One of and the most important functions the ILO is acceptance of conventions and the recommendations establishing the international norms, reflecting basic labour human rights, and also features of application of work in separate fields of activity. Recognising special character of work on transport, the ILO gives a great attention to this sphere. It is connected with global character of activity of transport, growth of its role as backbone factor in world economic system, and also considerable influence of the human factor on effective functioning of transport system. First of all, it concerns sea navigation. Therefore among conventions the ILO on separate categories of workers the most part is occupied with the conventions accepted concerning seamen.
The international associations of trade unions actively use the specified norms for protection of the workers, irrespective of a national identity of a vessel and crewmen. A current state of affairs Conventions on work in sea navigation (sea conventions) concerning seamen regulate questions of employment, the minimum norms in a merchant marine fleet, vocational training, the device and admission conditions for work, repatriation, a payment, working hours, safety, medical and consumer services, and also social security.
Each member state the ILO should present all conventions accepted by conference and recommendations to competent national bodies for removal of the decision on measures which should be accepted.
Since 1919 conventions and the recommendations covering almost all questions of work are accepted: the basic labour human rights, and also features of application of work in separate fields of activity and categories of workers.
Recognising special character of work on transport, in the activity the ILO takes away an important place to the international norms regulating this sphere. It is connected with globalisation transport, growth of its role as backbone factor in world economic system, and also considerable influence of reliability of workers (the human factor) on effective functioning of transport system.
Conventions on work in sea navigation regulate questions of employment, the minimum norms in a merchant marine fleet, vocational training, the device and admission conditions for work, repatriation, a payment, working hours, safety, medical and consumer services, and also social security.
Concerning dockers the ILO questions of social consequences of new methods of processing of cargoes in ports, the safety precautions and a factory hygiene on port works, protection against accidents on cargo handling works are regulated.
Repatriation
The problem of maintenance of timely repatriation of seamen is the most actual part of a shared problem of protection of the sociolabor rights of seamen. It is connected with sharp increase in quantity of the sea-crafts floating under so-called «a convenient flag».
On courts under «a convenient flag» the majority of the conflict situations arising because of infringement by ship-owners of the international norms in the field of labour relations is fixed. Trade unions of seamen daily face this problem.
By ratified Convention No 23 about repatriation of seamen it is established that the seaman who has been written off on coast, has the right to be delivered back in the country or in port where it has been employed, or in port from which flight has begun. The seaman should not bear expenses on repatriation if it has been left for the reason for which it does not bear responsibility.
However, the important norm of the Convention is the duty of public authority of that country in which the vessel is registered, to observe of repatriation of any member of team, irrespective of its citizenship, and, if necessary, in the advance payment to pay to it its expenses.
The convention expands sphere of responsibility of authorities for repatriation of the seamen working on courts under with "a convenient flag».
Obligations on repatriation under this Convention arise along with the flag state, also at the states of port and the states of a nationality of seamen.
Article 5 of Convention No 166 establishes that if the ship-owner was not able to organise repatriation or pay expenses for repatriation of the seaman:
– The competent body of the state of a flag will organise and pays expenses for repatriation;
– Expenses on repatriation are subject to deduction from the ship-owner the state in which territory the vessel is registered.
Hiring and employment
Sources of the international labour right or international legal regulation of work are certificates of the United Nations and the ILO, establishing international standards on work regulation. Major of them — declarations, pacts, the conventions of the United Nations fixing some principles of legal regulation of work and the basic labour rights. The United Nations great attention gives to sociolabor questions. In their development the ILO accepts conventions and recommendations about work problems. But the ILO as specialised concerning work the international organisation can accept conventions and recommendations and about other questions of the work which has been not provided in certificates of the United Nations. Certificates the ILO and the United Nations together make the International code of work as a legal international basis for the edition of national norms of the labour legislation. (But it is necessary to notice that from 300 international certificates about work by Russia are ratified less than 50). All sources of international legal regulation of work have contractual character.
Accepts these certificates the supreme body the ILO — the General conference (assembly) gathering annually in Geneva. It is constructed by a principle tripartism (i.e. Two representatives from the government of member country the ILO and on one — from workers and the employers, all four representatives vote independently).
