In general terms,
freedom of association is a concept based on the premise that adults have the right to choose their associates for whatever purpose they see fit. Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and to
freedom of association at all levels, in particular in political, trade union and civic matters, which implies the right of everyone to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his or her interests.
(adapted from Eurofound,
Dictionary of Industrial relations, 2007, visited 2008-04-06)
"The right to organize and form employers' and workers' organizations is the prerequisite for sound collective bargaining and social dialogue."
(International Labour Organization (ILO),
Freedom of association , visited 2009-10-28)
Founding Documents
"The principle of
freedom of association is at the core of the [International Labour Organization's (ILO)] values: it is enshrined in the ILO Constitution (1919), the ILO Declaration of Philadelphia (1944), and the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work (1998). It is also a right proclaimed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948)."
(International Labour Organization (ILO),
Freedom of association , visited 2009-10-28)
Conventions Nos. 87 and 98 on
freedom of association and collective bargaining are the two ILO conventions establishing trade union rights.
Challenges to Freedom of Association
"There continue to be challenges in applying these principles: in some countries certain categories of workers (for example public servants, seafarers, workers in export processing zones) are denied the right of association, workers' and employers' organizations are illegally suspended or interfered with, and in some extreme cases trade unionists are arrested or killed.
ILO standards, in conjunction with the work of the Committee on
Freedom of Association and other supervisory mechanisms, pave the way for resolving these difficulties and ensuring that this fundamental human right is respected the world over."
(International Labour Organization (ILO),
Freedom of association , visited 2009-10-28)
Committee on Freedom of Association (CFA)
"Soon after the adoption of Conventions Nos. 87 and 98 on
freedom of association and collective bargaining, the ILO came to the conclusion that the principle of
freedom of association needed a further supervisory procedure to ensure compliance with it in countries that had not ratified the relevant conventions. As a result, in 1951 the ILO set up the Committee on
Freedom of Association (CFA) for the purpose of examining complaints about violations of
freedom of association, whether or not the country concerned had ratified the relevant conventions. Complaints may be brought against a member state by employers' and workers' organizations. […] In over 50 years of work, the CFA has examined over 2,300 cases. More than 60 countries on five continents have acted on its recommendations and have informed it of positive developments on
freedom of association during the past 25 years."
(International Labour Organization (ILO),
Committee on Freedom of Association, visited 2009-10-28)
Clarifying the Elements of Freedom of Association
"International standards on
freedom of association for workers have several component parts that any compliance measurement system must consider. While they can be further subdivided, these include
freedom of association, the right to organize, the right to bargain collectively, and the right to strike. In human rights terms, these are "negative rights." That is, for the right to be honored, the state need do nothing – just leave workers alone. […] They are also "positive rights" requiring governments to act affirmatively […]. A government that respects workers' negative rights is not meeting its international human rights obligations if private individuals or groups can violate workers' rights with impunity. The state must protect the rights by providing effective recourse and remedies for violations.
To take a simple example, it is not enough that in a particular country the government refrains from punishing workers who try to organize unions. What is also needed is a positive right to form and join unions coupled with an effective protection and enforcement structure that deters employers from punishing workers who try to organize unions."
(Compa, L.,
Assessing Assessments: A survey of efforts to measure countries' compliance with freedom of association standards,
Comparative Labor Law & Policy Journal, Vol. 24, 2004 p.p. 283-320, visited 2008-03-30)
Measuring Compliance
One way to evaluate countries' compliance with
freedom of association standards "is measuring quantifiable factors like labor ministry budgets and staff, numbers of workplace inspections, caseloads of administrative and judicial bodies, number of workers reinstated, amounts of fine and penalties and other features of a labor law enforcement system that can be reduced to numbers." However, this method is not always reliable and must be combined with other contextual data.
(Compa, L.,
Assessing Assessments: A survey of efforts to measure countries' compliance with freedom of association standards,
Comparative Labor Law & Policy Journal, Vol. 24, 2004 p.p. 283-320, visited 2008-03-30)
Case Study: Indonesia
"In 1994, the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) and the World Confederation of Labour (WCL) filed a complaint against the Government of Indonesia for violations of trade union rights, including the denial of the workers' right to establish organizations of their own choosing, the persistent interference by government authorities, the military and employers in trade union activities, and the ongoing restrictions in collective bargaining and strike action, as well as very serious allegations concerning the arrest and harassment of trade union leaders, together with the disappearance and assassination of workers and unionists."
Through the CFA, the international community kept up the pressure on Indonesia for the release of trade union leaders detained because of their trade union activity. The leaders were eventually released in 1998 and Indonesia's engagement with the ILO marked a turning point for labour rights in the country. In the years since then Indonesia has taken significant steps to improve protection of trade union rights, and has ratified all eight fundamental conventions, making it one of the few nations in the Asia-Pacific region to have done so.
(International Labour Organization (ILO),
Committee on Freedom of Association, visited 2009-10-28)
