The extra-judicial mechanics and challenges for the protection of labor rights in the Republic of Armenia

Abstract

In a democratic country, which is governed by the rule of law, apart from the judicial system, it is equally essential to have effective extra-judicial remedies protecting the rights and legal interests of employees. In this respect, Trade unions, RA Health and Labor Inspection body, as well as RA Human Rights Defender (in case defined by the “RA constitutional Law on the Human Rights Defender) are the extra-judicial remedies designed for protecting labor rights in Armenia. The importance and applicability of the extra-judicial remedies are envisaged by the following ILO fundamental Conventions: Convention No. 98 on the Right to Organize and Collective Bargaining, Convention No. 81 on the Labor Inspection Convention, and Convention No. 87 on Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize. Once a Convention ratified, countries commit themselves to applying the convention in national legislation and practice and reporting on its application at regular intervals. However, further measures are required to undertaken by the RA in order to comply with the commitments undertaken through ratifying the above-mentioned Conventions․ Noteworthy, that the ILO has a unique “tripartite” structure, which brings together representatives of governments, employers, and workers on an equal footing to address issues related to labor and social policy. In Armenia, there is no special jurisdiction for labor disputes. The lawsuits of labor disputes are bringing before the already overloaded ordinary courts, along with other disputes. However, even in these cases, employees are not willing to file lawsuits to the courts aiming at protecting their rights due to the following reasons: imperfection and lack of independence of judiciary system, unawareness of the legislation, e.g. 2-month period to file a lawsuit (Article 265 of the Labor Code,) time-consuming manner of the court hearings, case-related expenses, including fee of the attorneys at law, etc. This comes to prove the exceptional necessity of having strong and influential extra-judicial mechanics in Armenia as an “alternative” to court. The subject matter of the present thesis paper is the examination of the extra-judicial mechanisms of protection labor rights in Armenia as well as the study of the international commitments in regard to protection of labor rights through these mechanisms. The objectives of the paper are to research the legal environment in which Armenian extra-judicial mechanisms are operating and international commitments of the RA in the sector of the extra-judicial mechanisms; to identify principal challenges in relation of extra-judicial mechanisms on legislative level, to provide recommendations in order to strengthen and improve the extra-judicial bodies in Armenia aimed at protecting labor rights.