South Sudan

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.

South Sudan’s overall score is 73.5 out of 100. The overall score for South Sudan is higher than the regional average observed across Sub-Saharan Africa (64.4). Within the Sub-Saharan Africa region, the highest score is observed for Guinea (80.5).

South Sudan ratified Convention No. 98 on the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining in 2012 but has not ratified Convention No. 87 on Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise (1948).

Labour Rights Index 2022

73.5/100

LRI Country Score

25/100

Trade Union Indicator

- %

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 §25, Constitution 2011; §6 & 28, Workers' Trade Union Act 2013; §9 & 73, Labour Act 2017

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

No

0 §6 & 87-91, Labour Act 2017; CEACR, C98, DR 2021

A / B

Does the law provide for the right to strike?

No

0 §96-98 of the Labour Act, 2017

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

Yes

1 §100 of the Labour Act, 2017

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.

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

Violations

National Labour Legislation / ILO Committee of Experts on Application of Conventions and Recommendations (CEACR)

§87 of the Labour Act 2017

87. Recognition as Exclusive Bargaining Agent of Employees
(1) A registered trade union that represents the majority of employees in an appropriate
bargaining unit is entitled to recognition as the exclusive bargaining agent of employees
in that bargaining unit for the purpose of negotiating a Collective Agreement.
(2) An employer orEmployers’ Association shall not recognise a trade union as an
exclusive bargaining agent under this Act unless it is a registered trade union under the
Workers Trade unions Act, 2013.
(3) A registered trade union may seek recognition as an exclusive bargaining agent of an
appropriate bargaining unit by delivering a request to:
(a) an employer to recognise it as the exclusive bargaining agent of a bargaining unit
consisting of employees or some of its employees;
(b) An Employers’ Association to recognise it as the exclusive bargaining agent of a
bargaining unit consisting of employees of its members.
(c) Within thirty days after the receipt of the request, the employer or theEmployers’
Association shall notify the trade union in the prescribed form either that:
(i) It recognises the trade union as the exclusive bargaining agent of employees in the
bargaining unit as proposed by the trade union or agreed to by the trade union and
the employer;
(ii) It refuses to recognise the trade union because it disputes the appropriateness of
the proposed bargaining unit or that the Trade union does not represent the
majority of employees as proposed to be the bargaining unit.
(4) If the employer or theEmployers’ Association fails or refuses to notify the trade union
as required under sub-section (4) above or notifies its refusal to recognise the trade
union, the trade union may apply to the Commission for an order recognising the trade
union as the exclusive bargaining agent.
(5) If, upon application by a registered trade union, the Commission is satisfied that the
trade union represents the majority of the employees in the agreed bargaining unit or
that the Commission considers the bargaining unit to be appropriate, the Commission
may make an order declaring the trade union to be recognised as the exclusive
bargaining agent of the employees in the agreed or appropriate bargaining unit.
(6) In determining the appropriateness of a bargaining unit for the purposes of sub-section
(6) above, the Commission shall:
(a) take the organisational structure of the employer into account; and
(b) Promote orderly and effective collective bargaining with a minimum division of
Employers’ Association structure.
– 61 –
(7) If an employer orEmployers’ Association has recognised a registered trade union as an
exclusive bargaining agent and the trade union no longer represents the majority of an
employees in the bargaining unit, the employer orEmployers’ Association shall:
(a) give the trade union notice in the prescribed form to acquire a majority within
three months;
(b) Withdraw recognition from that trade union if it fails to acquire that majority at
the expiry of the three-month period.
(8) On application by a trade union affected by action taken under sub-section (8) above,
the Commission may, subject to the principles set out in sub-sections (6) and (7) above,
make an order:
(a) declaring that the trade union represents a majority of employees in the
bargaining unit;
(b) giving the trade union a further opportunity to acquire a majority;
(c) altering the bargaining unit;
(d) Withdrawing recognition of the trade union as the exclusive bargaining agent of
the employees in the bargaining unit.
(9) A registered trade union, which has been recognised as an exclusive bargaining agent in
respect of the bargaining unit in question has a duty to represent the interests of every
employee falling in that bargaining unit, whether or not employees are members of that
trade union.

CEACR, C98, DR 2021

Article 6. Civil servants not engaged in the administration of the State. The Committee had previously noted that section 6 of the WTUA exempts from its scope of application the following categories of workers: any disciplined force including the army, police, prison service, fire service and wildlife forces; national security forces; constitutional post holders; judges and justices; public attorney and legal advisers and senior members of the diplomatic service. The Committee notes that section 4(2) of the Labour Act also exempts from its scope of application the army; organized forces; national security service; judges; government legal counsels; diplomatic service and constitutional post holders. The Committee recalls that while members of the armed forces, the police and civil servants engaged in the administration of the State can be excluded from the application of the Convention, all other categories of workers, including prison, fire and wildlife services, as well as civilian personnel in the armed forces, should benefit from the rights granted by it. The Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that national legislation guarantees the rights provided in the Convention to the civil servants not engaged in the administration of the State.