Effect given to the recommendations of the committee and the Governing Body - Report No 408, October 2024

Effect given to the recommendations of the committee and the Governing Body

1. 20. The Committee last considered this case which was submitted in April 2008, and which concerns allegations of denial of freedom of association rights to migrant workers, including domestic workers, in law and in practice, at its March 2022 meeting [see 397th Report, paras 26–33]. On that occasion, the Committee made the following recommendations [see 397th Report, paras 31–33]:
   • – The Committee expects the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that the issues raised, with regard to freedom of association rights of domestic workers, will be comprehensively addressed during the ongoing labour law reform. The Committee expects that, as a result thereof, measures will be taken to ensure that domestic workers, whether foreign or local, including contract workers, will all effectively enjoy the right to establish and join organizations of their own choosing, in law and in practice, so as to be able to defend their occupational interests. The Committee encourages the Government to pursue its cooperation with the Office in this respect and requests it to provide concrete information on any developments in this regard.
   • – The Committee requests the Government to keep it informed of the registration status of the Association of Migrant Domestic Workers and invites the complainant to engage with the Association so as to ensure that, if it so wishes, it takes the necessary administrative steps to achieve registration under the relevant national legislation.
2. 21. The Government provides its observations in communications dated 30 September 2022, 3 February and 12 September 2023, and 8 January 2024. With respect to the freedom of association rights of foreign or local domestic workers, the Government, in its communication of January 2024, informs that the Trade Unions Act was amended in the fall of 2023 to make the law more comprehensive in meeting the needs of recent development in employment matters, specifically to allow workers to form or join trade unions of their choosing without regard to the principle of similarity in employment, trade or industry. The Government states that the amended Act is in line with the spirit of the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), and does not restrict any group or category of workers from joining or establishing a trade union.
3. 22. As regards the registration of the Association of Migrant Domestic Workers, the Government, in its communication of February 2023: (i) reiterates that the request submitted on 8 May 2006 was rejected on 23 July 2007; (ii) refers to provisions of the Societies Act which allow the Registrar to refuse to register a society under certain circumstances; and (iii) indicates that the Ministry of Human Resources had not received any application from domestic workers to form a trade union. In its subsequent communication, the Government informs that all applications to form a society under the Societies Act, including those of migrant workers, are accepted and processed.
4. 23. The Committee takes due note of the information provided by the Government. With respect to the freedom of association rights of foreign or local domestic workers, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Trade Unions Act was modified to allow workers to form or join trade unions of their choosing without regard to the similarity principle (whereby migrant workers supplied by labour contractors were not treated as employees of the workplace where they physically worked and thus could not join the relevant trade unions), and that the amended Act was in conformity with the spirit of Convention No. 87. In this regard, the Committee observes from publicly available information that the definition of “trade union” provided in section 2 of the Act was amended to allow trade unions to be established across trade, occupation or industry, and that section 26(1)(c), which stipulates that trade union membership shall not be confined to a particular race, religion or nationality, was added to the Act. While the Committee welcomes these modifications, it also recalls that the core issue raised in this case is the alleged lack of trade union rights of domestic workers given that they generally work without an employment contract and are not recognized as workers under the labour legislation. The Committee requests the Government to indicate whether any specific measures have been taken within the framework of the labour law reform to ensure that domestic workers are recognized as workers, and whether any trade unions have been established by domestic workers following the adoption of the above-mentioned legislative changes.
5. 24. With respect to the registration of the Association of Migrant Domestic Workers, the Committee recalls that the Government had previously indicated that it had advised the Association to follow up on its registration under the Society Act. The Committee notes that the Government indicates that as of 3 February 2023, no application to form a union had been received from domestic workers, and that all applications presented under the Societies Act are accepted and processed. Noting that the Government does not provide any specific information on the registration status of the Association or the manner in which its registration under the Societies Act would enable it to fully exercise its freedom of association rights, the Committee requests the Government and the complainant to indicate whether the Association of Migrant Domestic Workers has taken any steps to achieve registration in recent years and the framework in which such registration would guarantee the freedom of association necessary so such an organization may effectively further and defend its worker member interests.