Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948
Encyclopedia
The Convention concerning Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise or Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention is an International Labour Organization
International Labour Organization
The International Labour Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that deals with labour issues pertaining to international labour standards. Its headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland. Its secretariat — the people who are employed by it throughout the world — is known as the...

 Convention. It is one of 8 ILO fundamental conventions.

The Document

The Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention comprises the preamble followed by four parts with a total of 21 articles.

Preamble

The preamble consists of the formal introduction of the instrument, at the Thirty-first Session of the General Conference of the International Labour Organization, on 17 June 1948. A statement of the “considerations” leading to the establishment of the document. These considerations include the preamble to the Constitution of the International Labour Organization; the affirmation of the Declaration of Philadelphia
Declaration of Philadelphia
The Declaration of Philadelphia restated the traditional objectives of the International Labour Organisation and then branched out in two new directions: the centrality of human rights to social policy, and the need for international economic planning...

 in regard to the issue; and the request by the General Assembly of the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...

, upon endorsing the previously received report of 1947, to “continue every effort in order that it may be possible to adopt one or several international Conventions.” In closing, the pramble states the date of adoption - July 9, 1948.

Part I. Freedom of Association

Part one consists of ten articles which outline the rights of both worker and employers to “join organisations of their own choosing without previous authorisation.” Rights are also extended to the organizations themselves to draw up rules and constitutions, vote for officers, and organize administrative functions without interference from public authorities.

There is also an explicit expectation placed on these organizations. They are required, in the exercise of these rights, to respect the law of the land. In turn, the law of the land, “shall not be such as to impair, nor shall it be so applied as to impair, the guarantees provided for in this Convention.”

Finally, article 9 states that these provisions are applied to both armed forces and police forces only as determined by national laws and regulations, and do not supersede previous national laws that reflect the same rights for such forces.

"PART I. FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION
Article 1

Each Member of the International Labour Organisation for which this Convention is in force undertakes to give effect to the following provisions.
Article 2

Workers and employers, without distinction whatsoever, shall have the right to establish and, subject only to the rules of the organisation concerned, to join organisations of their own choosing without previous authorisation.
Article 3

1. Workers' and employers' organisations shall have the right to draw up their constitutions and rules, to elect their representatives in full freedom, to organise their administration and activities and to formulate their programmes.
2. The public authorities shall refrain from any interference which would restrict this right or impede the lawful exercise thereof.
Article 4

Workers' and employers' organisations shall not be liable to be dissolved or suspended by administrative authority.
Article 5

Workers' and employers' organisations shall have the right to establish and join federations and confederations and any such organisation, federation or confederation shall have the right to affiliate with international organisations of workers and employers.
Article 6

The provisions of Articles 2, 3 and 4 hereof apply to federations and confederations of workers' and employers' organisations.
Article 7

The acquisition of legal personality by workers' and employers' organisations, federations and confederations shall not be made subject to conditions of such a character as to restrict the application of the provisions of Articles 2, 3 and 4 hereof.
Article 8

1. In exercising the rights provided for in this Convention workers and employers and their respective organisations, like other persons or organised collectivities, shall respect the law of the land.
2. The law of the land shall not be such as to impair, nor shall it be so applied as to impair, the guarantees provided for in this Convention.
Article 9

1. The extent to which the guarantees provided for in this Convention shall apply to the armed forces and the police shall be determined by national laws or regulations.
2. In accordance with the principle set forth in paragraph 8 of Article 19 of the Constitution of the International Labour Organisation the ratification of this Convention by any Member shall not be deemed to affect any existing law, award, custom or agreement in virtue of which members of the armed forces or the police enjoy any right guaranteed by this Convention.
Article 10

In this Convention the term organisation means any organisation of workers or of employers for furthering and defending the interests of workers or of employers."
Resource: International Labour Organization, ILO. http://www.ilo.org/ilolex/english/convdisp1.htm

Part II. Protection of the right to organize

Part two consists of exactly one sentence.

“Article 11. Each Member of the International Labour Organisation for which this Convention is in force undertakes to take all necessary and appropriate measures to ensure that workers and employers may exercise freely the right to organise.”

This sentence is in turn expanded upon in the following year, when the ILO enacted Convention #98 – the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949
Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949
The Convention concerning the Application of the Principles of the Right to Organise and to Bargain Collectively or Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention is an International Labour Organization Convention. It is one of 8 ILO fundamental conventions.- Ratifications:-External...

.

Part III. Miscellaneous provisions

Part 3, which contains articles 12 and 13, deals with technical matters related to the Convention. It outlines the definitions of who may accept (with or without modification), or reject the obligations of this Convention with regards to “non-metropolitan territory[ies]”, whose self-governing powers extend into this area. It also discusses reporting procedures for modification of previous declarations in regard to acceptance of these obligations.

"Article 12

1.In respect of the territories referred to in Article 35 of the Constitution of the International Labour Organisation as amended by the Constitution of the International Labour Organisation Instrument of Amendment 1946, other than the territories referred to in paragraphs 4 and 5 of the said article as so amended, each Member of the Organisation which ratifies this Convention shall communicate to the Director-General of the International Labour Office with or as soon as possible after its ratification a declaration stating:

a) the territories in respect of which it undertakes that the provisions of the Convention shall be applied without modification;

b) the territories in respect of which it undertakes that the provisions of the Convention shall be applied subject to modifications, together with details of the said modifications;

c) the territories in respect of which the Convention is inapplicable and in such cases the grounds on which it is inapplicable;

d) the territories in respect of which it reserves its decision.
2. The undertakings referred to in subparagraphs (a) and (b) of paragraph 1 of this Article shall be deemed to be an integral part of the ratification and shall have the force of ratification.
3. Any Member may at any time by a subsequent declaration cancel in whole or in part any reservations made in its original declaration in virtue of subparagraphs (b), (c) or (d) of paragraph 1 of this Article.
4. Any Member may, at any time at which the Convention is subject to denunciation in accordance with the provisions of Article 16, communicate to the Director-General a declaration modifying in any other respect the terms of any former declaration and stating the present position in respect of such territories as it may specify.
Article 13

1. Where the subject-matter of this Convention is within the self-governing powers of any non-metropolitan territory, the Member responsible for the international relations of that territory may, in agreement with the government of the territory, communicate to the Director-General of the International Labour Office a declaration accepting on behalf of the territory the obligations of this Convention.
2. A declaration accepting the obligations of this Convention may be communicated to the Director-General of the International Labour Office:

a) by two or more Members of the Organisation in respect of any territory which is under their joint authority; or

b) by any international authority responsible for the administration of any territory, in virtue of the Charter of the United Nations or otherwise, in respect of any such territory.
3. Declarations communicated to the Director-General of the International Labour Office in accordance with the preceding paragraphs of this Article shall indicate whether the provisions of the Convention will be applied in the territory concerned without modification or subject to modifications; when the declaration indicates that the provisions of the Convention will be applied subject to modifications it shall give details of the said modifications.
4. The Member, Members or international authority concerned may at any time by a subsequent declaration renounce in whole or in part the right to have recourse to any modification indicated in any former declaration.
5. The Member, Members or international authority concerned may, at any time at which this Convention is subject to denunciation in accordance with the provisions of Article 16, communicate to the Director-General a declaration modifying in any other respect the terms of any former declaration and stating the present position in respect of the application of the Convention."

Resource: International Labour Organization, ILO. http://www.ilo.org/ilolex/english/convdisp1.htm

Part IV. Final Provisions

Part 4 outlines the procedures for formal ratification
Ratification
Ratification is a principal's approval of an act of its agent where the agent lacked authority to legally bind the principal. The term applies to private contract law, international treaties, and constitutionals in federations such as the United States and Canada.- Private law :In contract law, the...

 of the Convention. The Convention was declared to come into force twelve months from the date when the Director-General had been notified of ratification by two member countries. This date became July 4, 1950, one year after Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

 (preceded by Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

) ratified the Convention.

