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INTERNATIONAL LABOUR OFFICE

Good Labour Relations Practicesin the Americas

Marleen Rueda-CatryMaría Luz Vega Ruiz

Infocus Programme on Promoting the Declaration

Project “Principles and Rights at Work in the context of the XIIIInter-American Conference of Ministers of Labour of the Organization of American States”

Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean

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IACML - ILO Project

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Publications of the International Labour Office enjoy copyright under Protocol 2 of the Universal Copyright Convention.Nevertheless, short excerpts from them may be reproduced without authorization, on condition that the source is indicated.For rights of reproduction or translation, application should be made to the Publications Bureau (Rights and Permissions),International Labour Office, CH-1211 Geneva 22, Switzerland. The International Labour Office welcomes such applications.

RUEDA-CATRY, Marleen; VEGA RUIZ, María Luz.Good Labour Relations Practices in the Americas.Lima: ILO/ Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean, 2005. 56 p. (Working Paper Nº 199)

Labour relations, good practices, collective bargaining, methodology, Latin America. 13.06.1

ISBN: 92-2-117800-5 (print) 92-2-117801-3 (web pdf)

Published also in Spanish: Buenas prácticas de relaciones laborales en las Américas.ISBN: 92-2-317800-2ISSN: 92-2-315594-0, Lima, 2005.

ILO catalogue information

The designations employed in ILO publications, which are in conformity with United Nations practice, and the presentation ofmaterial therein do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the International Labour Office concerning thelegal status of any country, area or territory or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers. The responsibility foropinions expressed in signed articles, studies and other contributions rests solely with their authors, and publication does not constitutean endorsement by the International Labour Office of the opinions expressed in them.

Reference to names of firms and commercial products and processes does not imply their endorsement by the International LabourOffice, and any failure to mention a particular firm, commercial product or process is not a sign of disapproval.

ILO Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean publications can be obtained at the following address: Av. Las Flores 275,San Isidro, Lima 27 – Perú, or Apartado Postal 14-124, Lima, Perú.

Visit our website: www.oit.org.pe

Printed in Peru

Copyright © International Labour Organization 2005First edition 2005

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PRESENTATION 5

INTRODUCTION 7

1. THE GOOD LABOUR RELATIONS PRACTICES CONCEPT 9

2. BASIC COMPONENTS OF GOOD LABOUR RELATIONS PRACTICES 14

2.1. The labour relations system 14

2.2. Legislation fostering good practices 16

2.3. The social actors 19

2.4. The labour administration 20

2.5. Labour justice 28

3. GOOD PRACTICES ON INFORMATION, CONSULTATION AND COLLECTIVE BARGAINING

3.1. Information and Consultation 29

3.2. Collective Bargaining 31

3.2.1. Collective bargaining and flexibility 33

3.2.2. Wage negotiations in the company 35

3.2.3. Mechanisms of “inter partes” for the solution of conflicts in the enterprises 36

3.2.4. Collective bargaining as a mechanism of equality 39

3.3. Strategic Alliances 41

3.4. Social Dialogue 42

TABLE OF CONTENTS

4. HOW TO GENERATE AND DEVELOP A GOOD PRACTICE. A FEW WORKING CRITERIA 44

4.1. Some thoughts about good practice 44

4.2. Initiatives to generate a good practice culture 45

4.3. How to evaluate a good practice 46

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ANNEX I: WEB PAGES OF INTEREST 49

Labour Ministries 49

Regional Institutions 49

Trade Unions 50

Employers’ Organizations 50

Global Trade Unions 51

International Labour Office: www.ilo.org 51

NOTES 53

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PRESENTATION

This manual of good labour relations practices was prepared in the context of the Projectexecuted by the ILO, with USDOL financing, to support the Inter-American Conference of Ministersof Labour of the Organization of American States (IACML-OAS). The document, prepared by theILO at the express request of IACML working group 2 responsible for «Building the capacity ofLabour Ministries,» briefly covers pertinent regional experiences based on the various elements andinstitutions involved and from a highly exemplifying and teaching outlook. It is part of a series ofProject publications to supply inputs for the Conference working group members.

Although there are numerous national, subregional or thematic studies on good practices inthe Americas, this publication, at the request of working group 2, adds some new compilation andstructural elements. Prepared on the basis of the countries’ practical experience on the subject and ofinformation sent in by the governments themselves and by the social actors, it constitutes an initialworking document on which subsequent further and more in-depth efforts will produce a more completeand better-adapted repertoire of good practices. It is not a comparative analysis or a theoreticalreflection, but an orderly presentation of several lines of conduct that have produced positive results inthe area of labour relations.

We consider that the content of the document aimed at the ILO constituents in the region byestablishing parameters and elements to strengthen a specific area key to the working world, could beimportant for developing the social aspects of the regional integration process and ensuring betterdissemination of workers’ rights in a context of productivity, dialogue, social peace and decent workas a global – and, hence, a regional – objective.

Daniel Martínez Acting Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean

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INTRODUCTION

The concept of good labour practices has been in use for the past several years in a very wide andgeneral sense, as a synonym for all kinds of successful experiences in the world of work. At a criticalmoment in the development of labour-management relations, this idea responds to an increasinglyanxious search for mechanisms and forms of interaction that may make it possible to identify thoseexperiences and forms of interrelation that have improved the labour environment and increasedproductivity in a context of respect for workers’ rights.

In line with the above and as a preliminary approximation, a good practice can be defined as anyexperience guided by appropriate principles, objectives and procedures, and/or any advisable guidelinesin line with a certain normative perspective or a consensus-based standard, as well as any experiencethat has produced positive results by proving to be effective and useful in a given context.Notwithstanding, the concept of good practices is generally used in spontaneous, unregulated way,with reference to any experience subjectively considered as successful from a wide variety of points ofview, with no pre-established minimum benchmarks that might make it possible to identify suchexperiences in objective terms.

Nor should it be forgotten, as we work to improve our general definition of good practices, that ourultimate purpose is to be able to document and disseminate those cases that in an enterprise, anindustry or a country have produced situations, developments and labour models that may be definedas exemplary when measured with a variety of criteria, for purposes of successful replication. Clearly,the world of labour is a multifaceted reality – from personnel selection and other administrativematters to the exercise of fundamental rights – an imperative requirement –, to matters such as the endof labour life or the conjugation of work time with leisure time, to myriad issues relating to health,social protection or employment policies. Indeed, we are dealing with a whole range of issues thatconcern the social life of human beings.

It would be far too ambitious to try to cover all of these issues at the same time from the start.Therefore, for purposes of this study and for practical reasons, we are going to focus on a singleaspect and try to develop a few working tools that might enable us to attain our goal. Given that astudy of labour life within an enterprise – the core of the world of labour – must begin with a study ofthe development of labour relations, this will be our starting point. This decision does not imply thatwe consider this particular topic as the most important or the most urgent. It merely stems from adesire to begin with a topic sufficiently wide as to be of common interest, and where concreteinstances are most likely to be available for the purposes of an adequately in-depth study. Moreover,given that collective bargaining is a key element of labour relations, and that this element is unique andlends itself to the search of a solution through consensus, it would appear to make its study morestraightforward and, perhaps, simpler.

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In the Americas, the state of labour relations and its underlying principles is not particularly encouraging.There is much talk about a general deterioration of labour relations at all levels. Nevertheless, inseveral countries and industries a number of successful experiences are there to show that the situationcan indeed improve, and indicators and identifiable elements are presented that make it possible todevelop the same experiences in other contexts with the resulting multiplier effect.

We should like to clarify a point regarding the criterion for selecting the cases included in this reportand presented throughout the present text. There have been occasions where we received or foundexamples of good practices that reflected some positive aspect in the development of labour relationsin an enterprise. Nevertheless, it was difficult to include them under the general good practice category,given that they evinced other labour relations problems detected by national or international authorities.Such has been the case, for instance, of an enterprise that had introduced novel negotiated practices onthe subject of safety and health at work, whilst, on the other hand, having been the object of an anti-union dismissal complaint before the ILO’s Freedom of Association Committee.

As we will see in the following pages, there is no objective or universally accepted definition of agood labour relations practice, one that would make it possible to build a database of practicalexamples. Most texts on this topic, including those created by the ILO, simply use the concept withoutdefining it, with the resulting lack of clarity as to the objective pursued.

Given this, and with the intent of making a more in-depth analysis of this issue and facilitating acommon modus operandi, this paper attempts to develop the guidelines of an operational good practicesmethodology, one essentially aimed at labour relations actors, as a way not only to promote unanimousconsensus on such a definition, but also to provide certain tools, a degree of training, and establishingthe basis for its dissemination among workers and employers in order to build a decent workenvironment, i.e. one that is fair and respectful of fundamental workers’ rights.

The authors

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1. THE GOOD LABOUR RELATIONS PRACTICES CONCEPT

According to the documentation examined,there does not seem to exist in the Americas ageneral good labour practices concept, eventhough the various papers and studies clearlytry to capture examples fit to be converted intomodels regarding various aspects of labour andemployment.

Even within the ILO there is no concretedefinition of this concept, in spite of theavailability of several documents and manualsdevoted to this topic1 , and the creation of anumber of guides and/or compendia (such asthose prepared for the RELACENTRO,PROMALCO, USDOL Colombia technicalcooperation projects2 ). Even the ILO’sinternational instruments mention the goodlabour practices concept. Such is the case ofitem 9 g) of the Human Resources DevelopmentRecommendation, 2004 (No. 195) which urges“private and public employers to adopt bestpractices in human resources development;”.Likewise, in its observations3 the Committee ofExperts on the Application of Conventions andRecommendations has mentioned this conceptand given it a content in line with national use.

According to an analysis based on objectiveelements, a good labour practice would be oneallowing social development in a context ofprotection of workers’ rights whilst ensuringeconomic progress in other words, one thatfacilitates a worker’s performance in a contextof respect for the rights accepted as valid byhis/her community and development andprogress for the economy and for enterprises.Given that any general discussion of labour and/or employment involves myriad facets andaspects, each and every one of the issues

involved should be submitted to concretetypification in order to identify the elements thatcould characterize this common objetive and itsvarious elements.

Given that labour relations are typical of andcentral to decent work and social justice (thepursuit of which are the ILO’s remit by expressmandate of its Member States) since theycombine legislation, programmes and policiesand develop legal as well as economic aspects,we have chosen this issue as our initial topic ofdiscussion.

Although there are – again – no concretedefinitions, from the ILO perspective a goodpractice regarding labour relations may bedefined as a collective experience4 which in acontext of respect for fundamental principlesand rights at work as defined by the Constitutionand the ILO Declaration can be consideredsuccessful in ensuring the well-being of workersand the progress of enterprises by improvingrelations within the enterprise, ensuring adequateconditions of work and employment, facilitatingthe increase of productivity, and developing aculture of consensus on the basis of a negotiatedagreement between workers and employers; inother words, by facilitating decent work.

Based on this perspective, and without pre-suming to establish a definitive list, the follow-ing would be considered as basic general indi-cators or elements of a good labour relationspractice:

- Respect for fundamental principles and rights,and in particular for freedom of associationand collective bargaining.

- Signs of positive adjustment by workers andemployers to the working environment andattitudes of mutual cooperation and help.

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- Establishment of effective measures toovercome conflict.

- Open dialogue: existence of agreements,information and consultation between theenterprise and workers’ representatives.

- Economic development or negotiatedmeasures aimed at improving economicperformance.

- Internal training policy generating an increasein workers’ professional skills.

It should be pointed out that good practice isa dynamic concept, one that can evolve andchange over time. A practice may be consideredpositive, even consensus-based, and yet evolvein the direction of conflict or other undesirablemanifestations.

Within the region, the concept of good labourrelations practices (or good practices in termsof labour relations) is used with multipleacceptations and different meanings. As weexamine the web pages of the social actors andthe various institutions concerned with this issue,we find that, widely as this term is used, thereare very few definitions of it.

Only the Chilean Ministry of Labour makesan express reference to this term in the LabourDirectorate’s web page by stating that “In anycountry, labour relations are a factor of essentialimportance, not only because they determinethe quality of the interaction between employersand workers, but also because they define thequality of a society. For this reason, the debateon Good Labour Practices is a national issuethat concerns not only the authorities in chargeof economic policy but the entire society. Forits part, SERNAM (The National Service forWomen), an agency of the same Ministry,defines good equity practices as a set of policies,measures and/or initiatives adopted by an

enterprise in order to improve working conditionsfor women and reduce existing labour gaps.Enterprises adopt them on a voluntary basis,and they are additional to those mandatory underlabour law.

Nor do trade unions and employers’ organi-zations with an open web page offer an explicitdefinition of the concept discussed in this study,which is only mentioned in a number of publi-cations, seminars, workshops or internal docu-ments. In other words, they choose a descriptiveapproach, by mentioning examples of institutionsand labour relations actions that may be definedas “appropriate” from their point of view.

For its part, the Permanent Secretariat of theGeneral Treaty on Central American EconomicIntegration (SIECA), although it does notprovide an explicit definition of the good labourrelations practices concept, does consider in itsworkshops5 held within the framework ofcollective labour relations, that the best practicesare those that generate “the greatest respect forinternationally recognized labour rights andrights deriving from trade negotiations with theUnited States of America”. In this context, itdeems essential to work on:

- International labour agreements within theframework of the International LabourOrganization (ILO).

- Freedom of association and the right toorganize, and the effective recognition of theright to collective bargaining, the effectiveelimination of child labour, the eliminationof forced or compulsory labour of anydescription, and of discrimination inemployment and occupation.

- Trade agreements and the inclusion ofinternationally recognized labour rightsprotection.

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- Practical experience in the application of thelabour chapters of the North America FreeTrade Agreement (NAFTA) between theUnited States, Canada, Mexico; the FTAbetween the United States and Chile; FTAbetween the United States and Jordan; thelabour chapter of the Central America FreeTrade Agreement (CAFTA) – United States,and its substantive and procedural implicationsfor the labour ministries.

In other words, what we have here is alaworiented definition, one well adjusted tointernational regulations and based on a specificcontext. The good labour practices concept, asthus defined, is circumscribed to adherence tointernational normative standards and theirenforcement within the framework of free tradeagreements (which in turn conform to theprovisions of the ILO Declaration onFundamental Principles and Rights at Work).