Let's specify in the major sources of the international labour right accepted by the United Nations, and their maintenance.
The United Nations charter in item 55 provides that United Nations activity promotes increase of a standard of living, a full employment of the population and conditions of economic and social progress and development.
In “the General declaration of human rights”, the General assembly of the United Nations accepted in 1948, provides the basic labour human rights, the right to effective restoration of the broken rights (item 8), the right to formation, including on popular technical and professional, including the higher (item 20). In item 23 very important human rights are fixed: the right to work, a free choice of work, fair and favorable working conditions and on protection against unemployment; on equal payment for equal work without any discrimination; on the fair and satisfactory compensation providing worthy existence for the worker and his family and supplemented if necessary and other means of social security; the right to create trade unions and to enter into trade unions for protection of the interests.
The declaration fixes a right to rest, specifying that “each person has the right to rest and leisure, including the right to reasonable restriction of the working day and to paid periodic holiday”.
All labour rights of the General declaration of human rights it is more developed the United Nations in 1966 in the International pact about the economic, social and cultural rights are fixed, the part of III which is devoted the sociolabor rights. And unlike the Declaration which is not subject to ratification by the states, the International pact of the United Nations is subject to ratification by the states joining it.
The international pact about the economic, social and cultural rights contains the basic international labour rights in item 2-15 and specifies in realisation of the proclaimed rights without any discrimination on race, colour of a skin, a floor, language, religion, to political and other belief, national or to a social origin, a property status, a birth or other circumstances (item 2), on maintenance equal for men and women of the right to have the economic, social and cultural rights. Article 6 of the given Pact provides that the states participating in him “recognise the right to the work, including right of each person to possibility reception to earn to itself on a life work which he freely chooses or on which freely agrees. In it measures which should be accepted the states participating in the Pact with a view of full realisation of this right are provided also: Programs of professional training and preparation, way and methods of achievement of steady economic, social and cultural development and full productive employment in the conditions guaranteeing basic political and economic freedom. Article 7 of the Pact of the United Nations of 1966 provides the right of everyone to fair and favorable working conditions, including in particular:
a) the compensation providing, at least, with all worker:
— The fair salary and equal compensation for work of equal value without any distinction, and, in particular, to women working conditions not worse what men with equal payment for equal work use should be guaranteed;
— Satisfactory existence for them and their families according to decisions of the present Pact;
b) the working conditions which are meeting the requirements of safety and hygiene;
c) possibility of advancement identical to all on work on corresponding higher steps it is exclusive on the basis of the seniority and qualification;
d) rest, leisure both reasonable restriction of working hours and paid periodic holiday, no less than compensation for holidays (International law in documents, with. 310).
Pact article 8 in detail enough has provided the right of everyone to have the trade-union rights and protection, including the right to strikes. Thus in item 3 of this article it is underlined that nothing the ILO of 1948 about freedom of associations and protection of the right to the organisation grants the rights to the state-participants of the Convention to accept the legislation to the detriment of guarantees of this convention.
Pact article 8 in detail enough has provided the right of everyone to have the trade-union rights and protection, including the right to strikes. Thus in item 3 of this article it is underlined that nothing the ILO of 1948 about freedom of associations and protection of the right to the organisation grants the rights to the state-participants of the Convention to accept the legislation to the detriment of guarantees of this convention.
Rather new field of activity the ILO is its Program in the field of perfection of management methods by the enterprises and labour productivity increases, and also employment regulation. The ultimate goal of the Program the ILO on management of the enterprises — to promote development in heads of the enterprises of wider approach to the duties on training of the personnel and other aspects of increase of labour productivity, mastering by heads of technics of management by the modern enterprises, methods of management control and to development of progressive sights at mutual relations between administration and workers. Practical work of experts the ILO on such training, and especially supervising personnel, to safety precautions regulations and a factory hygiene has great value.
The primary goals the ILO according to its charter:
— Working out of the co-ordinated policy and the programs directed on the decision of social problems;
— Working out and acceptance of international-labour norms for realisation of the accepted policy;
— The help to member countries the ILO in the decision of problems of employment and unemployment reduction;
— Protection of labour human rights, improvement of conditions, labour safeties, mutual relations of workers with administration working out of measures on special protection in work and employment of the poorly socially protected groups of the population.
