Unions lodge complaint against the Sudanese government and private companies with the International Labor Organization
Moatinoon
The Sudanese Trade Union Front, which includes prominent unions, has filed a complaint with the International Labor Organization against the Sudanese government and private companies in the country for withholding salaries of state workers and pensioners, and for arbitrary dismissals without compensation.
In a memorandum addressed to the International Labor Organization and its Director-General, the unions stated that since April 2023, the Sudanese government has stopped paying salaries to workers and only disbursed salaries to members of the armed forces and other government agencies, while excluding civil service workers, despite all of them being public servants in the country. This was done without considering the role of these workers in maintaining essential services that are vital to the daily lives of people, such as water, electricity, education, health, and other services, without which citizens in all parts of Sudan cannot do without. This constitutes a clear violation of Sudans international obligations.
Moreover, a significant number of private sector companies have arbitrarily dismissed their workers without compensation or sent them on unpaid leaves, which also violates Articles 5 and 6 of International Labour Organization Convention No. 173.
The memorandum was signed by ten unions, including the Preparatory Committee of the Sudanese Doctors Union, the Journalists Union, the Union of Professors at Nyala University, the Union of Professors at Al-Azhar University, the Sudanese Dramatists Union, the Union of Professors at Omdurman Ahlia University, the Executive Committee of the Sudanese Engineers Union, the Sudanese Teachers Committee, the Union of Professors at the University of Khartoum, and the Preparatory Committee of the Sudanese University of Science and Technology Union.
The unions stated that the actions taken by the Sudanese government and some major companies in the country represent a flagrant disregard for Sudans commitments to International Labor Standards, which include the workers right to receive fair wages. They also consider this a blatant violation of international labor laws, including Convention No. 95 on the protection of wages of 1949 and Convention No. 173 on protection of workers entitlements in the event of their employers insolvency of 1992.
They emphasized that workers wage rights are protected entitlements according to International Labour Organization Convention No. 173, and wages cannot be garnished or waived except in cases stipulated by the law. Article 10 of Convention No. 95 of the International Labour Organization also protects workers wages from garnishment to the extent necessary for the workers and their familys livelihood.
The unions further added that the actions taken by the Sudanese government and some private sector companies also contradict national laws, including the Sudanese Labour Law of 1997, the Public Service Pensions Law of 1993, and the Social Insurance Law of 2016. They pose a significant threat to the security and stability of workers in the Republic of Sudan and endanger the lives and social peace of Sudanese people in all parts of the country.
The unions called on the International Labor Organization to intervene with the Sudanese government to fulfill its obligations towards workers, relying on Article 24 of the organizations constitution, and to show solidarity with Sudanese workers and condemn the actions of the Sudanese government and some companies.
