Gambia

"Article 2 of the Convention. Right of workers without distinction whatsoever, to establish and join organizations of their own choosing without previous authorization. ..........The Committee had previously noted that sections 3(2)(a), (c) and (d) of the Labour Act of 2007 exclude civil servants, prison officers and domestic workers, respectively, from its scope, and recalled the need to ensure that these three groups enjoy the right to establish and join organizations of their own choosing. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that these categories of workers are not excluded from the scope of the Trade Union Bill and will therefore be allowed to form and join trade unions after its coming into force. The Committee observes that the right to join and participate in the forming of trade unions is provided to every employee under section 4(1) of the Trade Union Bill. Further observing that section 2 of the Trade Union Bill defines “employee” as “a person employed for wages or a salary”, which does not encompass self-employed workers and workers without employment contracts, the Committee recalls that Article 2 of the Convention applies not only to employees but more broadly to all workers without any distinction whatsoever. The Committee also notes the ITUC indication that no progress has been made with respect to the Trade Union Bill since the Gambian Trade Union Bureau submitted its comments and recommendations on the Bill in 2017. The Committee requests the Government to take the necessary steps, in consultation with the social partners, to review the Trade Union Bill so as to ensure that once adopted, all workers, including civil servants, prison officers, domestic workers, as well as self-employed workers and workers without employment contracts, enjoy the right to establish and join organizations of their own choosing, in accordance with the Convention. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on any progress made in this respect. ...."

"Articles 4 and 6. Right to collective bargaining of public servants not engaged in the administration of the State.The Committee notes that section 41(1) of the Trade Union Bill provides that the Minister may, after consultations with the Labour Advisory Board, make regulations establishing machinery for determining terms and conditions of employment for any category of employees in the public sector. It further notes that section 41(3) stipulates that the Minister may determine different terms and conditions for certain categories of public employees. The Committee recalls that under Article 6 of the Convention, persons who are employed in the public sector but by their functions are not directly engaged in the administration of the State should benefit from the guarantees provided for in the Convention (see 2012 General Survey, paragraph 172). The Committee requests the Government to amend section 41 of the Trade Union Bill to ensure that all public servants not engaged in the administration of the State are able to negotiate collectively their conditions of work."

"Right to strike. In its previous comments, the Committee had noted that section 140(1) of the Labour Act defines essential services as services the interruption of which would endanger the life, personal safety or health of the whole or part of the population, and that the Government considered radio and telecommunication services to be essential services. It had recalled that radio services could not be considered essential services in the strict sense of the term and requested the Government to review its list of essential services accordingly. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the issue of essential services is provided for under section 60 of the Trade Union Bill, as well as section 27 and the Third Schedule of the draft Trade Union Regulations. The Committee observes that the Third Schedule of the draft Trade Union Regulations lists the following services as essential (in which strikes are prohibited pursuant to sections 57(1)(f) and 60(3) of the Trade Union Bill): water and electricity supply services, public hospital services, air traffic control services and civil aviation, public telecommunications services, fire services of the Government or a public institution, ports authority, ferry services, public transport services, public service cleansing and sanitation services. The Committee considers that some of the above services, notably, civil aviation services, telecommunication services in general (with the exception of telephone services), ports, ferry services, transport services, as well as cleansing and sanitation services cannot be considered essential services in the strict sense of the term. The Committee requests the Government to amend the list of essential services set out in the draft Trade Union Regulations with a view to ensuring that the ban on strikes stipulated in section 60(3) of the Trade Union Bill is limited to essential services in the strict sense of the term."