In Rentabilidad de las buenas prácticaslaborales, recently published jointly by theSubregional ILO Office for Chile, Paraguay andUruguay and the Confederación de laProducción y el Comercio de Chile, HubertoBerg uses an approach based on profitabilityand the convenience of maintaining such goodpractices to suggest that the “good practices”concept goes beyond compliance with labourlaws (he adds that such a vision would beremarkably simplistic): it implies obligations todo and not to do. Although labour relationshave their foundation in labour legislation, theyare not limited to it, for they also includevoluntary actions adopted by the managementof an enterprise..indeed they are a step forwardin the direction of creating a milieu where mutualunderstanding and cooperation prevail betweenthose who lead and those who are led. Such amilieu is of essential importance for the growth

and enhanced competitiveness of an organizationin which both sides are participants.” Here thebook in question emphasizes that compliancewith the existing legislation is an ethical andlegal minimum benchmark for the structuringof labour relations, and adds that the existenceof fair wages and discrimination-free treatmentare essential elements of good practices. Finally,it points out that the cost of good practices isnot an expense, but rather an investment in thegeneration of a good atmosphere within theenterprise, one that is not only advantageousfrom the standpoint of compliance with the law,but also cost-effective.

The ILO’s “Mejoramiento de las relacioneslaborales en Colombia” project6 has publisheda compendium of good labour practices in thatcountry. In the report’s comparativeintroduction, the authors express the opinionthat good practices are generally conceived ofin two ways:

(a) As experiences governed by adequate prin-ciples, objectives and procedures or advis-able guidelines in accord with a given nor-mative perspective.

(b) As experiences that have produced positiveresults, meaning that the choices made haveproved themselves effective and useful fromthe standpoint of the objectives of theprocess.

The same reports adds that in an internationalcontext, good labour relations practices shouldbe conceived of as those experiences that pursuepurposes compatible with the purposes andobjectives of the International LabourOrganization – ILO – and more particularlywith the fundamental principles and rightsestablished since 1998. This is so because thelatter are enshrined in the basic conventions of

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As we have been emphasizing in the previouspages, a good labour relations practice typicallyfeatures a number of elements or characteristicsthat show it as co-operative, facilitative and inaccord with fundamental principles and rightsat work. As a rule, it should also be accessible,easy to use, transparent and free, and itsdevelopment should be cost effective.

Criteria for determining a good practice8

Relevance: applicability to a concrete context, as a response to a need.

Impact: potential for direct or indirect improvement of the aspect addressed.

Sustainability: possibility to effectively continue during a given term and produce enduring results.

Creativity and innovation: why is a good practice particularly interesting? What does it contribute?.

Replicability.

Easy to perform.

Effectiveness: maximum benefit at a minimum cost.

the international community on this subjectmatter, but also because an ILO project mustof necessity include these criteria. It is also aprocess that has yielded tangible results interms of well-being for workers and enterprises,and of the quality of the relationship betweenthe management of enterprises and the leadersof workers’ organizations. These results mustalso translate into a positive perception of thatrelationship by the social actors.

There also exist a few partial definitions giventhe focus on corporate social responsibility, webelieve they refer to collective labour relations––such as the one offered by the InternationalTobacco Growers’ Association (ITGA) whichconsiders good practice any normalized practicethat can be applied in diverse countries with due

account of the peculiarities of each, and helpsensure real change in the industry concerned7 .

Finally, we found numerous publicationsincluding good trade union practices, or webpages including lists of good and bad practicesregarding certain institutions party to labourrelations. Likewise, we found a list of codes ofconduct, protocols for investigation as toobservance of rights, cases of enterprise audit,and numerous case studies concerningenterprises, industries or good practices, such asthe guidebook prepared by ILO’s PROMALCOproject for the English speaking area of theCaribbean, which provides equality-basedelements and practices conducive to progress andproductivity increase, as a way to foster thedevelopment of truly decent work in enterprises.

Within and even without enterprises andindustries, there undoubtedly exist a number ofpositive practices that, although acting in parallelwith and even reinforcing the effect of a goodpractice, are not themselves good practices, forthey lack certain basic elements, and most par-ticularly the accord element, – or conducive-ness to it, – that is a fundamental factor in

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A few of these experiences do evolve into atrue good practice based on an agreementbetween all concerned parties, rather than intoa mere statement of adhesion to a generaltechnical standard, such as SA 800011 . Theentire Peruvian mining industry, and Chile’sCODELCO regarding copper mining are casesin point, where the code of conduct has beenconsulted with and “accepted” by the workers,who have thus become involved in itsdevelopment particularly so in Peru, where eachindividual worker in each individual companyaccepted the code. The same situation hasoccurred at the international level regarding anumber of multinational corporations, includingDANONE or Nestlé, where the code was alsothe product of consultation. In this case, an in-ternational certification that goes beyond a meredeclaration of intent can be defined as a quasi-good labour relations practice, since it is, infact a stepping stone towards the so-called frame-work agreements being negotiated and signed.The latter are without a doubt (cf. infra) a goodpractice.

The Brazilian experience of the SocialObservatory Institute as an institution linked totrade unions and to Instituto Ethos with itsconnections to employers’ organizations, is basedon the existence of programmes designed tosupport the idea that the exploration of issuesrelating to labour relations or corporate socialresponsibility generates greater awareness insocial actors, and its work can be consideredinstrumental to good practices development.

A number of enterprises execute and developtraining practices aimed at laying the foundationsof mutual trust. Hopefully, this will lead to thejoint creation of a good practice. This is thecase of Sears Manufacturing, which within theframework of its negotiations with the UAW

labour relations. In other words, such practicesmay well be positive, appropriate, advisablewithout necessarily qualifying as good practicesin the strict sense of the word.

In fact, there often exist instruments that focuson corporate social responsibility which includecodes of conduct, codes of ethic, monitoringsystems or social standards that are born ofvoluntary submission to a number of principleson the part of individual enterprises. Althoughthese do foster labour relations as a whole orsome specific aspect of them, they remainunilateral, private actions adopted independentlyof any prior agreement. There can be no doubtthat they are positive actions, good entre-preneurial practices, since they imply voluntaryand explicit compliance with minimum labourstandards; still, they cannot be properlyconsidered as good labour relations practices,in that they do not require adhesion by one ofthe parties involved in a labour relationship,namely: the workers9 .

Within this framework, social reports andsocial audits have proved a useful experiencethat enables enterprises to better manage anddevelop a social policy in accordance withavailable resources, while also ensuring a betterlabour climate and greater productivity. Onecase of successful experience in this sense isColombia, where over 300 enterprises producethe ILO/ANDI social report, and distribute it atgeneral shareholders’ meetings. Also worthmentioning among such positive actions are thevarious activities developed around the conceptof corporate social responsibility, which areof a more general nature and promotebetter observance of rights with wideimplications not only for the traditional actorsof the world of labour but also for shareholders,consumers, etc.10

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(United Auto Workers), has created a mecha–nism (QCALM) to train workers who had beenleft out of the market. Courses were based onteam work, and produced a number of positiveimpacts which led to a better understanding bythe workers of the company’s situation andproblems. As a result, workers increased thecompetitiveness of the entire company. In theEnglish-speaking Caribbean and within theframework of the PROMALCO project, similarexperiences have been found.12

As an alternative approach to the promotionof corporate fairness, we found the practice,introduced in the case in point by the concernedgovernment, of promoting and publicizingenterprises with good practices defined on thebasis of objective criteria. In the case of Mexico,the so-called empresa incluyente (inclusiveenterprise) plays such a role. The MexicanMinistry of Labour awards the title of empresaincluyente to any company executing a policyof inclusion of handicapped workers, providedthey are hired in accordance with the law andon the same terms as the other employees, andprovided they have been employed for at leastone year. Empresas incluyentes receive thefollowing benefits: they receive skilledpersonnel, personnel turnover diminishes––handicapped workers are keener to retain theirjobs––enjoy priority under the Training SupportProgramme, can use the empresa incluyente logoon their products, services and advertisements,and enjoy income tax benefits. Similarexperiences are being developed in othercountries, either in the form of awards oradmission to a special ranking of sociallyresponsible enterprises (Chile).

Lastly, mention must be made of the so-calledstrategic alliances designed to improve labourstandards and codes of conduct. These alliances

are usually struck between multinationalcorporations and trade unions, as in the case ofGAP, as a means to promote efforts aimed atimproving conditions on the workplace throughthe implementation of codes of conduct.

In the final analysis, these are all efforts– whether public or private – aimed atgenerating trust, and building the foundation forgood labour relations. They may lead to thecreation of a good practice.

2. BASIC COMPONENTS OF GOODLABOUR RELATIONS PRACTICES

2.1. The labour relations system

To put our analysis in its proper context, weshould like to recall the elements that composethe labour relations system. The term “labourrelations” is used to refer to all those standards,procedures and practices that are designed toregulate relations between employers, workers,and the State in a given socioeconomic context.

On one hand, there are the workers,represented by workers’ organizations – usuallytrade unions or informal workers’ groups whereno union exists. On the other, there is anindividual employer or group of employers, oran employers’ organization. Trade unions onone hand and employers or employers’organizations, on the other, are the typical actorsof the labour relations system.

Conflict is also inherent to labour relations, andits resolution often exceeds the sphere of actionof the direct actors. Hence the fact that labourdisputes nearly always involve the State as a thirdparty that takes upon itself the role of regulator,mediator or arbitrator as the case may require.In addition, the State becomes a party in its own

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right to a labour dispute whenever its ownemployees are involved. This means that, in onecapacity or another, the State is always involvedin the labour relations system to the extent of thelatter’s connection with the social and politicalrelations that make up the society as a whole.

In addition to the actors, the other componentsof the labour relations system are its institutionsor the mechanisms through which the formerinteract, which can be of two types. One typeconsists of the socalled autonomous mechanisms,which are those established by the partiesthemselves. The autonomous mechanism parexcellence is collective bargaining, which theinterested parties use to establish rules governinglabour conditions and their mutual relations. Thiscategory also includes other voluntarymechanisms – e.g. voluntary arbitration or otherbilateral labour dispute resolution methods – andother autonomous forms of relationship,including information, consultation and othermechanisms ensuring participation in the decisionmaking process within a given enterprise.

The second type – and one of far widerapplication in the Latin American region –consists of the so called heteronomous institutionsor mechanisms, defined as those used by theState to impose its own solutions on the othertwo parties to a labour relation. Such is thecase of labour legislation, which in LatinAmerica has roots that date back to the beginningof the XX century, and is a manifestation of the

State’s early desire to regulate social and labourconflict. In addition to labour legislation, thereare two forms of heteronomous legislation –respectively administrative intervention throughlabour ministries, and judicial intervention,usually in the form of a specialized judicature.

This chapter intends to provide a more in-depth analysis of each component of the labourrelations system in order to orient the actorsconcerned on the possible ways to work for thepromotion of healthy labour relations whetherin an enterprise, an industry or a country.

There exist a number of minimum featuresregarding labour relations that make it possibleto have a preliminary view of what a goodpractice looks like. There is no denying thatnumerous aspects have to do with thedevelopment of labour relations, and that eachof them can include features or elements- including heterogeneous ones - that it isnecessary to analyze in order for a practice toqualify as good. Following the methodology wehave just described – which is the usual, indeedclassic in the study of labour relations – wenow propose to examine these components. Thisanalysis is not exhaustive – it merely purportsto elaborate on this concept, to develop a generalidea of a good practice on the basis of availabledocumentation, to provide a few examples andidentify a number of points that may make suchpractices worth considering for replication inother countries on the basis of objective criteria.

Conclusions of the ILO’s XIV American Regional Meeting, Lima, August 1999

“Harmonious labour relations contribute to the success of enterprises; collective bargaining and the observance of the

ensuing agreements further contribute to such success, leading to increased productivity, the equitable distribution of

its benefits and improved working conditions. The ILO should continue to provide assistance in this area. It should also

publicize good practices and experiences and provide information about successful enterprises.” (paragraph 15).

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2.2. Legislation fostering good practices

Again, as we examine existing literature anddocuments, we find that the concept of goodpractices often appears limited to a correctadaptation of national legislation to a few clearlydefined standards, also of a legal, supranationalnature (international standards, ILODeclaration...). However, this is too narrowan approach, in that it does not consider theaspects that have to do with the convenienceand the suitability of a given standard in a givendomestic context, nor does it take the actualenforcement of said regulation into account.

Without prejudice to the points made in thefirst chapter of this report, where we tried todelimit the meaning of “good practices”, weshould like to mention a few other referencesthat focus on the legal aspects of labourrelations.

In CUT Brazil’s web page, for instance, thisconcept is limited to the fight against labourflexibilization and casualization, and for betterincome distribution and more employmentgeneration. It is implicitly understood that it isup to trade unions (as a collective undertaking)to obtain better legislation to guarantee therights of “direitos trabalhistas”, and to fightunemployment, informality and poor wor-king conditions through actions aimed atensuring true compliance with the law(concerning, in essence, labour inspection andpenalty procedures).

Likewise, most web pages owned byministries and workers’ and employers’organizations and available in the region definein detail or at least reflect their respectivenational or international laws of referenceregarding issues relating to fundamental rights,

administrative or judicial procedures for thedefence of rights, or the modes or proceduresfor reporting cases of noncompliance in otherwords, largely legal matters.

In spite of the scope and the content of thesetopics, the documents we have examined donot provide a concrete definition of legislativegood practices on the subject of labourrelations, although one can be inferred fromthe presence of a number of common elements,namely any norm, rule or legal provision thatensures observance of workers’ rights inaccordance with national and internationalstandards, while facilitating the productivedevelopment of enterprises, and justice andsocial peace in general.

By what criteria can a legislative practice bequalified as adequate? As a first step and in aninternational framework we find a number oftreaties, conventions and declarations thatofficially define the concept of adequatelegislation, at least to the extent that they setforth not only the required minimum principlesand rights, but also the criteria and elementsthat define them13 .

The list is made complete for the region bysuch international instruments as the AmericanConvention on Human Rights by means ofwhich, in full accord with the UniversalDeclaration of Human Rights, the Organizationof American States (OAS) has adopted an entirecatalogue of fundamental rights, and establishedadjudicatory or quasi-adjudicatory protectionthrough the Inter-American Commission onHuman Rights and the Inter-American Courtof Human Rights.

Labour and social rights appear likewiseclearly set forth in the four founding regional

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instruments and in the various instrumentsgoverning the regional integration process. TheMERCOSUR, CARICOM, NAFTA, SICAand CAN instruments all enshrine, in more orless sweeping terms, the principles and rightsthat must hold sway in the world of labour.