Part 4 also outlines provisions for denunciation of the Convention, including a ten year cycle of obligation. Final discussion highlights procedures which would take place in the event that the Convention is eventually superseded by a new Convention, in whole, or in part.



"Article 14

The formal ratifications of this Convention shall be communicated to the Director-General of the International Labour Office for registration.
Article 15

1. This Convention shall be binding only upon those Members of the International Labour Organisation whose ratifications have been registered with the Director-General.
2. It shall come into force twelve months after the date on which the ratifications of two Members have been registered with the Director-General.
3. Thereafter, this Convention shall come into force for any Member twelve months after the date on which its ratifications has been registered.
Article 16

1. A Member which has ratified this Convention may denounce it after the expiration of ten years from the date on which the Convention first comes into force, by an act communicated to the Director-General of the International Labour Office for registration. Such denunciation shall not take effect until one year after the date on which it is registered.
2. Each Member which has ratified this Convention and which does not, within the year following the expiration of the period of ten years mentioned in the preceding paragraph, exercise the right of denunciation provided for in this Article, will be bound for another period of ten years and, thereafter, may denounce this Convention at the expiration of each period of ten years under the terms provided for in this Article.
Article 17

1. The Director-General of the International Labour Office shall notify all Members of the International Labour Organisation of the registration of all ratifications, declarations and denunciations communicated to him by the Members of the Organisation.
2. When notifying the Members of the Organisation of the registration of the second ratification communicated to him, the Director-General shall draw the attention of the Members of the Organisation to the date upon which the Convention will come into force.
Article 18

The Director-General of the International Labour Office shall communicate to the Secretary-General of the United Nations for registration in accordance with Article 102 of the Charter of the United Nations full particulars of all ratifications, declarations and acts of denunciation registered by him in accordance with the provisions of the preceding articles.
Article 19

At such times as it may consider necessary the Governing Body of the International Labour Office shall present to the General Conference a report on the working of this Convention and shall examine the desirability of placing on the agenda of the Conference the question of its revision in whole or in part.
Article 20

1. Should the Conference adopt a new Convention revising this Convention in whole or in part, then, unless the new Convention otherwise provides:
a) the ratification by a Member of the new revising Convention shall ipso jure involve the immediate denunciation of this Convention, notwithstanding the provisions of Article 16 above, if and when the new revising Convention shall have come into force;
b) as from the date when the new revising Convention comes into force this Convention shall cease to be open to ratification by the Members.

2. This Convention shall in any case remain in force in its actual form and content for those Members which have ratified it but have not ratified the revising Convention.
Article 21

The English and French versions of the text of this Convention are equally authoritative."

Resource: International Labour Organization, ILO. http://www.ilo.org/ilolex/english/convdisp1.htm

