Freedom of Association
Database 2024

Freedom of Association
Indicator
Freedom of Association
Countries
LRI 2024
heatmap

Algeria

Freedom of Association Indicator

The Labour Rights Index 2024 (LRI 2024) is a de-jure index covering 145 economies and structured around the working lifespan of a worker. In total, 46 questions or evaluation criteria are scored across 10 indicators. The overall score is calculated by taking the average of each indicator, with 100 being the highest possible score. The Index uses a rating system, ranging from “Total Lack of Decent Work” to “Decent Work”. The Labour Rights Index aims at an active contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals, by providing necessary (complementary) insights into de jure provisions on issues covered in particular by SDG8 (Decent Jobs), SDG 5 (Gender Equality), SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities) and SDG 16 (Strong Institutions). The Index is based on national labour legislation, applicable on 1 January 2024.

Algeria’s overall score is 67.5 out of 100. The overall score for Algeria is greater than the regional average observed across Middle East and North Africa (64). Within the Middle East and North Africa region, the highest score is observed for Morocco (77).

Algeria ratified Convention No. 87 on Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise (1948) in 1962 and Convention No. 98 on the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining (1949) in 1962.

Labour Rights Index 2024

67.5/100

LRI Country Score

75/100

Freedom of Association Indicator

. %

Trade union density rate (%)

. %

Collective bargaining coverage rate (%)

2.5

SDG indicator 8.8.2

5

ITUC Global Rights Index 2024 Ratings

Question

Answer

Score

Legal Basis

More Info

Does the law allow workers to form and join unions of their own choice?

Yes

1

§1& 2 of the Law No. 23-02 of 5 Chaoual 1444, 2023; CEACR, C87, Obs. 2022

B

Does the law allow workers to bargain collectively with employers through their representative unions?

Yes

1

§88 of the Law No. 23-02 of Law No. 23-02 of 5 Chaoual 1444, 2023; USDOS CRHRP 2023 (Algeria)

A

Does the law provide for the right to strike?

Yes

1

§2 of the Executive Decree No. 23-361, 2023 ; USDOS CRHRP 2023 (Algeria); ITUC Global Rights Index 2024 Algeria Profile

C,D

Does the law prohibit imposing of excessive sanctions against striking workers?

No

0

CEACR, C87, Obs 2023; USDOS CRHRP 2023 (Algeria)

B,D

Textual sources

A : National Law

National Labour Legislation

B : CEACR

CEACR: ILO Committee of Experts on Application of Conventions and Recommendations (latest report)

C : ITUC

ITUC: ITUC Global Rights Index

D : USDOS

USDOS: US Department of States' Country Reports on Human Rights Practices

LRI Country Score
The Labour Rights Index has 10 indicators and 46 sub-indicators. The LRI Country score averages 10 indicators and ranges between 0 and 100. The lowest and highest scorers are Nigeria (29/100) and Belgium/Greece (96/100). https://labourrightsindex.org/  

Freedom of Association Indicator
The Freedom of Association indicator is composed of 4 sub-indicators. Scoring is done through the binary method (0 or 1). The score ranges between 0-100. 

Trade union density rate (%)
The trade union density rate conveys the number of union members who are employees as a percentage of the total number of employees in the country. For updated statistics on trade union density, please check ILOSTAT. 

Collective bargaining coverage rate (%)
The collective bargaining coverage rate conveys the number of employees whose pay and/or conditions of employment are determined by one or more collective agreement(s) as a percentage of the total number of employees in the country. For updated statistics on collective bargaining coverage, please check ILOSTAT. 

SDG indicator 8.8.2
SDG indicator 8.8.2 measures national compliance with fundamental labour rights (freedom of association and collective bargaining or FACB). It ranges from 0 to 10, with 0 being the best possible score (indicating higher levels of compliance with FACB rights) and 10 the worst (indicating lower levels of compliance with FACB rights). It is based on six ILO supervisory body textual sources and national legislation.
For an updated assessment on SDG indicator 8.8.2, please check ILOSTAT. 

ITUC Global Rights Index 2024 Ratings
The ITUC Global Rights Index depicts the world’s worst countries for workers by rating 148 countries on a scale from 1 to 5+ on the degree of respect for workers’ rights. Violations are recorded each year from April to March.  For a detailed description of ratings and methodology, please follow the link. 

