Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98) - Slovakia (Ratification: 1993)

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2022, published 111st ILC session (2023)

Article 4 of the Convention. Promotion of collective bargaining. Extension of collective agreements. In its previous comments, the Committee had requested the Government to provide information on the functioning of the extension procedure for higher level collective agreements, as section 7 of the Collective Bargaining Act was amended pursuant to Constitutional Court ruling No. PL. ÚS 31/2015 of 16 March 2016. It further requested the Government to provide statistical information on the number of collective agreements concluded and in force in the country, specifying the sectors and number of workers covered. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the provisions of the Act No. 2/1991 on Collective Bargaining regulating extensions for higher-level collective agreements were completely abolished on February 4, 2021; the provisions related to representative collective agreements of a higher level are deleted from this law, as well as the extension of their binding nature with regard to other employers and their employees in the sector or part of the sector for which they are concluded. In addition, according to the Government, this amendment does not permit, with effect from March 1, 2021, extending the binding effects of representative higher level collective agreements also to other employers who were not directly involved as a contracting party to such an agreement. The Committee takes note of this information. It recalls that it considers that the extension of collective agreements is not contrary to the principle of voluntary collective bargaining and that the Collective Agreements Recommendation, 1951 (No. 91), indicates that, “where appropriate, having regard to established collective bargaining practice, measures, to be determined by national laws or regulations and suited to the conditions of each country, should be taken to extend the application of all or certain stipulations of a collective agreement to all the employers and workers included within the industrial and territorial scope of the agreement”. Bearing in mind the obligation to promote collective bargaining that stems from article 4 of the Convention, the Committee requests the Government to assess with the social partners the effects of the suppression of the extension mechanism on the collective bargaining machinery in the country and, in particular, on the coverage rate of collective agreements. The Committee requests the Government to provide information in this respect.

Collective bargaining in practice. The Committee further notes the Government’s indication that: (i) there are 24 higher level collective agreements concluded in different sectors of activity; (ii) in 2021, the higher-level collective agreements (sectoral/multi-sectoral) covered 14.3 per cent of employees, while company collective agreements covered 54.5 per cent of employees in the private sector; and (iii) with regard to the public sector, out of approximately 400,000 employees, 275,000 are covered by collective agreements, including both from state and public services. The Committee notes that the Government adds that the data regarding the private sector are however not centrally collected but based on the reports of the individual contracting parties. The Committee indeed observes that the data on the coverage of collective bargaining in the country available through ILOSTAT appears to be lower than the figures mentioned. Emphasizing the importance of having solid statistical data in order to be able to evaluate more accurately the need to promote collective bargaining, the Committee encourages the Government to take the necessary measures to set up a database containing reliable and exhaustive information on the coverage of workers by collective agreements. The Committee therefore requests the Government to continue providing information on the number of collective agreements concluded and in force in the country, specifying the sectors as well as the number and percentage of workers covered.

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

Article 4 of the Convention. Promotion of collective bargaining. Extension of collective agreements. In its previous comments, the Committee had requested the Government to provide details on the functioning of the extension procedure in practice and to provide information on the ruling to be handed down by the Constitutional Court concerning the relevant section of the Collective Bargaining Act. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that through ruling No. PL. ÚS 31/2015 of 16 March 2016, the Constitutional Court declared that section 7 of the Collective Bargaining Act was unconstitutional and that, as a result, the provisions of the Collective Bargaining Act regarding the extension of collective agreements were amended. The Committee notes that, according to the new provisions: (i) extensions apply to representative collective agreements defined by law as those agreements that, on the one hand, cover, through the companies affiliated to the signing employers’ organizations, more employees than other multi-employer collective agreements and, on the other hand, are signed by trade unions that are present in at least 30 per cent of companies active in the sector; (ii) contracting parties should notify the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family (MPSVR SR) when they conclude a representative collective agreement, and, in contrast to previous decisions on the extension, the MPSVR SR only validates the representativeness of collective agreements and informs about the result by legal notice; and (iii) the MPSVR SR has established a special tripartite commission in which employers’ and workers’ organizations have the opportunity to submit their observations on the fulfilment of the condition of representativeness. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the practical application of this new system, and in particular the role of the social partners in its functioning. More generally, it also requests the Government to provide statistical information on the number of collective agreements concluded and in force in the country, specifying the sectors and number of workers covered.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2015, published 105th ILC session (2016)

