Under Scrutiny: The ECA, the ILO and the NZCTU Complaint 1993-1995

Abstract

In November 1994, the Governing body of the International Labour Organisation (the ILO) received the 295th Report of its Committee on Freedom of Association. Among the reports on complaints against the governments of Cameroon, Myanmar, Guatemala and others were the recommendations drawn from the Final Report on the February 1993 New Zealand Council of Trade Unions (the NZCTU) complaint against the government of New Zealand. The complaint, its processing and the Final Report have attracted great interest not only in New Zealand but also on the international stage, where the substance of the complaint and the manner of its receipt by the New Zealand government has created widespread debate. Furthermore, the legislation against which the comlplaint was lodged - the Employment Contracts Act 1991 (the ECA) - is itself of great international interest because off he ECA's commitment to a comprehensive free market model of bargaining. The progress of the NZCTU complaint through the ILO system raises a wide range of issues. Here we wish to discuss the extent to which the outcome of the complaint - in particular, the Final Report - responded to government, employer and union submissions and, consequently, the extent to which the ILO gave support to the contentions of the parties. In doing so, certain issues are raised first, about the future of New Zealand - ILO relations and, second about the expectations the parties should have about the ILO and its deliberations.