Country Rating: 4

  • Systematic violation of rights

  • Workers in countries with the rating of 4 have reported systematic violations. The government and/or companies are engaged in serious efforts to crush the collective voice of workers, putting fundamental rights under continuous threat.

Art. 104 of the Labour Code of 2012 stipulates that dismissals on the basis of trade union membership or activity are unjustified. The law does not provide for dissuasive sanctions against anti-union discrimination. Art. 111 of the Labour Code of 2012 gives the employer the right to illegitimately dismiss workers, if s/he pay compensation based on seniority.

Barriers to the establishment of organisations: The legislation allows for the registration of multiple trade unions at enterprise level as long as the unions are not formed on the basis of sect, religion or race (Decree No.35 of 2011). Trade unions fear that since most Bahraini workers are Shia muslims the law could be invoked to prevent registration or de-register trade unions claiming that they were established on sectarian or religious grounds.

External interference allowed by law: The Minister of Labour has the right to determine the most representative organisation of workers that will represent Bahraini workers in international fora and national level bargaining (Act on Trade Unions (as amended by Act No. 49); Art. 8.3 Legislative Decree No. 35 of 2011).

Categories of workers prohibited or limited from forming or joining a union, or from holding a union office: Workers covered by Civil Service Regulations may not establish trade unions. They can only join existing organisations which regroup workers having occupations or professions similar to theirs (Act on Trade Unions, Section 10; Circular No. 1 of 10 February 2003 on the right of civil service workers to join workers' unions). Temporary workers performing ancillary services of an employer for a duration of less than one year do not have the right to join or form a trade union (Labour Law in the Private Sector 2012, Art. 2). Agricultural workers do not have the right to join or form a trade union (Labour Law in the Private Sector 2012, Art. 2). Domestic servants and "persons regarded as such" are excluded from labour legislation and therefore have no rights to join and form trade unions (Labour Law in the Private Sector 2012, Art. 2).

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