ILO - 344th session of the ILO Governing Body - EU Statement LILS/4: Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations

Chair,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union and its Member States.

The Candidate Countries Turkey, the Republic of North Macedonia[1], Montenegro*, Serbia* and Albania* and the EFTA country Norway, member of the European Economic Area, as well as Ukraine and Georgia align themselves with this statement.

We align with the IMEC Statement.

The EU and its Member States thank the Office for the paper containing proposals on extending the duration of the annual session of the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations. We appreciate that the Office has taken into account the guidance of the Governing Body on how best to address the increased workload faced by the Committee.

Each year since its establishment, the Committee of Experts has demonstrated its vital role as an independent expert body in the monitoring of the effective implementation of international labour standards. We wish to express our appreciation for the quality of the work of the experts.

The EU and its Member States acknowledge that while the number of ratifications of the ILO Conventions has increased significantly in recent decades, the duration of Committee’s annual session, which lasts two and a half weeks preceded by a three-day pre-session working group for the examination of the General Survey, has remained unchanged since 1983.

At the same time, as highlighted in the Office’s paper, UN treaty bodies, supervising a single treaty, fulfil their mandates at significantly longer annual sessions.

Therefore, we support the proposal to formally extend the duration of the sessions of the CEACR as proposed by the Office following consultations with the members of the Committee of Experts. In our view, annual sessions organized in two parts – a period of two weeks for remote preparatory examination of files and a period of two weeks for collective deliberation in Geneva preceded by a four-day pre-session working group for the examination of the General Survey – will be a good way forward to enhance the effectiveness of the Committee and will help deal with the increased workload of the experts and the Committee as a whole.

We welcome the Office’s efforts to take full advantage of the investment made in digitalizing case management. It is essential that the experts have unimpeded access to the secure system in carrying out their important work.

We are of the view that the financial implications associated with proposed changes - specifically the increase of the honorarium paid to each member of the Committee of Experts to 7,500 CHF - are reasonable in the light of the essential work performed by the experts.

Finally, it should be recalled that although the Committee’s working methods evolve, the principles of objectivity, impartiality and independence must continue to animate its work.

For those reasons the EU and its Member States support the decision point.

Thank you, Chair.

[1] The Republic of North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Albania continues to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process