By its very nature as an internationalorganization in charge of social issues, the ILOis empowered with a set of basic instrumentsthat make it possible to determine whether agiven legislation is “correct” by using objective,consensus-based and universal criteria asreference. This body of law, known as theInternational Code of Labour Rights, iscomprised in essence of the ILO InternationalConventions, which, once ratified, become partof the domestic law in the ratifying country.Although individual countries have an obligationto consider ratifying these instruments,ratification is voluntary and depends on thesovereign decision of the concerned country14 .

This general legal framework was completedwhen, as a result of a decision adopted by theILO’s Governing Body in 1994 to establish agroup of eight Fundamental Conventions (lateradopted by the Copenhague Summit for SocialDevelopment in 1995), the ILO promoted thedrafting of a Declaration of FundamentalPrinciples and Rights at Work, which has theforce of an international treaty and places uponthe States the obligation to promote theenforcement of the four principles relating tothe above-mentioned eight FundamentalConventions (namely freedom of association andcollective bargaining, abolition of forced labour,elimination of child labour, and no discrimina-tion). In this case, the follow-up required is of amerely promotional nature, and does not in-volve binding control as in the case of the Con-ventions.

Generally speaking, a country’s legalobligations vis-à-vis the ILO are undertaken ona voluntary basis and arise with the ratificationof international agreements. In any event, andeven before ratification, these agreements as theresult of a consensus among the Member States,and are indicative of what regulatory contentand practice should be on the various labour-related issues. This reference value is strongerwhen it comes to the principles of theDeclaration, where the constitutional obligationthey enshrine makes the member countries adopteffective enforcement measures. Here, however,there are no specific compliance criteria, norcan there be international control on the part ofconcretely identified organs, but only a varietyof mechanisms which bear, again, a promotional,follow-up character.

In brief, from the ILO perspective a goodnational legislative practice in terms of labourrelations must meet at least two basicrequirements:

(a) In each country all ratified conventions mustbe complied with by adopting whatevermeasures may be necessary to ensure theirvalidity under the law and application inpractice, and making the adjustmentsrequired by whatever observations andrecommen-dations are made by controlbodies. This involves not only makingwhatever amendment of national law maybe required, but also providing enforcingbodies and institutions with the necessaryresources and training.

(b) The enforcement of Fundamental Principlesand Rights at Work as defined in theDeclaration must be promoted, whether therelevant instruments have been ratifiedor not.

18

Interestingly, sometimes national standards areborn of the practice of dialogue and consensus.Such is the case of some labour codes in forcein the region (Dominican Republic) or somespecific reforms, where this prior tripartiteexercise gives even more legitimacy to theensuing enforcement process. Many of these

From a national standpoint (and with referenceto the international framework), a good legislativepractice on labour relations should also observewhatever treaties and declarations a country maybe signatory to, and ensure a balance betweenenterprises’ interests and workers’ rights. In thiscontext, unqualified observance of imperative(i.e. absolutely necessary) labour rights is offundamental importance, given that these rightsare those that guarantee the necessary balancebetween the two forces that compose aproductive system (the worker and theenterprise).

In general, the legal principles that inspire theentire labour legislation (and aim at guaranteeingfor the worker, as the weaker party in a labourrelation, a balanced legal position within theenterprise), also consider as minimumbenchmark the above-mentioned ILOfundamental rights, certain standards regardinghours of work (rest, annual and parental leaves),sufficient wages, and the right to health andsafety, which protects the most valuable interestof all - life. The actual content of these necessaryrights varies according to practice and nationaldevelopment.

consensus-based legislative processes have takenplace over the past fifty years under the aegisand with the active involvement of the ILO itself.

Of particular interest in this context is theNational Labour Forum created in Brazil, inJuly 2003, as a joint tripartite body to promote

Three instruments useful to the development of good legislative practices

The ILO can avail itself of a number of practical instruments for developing “adequate” legislations conforming to

clearly defined criteria. In particular:

The “Labour Legislation Guidelines”, designed to assist parties involved in the elaboration or review of labour law,

including government representatives, employers, workers and other concerned actors. The ultimate purpose is for

labour legislation to be better suited to national conditions and circumstances, while taking into more account the

fundamental principles and rights at work promoted by the ILO15 .

At the regional level, several informative and reference publications resume the region’s legislation and make an

overview possible. One such text of considerable interest to Spanish speaking countries is La reforma laboral en

América Latina. Un análisis comparado16.

Another instrument of general reference is the ILO’s International Observatory of Labour Law, created to supply

useful information on national legislation, and to provide a portal for online access to various aspects of labour law

and legal information of interest to labour law specialists, in the same way as National Labour Law Profiles, which

contain basic information on the labour legislation applicable in the various ILO Member States17 .

19

accord among the social partners and buildconsensus-based arrangements into the labourrelations system and subsidize the drafting ofconstitutional and ordinary draft legislation ontrade union and labour reform. One fruit of itslabour has been a proposal of amendment ofthe Federal Charter which is today beforeParliament as a draft bill on the reform of tradeunion legislation.

From the standpoint of labour relations, it isnot enough to ensure free affiliation, thedevelopment of the freedom of association, andthe right to collective bargaining, or to freelyuse conflict measures and conflict resolutionmechanisms, to be able to speak of a goodpractice. It is also necessary, except for well-reasoned exceptions18 , that the legislationgoverning collective relations be applied to allworkers, without excluding certain categoriesof workers as in the case of agricultural andrural workers in Bolivia and Honduras.Furthermore, administrative standards and rulesmust not be restrictive or impede in practice theexercise of a right, as is sometimes the casewhen the legal recognition and registration oforganizations is impeded by the lack of aphysical register or by excessively burdensomeformal requirements or excessively lengthyprocedures. Likewise, the dearth of guaranteesin terms of judicial and/or administrativeoverview would be an element thwarting theexistence of a good practice.

From this standpoint, in addition to the twopreviously described criteria regarding the ILO,what features can tell us that we are in thepresence of a good legal practice regardinglabour relations? From our perspective and basedon an analysis of national needs, we couldconclude that a good legal practice would requireat least:

- Guaranteed freedom of association and noanti-union discrimination, in accordance withthe provisions of international conventions(with added reinforcements and controlswhere these conventions have beenratified)19 and the ILO Declaration.

- Full and free development of collectivebargaining, in accordance with theprovisions of international conventions (withadded reinforcements and controls wherethese conventions have been ratified), andthe ILO Declaration.

- Effective right to manifest a conflict and toseek its effective solution in accordance withthe provisions of international conventions(with added reinforcements and controlswhere these conventions have been ratified).

- Application and extension of the rights to asufficient number of citizens, avoidingexclusions or discriminations againstmajorities.

- Administrative and judicial bodies asprovided by law, supported by effective lawenforcement procedures. Human andmaterial resources sufficient to guarantee adegree of effectiveness.

- Accessible and representative labourrelations data that may provide informationon some aspects of compliance withlegislation (statistics on affiliation, collectivebargaining or labour disputes).

2.3. The social actors

Healthy labour relations ultimately depend onthe social actors’ legitimacy. Workers andemployers’ organizations must be representative,reflect the interests of all their members, and payspecial attention to the needs of men and womenalike, as well as of ethnic minorities, indigenousgroups, handicapped persons and other groupstraditionally left outside the representation remit

20

of workers’ and employers’ organizations. Inorder to guarantee better participation by marginal– and therefore vulnerable – groups, provisionsshould be included that guarantee theirinvolvement and representation in the labourrelations system and in the collective bargainingcommissions whenever possible.

Moreover, in order to ensure effectiveinvolvement in labour relations, the parties needto be trained in dialogue, consultation andnegotiation. This implies being familiar with theprocedures and have the relevant information,so as to be able to understand the situation ofboth workers and the enterprise, to estimate theneeds and room for improvement of workingconditions and productivity in a context of respectfor social justice.

Given these basic requirements, workers’ andemployers’ organizations must be:

- Legitimate: under the law and in practice(registered, duly organized with by-laws,etc.).

- Representative (of the majority of workersand employers).

- Operate in accordance with the rules ofdemocracy and the principles of freedomof association.

- Endowed with the capacities necessary toperform their role.

- Plural, i.e. represent all workers in a pluraland varied way, so that their internalstructure may reflect the real diversitywithin the organization.

- Have a programme both clear and suited tothe needs of the people represented and theirinternal politics.

- Have a consensus-based culture.- Be able to play a role in the development of

the country’s social issues.

- Be able to ensure unity of action on itsprogrammes at the national level, whilerespecting each organization’s originalautonomy.

2.4. The labour administration

The social development community includesa number of public agencies that are in chargeof performing certain functions of support,supervision and control in the area of labourrelations, and whose correct functioning can besignificantly beneficial to the development ofbetter relations. Here the basic problem facedby the region is a certain tendency by thesebodies to engage in excessive intervention inthe development of bipartite relations.

Moreover, labour administration is slow andcumbersome in some countries20 in the region,and so are its procedures. This state of affairshas a negative impact on the development oflabour relations21 and the principles of freedomof association and the right to collectivebargaining22 . To this should be added that labouradministration is frequently charged withfunctions that call for excessive intervention.ICFTU, for instance,23 has been warning of suchan attitude in Brazil, where the Executive hasthe power to intervene in the registration oftrade unions and collective bargaining24. Ingeneral, we have found, regarding such mattersas the protection of union leaders or members,that the lack of speedy and summary proceduresis usually the cause of unjustified dismissal.

The activity of these agencies may wellcontribute – subject to the limitations of theirremit and respect for the principle of the parties’autonomy – to improving labour relations andpromote collective bargaining. Although allservices play a role in the development of labour

21

The case of the Province of Québec, Canada

The importance of having a good labour administration system has led all governmental departments and agencies in

the Province of Québec to create internal auditing systems for administrative activities and their results. In addition,

the Québec Auditor General periodically audits the overall performance of the system. The purpose of these audits is

to improve the legal framework of the Administration’s activity as well as to make the most effective use of the funds

appropriated through the Province’s administrative budget. In addition, it facilitates the study of promotion and

economic incentives systems for its personnel25 .

relations, (such is the case, for instance, of theintermediation or job placement systems), thosewith a clearer necessity for better functioningand, therefore, a good practice, would be thefollowing:

Support to the dialogue fora

The functions performed by a number oflabour ministries during the past few yearsinclude the rendering of assistance for theoperation of the various tripartite consultationfora that have been created or strengthened inthe region. This support has been made all themore necessary by the lack of institutions withhuman and material resources of their own.

Specifically, this assistance consists of thefollowing:

- Making some ministry officials availableto perform secretarial work.

- Provide premises for meetings.- Convene and provide follow-up for the

meetings.- Lend technical support for the preparation

of the topics to be submitted to debate.- Disseminate the results of the agreements

reached within the various dialogue fora.

This has been the case, among others, of theNational Council for Labour and EmploymentPromotion in Peru or the Economic and SocialCouncil in Honduras.

Registration

It falls upon labour authorities in general toregister trade unions and to control the legalityof the collective agreements recorded throughthe services. In the large majority of countriesthe registration of trade union and collectiveagreements is mandatory, and the law providesfor easily accessible ad hoc registers.

Control is basically ensured on the basis ofmerely formal requirements (homologación).For purposes of registration and recognitionof an organization as a legal entity it is onlynecessary to meet certain requirements as toname, legal domicile, minimum number ofmembers and presentation of by-laws. For theregistration of a collective agreement the onlyrequirement is notification and guarantee ofthe negotiators’ legal standing, and certainminimum content. In addition, a review isperformed to identify clauses that might breachlabour regulations or might have adiscriminatory nature.

22

The fight against clandestine work: the Argentinian case

The task of labour administration , so essential to the development of labour relations, has also played an important

role in the regularization of illegal employment27 . In fact, beginning with the launch of the National Labour

Regularization Plan in September 2003, the Ministry carried out inspections in 18,820 enterprises representing

together 64,000 workers, and succeeded in ensuring that about 24% of the workers found in an illegal situation were

put in good standing with the law. The new Ley de ordenamiento laboral of February 2004 is a further step forward in

this direction and strengthens the inspection system. The importance of this cannot be doubted, for, given the limited

scope of application of the law (only wage-earners are covered by it), if this is further reduced by widespread

illegality, the work of trade unions and the benefits of collective bargaining dwindle almost to insignificance.

Bureaucratic obstacles – meaning impedimentsto registration, requirement of a presidentialdecree, etc. – are very frequent in the region.The case of Peru’s civil servants is significant inthis respect. Although a law made it incumbenton the Ministry of Labour to keep a civil servants’union register26 , following the disappearance in1994 of the National Administration Institute (thebody in charge), there was no ad hoc registerthat made it possible to exercise that right. Therecent publication of DS Nº. 003-2004-TRwhich creates a physical register of civilservants’ unions has solved this problem andsignificantly increased real union affiliation.

The lack of registration with the widespreadpresence of clandestine enterprises is anincreasingly pressing issue. New good practicesare being developed to involve workers andemployers in the fight against this phenomenon.Indeed, this issue involves more thanregistration, and comes under the remit ofseveral areas of labour administration. Anexample well worth mentioning is the campaignagainst clandestine work being carried out inArgentina since 1996, which provides a sampleof specific actions combining legal advisoryservices with registration, information andsupport.

Another aspect of the usefulness andimportance of registration has to do with thepromotion of labour relations. The statisticsobtainable from registered agreements can beused to analyze trends or contents for purposesof inclusion in the negotiation process. Theactions of dissemination and information carriedout by Chile’s Labour Directorate regarding theindividual dispute resolution system, and speciallabour relations, among other issues, not onlyhas thrown light on the role performed by the

national administration, but has also made itpossible to achieve higher rates of operationaleffectiveness in labour relations as perceivedby the actors. This, in turn, also increasescredibility and respect.

It is frequent for the directorates general forlabour and employment to have a labour relationsservice which offers specialized intermediationservices to facilitate collective bargaining. This

23

in some cases includes the provision of trainingon collective bargaining for the parties.

Another frequently found function consists ofproviding consultancy services on the scope ofapplication of collective bargaining, and oncollective agreements drafting procedures.

In Brazil, the Ministry of Labour andEmployment has carried out a nationwidecampaign to update available information onnational trade unions in order to support thecreation and organization of a computerizedlabour relations system combining registrationwith information. This has helped update theNational Trade Union Register (CNES) andmake it accessible to the general public, via theInternet28 .

In addition, in 2003 the Ministry and theInter-Union Department of Statistics andSocio-Economic Studies (DIEESE) entered intoa technical and financial cooperation agreementto act as consultants in the creation of a collectivebarganining information system, the preparationof studies on the evolution and trends of labourrelations, wage evolution and information onstrikes in Brazil29.

The following would be indicators of a goodpractice in the area of registration:

- Easy to access, easy to consult and maintainregisters.

