Ei-iE

An EI delegation will discuss how to strengthen collective bargaining rights for public employees in a forum convened by the International Labour Organisation (ILO). From 2-3 April, representatives of workers, governments, and employers will make recommendations for future action to the ILO and its constituents.

The EI delegation will comprise EI Deputy General Secretary, Haldis Holst, and representatives from Canada, Senegal, United Kingdom, Pacific Islands, and the USA. Teacher representatives will be joined by workers from Public Services International and trade union centres.

The ILO released an issue paper to inform the discussion. The paper, Collective bargaining in the public service: Bridging gaps for a better future, explains the five main guarantees covered by ILO Convention 151:

• Protection of the right to organise
• Facilities to be afforded to public employees’ organisations
• Procedures for determining terms and conditions of employment
• Civil and political rights
• Disputes settlement procedures

It notes that the term “guarantee” requires government action mainly through laws or regulations.

The paper notes that, more than 30 years after the adoption of ILO Convention 151, “there is still a large gap in terms or recognition of the rights it embodies” and that some governments determine working conditions unilaterally. It underlines that: the lack of consultation mechanisms has played a major role in the occurrence of severe and very costly labour strife; public sector wages often lag behind those of private sector counterparts; public employees have sometimes not been paid for months; and union leaders are even putting their lives at risk.

On a more positive note, the paper provides a useful reminder of the role of quality public services, facilitating sustainable economic and social development, improving and enhancing democracy, and securing human rights. It confirms the trend towards a growing participation in the setting of terms and conditions of work in the public sector, the right to collective bargaining and, increasingly, the right to strike.

The financial crisis: job losses and cuts in pay and conditions

The ILO paper also notes that major international institutions have been calling for a reduction in public deficits. This is similar to the point made in the 2013 EI Study Trends in freedom of association and collective bargaining in the education sector since the financial crisis.  Financial support from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has been conditional on reductions in public spending. Governments implemented wage cuts or caps on pay in the public service in 14 out of 25 Latin American countries, 22 out of 43 sub-Saharan African countries, seven out of 10 countries in the Arab region, four out of eight countries in South Asia; 13 out of 21 countries in East Asia and the Pacific, and 14 out of 21 in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Job losses have contributed to increased workloads and working hours for the remaining employees.

The ILO Committee of Experts has also observed other trends in labour relations in the public service, including: the extension of contracts ruled by private sector labour law; the admission of temporary public employees, agency workers and service contracts; and increased use of performance incentives typical of the private sector. The Committee warned of the potentially negative repercussions for the independence of public servants.

There are other consequences, including lower compliance with labour regulations, such as occupational health and safety. The report particularly notes the impact of budget reductions on the quality of education delivery, including poorer school services for low performers, reduced teacher-to-student ratios, and increased brain drain.

Cuts in pay and conditions have resulted in a downgrade of skill levels, reduced levels of investment in pubic occupations, and prevented public administration/services from attracting young qualified graduates.  The “new” phenomenon of the public sector working poor in Europe has led to increased migration of public sector workers from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and southern Europe. Cuts are likely to increase the gender pay gap and stall progress towards gender equality.

Recommendations on social dialogue

The ILO supervisory bodies have emphasised that “social dialogue is essential in normal times and becomes even more so in times of crisis”. The ILO further stated that collective bargaining contributes to social peace, adaptation to economic and political change, the fight against corruption, and the promotion of equality. The issue paper notes that the political will for social dialogue has been weakened by the crisis. Extended social unrest has been stronger where crisis responses have been introduced by unilateral decision making. There has also been a decline in social dialogue in pension reforms. Pressures on provincial and state governments have increased as federal governments lessen transfers to them in order to balance their federal budgets.

“EI expects that the ILO Global Dialogue Forum on Challenges to Collective Bargaining in the Public Service’s outcome document in the form of tripartite points of consensus will include a renewed commitment to promoting collective bargaining in the public services,” said EI General Secretary Fred van Leeuwen. “EI and the workers’ group are also putting forward a proposal for a four-year integrated action programme on the promotion of collective bargaining in the public sector, to include tripartite sub-regional training programmes and specific national action plans with the aim of establishing joint public sector negotiating councils.”