Intervention  by India

323rd Session of Governing Body, Geneva,

GB.323/LILS/3

Third Item on the Agenda

Legal Issues and International labour Standards section

Choice of Conventions and Recommendations on which Reports should be requested under article 19 of the constitution in 2016

Mr. Chairperson,

We compliment the office of ILO for presenting this agenda note.

We support the proposal of General Survey on OSH which assumes greater relevance in the present transitional phase of World of Work and increased vulnerability of workforce. However, we have some difficulty regarding format of  the report form for preparing the Article 19 Report under ILO Constitution, and not merely because it seems to increase the reporting burden on member states that have not ratified the said conventions under consideration.

We understand the relevance of a detailed and article-wise reply on each provisions of the convention under article 22 of ILO constitution. Since Article 22 covers all those conventions which are ratified by member nations, a well prescribed legal framework is already in place and therefore feasible on the part of member states to prepare a very detailed and comprehensive report. The same, however,  may not hold good in case of Article 19 report and attempting to reply on a detailed  format seems a futile exercise unless if ILO  wishes to undertake a close gap analysis based on these reports and come up with feasible solution which can best fit the national context and can ease and facilitate the path of ratification. We reiterate that in India, we ratify an ILO convention only when the national laws and practices are brought into full conformity with the provisions of the conventions. India has deep respect for ILO standards and is committed towards the safety, health and protection of workforce both in organised and unorganised workers.
We urge that ILO must clearly demarcate the line of difference for member countries obligation towards Article 22 and Article 19 Reports. It would be appreciated if a general concise and simpler format of Report under Article 19 is given.

With these remarks, we support the a) part of the draft decision but would  request that the Report form under Article 19 of ILO constitution to be redrafted to make it convenient for member states for reporting purposes.

Thank You