- Adequate and orderly data processing.Sufficient training for registrars.

- Register is accessible and public.- Registration rules are clear and not onerous.- All industries are covered.- Register is easy to use, free of charge.- Dissemination and publicity.- Audit of operations.

Labour inspection

The labour inspection can perform apedagogical function of dissemination andapplication of the existing regulations, in additionto the control of compliance with legislation whichis intrinsic to it. The labour inspection must beeffective and supported by sufficient resourcesin order not only to ensure the performance ofits supervision function, but also to provide theactors themselves with close, immediate support.

As to the supervision and application of thelaw and its impact, ILO control bodies have beennotified the case of a company in Costa Rica thatis well worth mentioning. According to thedocumentation supplied by the Costa RicaInterconfederal Committee, a labour inspectionhas found that this company incurred in unfairlabour practices by “facilitating the creation of aseparate board of directors parallel to the one incharge under the law 30” and, accordingly, hasproposed the application of the statutory sanctions.

Most conflicts in the region on the minimumlegal framework governing collective relationsin the event of labour disputes (anti-uniondiscrimination, denial or registration, conflictresolution, etc.) are resolved in court.Nevertheless, an adequately effective labourinspection can help ensure for a worker theexercise of his/her rights before the situationbecomes a fully-fledged labour dispute.Furthermore, given that a collective agreementhas the force of a law, the inspector is aguarantor of its enforcement. In the course ofperformance of its daily work, an inspector canact as a natural mediator by intervening at thevery source of disagreement or conflict.However, this function can never define aninspector’s role without betraying its essentialobjective: supervision.

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Good practice, therefore, must be aboutmaking labour inspection more effective. Thisrequires:

- A sufficient number of inspectors in relationto the employed active population coveredby existing labour laws.

- Comprehensive training of inspectors andtraining material.

- Effective materials to facilitate inspection.

- Capacity to enforce sanctions.

- Speedy administrative procedures.

- Effective sanctions.

In this sense, it should be pointed out that insome countries in the region – Brazil amongthem – the inspection authority is equipped withadequate means and appears to be active inpromoting compliance with collectiveagreements31. Furthermore, the office of theProcurator General for Labour Issues of theUnion’s Attorney General has a constitutionalmandate to watch over fundamental social andindividual interests concerning labour matters.El Salvador, according to government data32 ,has established policies to strengthen the Ministryof Labour by training inspectors in conflictprevention, strengthening the Inter-InstitutionalCommittee in charge of conflict resolution andprevention in industrial free-trade zones. Similarprogress is found in Mexico where thegovernment reports33 that the number of labourinspections carried out in 2001 exceeded thetarget even in States with free-trade zones.

When it comes to inspection statistics and dataprocessing, the benchmark is represented by theU.S. Department of Labour, and in particularthe Occupational Safety and HealthAdministration (OSHA) not only because of the

level of detail of its data, but also because theinformation is available in Spanish as well as inEnglish, and for its ease and speed of use.34

Information and dissemination of labourstandards

Many ministries in the region establish generallabour information systems to answer queries fromthe social actors and respond to individual andcollective needs free of charge. Although theygenerally focus on or start from one central issue––the search for a job––the services also providegeneral orientation and data of specific interest.

The information system should be decentralizedenough to ensure coverage of the entire nationalterritory rather than being operational only atthe central level. Such is the case of Brazil,where cooperation between the Ministry ofLabour and Employment and the regionaldelegations facilitates the transfer of informationto such an extent that it has become possible notonly to compile and analyze arrangements andterms of contract throughout the country, butalso to control the adherence to law ofcontractual clauses.

A good practice in the area of labour relationsinformation must meet the followingrequirements:

- It must be supported by a database in linewith the population’s needs, updatedperiodically and easily accessible by thepublic (with due consideration for a country’sresources).

- The data base must be available free ofcharge and easy to use.

- The database must be submitted to a periodicaudit of its operation and results.

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Mexico’s Integral Service Center (CIS)

This is the authority that receives and introduces users’ requirements (those that represent user satisfaction or

dissatisfaction) to the Office for the Legal Defense of Workers (PROFEDET) by means of formal communication

channels, acting as a connecting link between citizens and the agency in order to transform user needs and help improve

service processes. The establishment of CIS also consolidates the achievements of the Quality Management System (see

infra labour justice), helps improvement in that it provides a communication channel between users and the Institution,

supplies a service free of charge, meets requests with as much promptness as possible and allowed for a given service,

increases promptness and flexibility in the provision of user services, nurtures users’ trust in the services rendered by the

Institution, ensures that the voice of the user is heard by the Institution, so that suggestions from users may be considered

within the context of the Continuous Improvement Process, maintains coordination with the various areas of PROFEDET

in order to attend to cases of non-compliance, complaints and suggestions from users.

Statistics

Public and freely available sources ofinformation are of crucial importance to thedevelopment of adequate labour relations.National and/or industrial statistics on affiliationrates, collective bargaining coverage, conflicts,etc., makes it possible to correctly develop ageneral policy in this area.

Virtually all labour relations data available inthe region (which do exist, against the contrarybelief of many, probably due to insufficientdissemination) proceed from official records (inall countries it is mandatory under the law toregister organizations and associations, and tonotify some of the most important data)35 andare either mere summaries of national statisticsas processed by the ministries, or deliverables

Information services and networks

Labour Information Centres Network - Red CIL – Perú

CIL coordinates the national network of job placement and labour information centres which carries out labour

intermediation procedures, provides job-search consultancy and vocational orientation, develops information mechanisms

for workers and employers and coordinates its actions with the Directorate for Employment Promotion and the

Deputy Directorate for Intermediation and Labour Orientation . Through these centres, jobs were found in 2002 for a

total of 18,396 workers out of 87,366 applicants. The vacancies offered by enterprises were 25,094.

USES – United States Employment Service

The programmes established for internal reorganization over the past 15 years have expanded the scope of the

service by making it accessible to a larger number of users, essentially via the Internet. Beginning in 1995, the LMIS

system has come online. LMIS is a labour market information system that also provides the classic information for

services of this type, namely statistics, enterprise databases, orientation, training opportunities, etc.

26

processed by researchers from those same officialdata. The truth is that the combination of officialdata with other data such as those obtainedthrough household surveys produces verydifferent results. In Mexico, for instance, eventhough the two sources are difficult to comparebecause of the different scopes and methods, the1996 National Survey on Household Income andExpenditure found an affiliation rate of 9.7% ofEAP, a very different rate from the nearly 20%given in the Labour Ministry’s official figures.

As regards collective agreements and theircoverage, the problems are identical. Statisticsdo not show the duration of the agreement (usuallyexceeding one year)36 , nor those that have

expired, nor those that are renewed (in full or inpart), and show neither adhesions nor newly“covered” workers (in most countries there areno collective agreements valid erga omnes).Moreover, oftentimes an agreement is countedtwo or three times because of agreement linkage,

37

a very frequent phenomenon in the region, giventhe fact that collective bargaining is limited inpractice to level of the enterprise.

The above makes it necessary to establish andmaintain a minimum information collection system.The information should be broken down bygender and other criteria relevant to a givencountry, and reflect the true composition of theEAP.

A good practice in the area of labour relationsdatabases must meet the following requirements:

- It must be supported by an official databasein line with the population’s needs, updatedperiodically and easily accessible by thepublic (with due consideration for a country’sresources).

- The database must be available free ofcharge and easy to use.

- The database must be submitted to a periodicaudit of its operation and results.

Administrative resolution of conflicts39

Conflict is inherent to the dynamics of labourrelations. In Latin America, for instance, mostlabour administrations have traditionallyundertaken the task of solving labour disputesby direct intervention – in other words, byinstitutional and public procedures. Althoughnothing should prevent the national system fromenvisaging the existence of mechanisms for thejudicial or administrative resolution of conflicts,it is nonetheless necessary to give the

Employment Projections – Standard Occupational Classification in the USA38

This system offers a variety of services to its users, explains the information distribution method, and combines the

efforts of the States with those of the Federal Administration. It introduces information for employers (wages,

benefits, market conditions...), job seekers, government agencies, trainers, economic and business promoters, and

database accessibility notices.

27

Administration a correct definition of its role inconflict resolution in terms of expeditious andeffective procedures.

The study of reality has shown that in the labourministries a considerable number of officials spendtheir time applying procedures regulated in detailto solve individual conflicts, in response to aconstant – actually growing in some countries –demand on the part of workers and employers.Among the numerous causes of this state ofaffairs, one of the most important is the deficientfunctioning of the judicial system. Althoughconflict resolution is in principle an intrinsic partof the remit, the judicial system suffers frominsufficiency of means, lack of presencethroughout the national territory and sometimeslack of specialization in labour matters – not tomention the slowness of its procedures. Thesedeficiencies, coupled with the complexity ofprocedural law, have made the speedy resolutionof individual disputes submitted to courts of lawa very elusive goal, with the result that out-of-court settlement procedures have acquiredenormous importance, and the administrativeprocedure, which is free, accessible andcomparatively quick, ranks first among them.

The resolution of collective labour disputeshas also been entrusted to the public labouradministration. In many cases, however, thelatter’s administrative apparatus has not receivedadequate training, and the mediation functionshave been taken over by top ministry officials.This has produced, on one hand, a degree ofpoliticization of labour disputes, even thoseoccurring only within individual enterprises,and, on the other, a lack of legal stability,inadequate attention to their executive andmanagerial duties by such top executives,underutilization of technical officials and loss ofpublic trust by local ministerial authorities.

Moreover, whilst conflict resolution appearsto be sufficiently covered at the central level,labour disputes arising in enterprises operatingat the local level find local administration servicesneither adequately adapted to local conditions,nor equipped with sufficient training andmaterial and human resources. Hence the needto strengthen the supply of conflict resolutionservices at the local level.

Clearly labour administration should take intodue account its citizens’ demands. Therefore, itwill also have to maintain its individualconciliation services by specializing the officialsentrusted with that task, simplifying proceduresand strengthening them where conflicts arise.Furthermore, ministers and other top officialsshould transfer the task of direct intervention incollective conflicts to middle-ranking officials,foster the development of other voluntary meansof resolution, to be agreed by the parties, andeven collaborate in their organization andfunding.

Therefore, from the purely administrativestandpoint, an inter partes settlement appears tobe a method worth promoting, for it is born ofthe agreement between the parties concerned –see infra collective bargaining . Good practicesin conflict resolution could well require:

- Effective individual and collective conflictresolution procedures.

- Sound organization and operation of existingservices, at both the central and the locallevels.

- Adequate human and financial meansavailable to conflict resolution services.

- Consultation with the most representativeworkers’ and employers’ organizations soas to consider their interests when fulfillingmediation and conciliation functions.

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Tripartite labour justice: Panama’s Conciliation and Decision Boards

The Conciliation and Decision Boards are administrative mechanisms established in Panama en 197540 to adjudicate

individual conflicts of a certain type41 . They are composed of one representative of the workers, one representative of

employers, and one governmental representative (an official from the Ministry of Labour), who also chairs the Board.

The Boards were created to do away with the backlog of work accumulated by labour courts. At the time, workers and

employers showed an interest in creating a speedier system than the ordinary labour procedure to adjudicate complaints

for unjustified dismissal filed by workers, which is the main area of jurisdiction of those courts. Under the law in

question, workers’ and employers’ representatives are selected by the Ministry of Labour and Labour Development

from short lists submitted by CONATO and the most representatives employers’ organizations. The Board’s decisions

have full adjudicatory value. At present there are 19 Boards distributed across the national territory.

2.5. Labour justice

Slowness is one of the main problems affectinglabour justice, given that it seriously jeopardizescompliance with labour law and observance ofthe rights of workers and employers. The fig-ures on procedure delay and duration are quiteworrisome. One example: in El Salvador, wherethe number of cases doubled between 1994 and1995, no more than an average 68% of theannual caseload was resolved42 . In Brazil (wherethe judiciary plays an important role in resolvingcollective labour conflicts (dissidios colectivos)there were two and a half million cases pendingbefore labour courts, fewer than 50% of whichwere finally adjudicated and 40% were shelved.Of the appeals before regional courts, 150,000

reached the Supreme Court. The average lengthof time it takes for a case to go through thethree judicial instances is three to four years.

As is the case with labour administration, theJudiciary plays an essential role in the developmentof labour relations as the body in charge of applyingthe law. Therefore, it must have:

- Sufficient human and material resources.- Effective, easy to understand procedures:

justice should be oral, free, and summary.- Sufficient training for judges on both

domestic and international law.- Effective execution of the sentence.- Dissemination of judicial decisions and case

law.

- Clearly differentiated mediation functionentrusted to specific officials. This is noobstacle for, certain officials, in their daily

work, to help resolve a conflict (as in thecase of inspection). This, however, doesnot make mediation their main function.

The ILO and the training of judges

Aware of the existing problems in terms of training and knowledge of international law, the ILO has been developing

training programmes for labour judges in Costa Rica, Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, and the Dominican Republic.

This has included preparing specific material and methodology for multiplier effect purposes.

29

Likewise, the importance should beemphasized of the role played in some countriesby procuraduría, i.e. legal consultancy servicesprovided to the worker by the State when theworker turns to the judiciary for resolution of alabour dispute. This is the case, for instance, ofEl Salvador.

Another interesting experience is Mexico’sQuality Management System, managed inaccordance with the ISO 9001:2000 Standardby the Office for the Legal Defense of Workers(PROFEDET). The introduction of this systemfor PROFEDET’s Personalized Legal AdvisoryServices, Conciliation and Inspection Visits toExternal Offices has produced a direct positiveimpact on the quality of the service rendered toworkers requesting it. On average, users wouldwait in the waiting hall for over an hour beforethey were attended. The changes introduced havecut down that time to 20 minutes. Workers inneed of advice on an area coming under thejurisdiction of another authority used to waitover 80 minute; that time has now been cutdown to 10. Medical opinions required forapproval of applications for social securitypensions would take six months, as against 30days at present. In addition, the user satisfactionindex is now higher than 87%, and thepercentage of cases solved favourably hasreached 85%. Lastly, over 83% of the casespresented for conciliation are solved in less thanthree hearings.

3. GOOD PRACTICES ONINFORMATION, CONSULTATION AND

COLLECTIVE BARGAINING

As mentioned in the previous chapter, the basicelements of labour relations systems are the actorsthemselves and the institutions or mechanismsthat govern their relationships; these mechanisms

may be either autonomous or heteronymous.The autonomous mechanism par excellence iscollective bargaining, although there are othermechanisms in this category, such asinformation, consultation, and other mechanismsfor participating in decision-making in thecompany.