By 2001 the ILO has accepted more than 182 conventions and 190 recommendations (in Russia operate less these 1/3 of conventions). Conventions the ILO for the country, to them joined by their ratification, are obligatory for execution. The ILO supervises it. Recommendations the ILO are not subject to ratification, but their value that they often in detail explain conventions, supplement them, and recommendations the ILO on the questions which have been not provided by conventions, help with perfection of the national labour legislation. Many recommendations simply duplicate conventions, helping those countries which have not joined corresponding convention.
The basic labour human rights were, as it was specified, are fixed by United Nations certificates. These labour rights concretise certificates the ILO, for example, about a forced labour interdiction — the Convention №29 (1936) and the Convention № 105 (1957). In the convention № 29 it is developed the concept of forced labour, of the Convention № 105 is given measures on forced labour elimination, including its interdiction as a summary punishment measure are expanded.
Considerable quantity of certificates the ILO concretises positions of certificates of the United Nations about equality in work and a discrimination interdiction in work and employment (the Convention № 100, 111 and 117, etc.).
General provisions on employment of the Pact of the United Nations of 1966 and in particular about achievement by the state-participants of full productive employment, are concretised in a number of conventions and the recommendations the ILO concerning mainly to protection against unemployment of poorly protected groups of the population (invalids, women, youth, elderly, workers-migrants) or to certain branches (to agriculture, fishery, etc.). So, the Convention № 122 “About the politician in the field of employment” (1964) proclaims the active policy of the states in assistance of the full productive and freely selected employment of able-bodied population.
In a number of certificates the ILO criteria of a wrongful dismissal are established and protection against them is provided. So, the Convention № 158 provides that dismissal is possible only in the presence of the lawful bases connected with abilities or behaviour of the worker or a recognition of manufacture by the bankrupt.
The convention the ILO № 47 “About reduction of working hours till forty o'clock in a week” in 1935 has established the international standard of working week — 40 hours as normal working hours. This standard some developed countries, for example, Fraction, under the national legislation have reduced till 39 o'clock in working week, and now it has passed for 35-hour working week. Overtime works according to certificates the ILO (the Recommendation № 116) are supposed only in certain cases and limits and are subject to additional payment.
Annual holidays paid for average earnings are established by Conventions the ILO №52 (1936) and № 132 (1970) according to which such holiday is given not less than three working weeks for every year works. In the experience on holiday it is set off both illness, and holiday on pregnancy and sorts. The convention № 14 “About weekly rest at the industrial enterprises” (1921) has established the weekly days off.
Concerning wages the ILO has accepted a number of conventions and recommendations, basically they concern establishments of the state minimum of the salary (the Convention № 131 1970), equal payment for equivalent work of the man and the woman (the Convention № 100 1951), wages protection (the Convention № 95 1949), obliging the states to provide regular payment of wages).
Especially the ILO concerning a labour safety (the safety precautions and a factory hygiene), in particular about an interdiction of use of some harmful substances (white phosphorus, benzene, etc.) in manufacture, about a labour safety of children and teenagers, the minimum age of their admission to separate kinds of work, about an interdiction of use of their work and women on underground works, about physical examination of children and teenagers for finding-out of their suitability to work in the industry is a lot of conventions and recommendations.
Recommendations № 130 are devoted an order of consideration of individual labour disputes.
Wide circulation practice of hiring and employment of seamen through intermediary (круинговые) has received the organisations.
Ratified convention No 179 about hiring and employment of seamen establishes concrete requirements to activity of such organisations (in the Convention - hiring and employment services).
In particular the Convention defines concept of competent body which means the minister, the appointed official, the governmental department or other authority, authorised to publish statutory acts, orders or the instructions having a binding force concerning hiring and employment of seamen.
By the convention it is established that the state defines conditions at which delivery of licences, certificates or similar permissions to hiring and employment service can stop or be cancelled in case of infringement of the corresponding legislation.
By the convention it is established that the competent body demands from services of hiring and employment of acceptance of the measures providing presence of means at the employer for protection of seamen from danger to appear left in difficult situation in foreign port.