Information

Source: §1& 2 of the Law No. 23-02 of 5 Chaoual 1444, 2023; CEACR, C87, Obs. 2022

B : CEACR

CEACR: ILO Committee of Experts on Application of Conventions and Recommendations

"Article 2 of the Convention. Right to establish trade union organizations.The Committee notes with satisfaction that Act No. 22-06 of 25 April 2022 removes the nationality requirement provided under section 6 of Act No. 90-14, now allowing non-national employers and workers to form trade union organizations and, subject to three years’ residence and according to modalities established in the statutes, to become members of the executive board of a trade union (section 13 bis of Act No. 90-14). "

Information

Source: §88 of the Law No. 23-02 of Law No. 23-02 of 5 Chaoual 1444, 2023; USDOS CRHRP 2023 (Algeria)

A : National Law

National Labour Legislation

"Art. 88. Powers of representative trade union organizations Any representative trade union organization, in the territory or in the profession, branch or sector of activity, participates, in particular: — in consultations or collective negotiations, in accordance with the labor legislation in force; — in procedures for the prevention and resolution of collective labor disputes; — in the exercise of the right to strike, in accordance with the legislation in force, without undermining, in particular, the principles of continuity of public service and the protection of the safety of people and property."

Information

Source: §2 of the Executive Decree No. 23-361, 2023 ; USDOS CRHRP 2023 (Algeria); ITUC Global Rights Index 2024 Algeria Profile

C : ITUC

ITUC Global Rights Index (country legal profile)

"Minimum services must be maintained for a range of activities, including services related to 'vital economic activities'. These include the operation of national telecommunications, television and radio services. In addition, the employer and the administrative authority may establish other additional areas of activity requiring minimum services during a strike, after consultation with workers' representatives (Articles 37-39, Law No. 90-02). "

D : USDOS

USDOS: US Department of States' Country Reports on Human Rights Practices

"The law provided for the right to conduct legal strikes, subject to conditions. There were no strikes during the year. By law, the right to strike only applied when a dispute persisted after conciliation and mediation procedures were exhausted. Striking required a majority vote by secret ballot of the whole workforce. The right to strike was only protected with respect to collective labor disputes between workers and employers within the enterprise. Collective bargaining for public-sector workers was usually restricted to the tripartite meeting. The government could restrict strikes if they “are liable to give rise to a serious economic crisis” or if they ran afoul of other ambiguous grounds. Furthermore, all public demonstrations, including protests and strikes, had to receive prior government authorization. The law required that a minimum level of essential public services be maintained during public-sector service strikes, and the government had broad legal authority to require public employees to work. The list of essential services went beyond International Labor Organization (ILO) standards for essential services and included banking, radio, and television. "

Information

Source: CEACR, C87, Obs 2023; USDOS CRHRP 2023 (Algeria)

B : CEACR

CEACR: ILO Committee of Experts on Application of Conventions and Recommendations

"Procedures for the exercise of the right to strike (sections 41 to 46 of Act No. 23-08). The Committee notes that pursuant to section 42 of the Act, strike action may only be taken for the purpose of having exclusively socio-professional demands met. Under section 45 of the Act, therefore, politically motivated strikes, sympathy strikes or strikes organized for causes or demands other than socio-professional, are illegal. In this regard, the Committee recalls that strikes relating to the Government’s economic and social policy, including general strikes, are legitimate and therefore should not be regarded as purely political strikes, which are not covered by the principles of the Convention. Trade unions and employers’ organizations responsible for defending socio-economic and occupational interests should be able to use, respectively, strike action or protest action to support their position in the search for solutions to problems posed by major social and economic policies which have a direct impact on their members. Moreover, with regard to so-called “sympathy” strikes, the Committee considers that a general prohibition of this form of strike action could lead to abuse, particularly in the context of globalization characterized by increasing interdependence and the internationalization of production, and that workers should be able to take such action, provided that the initial strike they are supporting is itself lawful (see the General Survey of 2012 on the fundamental Conventions, paragraphs 124 and 125). Bearing in mind the principles recalled above, the Committee requests the Government to take measures to ensure that excessive restrictions on the exercise of the right to strike are removed."

D : USDOS

USDOS: US Department of States' Country Reports on Human Rights Practices

"Penalties for unlawful work stoppages ranged from eight days to two months imprisonment."