3.1. Information and consultation

Sharing of information is the most basicmechanism in the labour relations system. It doesnot imply any real discussion or action on thequestions being addressed, but it is a basic star-ting point for a good, long-lasting labour rela-tionship, since it stems from the recognition ofthe importance of the existence of the two parties.

As for consultation, we find that this is aninstrument that not only enables the social actorsto share information, but also commits them toan in-depth dialogue on the questions beingaddressed. While the consultation in itself doesnot include the power to take decisions, decisionscan be made as a result of the consultation process.

The ILO Board of Directors’ Committee forFreedom of Association has pointed out howimportant it is for the equilibrium of a country’ssocial situation for there to be a regular consultationof the organizations representative of employersand of workers and, as regards the trade unionworld, of its members as a whole, regardless ofthe philosophical or political options of theirleaders (see table below).

Situations in a company that can give rise toprocesses of information and consultation includethe following:

- When technological changes are introducedinto a company and these changes affect the

30

workers significantly in terms of their workingconditions and the organization of the work.

- Restructuring or mergers that may affectthe workers’ jobs.

- Mass dismissal procedures.- When workers are affected by employment

policies enforced by the companies in whichthey are working.

Consultation and processes of restructuring, rationalization, and personnel reduction

In several cases, the Committee for Freedom of Association has indicated the importance of consultation in processesof rationalization and personnel reduction, noting that consultations should be held or it should be attempted to reachan agreement with the trade unions rather than using the channel of decrees and ministerial resolutions43 .

The Committee has indicated how important it is for governments to consult with trade union organizations, inorder to discuss the consequences of restructuring programs for employment and for the working conditions of salariedworkers. In one case associated with a rationalization and personnel reduction process, the Committee regretted thatthe government had preferred to intervene in the affair unilaterally by issuing a decree44.

In the same report it is pointed out that, although it is not up to the Committee to give an opinion on the economicmeasures that the government, following the express recommendations of the International Monetary Fund, may deemuseful in a difficult situation for its country, nevertheless the Committee considers that if a government takes decisionsthat cause a significant number of workers to lose their jobs, there should be a consultation with the trade unionorganizations involved, in order to plan the professional future of these workers in the measure of the country’spossibilities.

Generally speaking, processes of informationand consultation between a company and itsworkers are carried out respecting the voluntary

Information and consultation on safety and health in the work place

The issue of safety and health in the work place is a sensitive one in which the social actors recognize duties andresponsibilities, and which gives rise to information and consultation processes in companies, in order to identify risksand introduce policies that will prevent injuries and sicknesses at work.

Access to information, education and training on safety and health risks in the work place and measures for tacklingthese risks are essential components of a safe and sound work environment.The dissemination of appropriate informationon the hazards and risks to which workers are exposed in their work places, environmental surveillance and monitoringof the workers’ health, the laying down of safe procedures, compliance with the country’s laws and policies, andinformation on safety and health in the work place relevant to each individual company are essential elements forensuring good labour practices in this field.

The need for information and consultation mechanisms to be set up is particularly crucial in companies working insectors vulnerable to special risks, such as the chemical or mining sectors. An example of information and consultationmechanisms often set up in companies belonging to these sectors would be the joint committees on safety and health.Such committees are formed by representatives of the company and the personnel in order to define company policiesfor the prevention of risks, injuries, and sicknesses at work and for the promotion of workers’ well-being and health.

nature of such processes for the parties, sinceLatin American labour laws do not lay downany obligation to conduct these processes. These

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voluntary mechanisms are based on therecognition of the basic social right of workersto be informed and consulted on certainsituations that may affect their job situation,their work prospects, or the future of thecompany. For the company, too, theseprocesses are valuable as a decision-makingmechanism that takes into account the opinionof the workers and their perception of thepossible effects of the decision.

3.2. Collective bargaining

The functions socially assigned to collectivebargaining as an instrument forming part of thelabour relations system are well known. Thesefunctions have developed differently in countrieswith advanced industrial relations systems, asin Europe, for example. On the other hand, inLatin America we have witnessed over the pastfew years a weakening of collective bargainingas a mechanism for regulating work conditionsat all levels, in many cases with the disappearanceof the sectorial level, as has been the case untilvery recently in Peru and in Venezuela.

Despite this widespread weakening, there aresome countries in the region in which collectivebargaining has developed fully to take on a rolethat is fundamental from three points of view.First, since the clauses of a collective agreementare regarded as standards, it plays an importantrole, together with labour laws, in determiningworking conditions: in many countries it hasbecome the principal mechanism for fixingminimum wages, wage increases, and workingconditions. Secondly, negotiation implies ademocratic decision-making process, since thedecisions are taken with the agreement of allthe parties rather than unilaterally by theemployer or public authorities. Finally,collective bargaining has often turned out to be

an effective mechanism for settling disputes thatmay arise between workers and employers (aswell as disputes with the government) and forregula-ting labour relations. Collectivebargaining can therefore be said to contributeto stability and peace in the labour relationssystem.

As a specific way for the social actors to relateto each other, and as a sui generis way ofdeveloping legislation and regulations (pertainingonly to labour law), collective bargaining, thehighest expression of freedom of association, isa typical instrument for creating good practices.The simple fact that negotiation takes place is initself a good practice, especially in anenvironment such as Latin America, where thereis evident weakening of trade unions and at thesame time a high rate of workers immersed inthe informal economy or who have contractsthat are not protected by labour laws; the latterbeing the case of casual labourers andapprentices in some countries.

Governments can be instrumental in settingup a framework for collective bargaining; forexample, by creating procedures for therecognition of trade unions; laying down theobligation to negotiate in good faith; creatingadministrative mechanisms in support ofnegotiations; forbidding certain practices thathinder negotiation; and taking measures that willenable the parties to acquire sufficientinformation to be able to negotiate effectively.

Governments can promote collective bar-gaining by doing the following:

- Adopting measures to facilitate the creationand strengthening of free, independent, andrepresentative workers and employers or-ganizations.

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- Introducing procedures for the recognitionof such organizations and their role asnegotiators in the negotiation process.

- Designing programmes and activities topermit and promote collective bargainingat all levels, and ensuring coordinationamong them.

- Developing training programmes to enablethe social actors to have an effective par-ticipation in the negotiations.

- Adopting measures to give the partiesaccess to the information they need to ensuretheir effective participation.

It is important to stress that collectivebargaining should be voluntary in all its aspects(principle of voluntariness), and that third partiesmay not intervene in, or induce, the processes

Terminology: contrato colectivo, convención colectiva, pactos colectivos, acuerdos colectivos . . .

The Collective Agreement

The ILO defines a collective agreement as “any written agreement relating to working conditions and terms of

employment entered into by an employer, a group of employers, or one or several employer organizations on the one

hand, and on the other hand one or several organizations representative of workers or, in the absence of said organizations,

representatives of the interested workers, duly elected and authorized by the latter, pursuant to the law of the

country”45. In practice, in the different countries of the Latin American region, different terms are used to define a

similar concept: thus we find “convenciones colectivas” in Argentina, Costa Rica and Nicaragua; “contratos colectivos”

in Bolivia, Ecuador, Guatemala, and Mexico; and so on.

It should be noted, however, that sometimes several instruments coexist within one country. This is true of

Colombia, where the law mentions the possibility of achieving “convenciones colectivas”, “pactos colectivos” and

“contratos sindicales”. According to the Substantive Labour Code, only the collective agreement is an agreement in

the ILO sense, and it is defined as an agreement subscribed between one or several employers or employer associations

on the one hand, and one or several trade union federations on the other, in order to fix the terms that are to govern

work contracts while it is in force. The so-called “pactos colectivos” are subscribed into by employers and non-

unionized workers, while “contratos sindicales” are subscribed into by one or several workers’ trade unions with one

or several employers or employer unions for the rendering of services or the execution of work by their members.

or the contents of the negotiation. For example,although affirmative action for combatingdiscrimination in all its forms is recognized asuseful, as is the importance of passing laws thatestablish affirmative measures, any regulationimposing the inclusion of such clauses in a col-lective bargaining agreement would be contraryto the principle of voluntariness.

In Latin America, the regulatory contents ofcollective bargaining agreements traditionallymake reference to the wage, the working day,holiday payment, working conditions, and, to alesser extent, to the improvement of protectivemeasures against dismissal (with reference tothose already included in labour laws), jobstability, measures to prevent discrimination, andproductivity clauses.

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It should also be noted that in most countriesin the region, except Argentina, Brazil, Canada,and the USA, collective bargaining is limitedalmost exclusively to the company context; andyet collective bargaining at the industrial levelcan be a tool offering great potential. In thiscase, the workers and companies belonging toa specific sector can benefit from a processwhich, for different reasons, cannot be carriedout in the individual companies (for example,there may be an insufficient number of workersto start a collective bargaining process). In anycase, the selection of the level of negotiationcorresponds to the parties on a voluntary basis.For this mechanism to be applied, it would benecessary to have bodies of workers and ofemployers, properly organized andrepresentative of a whole sector, as well aslegislation that would make it possible forlinkaging to take place among the different levelsof negotiation.

Interesting experiences of sectoral bargaininginclude those of the construction sector inEl Salvador, and of the export processing zonesof the Dominican Republic: these experiencesdemonstrate the practical importance of thebargaining process at the sectoral level and therepercussion on working conditions and theeconomic development of the sector in question.

3.2.1. Collective bargaining and flexibility46

In recent years we have witnessed a tendencyto flexibilize working conditions in companies,with a view to increasing productivity and givingcompanies greater capacity for adapting tochanges in the labour market and to the demandfor their goods or services.

It would be good practice to have thesemeasures adopted through collective bargaining,

establishing certain exchanges between theworkers and the company. For example, theworkers could demand some kind of workstability (the issue most concerning the amplemajority of workers) in exchange for certainmeasures of flexibilization which would placethe company in a better position for adapting tothe demand.

Besides being a valuable tool for introducingflexibility by mutual agreement, collectivebargaining is most valuable for fighting againstthe different types of discrimination that mayoccur in a company and for improving labourrelations in the company. For example,collective bargaining can include the setting upof mechanisms for settling disputes within thecompany (known as “auto composición” or“inter partes” settlement), by means ofmechanisms to solve disputes such as thosestemming from differences in the interpretationof a conventional clause, or any simple-to-settleindividual disputes that may arise within acompany, as we shall see later.

Working hours

The regulation of the working day by meansof collective bargaining permits a non-uniform,irregular distribution of working hours.Traditionally, a working day was established asa full time job for a specific number of hoursper day (say, eight) for a specific number ofdays a week (say, five). The starting andfinishing times, breaks, and minimum period ofrest per day were pre-determined and all theworkers in a given group had the same workinghours. Many employers and workers began toconsider this structure unsatisfactory, and nowan increasing number of countries areexperimenting with new types of work schedulesand provisions with regard to shift work, night

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work, and work on Sundays, even though theseare usually limited to specific occupations andsectors, for example hotels and restaurants,health services, and certain manufacturingindustries. The flexible working hours system(“flexitime”) has been extended to several groups

of workers and activities and has adopted manyforms: from annualization of the working timeto extension of the closing times of shops andpublic services, shorter working weeks, andmore flexible arrangements with regard toholidays47.

What are the most frequent causes for flexibilizing working hours?

The direct causes of the modification and flexibilization of working hours can include:

- The reduction or elimination of overtime payment in the company, in exchange for concessions such as a shorter

working day, greater job stability, or prevention of job reduction.

- Improvement in the capacity to respond quickly and cheaply to growing fluctuations in the consumers’ demand

for goods and services.

This would be, for example, the case of a brewery that increases its production in the summer months. The employers

could be interested in increasing the number of hours worked when the demand is higher, thereby avoiding the

payment of overtime, and the workers could obtain in exchange, for example, a reduction in their total number of

working hours.

One of the possibilities is the annualization ofworking hours by collective agreement.Agreements that establish the working day basedon the computation of annual working time canbe limited to fixing a number of hours per yearto be worked, which is the formula that permitsa more flexible management of working time.Agreements can opt for a mixed computation,that is, to determine the duration of the annualmaximum working day and at the same time toestablish a monthly or quarterly framework;these would all respect the minimum periods ofrest per day and per week as prescribed in thecountry’s labour laws.

The examples in the region of annualizationof working time through collective bargainingare still isolated, but significant. For example,

in the car industry in Argentina, in companiesrecently set up in industrial areas outside thecities, such as Chrysler, General Motors, andToyota, an annual number of hours hasbeen determined (2,080, 2,138 and 2,133,respectively) often by means of collectivebargaining agreements negotiated before thefactories were opened.

The experience of the Brazilian “hours bank”was a way of introducing flexibilization ofworking time by means of changes in the laws.In effect, Law 9.601 of 1998 permits theflexibilization of the working day at times ofincrease or drop in production. At times ofcrisis, the workers stop working and thecompany accumulates the hours saved in orderto use them afterwards, once the economy has

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situation of the sector and the company, takinginto account production incentives, and thequality or results of the company, among otherfactors.

For the wage-calculating model, the mostgeneral guidelines use a mixed formula: onepart is the fixed wage (basic wage plussupplements); and another part is a variable,performance-linked amount. The former isgreater than the latter.

A significant number of agreements stillmaintain a hardly innovative wage structure,made up of the basic wage for the professionalcategory, with additional payments linked to timeof service. However, some attempts are nowbeing made to include elements linked with thecompany’s results and the productivity of theworkers, the idea being to motivate the workersand at the same time improve the company’sperformance. In addition to the traditionalbonuses for attendance and punctuality, workingon bank holidays or Sundays, or the paymentof benefits that have no direct relationship withthe company’s economic results, there are nowother incentives directly associated with thecompany’s situation and results and with thecontribution made by each worker individuallyor by the group of workers.

In order for productivity-based criteria to beapplied49, an estimate will have to be made ofthe company’s normal productivity and that ofthe workers. Collective agreements that includeproductivity clauses usually refer to theproductivity of the hand labour, basing theircalculation on the number of hours worked.

Collective bargaining can be an effective toolfor maintaining and creating jobs to complementthe employment policies laid down by the public

picked up. When production increases, theworkers increase their working day, which ispaid as overtime or compensated in the future.This “hours bank” has been the subject ofnumerous negotiations between trade unions andemployers in Brazil.

