Trade unions in Benin

Infobox Union by Country
country = Benin
national = CSA, CGTB, UNSTB
government = Ministry of Labour
legislation = Benin Labour Code
membership_number =
union_percentage1_title =
union_percentage1 =
union_percentage2_title =
union_percentage2 =
ILOmember = Yes
ILO-87date = 12 December 1960
ILO-98date = 16 May 16 1968

Trade unions in Benin operate in relative freedom, with approximately 75% of the formal sector being unionized. [cite book
year = 2005
title = Trade Unions of the World
editor = ICTUR et al,
edition = 6th
publisher = John Harper Publishing
location = London, UK
id = ISBN 0-9543811-5-7] There are, however, concerns expressed by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) about the discrepancies between the government's Labour Code and the labour practices outlined by ILO Conventions 87 (Freedom of Association) and 98 (Right to Organize) - specifically the right of unions to form without government approval, the right of seafarers to organize or strike, and restrictions on strikes. [cite web
title=TRADE UNION RIGHTS IN LAW
work=Benin: Annual Survey of Violations of Trade Union Rights (2006) ITUC
url=http://www.icftu.org/displaydocument.asp?Index=991223946&Language=EN
accessdate=2007-07-30] [cite web
title=INTERNATIONALLY-RECOGNIZED CORE LABOUR STANDARDS IN BENIN
work=ICFTU REPORT FOR THE WTO GENERAL COUNCIL REVIEW OF THE TRADE POLICIES OF BENIN
url=http://www.itcilo.it/actrav/actrav-english/telearn/global/ilo/standard/benin.htm
accessdate=2007-07-30]

History

During the Communist era from 1972 to 1990, the trade union movement was organized in line with the professed Marxist-Leninist principles of the People's Revolutionary Party of Benin (PRPB). However, with the shift to a multi-party democracy in the 1990s, the trade union movement split into various entities.

National bodies

There are three main national trade union centers in Benin. The National Union of the Unions of the Workers of Benin (UNSTB) was the sole trade union organization during the rule of the PRPB, having absorbed all former trade unions in 1974. [cite book
year = 2005
title = Trade Unions of the World
editor = ICTUR et al,
edition = 6th
publisher = John Harper Publishing
location = London, UK
id = ISBN 0-9543811-5-7] The Autonomous Trade Unions Centre (CSA) formed with the rise of the multi-party system, and amid fears that the UNSTB would be unable to separate itself from the previous political powers. The third trade union center is the General Confederation of the Workers of Benin.

Trade union concerns

Although Benin has ratified a number of the ILO "core conventions", there are notable deficiencies in the application of labour practices as espoused by the labour movement. In particular a 2004 report by ITCU (previously ICFTU) draws attention to the lack of women's equality in the workforce, the use of child labour, and the ongoing problem of forced labour. [cite web
title=Serious violations of core labour standards in Benin, Burkina Faso and Mali
work=ICFTU Online
url=http://www.icftu.org/displaydocument.asp?Index=991220267&Language=EN
accessdate=2007-07-30]

References