Article 4 of the Convention. Promotion of collective bargaining. In its previous comments, the Committee observed that, according to section 7(7) and (8) of Act No. 2/1991 Coll. on Collective Bargaining (the Collective Bargaining Act) as last amended, an employer to which it is proposed to extend the binding effect of a higher-level collective agreement may submit to the ministry written objections to the extension proposal, and that these objections are the subject of consultations held in the framework of an advisory commission to be established by the ministry and to be mainly composed of representatives of the ministry, of representative employers’ organizations and of representative trade union organizations. The Committee had requested the Government to provide details on the working of this advisory commission and to provide information on the ruling to be handed down by the Constitutional Court concerning the extension of collective agreements under section 7 of the Collective Bargaining Act.

The Committee notes that the Government indicates that: (i) the Constitutional Court has not yet made a decision concerning the extension of collective agreements under section 7 of the Collective Bargaining Act; (ii) the Ministry of Justice requested the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family to provide an opinion on the proposal by members of the National Council of the Slovak Republic to initiate proceedings on the conformity of section 7(1), (2) and (11) of the Collective Bargaining Act with the Constitution of the Slovak Republic; and (iii) the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family provided such opinion in which it affirmed the constitutional and legal conformity of sections 7 and 7(a) of the Act.

The Committee further notes that the Government indicates that: (i) the Advisory Commission is a permanent tripartite collective advisory body of the Ministry of Labour, Social Justice and Family, which meets on an ad hoc basis to determine whether proposals to extend collective agreements meet the conditions set out in section 7(2) and (7) of the Collective Bargaining Act (that is, mainly assessing the terms of representativeness under the Collective Bargaining Act, taking into account the comments made by the employers); and (ii) although its endorsement of the extension of a collective agreement – adopted by absolute majority – is only of an advisory nature, it is generally followed by the Minister of Labour, Social Affairs and Family.

The Committee requests the Government to provide information on any ruling by the Constitutional Court concerning the extension of collective agreements and the constitutionality of section 7 of the Collective Bargaining Act, as well as any additional information on the application in practice of this legal provision.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2014, published 104th ILC session (2015)

Article 4 of the Convention. Promotion of collective bargaining. In its previous comments, the Committee had requested the Government to provide information on the decision to be issued by the Constitutional Court concerning the extension of collective agreements which, according to section 7 of Act No. 2/1991 Coll. on Collective Bargaining (Collective Bargaining Act) as amended, no longer requires the employer’s consent in order for the latter to be bound by the extension of higher level collective agreements. Recalling that the employer(s) affected by the extension of collective agreements should be fully consulted before the authorities take the decision, the Committee had also requested the Government to report on any measures envisaged or taken in this connection.

The Committee notes that the Government indicates that: (i) the Constitutional Court has not issued a decision on the matter yet; and (ii) the extension of higher level collective agreements is regulated by sections 7 and 7(a) of the Collective Bargaining Act as last amended by Act No. 416/2013 Coll. (enclosed with the report). The Committee observes that, according to section 7(7) and (8) of the Collective Bargaining Act as last amended, an employer to which it is proposed to extend the binding effect of a higher level collective agreement may submit to the Ministry written objections to the extension proposal, and that these objections are the subject of consultations held in the framework of an advisory commission to be established by the Ministry, which is mainly composed of representatives of the Ministry, of representative employers’ organizations and representative trade union organizations. The Committee requests the Government to provide details on the working of this advisory committee in practice and once again requests the Government to provide information on the ruling to be handed down by the Constitutional Court concerning the extension of collective agreements.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2013, published 103rd ILC session (2014)

The Committee requests the Government once again to provide information, in its next report, on the decision to be issued by the Constitutional Court concerning the extension of collective agreements which, according to Act No. 2/1991 as amended, no longer requires the employer’s consent in order for the latter to be bound by the extension of higher level collective agreements. The Committee recalls that the employer(s) affected by the extension of collective agreements should be fully consulted before the authorities take the decision. The Committee requests the Government to report on any measures envisaged or taken in this connection.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2012, published 102nd ILC session (2013)

The Committee notes the comments of the Confederation of Trade Union of the Slovak Republic (KOS SR) and the Government’s reply concerning the amendment to the Labour Code, which entered into effect on 1 September 2011. The Government indicates the following: (1) the 30 per cent representativeness required to be able to bargain in the enterprise refers to the totality of the members of existing organizations; (2) the way of proving representativeness is selected by the trade union organization, which may opt for a method that protects the anonymity of the members; and (3) works councils may not conclude an agreement when there is a trade union organization in the enterprise.