Flexibility in working hours has often beenaccepted by the workers to ward off some-thing that is regarded as the greater evil:unemployment. In this reference, it is worthmentioning an agreement which, although signedoutside the region, is relevant to this topic: theagreement signed in Germany, in November2004, between the IG Metal trade union andthe company that manufactures Volkswagencars. The workers agreed to having their wagesfrozen for 28 months, in exchange for theguarantee of job stability up to 2011 and a singlepayment of one thousand euros (1,270 U.S.dollars) in March 2005. The agreement alsoprovides that Volkswagen may flexibilize theworking time by 400 hours per year dependingon production needs.

If the workers and the company are interestedin adopting changes of this nature, there aretwo important factors to bear in mind: anyconstraints contained in their national laws48; andthe capacity of the company and the trade unionto monitor these changes in practice. (Forexample, whether the hours worked could easilybe calculated annually; or whether there issufficient administrative support). Defining amaximum daily or weekly number of workinghours may be considered part of the agreement.

3.2.2. Wage negotiations in the company

Collective bargaining is an appropriateinstrument for agreeing on the definition andcriteria of a wage structure adapted to the real

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authorities, addressing equally the requirementsof an increase in productivity and entrepreneurialcompetitivenes.

Bearing in mind the typology of clauses onemployment and the different goals pursued,we can note different formulations:

Clauses for converting temporary workersinto stable ones and determining amaximum number of temporary contracts.

These clauses seek to promote measuresleading to different ways of hiring workerswhich will give greater stability to the contractsalready in force, and at the same time increasethe percentage of indefinite contracts becauseof the decrease in the temporary ones.

Not infrequently, these clauses areaccompanied by a commitment that hassomething to do with applying internal flexibilitycriteria in the company, mainly in terms ofworking time and its distribution and mobility,both functional and geographic.

Clauses for creating new jobs ormaintaining existing ones

The purpose of these clauses is to set in placethe conditions that will permit the net creationof jobs, adopting commitments in this respect.Some agreements include a commitment topromote the hiring of specific groups, inparticular the hiring of persons with disabilities.

With reference to the clauses on job stability,commitments in this reference are articulated,basically, through the establishment of aminimum work force, the prohibition of massdismissals while the agreement is in force, andthe obligation for the company to cover any

vacancies that may occur. Specific jointcommittees may also be created for job follow-up and hiring.

3.2.3. Mechanisms of “inter partes” for the so-lution of conflicts in the enterprises

Disputes are an inherent part of labour relations.Although traditionally labour law has intervenedto provide a solution, the law is slow and oftenineffective because of the lack of means, withthe result that the plaintiff, usually the worker,eventually desists from his/her complaint.Although administrative mechanisms have beenset up in many countries to settle disputes – bothindividual and collective disputes, of a legal andor economic nature – administrations often lackthe human and financial resources to do this workeffectively.

For that reason, and as a way of improvinglabour relations, some companies have set upmechanisms for settling any individual andcollective disputes that may arise in thecompany. The idea is to settle disputes quicklywith the participation of the workers themselvesand representatives of the administration, torespond to the complaints of individualworkers, to interpret clauses of the agreements,and to settle other conflicts of interest. If theindividual and collective complaints are due toviolation of a right, this internal mechanism inthe company would have to be used beforeresorting to the administrative or legal instances.It should be noted that under no circumstancesmay the worker be obliged to waive labourlaw in the event that the dispute cannot besettled by the mechanisms established in thecompany.

The following are some of the mechanismsthat may be set up:

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- Creation of a system for receiving complaints.- Creation of joint commissions, made up of

the same number of workers as ofrepresentatives of the employers, to cometo a decision on the complaints or claimspresented by the workers individually (thesecommissions could be formed, for example,with the participation of a union

representative and a member of the humanresources department).

- Creation of joint commissions for theinterpretation of the collective agreement.

- Creation of the figure of “mediator” to recei-ve complaints and make recommendations.

- Setting up of a panel of mediators or arbi-trators to settle collective disputes.

“Inter partes” settlement of trade disputes in Cervecería Hondureña S.A.

Honduras has had at least one experience of creating a system for the “inter partes” settlement of industrial

disputes by collective bargaining. This is the case of the collective agreement between Cervecería Hondureña S.A.

and the Trade Union of Workers of the Industry of Beverages and Similar Products, which was signed at San Pedro

Sula on July 17, 1996. The agreement includes the creation of a court of arbitration in the event of discrepancies

whenever there may be personnel adjustments in the company and when, after the union has been informed, there are

differences of opinion regarding the way in which this readjustment is to be effected.

According to the collective agreement50 , the court of arbitration will be made up of three members of the legal

profession, two of whom are appointed by the parties (one each) and these two will then appoint a third one of mutual

accord. If within a 24-hour period they do not agree on the appointment of the third member, the agreement stipulates

that a threesome of people will come to an agreement to select the third arbitrator. The readjustment may not take

place until the court of arbitration has handed down a ruling in favour of it. The ruling will be applicable immediately,

and it will produce the effects of res judicata because it meets the same requisites as a sentence handed down in the

first instance in a labour proceeding. The court expenses will be shared equally between the two parties.

This court of arbitration has apparently been set up on several occasions, with a timeframe for settlement of the

dispute shorter than that laid down by law.

In El Salvador, the collective labour agreementsigned by the Sindicato Unión de Trabajadoresde la Construcción (S.U.T.C.) [ConstructionWorkers’ Union] and the Cámara Salvadoreñade la Industria de la Construcción (CASALCO)[Salvadorian Chamber of the ConstructionIndustry] includes the creation of a mechanismfor settling any disputes that may arise inconstruction work, where the rights of theworkers may be harmed by failure to complywith the collective agreement. This mechanism

consists in forming a trade union commission ineach construction job, made up of one or moreunion representatives. This commission actspeacefully as a first instance.

In addition, the same agreement creates theCommission for Collective Labour Rela-tions, which is bipartite, made up of threerepresentatives of the entrepreneurs of theconstruction industry and three representa-tives of the workers of the same industry. The

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collective agreement assigns to this commission,among other functions, that of intervening inany matter in which there are worker-entrepreneur differences, at the initiative or uponthe request of either of the parties, and that ofkeeping the parties informed; it recommendsthat the commission solves the problems thathave been brought to it and any others theymay detect in order to ensure better worker-company harmony.

Another example is found in the Mexican ironand steel industry51, which had to undergo adramatic restructuring process, including achange of approach to labour relations. Mixedcommissions on labour relations were formedin each of the work areas, made up of the samenumber of unionized workers and of managerialstaff of the company. These mixed commissionsmake it possible to settle disputes in the place oforigin and thus prevent them from accumulatingor growing.

Another noteworthy experience is the effortof the Argentinean authorities to promote

mechanisms for “inter partes” settlements ofdisputes in the company through legislation. Ineffect, the recent Law 25.877 of March 18,2004, lays down that collective labouragreements may include the constitution of jointcommissions made up of an equal number ofrepresentatives of employers and workers,whose functions and attributions will beestablished in the respective agreement (…).These commissions are authorized to: a)interpret the collective agreement with generalapplication, upon the request of either of theparties or of the pertinent authority; b) Intervenein controversies or disputes of an individual orpluri-individual nature, by the application ofconventional standards when the parties to thecollective agreement so decide; c) Intervene inthe event of a collective conflict of interest whenboth parties to the collective labour agreementso decide; (…).

The statistics show that out of the total numberof 150 collective agreements approved in 2001,26 included a clause regarding mechanismsfor “inter partes” settlements of trade disputes.

Creation of an administrative mechanism by collective bargaining: the case of SECOSE in Argentina

The Servicio de Conciliación Laboral para Comercio y Servicios (SECOSE) [Service of Labour Conciliation for

Trade and Services] is an optional labour conciliation mechanism for companies and workers belonging to the sector

of trades and services, created by collective agreement in 197552. SECOSE is conducted by a Governing Body made

up of six members, three on behalf of the “FAECYS” (Argentinean Federation of Employees in Trade and Services),

and three for the Chambers of Entrepreneurs, one each: “CAC” (Argentinean Chamber of Commerce); “CAME”

(Coordinator of Mercantile Company Activities); and “UDECA” (Union of Argentinean Trade Institutions). SECOSE

also has a team of labour conciliators registered with the Ministry of Justice who belong to the RENACLO. The

procedure is free for the workers; the employers pay the fees of the conciliator.

One of the goals was to have a specific mechanism for conciliation in order to settle trade disputes pertaining to the

trade and service sector, which would make it possible to deal as simply and quickly as possible with any problems

arising in this particular area53.

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In 2002, 208 agreements were approved, ofwhich only 12 included clauses of this type.

3.2.4. Collective bargaining as a mechanism of equality54

The constitutions of a large number of LatinAmerican countries enshrine the principle ofequality in their national legal systems byestablishing that all citizens are equal in theeyes of the law. It is usually up to the publicpowers to promote the conditions that willensure the real and effective freedom andequality of individuals and of the groups theyform, as well as to remove any obstacle thatmay prevent or hinder the full application ofthe principle55.

Collective bargaining can provide amechanism that is effective for reducingdiscrimination between men and women, amongraces, ethnic groups, cultures, etc., and formaking progress in equality. It is not enoughto make references to equality and non-discrimination in specific, isolated clauses;rather, this principle has to be includedthroughout the collective agreement. This canbe done, for example, by avoidingdiscriminatory clauses of a direct type, suchas using the female gender to denote certaincategories; including general clauses topromote equality and non-discrimination, anddealing appropriately with certain topics suchas those related with the reconciliation of familylife and working life, including the question ofpaid leave, professional classification andsystems of retribution, access to jobs, promotionand vocational training from the standpoint ofequal opportunities for men and women. Alsoin the area of the prevention of labour risksthere are possibilities of regulating certain risksituations, for example, for pregnant women.

Labour segregation, wage supplements basedon time of service or availability to work certainhours, and the absence of a general minimumwage are factors that can contribute to wagediscrimination between men and women, sincegender-related wage gaps are one of the mostwidespread problems of discrimination at workthroughout the world.

To identify situations of discrimination in thecompany, it is useful to perform a “mapping”of the jobs and to identify jobs or categoriesthat are occupied mainly by women, in order totry to explain the reasons for that and the possiblebarriers against women’s access to other jobs.

Anti-discriminatory clauses or clauses pro-moting equality can be included in the collectiveagreement by making reference to current leg-islation, or by going further to consider somepositive discrimination. Some countries (forexample, Brazil and Canada) include conven-tional clauses to promote equality and the in-clusion of persons with disabilities or of disad-vantaged ethnic groups or races since they con-sider that these discriminations imply a distor-tion in the national labour market. Such nego-tiations are not very widespread in the region,so a good practice would consist in startingdiscussions or debates on this topic.

In the field of discrimination, so far the issuesmost frequently addressed in collectivebargaining have been gender-related issues. Inthis context, and on the basis of experiencegained, in order to promote a good labourrelations practice of promoting a policy of nogender-related discrimination in the company,companies should take the following steps:

- Perform a “mapping” of jobs in the companyand identify those categories or jobs mostly

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occupied by men or by women, identifyingpossible barriers against a more balanceddistribution of the work between men andwomen.

- Avoid clauses of a directly discriminatorynature (for example, associating specific jobswith the female or the male gender).

- Include general clauses promoting equality.- Include the principle of equality throughout

the collective agreement.- Avoid basing wage supplements mainly on

time of service or time availability.- Include both men and women in the

company’s bargaining commissions.

Example of non-discrimination clauses in collective agreements

1. “The principle of non-discrimination laid down in Law XXX shall be applicable to all personnel, regardless of the

type of contract”.

“The organizations signatory to the present agreement and the companies affected thereby, shall guarantee equal

opportunities to men and women, as well as non-discrimination on the basis of race, religion, or any other condition,

pursuant to national legislation and case law. Special attention shall be placed on compliance with these precepts in:

- Access to employment.

- Job stability.

- Wage equality for jobs of equal value.

- Professional training and promotion.

- Work environment free from sexual harassment.

2. “The principle of equality at work shall be respected for all effects, not admitting discrimination for reasons of

gender, marital status, age within the limits stipulated in the legal system, race, social condition, religious or

political ideas, trade union membership, etc.

“Neither shall there be discrimination for reasons of physical, psychic, or sensorial disability, providing that the

person is able to perform the work or job in question”.

3. “In order to contribute effectively to the application of the principle of non-discrimination and to its development

under the concepts of equal terms for jobs of equal value, it is necessary to develop affirmative action particularly in

terms of contracts, training, and promotion, so that under equal conditions of suitability, preference be given to

persons of the sex less represented in the group of personnel in question”. The collective agreement is an instrument

that permits the compensation of interests, which makes it possible for there to be a balance between economic

efficiency and social protection.

The fixing of a minimum wage by collective agreement for workers included in its area of application also has a

positive effect with regard to compliance with the principle of non-discrimination, which makes its inclusion in

agreement texts a good idea.

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3.3. Strategic alliances

One labour relations experience that has had acertain degree of development in recent years isthe forming of so-called “strategic alliances”between representatives of the companies and ofthe workers. These alliances have set up jointprojects for medium- and long-termentrepreneurial growth, in order to modernizethe companies and face up to an adverse economicenvironment and the potential competition in thesector. The basic difference with collectivebargaining in the strict sense is that strategic

alliances do not regulate working conditions, butthey often imply a statement of shared interestsregarding the future of the company, make thegeneral medium-term goals explicit, and recognizethe advantages of associating to face the futuretogether. This implies bargaining on generalaspects of a “strategic character”.

In Chile, these alliances have materialized in atleast three State companies: the CopperCorporation (CODELCO); the NationalPetroleum Company (ENAP); and the NationalMining Company (ENAMI).

Strategic alliance in the National Copper Corporation (CODELCO) in Chile

CODELCO is a Chilean State company, the world’s leading copper producer, which also controls 20 per cent of the

world’s copper reserves. In 2003, CODELCO generated more than 14 per cent of Chile’s exports. The company also

has an outstanding record in its respect of the exercise of the freedom of association, and it has relationships of

cooperation and collaboration between the management and the employees, as shown by the strategic alliance agreed

on in 1994 between the management and the workers, which was translated into the identification of common interests,

and the adoption of a vision, values, and style of management. In 2000, these efforts led to the drawing up of the

Proyecto Común de Empresa (PCE) [Common Company Project], which is the route map and business strategy for the

period 2000-2006. One of the core elements in the PCE is that it has a relationship of collaboration and cooperation

between the management and all the employees, workers, and trade union organizations.

As an example of this cooperation, in 2003 the third version of the diploma course in labour management was

conducted for the company’s trade union leaders in collaboration with the University of Santiago. The course was

attended by 27 participants, in their great majority union leaders of divisions and workers from the areas of labour

relations and human development. The programme sought to develop skills and competence in labour management, as

well as providing knowledge of the most modern management philosophies and techniques used by organizations in

their quest for excellence.