Ratifications

The following countries (as of May 2011: 150 out of 183 ILO member states) have ratified the convention:
Country Date
 Albania June 3, 1957
 Algeria November 19, 1962
 Angola June 13, 2001
 Antigua and Barbuda February 2, 1983
 Argentina January 18, 1960
 Armenia January 2, 2006
 Australia February 28, 1973
 Austria November 18, 1950
 Azerbaijan May 19, 1992
 The Bahamas June 14, 2001
 Bangladesh June 22, 1972
 Barbados May 8, 1967
 Belarus November 6, 1956
 Belgium November 23, 1951
 Belize December 15, 1983
 Benin December 12, 1960
 Bolivia January 4, 1965
 Bosnia and Herzegovina June 2, 1993
 Botswana December 22, 1997
 Kingdom of Bulgaria June 8, 1959
 Burkina Faso November 21, 1960
 Burundi June 25, 1993
 Cambodia August 23, 1999
 Cameroon June 7, 1960
 Canada March 23, 1972
 Cape Verde February 1, 1999
 Central African Republic October 27, 1960
 Chad November 10, 1960
 Chile February 2, 1999
 Colombia November 16, 1976
 Comoros October 23, 1978
 Republic of the Congo November 10, 1960
 Democratic Republic of the Congo June 20, 2001
 Costa Rica June 2, 1960
 Côte d'Ivoire November 21, 1960
 Independent State of Croatia October 8, 1991
 Cuba June 25, 1952
 Cyprus May 24, 1966
 Czech Republic January 1, 1993
 Denmark June 13, 1951
 Djibouti August 3, 1978
 Dominica February 28, 1983
 Dominican Republic December 5, 1956
 East Timor June 16, 2009
 Ecuador May 29, 1967
 Egypt November 6, 1957
 El Salvador September 6, 2006
 Equatorial Guinea August 13, 2001
 Eritrea February 22, 2000
 Estonia March 22, 1994
 Ethiopia June 4, 1963
 Fiji April 17, 2002
 Finland January 20, 1950
 Early Modern France June 28, 1951
 Gabon November 14, 1960
 The Gambia September 4, 2000
 Georgia (country) August 3, 1999
 Germany March 20, 1957
 Ghana June 2, 1965
 Greece March 30, 1962
 Grenada October 25, 1994
 Guatemala February 13, 1952
 Guinea January 21, 1959
 Guyana September 25, 1967
 Haiti June 5, 1979
 Honduras June 27, 1956
 Hungary June 6, 1957
 Iceland August 19, 1950
 Indonesia June 9, 1998
 Republic of Ireland June 4, 1955
 Israel January 28, 1957
 Italy May 13, 1958
 Jamaica December 26, 1962
 Japan June 14, 1965
 Kazakhstan December 13, 2000
 Kiribati February 3, 2000
 Kuwait September 21, 1961
 Kyrgyzstan March 31, 1992
 Latvia January 27, 1992
 Lesotho October 31, 1966
 Liberia May 25, 1962
 Libya October 4, 2000
 Lithuania September 26, 1994
 Luxembourg March 3, 1958
 Republic of Macedonia November 17, 1991
 Madagascar November 1, 1960
 Malawi November 19, 1990
 Mali September 22, 1960
 Malta January 4, 1965
 Mauritania June 20, 1961
 Mauritius April 1, 2005
 Mexico April 1, 1950
 Moldova August 12, 1996
 Mongolia June 3, 1969
 Mozambique December 23, 1996
 Myanmar March 4, 1955
 Namibia January 3, 1995
 Netherlands March 7, 1950
 Nicaragua October 31, 1967
 Niger February 27, 1961
 Nigeria October 17, 1960
 Norway July 4, 1949
 Pakistan February 14, 1951
 Panama June 3, 1958
 Papua New Guinea June 2, 2000
 Paraguay June 28, 1962
 Peru March 2, 1960
 Philippines December 29, 1953
 Poland February 25, 1957
 Portugal October 14, 1977
 Kingdom of Romania May 28, 1957
 Russia August 10, 1956
 Rwanda November 8, 1988
 Saint Kitts and Nevis August 25, 2000
 Saint Lucia May 14, 1980
 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines November 9, 2001
 Samoa June 30, 2008
 San Marino December 19, 1986
 São Tomé and Príncipe June 17, 1992
 Senegal November 4, 1960
 Serbia and Montenegro November 24, 2000
 Seychelles February 6, 1978
 Sierra Leone June 15, 1961
 Slovakia January 1, 1993
 Slovenia May 29, 1992
 South Africa February 19, 1996
 Spain April 20, 1977
 Sri Lanka September 15, 1995
 Suriname June 15, 1976
 Swaziland April 26, 1978
 Sweden November 25, 1949
 Switzerland March 25, 1975
 Syria July 26, 1960
 Tajikistan November 26, 1993
 Tanzania April 18, 2000
June 15, 2009
 Togo June 7, 1960
 Trinidad and Tobago May 24, 1963
 Tunisia June 18, 1957
 Turkey July 12, 1993
 Turkmenistan May 15, 1997
 Uganda June 2, 2005
 Ukraine September 14, 1956
 United Kingdom June 27, 1949
 Uruguay March 18, 1954
 Vanuatu August 28, 2006
 Venezuela September 20, 1982
 Yemen August 29, 1976
 Zambia September 2, 1996
 Zimbabwe April 9, 2003



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