Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention

Freedom of Association Convention
Convention concerning Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise
SignedJuly 9, 1948
LocationSan Francisco
EffectiveJuly 4, 1950
Conditiontwo ratifications
Parties158[1][2]
DepositaryDirector-General of the International Labour Office
LanguagesFrench, English

The Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention (1948) No 87 is an International Labour Organization Convention, and one of eight conventions that form the core of international labour law, as interpreted by the Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work.[3]

Content

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The Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention comprises the preamble followed by four parts with a total of 21 articles. The preamble consists of the formal introduction of the instrument, at the Thirty-first Session of the General Conference of the International Labour Organization, on 17 June 1948. A statement of the "considerations" leading to the establishment of the document. These considerations include the preamble to the Constitution of the International Labour Organization; the affirmation of the Declaration of Philadelphia in regard to the issue; and the request by the General Assembly of the United Nations, upon endorsing the previously received report of 1947, to "continue every effort in order that it may be possible to adopt one or several international Conventions." In closing, the preamble states the date of adoption: July 9, 1948.

Part 1 consists of ten articles which outline the rights of both worker and employers to "join organisations of their own choosing without previous authorisation." Rights are also extended to the organizations themselves to draw up rules and constitutions, vote for officers, and organize administrative functions without interference from public authorities. There is also an explicit expectation placed on these organizations. They are required, in the exercise of these rights, to respect the law of the land. In turn, the law of the land, "shall not be such as to impair, nor shall it be so applied as to impair, the guarantees provided for in this Convention." Finally, article 9 states that these provisions are applied to both armed forces and police forces only as determined by national laws and regulations, and do not supersede previous national laws that reflect the same rights for such forces. Article 1 states all ILO members must give effect to the following provisions.

PART I. FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

[...]

Article 2

Workers and employers, without distinction whatsoever, shall have the right to establish and, subject only to the rules of the organisation concerned, to join organisations of their own choosing without previous authorisation.

Article 3

1. Workers' and employers' organisations shall have the right to draw up their constitutions and rules, to elect their representatives in full freedom, to organise their administration and activities and to formulate their programmes.

2. The public authorities shall refrain from any interference which would restrict this right or impede the lawful exercise thereof.

Article 4

Workers' and employers' organisations shall not be liable to be dissolved or suspended by administrative authority.

Article 5

Workers' and employers' organisations shall have the right to establish and join federations and confederations and any such organisation, federation or confederation shall have the right to affiliate with international organisations of workers and employers.

Article 6

The provisions of Articles 2, 3 and 4 hereof apply to federations and confederations of workers' and employers' organisations.

Article 7

The acquisition of legal personality by workers' and employers' organisations, federations and confederations shall not be made subject to conditions of such a character as to restrict the application of the provisions of Articles 2, 3 and 4 hereof.

Article 8

1. In exercising the rights provided for in this Convention workers and employers and their respective organisations, like other persons or organised collectivities, shall respect the law of the land.

2. The law of the land shall not be such as to impair, nor shall it be so applied as to impair, the guarantees provided for in this Convention.

Article 9

1. The extent to which the guarantees provided for in this Convention shall apply to the armed forces and the police shall be determined by national laws or regulations.

2. In accordance with the principle set forth in paragraph 8 of Article 19 of the Constitution of the International Labour Organisation [sic] the ratification of this Convention by any Member shall not be deemed to affect any existing law, award, custom or agreement in virtue of which members of the armed forces or the police enjoy any right guaranteed by this Convention.

Article 10

In this Convention the term organisation means any organisation of workers or of employers for furthering and defending the interests of workers or of employers.[4]

Part 2 states that every ILO member undertakes to ensure "all necessary and appropriate measures to ensure that workers and employers may exercise freely the right to organise." This sentence is expanded upon in the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949.

Part 3, which contains articles 12 and 13, deals with technical matters related to the Convention. It outlines the definitions of who may accept (with or without modification), or reject the obligations of this Convention with regards to "non-metropolitan territory[ies]", whose self-governing powers extend into this area. It also discusses reporting procedures for modification of previous declarations in regard to acceptance of these obligations. Part 4 outlines the procedures for formal ratification of the Convention. The Convention was declared to come into force twelve months from the date when the Director-General had been notified of ratification by two member countries. This date became July 4, 1950, one year after Norway (preceded by Sweden) ratified the Convention. Part 4 also outlines provisions for denunciation of the Convention, including a ten-year cycle of obligation. Final discussion highlights procedures which would take place in the event that the Convention is eventually superseded by a new Convention, in whole, or in part.[4]

Ratifications

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Ratifications of the convention. Green: ratified. Yellow: ratified, will be effective in future. Red: not ratified.