In addition, in the spirit of the PCE the six processes of collective bargaining took place in 2003 in the Andina,

Codelco Norte, Salvador, and El Teniente Divisions, which, although not exempt from disputes, made progress on

signing agreements for the simplification of wage structures, the linking of the reward systems to the business result,

and the reviewing of certain social benefits.

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3.4. Social dialogue

As already mentioned, social dialogueprocesses and instances have been boosted overthe past ten years, strengthened by the technicalassistance and cooperation of the ILO. Theexistence of national and/or sectoral jointconsultative bodies, where the opinions andknowledge of the social actors are present as away of legitimizing the decisions, has proven tobe fundamental and a democracy-building factor.The need for the results of these consultationsto be made known to the population, to guidegovernment decisions, and to become anessential part of the development mechanics ofthe social policies means that topics such as theirinstitutionalization, regulation, legitimating,linkaging, etc., have become essential fordetermining whether there exists good practice.

A good practice of dialogue must have, at least:

- A defined institutional framework, level,and goals.

- A clear political will of the parties,indispensable for obtaining results andexecuting them.

- Sufficient material and human resources.- Legitimate and representative participating

actors, and the information needed to enablethem to participate fully in the dialogueprocess.

- Sufficient training both on dialoguetechniques and on the technical points ofthe agenda.

- Information and advertising services, bothinternal and external.

In the late nineties there appeared in the regiona tendency to institutionalize national socialdialogue and this was translated into the creationof tripartite bodies of a consultative nature. In

effect, at present many countries have createdor revived institutions that contribute tolegitimizing the decisions adopted bygovernments in the social-labour field. This isthe case of Honduras, with the creation of theEconomic and Social Council (in 2001),Colombia56, and Perú, where in recent yearsthe National Labour Council has been revived,and has now become one of the most dynamicand effective mechanisms in the Latin Americanregion. A National Labour Council has alsorecently been created in Ecuador. Otherinstitutions that function with a greater or lesserdegree of dynamism are the Higher Council ofLabour of El Salvador, the National LabourForum in Brazil, and the Consultative LabourCouncil in the Dominican Republic.

There are also experiences of dialogue inMexico, another country with a conciliation-based culture. The most recent was the February2001 creation of the Council for Dialogue withthe Production Sectors, which seeks solutionsto the problems generated at the national andinternational levels in labour matters and linkedto globalization. In this Council not only arethe traditional labour sectors present, but also,as in the case of Colombia, the ministries ofthe Treasury, Economy, Agriculture, Livestockand Rural Development, Fisheries and Food,Public Education, Social Development andTourism.

There is evidence of bipartite social dialoguein the region, too. There can be no doubt thatthe Labour Foundation of Panama is one of themost interesting experiences of institutionalizedbipartite social dialogue. Similar progress isseen in Mexico and in Costa Rica. In thelatter country one should note the agreementsigned by the Chamber of Exporters(CADEXCO), the National Association of Public

43

Employees (ANPE), and the Rerum NovarumConfederation of Workers, as well as thatsigned by the Central of the Movement ofWorkers (CMTC) and the Union of Chambers.It is important to insist that social dialogue be

linked to a genuine political will on the part ofthe parties, since it is an instrument ofgovernance. Numerous studies confirm thatsocial dialogue improves social justice andstrengthens democracy.

The Mexican experience: Dialogue with the production sectors

The economic and social challenges of globalization and the need to compete in both the domestic and international

markets have led Mexico to promote consensus-building and dialogue among the production sectors. For this

purpose, in February 2001, the President of the Republic founded the Council for Dialogue with the Production

Sectors. Several public sector agencies participate in this Council, as well as trade unions and employer

organizations, academic institutions and the farming sector.

Thanks to the significance and success of this mode of social dialogue, state authorities and institutions have also

set up State Councils for Dialogue, making full use of technological advances and the technical secretariat network

throughout the country; thus, besides being familiar with the national agenda and development policies and

participating in them, they design their own agendas to meet the development needs of each of their institutions.

Encouraged by the success of this initiative, on August 30, 2004, the sectors represented in the Council for

Dialogue with the Production Sectors signed a “Commitment to Competitiveness for Employment and Social

Justice”, validating the Council as the permanent instance for networking among the different social actors in

order to seek consensus on competitiveness, labour training, job stability, and social justice, at both the national

level and the regional and state levels. The Commitment aims to optimize the resources of the sectors of the

Mexican economy in order to provide sustainable competitive advantages for the production sectors. These

competitive advantages will, in turn, enable the sectors to improve the social and economic conditions of the

workers and their families. The commitment manifested the revaluing of the dignity of the individual and his/her

work as an indispensable requirement for setting up harmonious labour relations that would be sustainable in the

long term. This recognition picks up one of the main objectives of the “New Labour Culture” promoted by the

Mexican Government and of the guidelines that gave rise to the Decent Work approach which the Director General

of the ILO has been promoting since 1999.

44

4. HOW TO GENERATE ANDDEVELOP A GOOD PRACTICE.A FEW WORKING CRITERIA

The previous pages have shown us a numberof initiatives that can produce an effect in theworld of labour whilst improving some aspectsof labour relations. This is exactly what goodpractices are about.

A good practice includes several elements thatoperate together to resolve conflict, develop andimprove working conditions, generate a bettergeneral environment and, finally, basefundamental rights on economic development forenterprises and their workers. It is an exercise inpositive construction founded on day-to-dayexperience.

It is for the actors themselves – workers andemployers – to discover the usefulness of goodlabour relations practices in the various contextsso as to be able to use them as working tools topursue one essential goal, namely develop trust,generate and consolidate agreements. It is forLabour Administration to facilitate theirdevelopment and application, generate spacesconducive to their promotion, establish simpleand effective access mechanisms for users, andlend support and orientation to all parties involved.

4.1. Some thoughts about good practice

To facilitate reflection on the usefulness andnecessity to create a good practice, we have togo through a number of stages, beginning witha compilation of relevant information that mustbe systematic and based on clearly definedcriteria.

Let us suppose, for instance, that we are ametallurgical enterprise wishing to hold a

negotiation on working hours flexibility. Wewill have to focus our search on (a) nationaland international experience on the topic and/or industry in question; (b) instances of successfulnational and international negotiation in theindustry in question (allowing for suchdifferences and similarities as may exist betweenthe various systems and enterprises); (c)available studies.

Access to this information can be gainedthrough the web pages of the workers’organizations of other enterprises and theindustry at large, of professional organizations,and of the industry’s other enterprises. Anothersource of information that may be of greatinterest are the databases on labour relationsin general, and those on collective bargainingin particular (normally accessible through theweb pages of the labour ministries). Such acompilation could be completed using thepublications of international agencies, ONGs,universities, etc.

Once the information has been compiled, itwill be time to define the objective of the search,i.e. the labour area we want to improve(productivity, more permanent forms ofnegotiation, etc.) and define our own response.This response should be discussed within theorganization with a view to preparing a finalproposal with due account of the economicframework of the proposal’s development, andof its actual viability.

The following stage would consist of seekingan agreement with the other party or partiesinvolved. This will require having availablenot only the information and the analysespreviously developed internally, but also todefine a line of action for achieving this goal.The said line of action must take the different

45

interests of both parties into account, andestablish the limits on negotiability. Throughoutthis process it will be necessary, if thenegotiation is to succeed, that all parties areconvinced of the usefulness and validity of agood practice.

The actors involved should consider thesupport they can receive from labouradministration throughout this process,including, for instance, the services ofmediators.

Once the agreement has been reached, it isimportant to disseminate it both inside andoutside the enterprise so that directly affectedworkers can be fully informed about its importand contribute to its applications, and tofacilitate knowledge and replication of the

- Transparency and information about the value and usefulness of good practices in the context

of labour relations.

- Construction of spaces for dialogue, by encouraging all parties concerned to participate and

offer ideas on the development and conclusion of the practices.

- Search of objectives and goals of interest to all parties concerned.

- Dissemination of the results achieved to generate interest in other actors at all levels, in order to

foster replication.

- Positive attitude by the actors as to the value of the experience.

process by other interested parties outside thegiven enterprise or industry.

In brief, the actors that have already developeda good practice should evaluate it individuallywith due account of the results expected andthose already achieved, and, on the basis of thelatter, propose new actions, programmes andprojects – in other words, replicate it. Onceconvinced of the usefulness of good practices,those actors who are yet to develop one shouldanalyze their own reality, the existing elementsand their ability to design them by going throughthe above described steps; and, once they havedefined the necessary criteria, plan it and carryout as planned.

The essential principles underlying thisdiscussion can be set forth as following:

4.2. Initiatives to generate a good practices culture

It is absolutely necessary to promote goodlabour relations practices and to disseminate themamong the traditional actors in ILO contexts.As Your Voice at Work57 points out,“a tripartite

approach worthy of its name can only find itsfull expression in the ILO if there areorganizations representing employers andworkers in every Member State”.

It is therefore necessary to carry out specificcampaigns aimed at disseminating the virtues,

46

significance and importance of good labourrelations practices. Within this framework, specialinterest needs to be lent to national activities, inorder to determine the specific needs, the gaps inneed of filling and the real possibilities to developsuch practices.

According to national requirements, campaignsand workshops could be held to disseminate theusefulness of good practices and establishconclusions and lines of action. The impact andresults of the programmes and activities alreadyimplemented will have to be evaluated. Theseexperiences should be published and disseminatedthrough appropriate media that actually reach thetarget audience. First and foremost, they shouldaim for the social actors, and, at a later time, forcivil society. This will produce a multiplier effect.

It seems of fundamental importance for theAdministration to design - should none exist- aregister of enterprises,trade unions,etc., whichshould be descriptive and easy to use. Recordsshould be simple and adequate, users shouldreceive training on how to use them, andconsultation by social partners should be facilitated.With assistance from such agencies as the ILO, adegree of homogeneousness could be ensured byincorporating a number of elements and minimumcriteria allowing comparison and evolution overtime.

It will be of essential importance to strengthenand train the social actors. These activities shouldfocus on negotiation techniques as much as on thevarious technical topics on the agenda. The trainingof other actors, such as labour judges andinspectors, is also important.

Another fundamental topic is the developmentof actions designed to include women and othervulnerable groups - especially the informal andagricultural sectors - in an adequate managementof labour relations as a way to promote theirintegration.

4.3. How to evaluate a good practice

In order to simplify evaluation, we haveprepared a summary table that clearly identifiesby topic the basic elements that indicate a goodpractice in some areas of labour relations, forthe sole purpose of putting the previouslydescribed elements in methodological order as away to facilitate the classification of a newpractice.

The purpose of the preceding table is to providea methodology for replicating one good practicegiven as an example. In other words, the methodconsists of deciding in which area we wish towork, identifying the elements characterizing itas positive and establish goals and indicators forfollow-up purposes.

The table in question is just a starting point tobe further developed through daily work.Nevertheless, the cases analyzed enable us tosee their relevance for all parties concerned(governments, workers, employers and the civilsociety) in the actual implementation of thesepractices, even though in-depth development isstill needed, for we have provided no more thana starting point. To carry this effort further, theinterested parties need to be motivated througheducation, training and dissemination, andcommon work needs to be facilitated.

47

AREA BASIC ELEMENTS TYPIFYINGA GOOD PRACTICE

Compliance with ratified ILOConventions.Measures to make their applicationeffective.Sufficient dissemination.

Legal reform in agreement withinternational principles.Dissemination programmes.

Legitimacy and representativenessTraining.Unity of action ensured,programmes developed.

Programmes aimed atincorporating vulnerablesectors.Creation of trainingprogrammes withinenterprises.

Effectiveness.Legislation provides adequateframework.Service provided free of charge.Dissemination and transparency.Internal audit.Service has correct and clear design.

Sufficient human andadministrative resources.Databases and informationservices accessible to users.

Social actors

Labouradministration

Adequate legislation.Actors and representatives havelegitimacy and technical competency.Interests are genuine.Mechanisms in place to facilitateapplication control.

Collective agreements inplace.Conflict resolutionmechanisms created bymutual agreement.Flexibility criteria (wages,working hours, etc.)established by mutualagreement.Productivity improves.Gender equity gains ground.

Collectivebargaining

RESULT INDICATORSEXAMPLES58

Legislation

48

49

ANNEX I: WEB PAGES OF INTEREST59

Labour Ministries

Argentina: http://www.trabajo.gov.ar/

Belize: http://www.belize.gov.bz/cabinet/v_castillo/welcome.shtml:Bolivia: http://www.bolivia.gov.bo .Brazil: http://www.mte.gov.br/default.asp:

http://www.mte.gov.br/Menu/Legislacao/CLT/Default.aspCanada: http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca/en/gateways/nav/top_nav/program/labour.shtmlCosta Rica: http://www.ministrabajo.go.cr/

Colombia: http://www.minproteccionsocial.gov.coChile: http://www.mintrab.cl/Dominican Republic: http://www.set.gov.do/

El Salvador: http://www.mtps.gob.sv/Guatemala: http://www.mintrabajo.gob.gt/Guyana: http://www.sdnp.org.gy/mohss/

Mexico: http://www.stps.gob.mx/ [http://www.stps.gob.mx/balance/mitadcamino2004.pdf]Nicaragua: http://www.hacienda.gob.ni/presupuesto2000/egreso/mitrab2000/mitrab2000.htmlPanama: http://www.mitradel.gob.pa/Paraguay: http://www.paraguaygobierno.gov.py/ministeriodejusticiaytrabjao.html

Perú: http://www.mtps.gob.pe/Trinidad and Tabago: http://www.labour.gov.tt/Uruguay: http://www.mtss.gub.uy/

United States: http://www.dol.gov/Venezuela: http://www.mintra.gov.ve/

Regional Institutions

SIECA; Permanent Secretariat of the General Treaty on Central American Economic Integration:http://www.sieca.org.gt/

FES – ILDIS; Instituto Latinoamericano de Investigación Social: http://www.ildis.org.ec/MERCOSUR: http://www.mercosur.org.uy/pagina1esp.htmCARICOM: http://www.caricom.org/

SICA: http://www.sgsica.org/ANDEAN COMMUNITY: http://www.comunidadandina.org/index.aspFLACSO; Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales: http://www.flacso.org

Escuela Nacional Sindical de Medellin: http://www.ens.org.coCLACSO; Consejo Latinoamericano de Ciencias Sociales: http://www.clacso.orgFESMEX; Foundation Friedrik Ebert Stiftung: http://www.fesmex.org/

50

Trade Unions

WCL; World Confederation of Labour: http://www.cmt-wcl.org

CIOLS/ICFTU; International Confederation of Free Trade Unions: http://www.icftu.org/CCOO; Confederación Sindical de Comisiones Obreras: http://www.ccoo.es/portada.aspWFTU; World Federation of Trade Unions: http://www.wftu.cz/

CGT Argentina: http://www.cgtra.org.arCGI Argentina: http://www.cgi.org.arCGT Brazil: http://www.cgt.org.br

CTA Argentina: http://www.cta.org.arCGTB Brazil: http://www.sindpd.org.br/CUT Brazil: http://www.cut.org.br

Trade Union Movement Brazil: http://www.sindicato.com.brCOB Bolivia – Central Obrera Boliviana: http://www.cob-bolivia.org/CGTD Colombia: http://www.cgtdco.org/

CTC Colombia: http://www.ctc-colombia.org/CUT Colombia: http://www.cut.org.co/CEDOCUT Ecuador: http://www.cedocut.org/

CTE Ecuador: http://www.cte-ecuador.org/CATP Peru: http://www.catp.org.peCGTP Peru: http://www.cgtp.org.pe/CUT Peru: http://www.cut.org.pe/CUTV Venezuela: http://www.cutv.org/CTV Venezuela: http://www.ctv.org.ve/

Employers’ Organizations

International Organisation of Employers: www.ioe-emp.orgUnión Industrial Argentina: www.uia.org.arConfederación de Empresarios Privados de Bolivia: www.cepb.orgConfederaçao Nacional da Indústria (CNI): http://www.cni.org.brCanadian Employers’ Council: http://www.cec-cce.caAsociación Nacional de Industriales (ANDI): http://www.andi.com.coConfederación Patronal de la República Dominicana (COPARDOM):http://www.copardom.org.doAsociación Nacional de la Empresa Privada (ANEP): http://www.anep.org.svConsejo Hondureño de la Empresa Privada (COHEP): http://www.cohep.comConfederación Patronal de la República Mexicana (COPARMEX):http://www.coparmex.org.mxConsejo Nacional de la Empresa Privada (CONEP): http://www.conep.org.paConfederación Nacional de Instituciones Empresariales Privadas (CONFIEP):

51

International Labour Office: www.ilo.org

http://www.confiep.org.peUnited States Council for International Business: http://www.uscib.orgCámara de Industrias del Uruguay: http://www.ciu.com.uyFederación Venezolana de Cámaras y Asociaciones de Comercio y Producción(FEDECAMARAS): http://www.fedecamaras.org.ve

Global Unions

A general web site with links to the main trade unions:http://www.global-unions.org/default.asp?Language=EN

52

53

NOTES

1For instance, Good Practices: Gender Mainstreaming in Actionsagainst Child Labour; International Programme on theElimination of Child Labour (IPEC), ILO, 2004; ThroughPeople Design, Monitoring and Evaluation of TechnicalCooperation Programmes and Projects Environmental Busi-ness Management: An Introduction, ILO; Good PracticeGuide: Microfinance for Self-Employment in IndustrializedCountries, ILO; Moving Forward Towards Decent Workfor People with Disabilities. Examples of Good practicesin Vocational Training and Employment from Asia andthe Pacific, Debra A. Perry Editors; Employment of HomeWorkers: Example of Good Practice, Ursula Huws andSarah Podro (Working Paper condi/T/ w.p 5 /1995).

2For more information on these ILO projects, visit theweb pages of the San José, Port-of-Spain and Lima subre-gional offices, respectively.

3For instance:The Committee notes the diverse initiatives adopted bythe Government and the EOC to narrow the gender wagegap, including initiatives aimed at promoting good prac-tices and encouraging employers to undertake Equal PayReviews (EPR). CEACR: Individual Observation concern-ing Convention num. 100, Equal Remuneration, 1951 UnitedKingdom (ratification: 1971) Published: 2004. Other ex-amples can be found in CEACR: Individual Observationconcerning Convention num. 122, Employment Policy, 1964Portugal (ratification: 1981) Published: 2001; and CEACR:Individual Observation concerning Convention num. 82,Social Policy (Non-Metropolitan Territories), 1947 UnitedKingdom, Bermudas (declaration: 1950) Published: 2001(source http://www.ilo.org/ilolex/).

4Although individual labour relations are a central ele-ment of a collective demand, they require a specific studyusing a different approach. As used in this document, thelabour relations concept refers to the collective relationsexisting between several workers or their organization andone employer, group of employers and/or their organiza-tion.

5Boletín PROALCA N° 8: Taller Nacional sobre MejoresPrácticas.

6Compendio de buenas prácticas de relaciones laboralesen Colombia, OIT, Bogotá, 2004.

7http://www.tobaccoleaf.org/.8Based on the Summary Report of the Workshop on Good

Practices ––Decent Work and the Informal Economy heldin Turin, on 30-31 august of 2004.

9It should be kept in mind that labour relations arepremised on the existence of two parties that must worktogether in order to reach an agreement.

11Such is the case of the company Chiquita, which de-velops an internal policy aimed at meeting SA8000 socialstandards. The policy applies not only to Chiquita subsid-iaries wherever they operate, but also to suppliers. SA800standards are based on ILO conventions.http://www.ilo.org/public/english/dialogue/sector/techmeet/iwsdwa03/iwsdwa-r.pdf.

12Source:“A Practical Guide for Managers and Unionson how to Build Trust” ILO, Programme for the Promo-tion of Management Labour Cooperation – PROMALCO.

13In fact, various international instruments on human rightsguarantee a number of typically “social” or labour indi-vidual and collective rights. Let us not forget that humanrights can be political, economic, social and cultural, whichmeans that they do represent the required minimum regard-ing the matter of interest here. Such is the case with theInternational Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (UnitedNations – UN Resolution N° 2200A (XXI) of 16 December1966, the International Covenant on Economic, Social andCultural Rights (UN Resolution N° 2200A (XXI) of 16 De-cember 1966, the Convention for the Protection of HumanRights and Fundamental Freedoms (UN Rome, 4 December1950), as well as with numerous other declarations andcovenants, including the Convention on the Elimination ofall Forms of Discrimination against Women, or theConvention on the Rights of the Child, which make humanrights of equality, freedom of association, collective bar-gaining, ending slavery, and children’s right to education(which implies a limitation to child labour). The UniversalDeclaration of Human Rights enshrines the principles ofequality and freedom (“equal and inalienable rights topreserve the dignity of the human family”) in its Preamble,and then proceeds to enumerate a long list of fundamentalrights that include the above mentioned labour rights.

14To ensure compliance with ratified Conventions, theILO has established three basic control bodies––the Com-mittee of Experts on the Application of Conventions andRecommendations, the Committee on Freedom of Asso-ciation and the Conference Committee on Application ofStandards––which in accordance with the Organization’sConstitution issue observations, direct requests and/or rec-ommendations regarding compliance with ratified instru-ments. The Governing Body acts––essentially under Ar-ticles 24 and 26 of the ILO Constitution––to complete per-formance of the Organization’s control duty.

10The topic of corporate social responsibility is thesubject of numerous publications, and treating it in detailwould require a separate paper. It is therefore onlyreferred to in the present work.

54

15http://mirror/public/spanish/dialogue/ifpdial/llg/index.htm

16ILO. Regional Office for the Americas, 2000.17http://mirror/public/spanish/dialogue/ifpdial/ll/observa-

tory/18As in the case of the armed forces or the police be-

cause of their special characteristics.19In the case of non-ratifiers, we recall that under the

Declaration all members have an obligation to complywith the principles, and that the content of the Declara-tion is linked to the content of the Conventions (Clause 2of the Declaration).

20In fact, the Committee of Experts has mentioned thisslowness with regard to some countries (e.g. Costa Rica).For its part, the Committee on Freedom of Association hasexpressed its concern over the slowness and lack ofeffectiveness of procedures in a considerable number ofcases.

21For example, the Committee of Experts recalled thatreported acts of anti-union discrimination call for swift,accessible, inexpensive and impartial procedures to pre-vent or remedy them as quickly as possible (ILO, 1994,paragraph 216).

22Interview with the President of the Supreme Court,Passando a Limpo, TV broadcast of 4 february 2002.

23ILO (2002d) Review of annual reports under the fol-low-up to the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principlesand Rights at Work Part II. Compilation of Annual Re-ports, march 2002, Geneva. P. 24 (Spanish version).

24Regarding, in particular, professional and economicclassification and recordal in the Finance Ministry’s tax-payers’ register, which is a pre-requisite for recognitionof existence under civil law and which can only be obtainedif the Ministry of Employment does not deny registration.ILO 2002d. P. 24 (Spanish version).

25For more information, see ILO, New Forms of LabourAdministration. Actors in Development, Edited by N.Lécuyer. Geneva 2002. P. 345 to 355.

26Ley 27556/2001.27There have been several campaigns in succession. The

campaign carried out in 1996-98 against clandestine em-ployment was particularly successful.

28www.gov.br, Portaria GM N° 197/05 y Portaria STRN° 1/05.

29www.mte.gov.br, Agreement SE/MTE N° 04/2003 andwww.dieese.org.br.

30Regarding the enterprise FERTICA S.A. in cases n.1879 and n. 1966, the Committee on Freedom of Associa-tion concluded that its recommendations requesting thereinstatement of the enterprise’s union officials and there-employment of the 265 union members had not beencomplied with. In addition, the Committee on Freedom of

31ILO (2002d) Review of annual reports under the fol-low-up to the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principlesand Rights at Work. Part II. Compilation of Annual Re-ports, march 2002, Geneva. P.18 (Spanish version).

32ILO (2002e) Review of annual reports under the fol-low-up to the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principlesand Rights at Work. Part I. Introduction by the ILO Dec-laration Expert-Advisers to the compilation of annual re-ports, march 2002, Geneva. Paragraph 59.

33ILO, op. cit. note 25.34http://www.osha.gov/oshstats/index.html.35As a rule, executive committee members, initial num-

ber of members, headquarters location etc.36Often, as a result, figures show lower figures for the

second of two consecutive years. In some countries(Venezuela until 1999) it is quite common to begin theround of negotiations in the main industries in the sameyear. This is clearly reflected by the number of agree-ments signed and workers covered year by year, for thefigures for the second year only include the new agree-ments, not those signed in the previous year and still inforce.

38For more information, see New Forms of LabourAdministration, ILO, Pp. 235 and followings.

39Let us not forget that conflict resolution is central tothe ILO itself. The Voluntary Conciliation andArbitration Recomendation, 1951 (No. 92) advocates theestablishment of means of resolution, as do the CollectiveBargaining Convention, 1981 (No. 154) and the CollectiveBargaining Recommendation, 1981 (No. 163), whichenvisage such means of resolution as ways to fostercollective bargaining. The Examination of GrievancesRecommendation, 1967 ( No. 130) focuses on the use ofvoluntary mechanisms, whilst the Labour Relations(Public Service) Convention, 1978 (No. 151) makesreference to the same concept in the context of labourrelations in the public sector.

Association noted the lack of effectiveness of the admin-istrative and judicial system in force in the past.

37 In other words, when negotiation takes place inparallel at the enterprise, industry, trade, national orother level.

40Ley N° 7 of 25 february 1975.41Complaints on account of unjustified dismissal, complaints

for up to B/. 1 500 and complaints by domestic workers,whatever the nature and whatever the amount involved.

42See the study by Quinteros. C and Navarrete on thelabour relation in El Salvador, p. 40-41 (Spanish)http://www.ilo.org/public/english/dialogue/ifèdial/ll/wphtmdialogue/govlab/papers/2002/newnp/index.htm.

43286th report, case No. 1609, paragraph 435.4429th report, case No. 1648 and 1650, paragraph 471.

55

48Some laws lay down a maximum weekly limit of 40working hours, requiring the payment of overtime if thatlimit is passed, even though the working hours may bereduced in the following weeks; it is also usual for themaximum number of hours to be worked per day to be laiddown by law.

49Productivity is the measure of the quantity of productobtained per unit of factor used.

47Negotiating Flexibility — The Role of the Social Part-ners and the State Ozaki, M. (Dir.), International LabourOffice, Geneva, 2000.

agreement. It also stems from Decree 470/93 (23/03/1993),in modification of Decree 199/88 on collective labour agree-ments, which provides in its first article:

«The signatory

The Role of the Social Partners and the State Ozaki, M.(Dir.), International Labour Office, Geneva, 2000.

50Chapter XIX of the mentioned agreement.51For more information see the ILO web site

www.ilo.org/public/english/dialogue/sector/papers/indsider/index.htm.

52The agreement was approved by Resolution of theMinistry of Labour Nº 201/97 and 41/99. This agreementis implemented under the terms of Decree 1169/96 (regu-lations to Law 24635), Chapter IV, which stipulates in itsarticle 34:

«Collective work agreements may create an

optional labour conciliation service for complainants in-cluded in their areas of personal application, with a viewto its use in the disputes mentioned in Article 1 of Law24635...

», as laid down in the first point of the approved

parties to the labour agreement may modify the level ofnegotiation upon the individual petition of any of them, orof any employer or group of employers covered by therespective collective labour agreement. The contents ofthe agreements may include both the general working con-ditions and the wage scale

».

53For more information, see: www.secose.com.ar.54The ILO has carried out a series of studies in process

of publication on collective bargaining and gender in severalLatin American countries, which may complete the infor-mation contained in this point.

55Collective bargaining as a mechanism of equality be-tween men and women, Economic and Social Council,Collection of Reports, number 2/2003.

45Recommendation No. 91, paragraph 2, subparagraph 1.46For more information, see Negotiating Flexibility —

56Following the guidelines contained in the Constitution(Art. 56), in april 1996 Law 278 was passed, wherebyCongress regulated the composition and functions of theStanding Committee on the Coordination of Wage andLabour Policies, whose main functions repeat some of thosealready granted to the previous Labour Council that hadbeen created in the 1950s (this is the case of the fixing ofthe minimum wage).

57ILO 2000 Your Voice at Work. Global Report underthe Follow-Up to the ILO Declaration on FundamentalPrinciples and Rights at Work. International LabourConference. 88th Session. Geneva, paragraph. 155.

58These are some successful examples in the region.59This list is not exhaustive. It only includes organiza-

tions and institutions with a web page that the authorshave been able to access.

56

El presente documento ha sido impreso porA’Lautrec S.A.C.

Av. Paseo de la República 5137 Lima 34-PerúTelefax (511)445 0300

E-mail: art_lautrec@yahoo.es