The Committee requests the Government once again to provide information, in its next report, on the decision to be issued the Constitutional Court has to take concerning the extension of collective agreements which, according to section 7 of Act No. 2/1001 as amended, no longer requires the employer’s consent in order for the latter to be bound by the extension of higher level collective agreements.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2010, published 100th ILC session (2011)

In its previous comments, the Committee had requested information on the system of extension of collective agreements, pursuant to comments by the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), alleging that bargaining rights were weakened by provisions stating that higher level collective agreements (covering a whole industry, sector or region) only apply to those employers who specifically agree to them in writing.

The Committee took note of the Government’s reply according to which section 7 of Act No. 2/1991 was amended so that the employer’s consent is no longer required in order to be bound by the extension of a higher level collective agreement. The Committee took note of the text of section 7 of Act No. 2/1991, as amended. The Committee noted that according to the Government, the employers’ organizations lodged a request for review of section 7, as amended, before the Constitutional Court. The Committee had requested the Government to provide information on the decision of the Constitutional Court.

The Committee notes that the Government indicates in its report that the Constitutional Court has not resolved the case yet. The Committee requests the Government to indicate with its next report the decision of the Constitutional Court.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2008, published 98th ILC session (2009)

In its previous comments, the Committee requested information on the system of extension of collective agreements pursuant to comments by the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), alleging that bargaining rights were weakened by provisions which state that higher level collective agreements (covering a whole industry, sector or region) only apply to those employers who specifically agree to them in writing.

The Committee takes note of the Government’s reply to these comments according to which section 7 of Act No. 2/1991 was amended so that employer consent is no longer required in order to be bound by the extension of a higher level collective agreement. The Committee takes note of the text of section 7 of Act No. 2/1991, as amended, communicated by the Government. The Committee notes that according to the Government, the employers’ organizations lodged a request for review of section 7, as amended, by the Constitutional Court. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the decision of the Constitutional Court.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2006, published 96th ILC session (2007)

The Committee takes note of the comments made by the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) dated 10 August 2006, alleging that bargaining rights were weakened by provisions which state that higher level collective agreements (covering a whole industry, sector or region) only apply to those employers who specifically agree to them in writing. The Committee requests the Government to send its comments on this issue raised by the ICFTU.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2005, published 95th ILC session (2006)

The Committee notes the information contained in the Government’s report. It also notes the comments made by the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) and the Confederation of Trade Unions of the Slovak Republic (KOZ SR) as well as the Government’s observations thereon. The Committee finally takes note of the text of Act No. 2/1991 as amended most recently by Act No. 585/2004. The Committee notes that the ICFTU and KOZ SR refer in their comments to increasing acts of anti-union discrimination by employers, especially the recruitment of workers on the condition of giving up trade union membership, and insufficient protection in practice against such acts. The Committee notes that the Government observes the absence of specific allegations in this respect and the existence of relevant legislation and procedures for the examination of allegations of anti-union discrimination acts. In particular, according to the Government, violations of freedom of association are considered as an offence in section 238bis, paragraph 1, of the Criminal Code and are null and void under the Labour Code.

In these circumstances, the Committee considers that the comments of the ICFTU and KOZ SR would need to be substantiated further to allow for their examination.

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2002, published 91st ILC session (2003)

The Committee notes the observation of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) dated 16 November 2001 on the application of the Convention. The Committee requests the Government to send its comments thereon for examination at its next meeting.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1994, published 81st ILC session (1994)

The Committee notes the Government's report.

Article 4 of the Convention. The Committee asks the Government to indicate in its next report whether there are any legal texts other than the Constitution and the General Agreement for 1993, to encourage and promote the full development and utilization of machinery for voluntary negotiation between employers or employers' organizations and workers' organizations, with a view to the regulation of terms and conditions of employment by means of collective agreements, and, if so, to provide copies of them.

The Committee also requests the Government to provide a copy of the General Agreement of 1993 which the Government referred to in its report for the period ending 30 June 1993.