Solidarity with Independent Unionists in Algeria: Call for the reinstatement of Rachid Malaoui, President of SNAPAP

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The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), Public Services International (PSI), the International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers’ Associations (IUF), the Comité International de Soutien au Syndicalisme Autonome Algérien/CISA (International Support Committee for Autonomous Algerian Trade Unions), the Solidarity Center from AFL-CIO and the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network (EMHRN)

Express their solidarity with independent Algerian trade unionists who are fighting for the defense of freedom of association;

Condemn all acts of intimidation and harassment  regularly experienced by independent unionists because of their activities aimed at defending trade union rights in Algeria, run independently from the Union générale des travailleurs algériens/UGTA (General Union of Algerian Workers);

Particularly condemn the arbitrary dismissal of Rachid Malaoui, President of the Syndicat National Autonome des Personnels de l’Administration Publique /SNAPAP (National Autonomous Union of Public Administration Personnel), since May 2013;

Call all unions and international organizations defending human rights to support SNAPAP by sending letters to the President of the Republic of Algeria, demanding that Rachid Malaoui be reinstated as soon as possible and that the right to exercise his union mandate be guaranteed in accordance with Algerian law and Algeria’s international commitments.

In May 2013, Rachid Malaoui was removed from his post at the University of Continuous Education while he was about to take part in the International Labour Conference, organized by the International Labour Organization (ILO), last June, in Geneva. This type of harassment clearly demonstrates a desire to punish Rachid Malaoui because of his trade union activities and his commitment to defending human rights, in violation of Article 53 of Algerian Law No. 90-14 of 2 June 1990, which states that “no union delegate may be dismissed or transferred by his employer, nor can any disciplinary action be undertaken as a result of his/her union activities”. In June and July 2013, both during and after the ILO’s International Labour Conference, several informal negotiations took place with the Ministry of Labour and other state institutions, during the course of which Rachid Malaoui was advised of the possibility of his eventual re-integration. Unfortunately, to this date, no concrete steps have been taken and all the attempts to have his case heard remain unanswered.

In order to join the Support Group for SNAPAP, please send a copy of your solidarity messages and your protest letters to the following email: [email protected]

Workers’ and trade union rights under attack in Algeria

Although Algeria has ratified most of the ILO Conventions, including Convention No. 87 on freedom of association and the right to organize in 1963, the exercise of trade union rights is constantly hampered by abuses from the administration, while the intimidation of trade unionists is common practice. The International Labour Organization, international trade union organizations and international human rights NGOs have repeatedly condemned these violations and called on the Algerian authorities to implement their commitments on trade union rights, in accordance with Algerian law and international conventions ratified by Algeria (see more info).

The right to form trade unions is regularly violated by the administration. While the law provides that the receipt acknowledging the creation of a union is to be issued within 30 days, the registration of several new independent trade unions in the public and private sectors, supported by SNAPAP, has been delayed for several months by the administration. In June 2013, SNAPAP and other unions have also declared the creation of the Confédération Autonome des Travailleurs Algériens/CATA (Autonomous Confederation of Algerian Workers), which, as other new confederations, has not been registered yet.

According to the law that governs trade union rights in Algeria, in order to be representative within a company, a union must represent at least 20% of the total number of employees of the company. However, it is up to the employer and the administration to determine their representativeness: in practice, this prevents unions from being recognized and denies their right to collective bargaining.

In such a context, the conditions imposed by law for the organization of strikes cannot be met. If a union which is not recognized by a company cannot gather the workers it represents, the organization of a secret ballot of the entire workforce as required by law cannot be organized. In addition, the very restrictive interpretation of the law 90-02 of 6 February 1990 allows the administrative authorities to regularly ban strikes on the basis of vague terms such as when it is “likely to cause a serious economic crisis”. Justice is also based on the same restrictive interpretation to determine the legality of strikes in response to employers’ complaints. Moreover, in case of conflict, the law gives the State the opportunity to refer the workplace dispute to the National Commission for arbitration even if the employer or workers’ representatives have not requested it.

At the national level, although civil unrest is affecting all economic sectors, including areas where it is usually absent such as the justice sector, the Algerian authorities continue to refuse to recognize independent unions as social partners, and these continue to be excluded from negotiations.

Unions’ offices and headquarters are not protected from administrative closures, surveillance and sometimes police repression. Individuals who rent their premises to trade union organizations are often the victims of pressure and threats to put an end to the lease. In February 2013, the Maison des Syndicats (Union House) was surrounded by police who banned the entry of participants to the 1^st Forum for the fight against unemployment and precarious work, and prevented them from meeting. Members of the Tunisian, Moroccan and Mauritanian delegations were arrested and sent back to their home country by the police. In general, freedom of association and assembly is constantly hampered: independent unions are systematically denied the authorization to hold such meetings or events, thus preventing any major union action.

Intimidation of trade unionists is another tool used by the Algerian authorities to reduce union action. The most active unionists are victims of threats, arbitrary dismissals and suspensions, judicial harassment, police violence, restrictions on freedom of movement, and most of the time appeals have no effects. Thus, the Algerian judicial authorities have not given any response to the complaint made by Rachid Malaoui following the attempt of sabotage of the brakes of his car, which could have killed him on 15 July 2011 when he was about to meet the Special Rapporteur for the right to housing of the United Nations. More recently, on 25 March 2013, on the eve of the World Social Forum (WSF) in Tunis, a delegation of 96 people, consisting of trade unionists from SNAPAP and activists from Algerian civil society associations, was arbitrarily prohibited from crossing borders to reach Tunisia. Therefore, all members of the delegation were prevented from participating in the WSF.

The interference of the Algerian authorities in the affairs of independent unions is such that they try to clone autonomous unions in order to challenge the legitimacy of the leadership which is considered to be too critical vis-à-vis the government and in order to increase divisions within the union movement. Campaigns of slander and defamation are also published in the press, targeting union leaders who are treated as “traitors” because of the international support they receive in order to delegitimize them vis-à-vis their members and to legitimize their repression.