2010 Annual Survey of violations of trade union rights - Equatorial Guinea
| Publisher | International Trade Union Confederation |
| Publication Date | 9 June 2010 |
| Cite as | International Trade Union Confederation, 2010 Annual Survey of violations of trade union rights - Equatorial Guinea, 9 June 2010, available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/4c4fec7e21.html [accessed 14 October 2017] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Population: 676,000
Capital: Malabo
ILO Core Conventions Ratified: 29 – 87 – 98 – 100 – 105 – 111 – 138 – 182
Trade union rights are non-existent and independent unions have never been allowed to register.
Trade union rights in law
Lacking and ambiguous legal provisions considerably complicate union organising. Although the government ratified several ILO core conventions in 2001, it has still not adapted its legislation accordingly.
In order to be recognised, a union must have at least 50 members from the same workplace and the same geographical area, and company unions are not provided for by law. Furthermore, a law allowing the unionisation of public administration officials has still not been drafted and the legal framework for collective bargaining is deficient.
Finally, the law does not make it clear whether the right to strike is allowed in public utilities, and which services are deemed to be essential.
Trade union rights in practice and violations in 2009
Background: At the end of November, Teodoro Obiang Nguema was re-elected as president with 96% of the vote. Oil revenues are embezzled by the government while the majority of the country's 527,000 inhabitants survive on less than one US dollar a day.
Trade unions not recognised: The authorities do not recognise the trade unions. In 2004, the government told the ILO that "there were no trade unions in the country as there is no tradition of trade unionism". The Workers' Union of Equatorial Guinea (UST), the Independent Service Union (SIS), the Teachers' Trade Union Association (ASD) and the Rural Workers' Organisation (OTC) have all tried to win recognition, but the authorities have refused. Delegations are no longer sent to the International Labour Conference. In the event of a dispute, the government has sometimes acted as mediator or it has repressed the workers. There do not appear to have been any strikes in 2009. In 2008, a Chinese workers' strike on a building site provoked a bloody intervention by the army, in which two workers were killed (see the 2009 edition of the Survey).
