Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2018, published 108th ILC session (2019)

Labour Clauses (Public Contracts) Convention, 1949 (No. 94) - Mauritania (Ratification: 1963)

The Committee notes the observations of the Free Confederation of Mauritanian Workers (CLTM), received on 25 July 2017, and of the General Confederation of Workers of Mauritania (CGTM), received on 4 September 2017, and also the Government’s reply to the observations of the CLTM, received on 6 November 2017.

Article 2(1) of the Convention. Inclusion of labour clauses. The Government indicates in its report that under the provisions of Order No. 035 of 3 June 1992, which is still in force, labour clauses are included in all bid dossiers sent to bidders. It adds that the Department of Labour issues certificates of conformity with the labour legislation at the request of bidders; if the latter are not in conformity, their dossiers are systematically rejected and they are unable to take part in the bidding process. The CLTM claims in its observations that labour clauses in public contracts, as defined in the Labour Code, are not respected. It maintains that, to engage in subcontracting, it is necessary to have working capital, an employer number registered with the National Social Security Fund (CNSS) and a taxpayer account at the Department of Taxation, and that the contract must be officially approved by the labour inspectorate to be legally valid. However, the CLTM indicates that contracts of this sort are awarded to employers who have no qualifications to perform this activity and have no registered office enabling them to be traced. The Government indicates in its reply that it is the Director of Labour who issues the certificate of conformity, after checking that the employer duly discharges his obligations, namely payment of wages at regular intervals, social contributions to the CNSS and observance of working conditions, and that the employer concerned is not involved in mediation or in any dispute being handled by the labour inspectorate. As regards taxation, the Government adds that all employers have a tax identification number at the Department of Taxation and, if they bid for a contract, they must also be able to produce a certificate of conformity with regard to taxation. The CGTM observes that the general collective labour agreement (CCGT), dating from 1974, has never been updated despite this being requested by the workers’ organizations every year. The CGTM adds that a number of clauses are now obsolete because of changes in the social and occupational environment. The CGTM maintains that, with regard to labour clauses, there is anarchy between workers and employers at several companies, including in telecommunications. The Committee requests the Government to provide its comments on the observations of the CGTM. It once again requests the Government to supply copies of recent public contracts in which labour clauses have been included, in accordance with section 2 of Order No. 035 of 3 June 1992. The Committee also requests the Government to send detailed information on the application of the Convention in practice, including statistics on public contracts and the average number of workers concerned, and to send any other information which would enable the Committee to assess whether the national legislation and practice are in conformity with the provisions of the Convention.