Workshop on Labour Laws and Industrial Relations Management in the Public Sector

Program overview:

Industrial relations management in the public sector has become one of the most delicate and complex problems of modern industrial societies. Industrial progress is impossible without the cooperation of governments and their employees forging harmonious relationships to deliver good services to their citizens. Therefore, it is in the interest of all to create and maintain good relations between the government and its employees.

For whom:

Employee Relations Officers and Executives, Human Resources Personnel and Executives, Administrative Officers and Executives, Trade Union Officers and Executives in ministries, departments, agencies, and Local Government Councils

Learning objectives:

At the end of the program, you will be able to:

• analyse the ILO conventions as they apply to labour and employment laws in government      establishments;
• appraise the concepts and theories of labour relations;
• identify the causes of conflicts in organisations.
• develop effective collective bargaining skills;
• develop effective ways of handling employees' grievances; and
• develop strategies for addressing employees' welfare

Course outline:

Day 1: The concept of the public service

• Labour relations and the public sector
• ILO standards and principles

Day 2: Recognition of the right to organise workers in the public sector: Convention No. 87

• Promotion of collective bargaining and applicability of Convention No. 98
• The public sector Collective agreements: Recommendation No. 91
• Settlement of disputes (conciliation and arbitration):

Recommendation No. 92

• Determination of terms and conditions of employment in the public service:
• Convention No. 151 and Recommendation No. 159

Day 3: Collective bargaining: Convention No. 154 Recommendation No. 163

• Principles on Freedom of Association and collective bargaining in the public sector
• Legal basis of the right to collective bargaining  
• Workers covered by the right to collective bargaining
• Representation of workers in the collective bargaining process
• Subjects covered by collective bargaining
• Intervention by the public authorities in collective bargaining
• Legislative follow-up on the outcome of collective bargaining

Day 4: The right to strike: Position of the Committee of Experts and principles of the Committee on Freedom of Association

• Categories of public servants who may be denied the right to strike
• Workers in essential services
• Compensatory guarantees in the event of the prohibition of strikes
• Requisitioning orders and the hiring of workers during a strike
• Other international standards

Day 5: Standards adopted in the context of the United Nations

• National situations:

(Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda, etc. Case Studies)

• Legal Framework (Industrial Relations Act)
• Parties to public service collective bargaining:
  • Workers' organisations, Employers' associations
• Structure and levels of collective bargaining
• Contents of collective bargaining agreements
• Labour dispute resolution
  • The National Labour Commission
• Changing trends in labour relations in Sub-Saharan Africa

This course package includes: Course material in soft copy, Tea break, Lunch, City tour, and certificate of attendance.

A Core 1.5 laptop with the soft copy of the course material loaded with a carrying bag will be presented to the participants at the end of the course.

Note: Payment is either USD or the prevailing parallel market rate. We do not accept the government official rate.

Training Methodology: Lectures, discussions, exercises, case studies, and audio-visual aids will be used to reinforce these teaching/learning methods

Course Booking

Please use the “book now” or “inquire” buttons on this page to either book your space or make further enquiries.