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Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Answer

Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make it his policy to work with the other occupying powers in Iraq to ensure that (a) those Iraqi workers who were dismissed for trade union activities under Saddam Hussein are reinstated and (b) the International Labour Organisation is invited to assist the framing of Iraq's new labour and employment laws. [159645] Mr. Rammell: [holding answer of 10 March 2004]: Judging the claims for reinstatement of Iraqi workers dismissed under the former regime is a matter for Iraqis. We attach great importance to the establishment of free trade unions to prevent similar abouses in the future. The Government have called on the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) to assist in the creation of democratic trades unions in Iraq. To this end, the ICFTU organised a fact-finding mission to Iraq in February, with support from British officials. We also used our influence in favour of the Transitional Administrative Law, signed by the Iraqi Governing Council on 8 March 2004, including guarantees of `free peaceable assembly and the right to join associations freely, as well as the right to form and join unions and political parties freely, in accordance with the law'. The Coalition Provisional Authority, in conjunction with other organisations, is working on a revised draft of the labour law. They are utilising the skills of not only the ILO, but also the Iraqi Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs and the US Department of Labor, as well as several other professionals.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

159645; 419 c208-9W;419 c209W

Session

2003-04

Subjects

Employment International assistance Iraq Trade unions International Labour Organization

Link

View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk