before it under section 57(4) of the LRA, determines representative trade union status when the employer does not recognize the trade union or when there is an objection from another trade union. Noting the Government’s statement that the rules and regulations referred to above would address this matter, the Committee expresses the hope that the rules and regulations will provide for objective procedures and criteria for the determination of representative trade union status and requests the Government to provide a copy of the rules and regulations once finalized.

Article 6. Public servants. The Committee had previously requested the Government to amend section 54(2)(b) of the LRA, so as to guarantee to managerial employees the right to bargain collectively, and to indicate the categories of employee excluded from the right to bargain collectively by the minister under section 54(2)(c) of the LRA. Noting the Government’s statement that the rules and regulations referred to above would address this matter, the Committee, recalling once again that only the armed forces and the police, public servants directly engaged in the administration of the State, and workers in essential services in the strict sense of the term may be denied the right to bargain collectively, once again requests the Government to amend section 54(2)(b) of the LRA so as to guarantee to managerial employees the right to bargain collectively, and to indicate the categories of employee excluded from the right to bargain collectively by the minister under section 54(2)(c).