Purpose
This checklist is intended to help national administrations to understand how the regular supervisory system functions on a yearly basis. It has been devised to assist them in fulfilling their reporting requirements in a timely and organized manner and to enable them to meet the yearly 1 September deadline for submission of reports due on ratified Conventions. The checklist is structured on a monthly basis and is complemented by a glossary, which explains some of the terminology frequently used.
For more detailed information, please consult the NORMLEX database which contains all the relevant information needed.
Reporting on ratified Conventions: a brief introduction
The system for supervising the application of ratified ILO Conventions is based on the reporting requirements in article 22 of the ILO Constitution, which provides as follows: Each of the Members agrees to make an annual report to the International Labour Office on the measures which it has taken to give effect to the provisions of Conventions to which it is a party. These reports shall be made in such form and shall contain such particulars as the Governing Body may request.
“Annual” reports on each ratified Convention are no longer required, and are now requested according to specific reporting cycles. Reports on fundamental and governance Conventions are requested every three years and reports on all other technical Conventions are requested every six years. The technical Conventions are grouped by subject matter, which means that regular reports on each subject matter are requested the same year.
Work on article 22 reports is typically most intense during the first eight months of each year, but can extend over a longer period. The number and type of reports due each year varies.
The number of regular reports due each year depends on the number and type of Conventions ratified and follows the reporting cycle. The Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations [Committee of Experts or CEACR] can, however, break the cycle and request out-of-cycle reports. This is the case, for example, when employers’ or workers’ organizations have submitted observations on the application of a Convention, when serious implementation gaps have been noted, or when governments have failed to submit a report.
The type of reports due can either be detailed or simplified. Detailed reports should be prepared on the basis of report forms, specific for each Convention. The first reports on newly ratified Conventions are always detailed reports. Subsequent reports are normally simplified reports, focused on application of the Conventions since that last report submitted. If, however, there have been major changes in law or in practice, or if the Committee of Experts or the Conference Committee so requests, the regular report should also be a detailed report.
In all cases, the reports submitted shall also include replies to comments by the regular supervisory bodies of the ILO.
Tripartite consultations are an essential feature of article 22 reporting. All governments are recommended to involve representative organizations of employers and workers in the preparation of the reports. Parties to the Tripartite Consultation (International Labour Standards) Convention, 1976 (No. 144), are required to hold effective consultations with such organizations on any questions arising out of article 22 reports. If consultations are held early, many differences in opinion may be resolved by the sharing of information. Observations received from employers’ and workers’ organizations should always be included in the report submitted to the ILO. If the employers’ and workers’ organizations have not been involved earlier in the process, article 23, paragraph 2, of the ILO Constitution requires governments to communicate copies of all reports to representative organizations of employers and workers, at the latest at the same time as the reports are sent to the ILO.
Organizations of employers and workers may also transmit observations directly to the ILO, which may or may not relate specifically to the yearly reports. In this case, the International Labour Office [Office] acknowledges receipt and simultaneously forwards a copy to governments concerned so that they may respond. Preparing such responses may extend work on the article 22 reporting requirements beyond 1 September.
In some serious cases, the supervision cycle on the application of a ratified Convention may be further extended. Cases considered by the Committee of Experts in November/December may be selected for examination by the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards [Conference Committee or CAS] in June the following year. In such cases the governments concerned are called to respond orally before the Conference Committee. The subsequent follow-up to the conclusions reached by the Conference Committee is done by the Committee of Experts.
The Office, including the Decent Work Technical Support Team covering your country, is at your disposal to provide your government with any technical assistance you may require in respect of both the submission of article 22 reports due and of the issues raised by the Committee of Experts in its comments.
How to use the tool
Select the month(s) you are interested in (at the top of this page or in the navigation bar to the left) and prepare your own checklist by answering the questions. An automatic feedback is provided for each selected answer. To print and/or download your checklist, click on “Submit” at the end of each page and then click on “Print” on the new one that opens.