LABOUR RIGHTS INDEX 2022

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LRI 2022
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lri 2022 Country Profiles

Nicaragua

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.

Nicaragua’s overall score is 78.5 out of 100. The overall score for Nicaragua is higher than the regional average observed across Latin America and The Caribbean (71). Within the Latin America and The Caribbean region, the highest score is observed for Paraguay (82.5).

Nicaragua ratified Convention No. 87 on Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise (1948) in 1967 and Convention No. 98 on the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining (1949) in 1967.

Labour Rights Index 2022

78.5/100

LRI Country Score

75/100

Trade Union Indicator

5.3 %

Trade union density rate (%)

6.7 %

Collective bargaining coverage rate (%)

0.36

SDG indicator 8.8.2

3

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?

Yes

1

§87 of the Constitution, 1987; §203-213 & 224 of the Labour Code, 1996

No Violation Found

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

Yes

1

§88 of the Constitution, 1987; §235-242 of the Labour Code, 1996

No Violation Found

Does the law provide for the right to strike?

No

0

§83 of the Constitution, 1987; §244, 249 & 389-390 of the Labour Code 1996; CEACR C87 Obs. 2021

B

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

Yes

1

§83 of the Constitution, 1987; §246 of the Labour Code 1996

No Violation Found

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. 

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Violations

No Violation

Violations

No Violation

Violations

ILO Committee of Experts on Application of Conventions and Recommendations (CEACR)
CEACR C87 Obs. 2021

Article 3 of the Convention. Right of workers’ organizations to organize their activities in full freedom and to formulate their programmes. The Committee recalls that for several years it has been referring to the need to take steps to amend sections 389 and 390 of the Labour Code, which provide that collective disputes shall be referred to compulsory arbitration when 30 days have elapsed since the calling of the strike. In this regard, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that: (i) since 2007 to date, the provisions of these articles have not been applied and there has been no need to establish an Arbitration Tribunal; and (ii) the Government has prioritized dialogue to resolve labour disputes in both the public and private sectors by setting up roundtables for dialogue in which the Ministry of Labour participated as facilitator. The Government adds that thus far, the results have been successful and it is therefore not currently necessary to amend sections 389 and 390 of the Labour Code. While taking due note of the Government’s indications regarding the emphasis placed on dialogue as a solution to labour disputes, the Committee can only insist once again on the need to amend the abovementioned provisions of the Labour Code, as the imposition of compulsory arbitration to end a strike, beyond the cases in which a strike may be limited or even prohibited, is contrary to the right of workers’ organizations to freely organize their activities and formulate their programmes. Regretting the lack of progress in this respect, the Committee urges the Government to take the necessary measures to amend sections 389 and 390 of the Labour Code in order to ensure that compulsory arbitration is only possible in cases where strikes may be limited or even prohibited, namely in cases of conflict within the civil service relating to officials exercising authority on behalf of the State, in essential services in the strict sense of the term or in the event of an acute national crisis. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on any developments in this regard.

Violations

No Violation