Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2021, published 110th ILC session (2022)

Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87) - Liberia (Ratification: 1962)

The Committee notes the observations made by the African Regional Organisation of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC-Africa), received on 31 August 2021, denouncing the dissolution of a trade union by a state-owned company; the use of police force to break up peaceful strikes; and the arrest of union leaders and wrongful dismissal of workers for their participation in strike actions. The Committee requests the Government to provide its comments in this regard.

The Committee had previously noted the observations made by the National Health Workers’ Union of Liberia (NAHWUL), received on 1 October 2020, alleging the Government’s failure to grant it legal recognition, which it considered even more detrimental in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as infringements of the right to strike. The Committee notes the Government’s reply that, since 2018, the Ministry of Health has given functional acceptance of NAHWUL as a body representing its members, pending the revision of appropriate national laws. The Government states that this has entailed the reinstatement to employment of the NAHWUL leadership, their integration into decision making and privileges such as study opportunities, and their involvement in the monitoring of the conditions of health workers around the country, with provision of logistical and other support. The Committee requests the Government to provide additional information as to other pending allegations raised in NAHWUL’s observations and, recalling the recommendations of the Committee on Freedom of Association concerning case No. 3202 [see Report No 384, paragraph 387], to inform on the specific steps taken to ensure that this organization can be granted full legal recognition without further delay.

Scope of application. In its previous comments, the Committee had noted that section 1.5(c)(i) and (ii) of the Decent Work Act of 2015 (the Act) excluded from its scope of application work falling within the scope of the Civil Service Agency Act. The Committee had previously noted the Government’s indication in 2012 that the legislation guaranteeing the right of public employees to establish trade unions (the Public Service Ordinance) was being revised with the technical assistance of the Office and had requested it to report on any developments in this regard. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the employees of state enterprise are already being represented by unions of their choosing, and that other public servants, including public defenders and prosecutors, have their collective bodies that seek their wellbeing and articulate their interests without seeking to be described as unions. The Committee further notes the Government’s acknowledgement that the Act does not cover workers in the mainstream public sector and indicates that a national labour conference was convened in 2018 to create a framework for the harmonization of the Act and the Civil Service Standing orders. Recalling that all workers, with the sole possible exception of the police and the armed forces, are covered by the Convention, the Committee requests the Government to provide specific information on developments in this regard and to detail what legal provisions ensure that public sector workers enjoy the rights and guarantees set out in the Convention, including provisions drafted or envisaged for enactment and the time frame expected for such enactment.

The Committee had noted that section 1.5(c)(i) and (ii) of the Act also exclude from its scope of application, officers, members of the crew and any other persons employed or in training on vessels. The Committee had therefore requested the Government to indicate how the rights enshrined in the Convention are ensured to maritime workers, including trainees, and to indicate any laws or regulations adopted or envisaged covering this category of workers. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that Liberia’s Maritime Regulations 10-318.3, addressed to accommodation and recreational facilities, incorporate by reference the terms of the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC) as inherent parts of the conditions of work on flagged vessels and that a further review of how these provisions are applied in practice is planned in line with the report on the MLC, which is due in 2022. Noting that the Government has not provided the specific information requested regarding how the particular rights enshrined in the Convention are ensured to maritime workers, the Committee once again requests that the Government provide detailed information as to how, both in law and in practice, these particular rights are ensured to maritime workers, including trainees.

Article 1 of the Convention. Right of workers, without distinction whatsoever, to establish organizations. The Committee had noted that section 2.6 of the Act provided that all employers and workers, without distinction whatsoever, may establish and join organizations of their own choosing without prior authorization, and subject only to the rules of the organization concerned, and that section 45.6 of the Act recognized the right of foreign workers to join organizations. The Committee had requested the Government to indicate whether, in addition to the right to join organizations, foreign workers are entitled to establish organizations of their own choosing. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the right to establish organizations exists for foreign workers, that there is no prohibition to the establishment of bodies solely composed of foreign workers or foreign employers and it refers in this respect to existing bodies like the World Lebanese Cultural Union and the Indian Community, although adding that these consist of both employers and employees and give attention to issues affecting the wellbeing of people of their nationality in general. Having duly noted this information, the Committee requests the Government to take any necessary measures, including through the amendment of section 45.6 of the Act, to ensure that the right to establish organizations to defend their occupational interests is fully recognized to foreign workers both in law and in practice, as well as to provide information on any developments in this regard.

Article 3. Determination of essential services. The Committee had noted that the National Tripartite Council (established under section 4.1 of the Act) has the function to identify and recommend to the Minister services that are to be considered essential, which are those that in the opinion of the National Tripartite Council, if interrupted, would endanger the life, personal safety or health of the whole or any part of the population (section 41.4(a) of the Act). The Committee had further noted that upon considering the recommendations of the National Tripartite Council, the President decides whether or not to designate any part of a service as an essential service and publishes a notice of the designation of that essential service in the Official Gazette (section 41.4(c) of the Act), and in making this decision, the President is neither bound by nor obliged to follow the recommendations of the National Tripartite Council (section 41.4(d) of the Act). The Committee had therefore requested the Government to indicate whether, in determining which services are considered essential, the President is bound by the definition of the notion of essential services set out in section 41.4(a) of the Act, and had also requested the Government to provide information on how the designation of essential services (section 41.4 of Act) has operated in practice. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that since the Act took full effect in 2018, the nation has been gradually setting up its required structures and instituting its full provisions, and that the formal designation of essential services is one of those tasks that is subject to the recommendation of the National Tripartite Council, which is yet to occur. The Committee notes that the Government emphasizes that placement of industries or workers in different categories as a method of epidemic response or control should not be perceived as a designation of essential services within the context of section 41.1 of the Act. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on any developments with regard to the designation of essential services by the National Tripartite Council and how such designation operates in practice, as well as to clarify whether the President is also bound by the definition of the notion of essential services set out in section 41.4(a) of the Act (services the interruption of which would endanger the life, personal safety or health of the whole or any part of the population of Liberia), and to provide information on any presidential decisions concerning the designation of essential services and how such designation operates in practice.