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

Private Employment Agencies Convention, 1997 (No. 181) - Algeria (Ratification: 2006)

The Committee notes that the Government’s report does not contain a response to the observations made on 31 May 2015 by the General and Autonomous Confederation of Workers in Algeria (CGATA) regarding the provisions of the draft Labour Code, referred to in the Committee’s previous comments. The Committee reiterates its request that the Government provide its comments in this respect.

Articles 1(1)(a) and (b), 2(4) and 3 of the Convention. Private employment agencies. Exclusions. Conditions governing the operation of private employment agencies. The Government reports that, as of May 2017, there were 29 certified private employment agencies (PEAs) operating in the country. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, pursuant to the laws and regulations currently in force – Law No. 04-19 of 25 December 2004 on the Placement of Workers and Supervision of Work and Decree No. 07-123 of 24 April 2007 – PEAs are not authorized to mediate jobseekers abroad, to place foreign jobseekers in employment in Algeria, or to employ workers with a view to making them available to a third party. The Government states that, at present, PEAs are authorized only to provide services consisting of matching offers of and applications for employment, as contemplated in Article 1(1)(a) of the Convention. It notes that the draft Labour Code, on which the Government is consulting the social partners, will expand the scope of activities in which certified PEAs may engage, to include services to be offered by temporary work agencies (TWAs) in the sense of Article 1(1)(b) of the Convention, with a view to facilitating the employment of part-time and unemployed workers and enabling the user enterprise to meet temporary demands for labour. The Government adds that the draft Labour Code will also cover subcontracting activities with a view to combating informal work and illicit subcontracting activities. The Committee requests the Government to indicate whether private employment agencies operating in the country carry out placement activities. Noting that the Government has been pursuing the development of the draft Labour Code for a number of years, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on progress made in relation to the development and adoption of the draft Code, and to provide copies of the Code and its implementing regulation once adopted. In this regard, the Committee recalls that it may avail itself of technical assistance from the Office, should it so wish. The Committee further requests the Government to provide information on the provisions of the draft Labour Code mentioned in its report, concerning the certification of the activities of TWAs, the circumstances in which recourse may be made to their services, the status and rights of their employees, and the nature of the contract between the TWA and its employees.

Article 5(1). Non-discrimination. Referring to its previous comments, the Committee notes that the Government’s report does not contain information concerning concrete measures taken to ensure that PEAs do not subject workers to any of the types of discrimination covered by the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111). Recalling that it has been making comments for a number of years in relation to the need to take measures to ensure that PEAs do not engage in discrimination, the Committee reiterates its request that the Government provide detailed information on concrete measures taken to ensure that PEAs treat workers without discrimination on the basis of race, colour, sex, religion, political opinion, national extraction, social origin, or any other form of discrimination prohibited under national law and practice.

Article 5(2). Special services and targeted programmes to assist the most disadvantaged workers. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the cooperation agreement of 25 January 2012 between the National Employment Agency (ANEM) and certified PEAs focuses particularly on the placement of young persons and the long-term unemployed. The agreement stipulates that ANEM will provide technical support to these PEAs in relation to job placement activities, as well as training in career counselling and statistics. The Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the manner and extent to which PEAs are engaged in the practical implementation of special services or targeted programmes to assist the most disadvantaged workers in their job-seeking activities (Article 5(2)).

Article 8. Protection of workers in a cross-border context. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that PEAs are not authorized to place foreign workers in Algeria. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the measures adopted to provide adequate protection for and prevent abuses of migrant workers recruited or placed in its territory by PEAs, as well as on the penalties provided for under national laws or regulations in the event of fraud or abuse. The Government is further requested to provide information on consultations held with the representative organizations of employers and workers in this respect, as required by Article 8(1) of the Convention.

Article 9. Measures to prevent child labour. The Government reports that the draft Labour Code is expected to contain provisions prohibiting the use of child labour in TWAs and user enterprises. Recalling the comments it has been making for a number of years under the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182), and the Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138), the Committee urges the Government to take measures to ensure without delay the adoption of protective measures ensuring that child labour is not used or supplied by PEAs.

Articles 10 and 14. Inspections and adequate complaint machineries and procedures. The Government reports that the labour inspection service and the employment administration are responsible for supervising the activities of PEAs, adding that the draft Labour Code, once adopted, will further strengthen controls and labour inspection capacity. Taking note of the types of abuses and fraudulent activities in which certain PEAs have engaged, as described in the Government’s report, the Committee reiterates its request that the Government provide information illustrating how the procedures currently in force ensure an effective examination of alleged abuses and fraudulent practices relating to the activities of PEAs, to indicate the nature and number of the complaints received, and the manner in which they have been resolved (Article 10). The Government is further requested to specify the remedies, including penalties, where appropriate, imposed in case of violations of the Convention (Article 14).

Articles 11 and 12. Ensuring adequate protection for workers. Allocation of responsibilities of PEAs and user enterprises. The Government indicates that the draft Labour Code, once adopted, will regulate the status and rights of employees of TWAs and establish the modalities of the contract between the TWAs and the user enterprise on the basis of which a worker may be made available to the user enterprise. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the manner in which the current legislation ensures adequate protection of the rights of workers employed by PEAs, in relation to all the rights set out in Article 11(a)–(j), of the Convention, as well as the manner in which it is envisaged that the draft Labour Code or other measures would ensure equivalent or increased protection. It requests the Government to indicate the measures taken to determine and allocate the responsibilities of TWAs and user enterprises in relation to each of the matters set out in Article 12(a)–(i).

Article 13. Effective cooperation between the public employment service and PEAs. In response to the Committee’s previous comments in relation to the cooperation agreement of 25 January 2012 between the ANEM and certified PEAs, the Government indicates that the nature of the information that PEAs must provide to ANEM and its frequency are regulated by executive decree. The Committee reiterates its request that the Government provide examples of the information submitted to the National Employment Agency by private employment agencies (Article 13(2)), as well as a copy of the abovementioned executive decree to the Office and that it specify the nature and frequency with which this information is made available to the public (Article 13(3)).