Afghanistan

LABOUR RIGHTS INDEX 2022

Trade Union Indicator

The Labour Rights Index 2022 (LRI 2022) is a de-jure index covering 135 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 2022. The Index does not take into account COVID-19 related labour market measures in its scoring.

Afghanistan’s overall score is 55 out of 100. The overall score for Afghanistan is lower than the regional average observed across South Asia (56.33). Within the South Asian region, the highest score is observed for Nepal (72).

Afghanistan has not ratified either Convention No. 87 on Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise (1948) or Convention No. 98 on the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining (1949).

Labour Rights Index 2022

55/100

LRI Country Score

0/100

Trade Union Indicator

16.77 %

Trade union density rate (%)

- %

Collective bargaining coverage rate (%)

-

SDG indicator 8.8.2

5+

ITUC Global Rights Index 2022 Ratings

Question

Answer

Score

Legal Basis

Violation

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

No

0 §2 of the Law on Social Organizations 2003

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

No

0 USDOS CRHRP 2021

Does the law provide for the right to strike?

No

0 §2,3,4 & 22 of the Law on Assemblies, Strikes and Demonstrations, 2003

Does the law prohibit employers from terminating employment contracts of striking workers?

No

0 USDOS CRHRP 2021

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 2022

D : USDOS

USDOS: US Department of States' Country Reports on Human Rights Practices 2021

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/

Trade Union Indicator
The trade union 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 2022 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.

To find an ITUC affiliate in your country, please check the LINK:

Violations

National Labour Legislation

Article 2 of the Law on Social Organizations 2003

Article 2
Natural persons mentioned in paragraph 1 of this Article shall be Afghan citizens who have reached 18 years of age. (limited to Afghan citizens).

Violations

US Department of States' Country Reports on Human Rights Practices 2021 (USDOS)

USDOS CRHRP 2021

The pre-August 15 government’s law provides for the right of workers to join and form independent unions and to conduct legal strikes and bargain collectively, and the government generally respected these rights, although it lacked enforcement tools.

The law, however, provided no definition of a union or its relationship with employers and members, nor did it establish a legal method for union registration or penalties for violations.

Violations

National Labour Legislation

§2,3,4 & 22 of the Law on Assemblies, Strikes and Demonstrations, 2003

Article 2:
The citizens of Afghanistan, in order to ensure their legal and peaceful goals which don’t contradict the
national solidarity and the provisions of the Constitution, without carrying weapons and in accordance
with this law, have the rights to organize gatherings, strikes and demonstrations.
(Only Afghan citizens have the right to hold strikes)

Violations

US Department of States' Country Reports on Human Rights Practices 2021 (USDOS)

USDOS CRHRP 2021

The law did not prohibit antiunion discrimination or provide for reinstatement of workers fired for union activity. Other than protecting the right to participate in a union, the law provided no other legal protection for union workers or workers seeking to unionize.