As of February 2024, 158 out of 187 ILO member states have ratified the convention:[2][5]

Country Date
 Albania June 3, 1957
 Algeria November 19, 1962
 Angola June 13, 2001
 Antigua and Barbuda February 2, 1983
 Argentina January 18, 1960
 Armenia January 2, 2006
 Australia February 28, 1973
 Austria November 18, 1950
 Azerbaijan May 19, 1992
 Bahamas June 14, 2001
 Bangladesh June 22, 1972
 Barbados May 8, 1967
 Belarus (as the Byelorussian SSR) November 6, 1956
 Belgium November 23, 1951
 Belize December 15, 1983
 Benin December 12, 1960
 Bolivia January 4, 1965
 Bosnia and Herzegovina June 2, 1993
 Botswana December 22, 1997
 Bulgaria June 8, 1959
 Burkina Faso November 21, 1960
 Burundi June 25, 1993
 Cambodia August 23, 1999
 Cameroon June 7, 1960
 Canada March 23, 1972
 Cape Verde February 1, 1999
 Central African Republic October 27, 1960
 Chad November 10, 1960
 Chile February 2, 1999
 Colombia November 16, 1976
 Comoros October 23, 1978
 Congo November 10, 1960
 Democratic Republic of the Congo June 20, 2001
 Costa Rica June 2, 1960
 Côte d'Ivoire November 21, 1960
 Croatia October 8, 1991
 Cuba June 25, 1952
 Cyprus May 24, 1966
 Czech Republic January 1, 1993
 Denmark June 13, 1951
 Djibouti August 3, 1978
 Dominica February 28, 1983
 Dominican Republic December 5, 1956
 East Timor June 16, 2009
 Ecuador May 29, 1967
 Egypt November 6, 1957
 El Salvador September 6, 2006
 Equatorial Guinea August 13, 2001
 Eritrea February 22, 2000
 Estonia March 22, 1994
 Ethiopia June 4, 1963
 Fiji April 17, 2002
 Finland January 20, 1950
 France June 28, 1951
 Gabon November 14, 1960
 Gambia September 4, 2000
 Georgia August 3, 1999
 Germany March 20, 1957
 Ghana June 2, 1965
 Greece March 30, 1962
 Grenada October 25, 1994
 Guatemala February 13, 1952
 Guinea January 21, 1959
 Guinea-Bissau June 9, 2023
 Guyana September 25, 1967
 Haiti June 5, 1979
 Honduras June 27, 1956
 Hungary June 6, 1957
 Iceland August 19, 1950
 Indonesia June 9, 1998
 Iraq June 1, 2018
 Ireland June 4, 1955
 Israel January 28, 1957
 Italy May 13, 1958
 Jamaica December 26, 1962
 Japan June 14, 1965
 Kazakhstan December 13, 2000
 Kiribati February 3, 2000
 Kuwait September 21, 1961
 Kyrgyzstan March 31, 1992
 Latvia January 27, 1992
 Lesotho October 31, 1966
 Liberia May 25, 1962
 Libya October 4, 2000
 Lithuania September 26, 1994
 Luxembourg March 3, 1958
 North Macedonia November 17, 1991
 Madagascar November 1, 1960
 Malawi November 19, 1990
 Maldives January 4, 2013
 Mali September 22, 1960
 Malta January 4, 1965
 Mauritania June 20, 1961
 Mauritius April 1, 2005
 Mexico April 1, 1950
 Moldova August 12, 1996
 Mongolia June 3, 1969
 Mozambique December 23, 1996
 Myanmar March 4, 1955
 Namibia January 3, 1995
 Netherlands March 7, 1950
 Nicaragua October 31, 1967
 Niger February 27, 1961
 Nigeria October 17, 1960
 Norway July 4, 1949
 Pakistan February 14, 1951
 Panama June 3, 1958
 Papua New Guinea June 2, 2000
 Paraguay June 28, 1962
 Peru March 2, 1960
 Philippines December 29, 1953
 Poland February 25, 1957
 Portugal October 14, 1977
 South Korea April 20, 2021
 Romania May 28, 1957
 Russia (as the Soviet Union) August 10, 1956
 Rwanda November 8, 1988
 Saint Kitts and Nevis August 25, 2000
 Saint Lucia May 14, 1980
 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines November 9, 2001
 Samoa June 30, 2008
 San Marino December 19, 1986
 São Tomé and Príncipe June 17, 1992
 Senegal November 4, 1960
 Serbia (as Serbia and Montenegro) November 24, 2000
 Seychelles February 6, 1978
 Sierra Leone June 15, 1961
 Slovakia January 1, 1993
 Slovenia May 29, 1992
 Solomon Islands April 13, 2012
 Somalia March 22, 2014
 South Africa February 19, 1996
 Spain April 20, 1977
 Sri Lanka September 15, 1995
 Sudan March 17, 2021
 Suriname June 15, 1976
 Swaziland April 26, 1978
 Sweden November 25, 1949
  Switzerland March 25, 1975
 Syria July 26, 1960
 Tajikistan November 26, 1993
 Tanzania April 18, 2000
 Timor Leste June 15, 2009
 Togo June 7, 1960
 Trinidad and Tobago May 24, 1963
 Tunisia June 18, 1957
 Turkey July 12, 1993
 Turkmenistan May 15, 1997
 Uganda June 2, 2005
 Ukraine (as the Ukrainian SSR) September 14, 1956
 United Kingdom June 27, 1949
 Uruguay March 18, 1954
 Uzbekistan December 12, 2016
 Vanuatu August 28, 2006
 Venezuela September 20, 1982
 Yemen August 29, 1976
 Zambia September 2, 1996
 Zimbabwe April 9, 2003

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Ratifications of C087 - Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87)
  2. ^ a b "SOMALIA: PM signs three core International Labour Organization conventions". Raxanreeb. 22 March 2014. Archived from the original on 22 March 2014. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
  3. ^ "Conventions and ratifications". International Labour Organization. 27 May 2011.
  4. ^ a b Resource: International Labour Organization, ILO
  5. ^ "Ratifications of Convention 87". International Labour Organisation. Archived from the original on 25 February 2003.
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