Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2023, published 112nd ILC session (2024)

Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87) - Armenia (Ratification: 2006)

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The Committee notes the observations of the Confederation of Trade Unions of Armenia (CTUA) transmitted with the Government’s report and the additional observations of the CTUA received on 29 August 2023, which refer to the issues raised by the Committee below and to the application of the Convention in practice. The Committee requests the Government to provide its comments thereon.

Article 2 of the Convention. Right of workers and employers, without distinction whatsoever, to establish and join organizations. The Committee previously urged the Government to take necessary measures to amend the Law on Trade Unions to ensure that employees of the Prosecutor’s Office, judges (including of the Constitutional Court), civilians employed by the police and security services, self-employed workers, those working in liberal professions, and workers in the informal economy can establish and join organizations for furthering and defending their interests. The Committee notes with regret that the Government reiterates that, while the possibility of amending the Law on Trade Unions is being discussed, the right of civilian personnel in the police and security services to join trade unions is not restricted by either section 6 of the Law on Trade Unions, the Law on the Police Service or the Law on the Service in the National Security Bodies. In this regard, the Committee recalls once again, that it stems from section 6 of the Law on Trade Unions, as amended in 2018, that only those with employment contracts can be members of a trade union and that pursuant to paragraph 3 of the same section, employees of the armed forces, police, national security, Prosecutor’s Office, as well as judges, including judges of the Constitutional Court, cannot be members of a trade union organization. The Committee also recalls once again that all workers, without distinction whatsoever, should have the right to establish and join organizations of their own choosing and that the only authorized exceptions concern members of the police and the armed forces. It considers, however, that civilians employed in such services should be granted the right to establish and join organizations to further and defend their interests.

In addition, the Committee notes that, as observed by the CTUA, the Constitutional Court decided on 11 April 2023 that section 6(5) of the Law on Trade Unions is unconstitutional insofar as it prescribes an absolute ban on freedom of association for the employees of the armed forces, the police, national security, the Prosecutor’s Office, as well as judges (including of the Constitutional Court). For the same reason, the Constitutional Court found the following provisions to be unconstitutional: section 39(1) of the Law on the Police Service, section 43(1) of the Law on the Service in the National Security Bodies, and section 8(1) of the Law on Military Service. The Committee notes that the Constitutional Court has set a deadline of 11 November 2023 for the National Assembly to bring these provisions into compliance with the Armenian Constitution. The Committee expects that the Government will take all necessary measures to give effect to the above-mentioned decision of the Constitutional Court and to amend the above-mentioned laws so as to ensure that employees of the Prosecutor’s Office, judges (including of the Constitutional Court), civilians employed by the police and security services, self-employed workers, those working in liberal professions, and workers in the informal economy can establish and join organizations for furthering and defending their interests. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on progress made in this respect in its next report, including copies of the amended laws if adopted.

Minimum membership requirement. The Committee recalls that it previously requested the Government to amend section 4 of the Law on Employers’ Unions, providing for the number of employers required to form employers’ organizations at the national level (over half of employers’ organizations operating at the sectoral and territorial levels), sectoral level (over half of employers’ organizations operating at the territorial levels) and territorial level (majority of employers in a particular administrative territory or employers’ organizations from different sectors in a particular administrative territory); and to also amend section 2 of the Law on Trade Unions, setting out similar prerequisites for federations of trade unions at the territorial, sectoral and national levels, so as to lower the minimum membership requirements. The Committee recalls that it considers the minimum membership requirements as set out in the above legislative provisions to be too high as they would appear to ensure that there is in fact only one national level organization, one organization per sector and one territorial level organization per territory or a particular sector in the territory. The Committee notes that the Government reiterates that it is working on amending the Law on Trade Unions as well as the Law on Employers’ Unions, and adds that it is receiving technical assistance from the ILO in the process of amending the Law on Employers’ Unions. Noting that the Government benefits from the technical assistance of the ILO, the Committee trusts that amendments will be made in the near future, in consultation with the social partners, to both the Law on Trade Unions and the Law on Employers’ Unions, so as to reduce the minimum membership requirements and ensure the possibility of creation of more than one organization at different levels. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on progress made in this respect.

Article 3. Right of organizations to organize their administration and activities in full freedom. The Committee previously requested the Government to amend sections 13(2)(1) and 14 of the Law on Employers’ Unions, which regulate in detail matters that should be decided upon by organizations themselves (such as the obligatory use of the words “employers’ union” for all employers’ organizations and “Armenia” for a national organization and the rights and responsibilities of the congress of an employers’ organization). Noting that the amendment process for the Law on Employers’ Unions is under way, the Committee expects that, in consultation with the social partners, the Law on Employers’ Unions will be amended in the near future so as to ensure that only formal requirements are laid down in the national legislation with regard to the functioning of organizations.

The Committee also requested the Government to amend the following sections of the Labour Code:

• section 74(1), which requires a vote by two-thirds of an organization’s (enterprise’s) employees to declare a strike (or a vote by two thirds of employees of the subdivision if a strike is declared by a subdivision of an organization, as the case may be), so as to ensure that account is taken only of the votes cast, and that the required quorum and majority are fixed at a reasonable level;
• section 77(2), according to which, minimum services are determined by the corresponding state and local self-governance entities, so as to ensure that social partners are able to participate in the definition of what constitutes a minimum service.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that Law HO-160-N was adopted on 3 May 2023, which amended sections 74(1) and 77(2) of the Labour Code. The Committee notes with satisfaction the amendment made to section 74(1), which lowers the strike vote requirement (a vote is now required by “the majority of votes of workers who participated in the vote, which cannot be less than half of the total number of workers or half of the employees of the organization”, or of the subdivision if the strike is declared by a subdivision).

The Committee notes with satisfaction the amendment made to section 77(2) of the Labour Code, which now provides for negotiations with the social partners to determine the minimum services required during a strike.