5+ – No guarantee of rights due to breakdown of the rule of law
The ITUC Global Rights Index

Syria

Since 2011, Syria has descended into civil war, killing more than more than 226,000 civilians. According to the latest report of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic, in 2020 violations amounting to crimes against humanity continued unabated. It is estimated that 6.5 million people are internally displaced, while 5.6 million sought refuge in neighbouring countries.
According to the report, 9.3 million people, that is more than half the population, are food insecure. Households are forced to resort to negative coping mechanisms, including child labour.
It is impossible for workers to enjoy their rights in a country where governmental institutions have fundamentally failed to hold those who are responsible for systematic violations of human rights and humanitarian law accountable. Respect for the rule of law is essential when it comes to the protection of the rights of workers.

The ITUC does not have an affiliate in Syria.

Syria ratified Convention No. 87 on Freedom of Association freedom of association The right to form and join the trade union of one’s choosing as well as the right of unions to operate freely and carry out their activities without undue interference.

See Guide to the ITUC international trade union rights framework
and Protection of the Right to Organise (1948) in 1960 and Convention No. 98 on the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining collective bargaining The process of negotiating mutually acceptable terms and conditions of employment as well as regulating industrial relations between one or more workers’ representatives, trade unions, or trade union centres on the one hand and an employer, a group of employers or one or more employers’ organisations on the other.

See collective bargaining agreement
(1949) in 1957.

In practice

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Growing numbers of strikes met with violence31-10-2011

Until 2011, workers generally did not dare exercise the right to strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
, given the potential heavy penalties and repression of any activity deemed to be critical of the government. Fear of reprisals meant response to the calls for general strikes during the year was mixed, with a greater turnout in cities considered to be pro-democracy strongholds than in the capital Damascus.

However 2011 was marked by a series of general strikes, which started in March, and which formed a major part of the protests against the repression of fundamental rights and the lack of decent jobs and prospects for the future. Opposition protestors called nationwide general strikes for 18 May, 23 June and 11 December. In addition, there were general strikes in the city of Hama between 3 and 5 June and in the cities of Homs and Hama on 7 July. The majority of these strikes, calling for an end to repression were met with violence, injury and often killings.

Official Trade union rejects protests30-11-2010

The official government-controlled trade union centre trade union centre A central organisation at the national, regional or district level consisting of affiliated trade unions. Often denotes a national federation or confederation. (GFTU) has not been involved in the recent strikes but has followed the official government line in describing the reform movement as a conspiracy. The GFTU rejects the suggestion that the political leadership imposes control over the organisation and states that workers at all levels elect their leadership freely and will vote out of office those who do not adequately represent their interests. It also states that the reason for the existence of a single trade union system is that workers themselves reject union diversity because it harms their unity and their interests. The government has used precisely the same argument in its reports to the ILO International Labour Organization A tripartite United Nations (UN) agency established in 1919 to promote working and living conditions. The main international body charged with developing and overseeing international labour standards.

See tripartism, ITUC Guide to international trade union rights
.

GFTU position30-11-2009

Despite its close links with the ruling Ba’ath Party, the General Federation of Trade Unions (GFTU) rejects the suggestion that the political leadership imposes control over the organisation. The GFTU states that workers at all levels elect their leadership freely and will vote out of office those who do not adequately represent their interests. It also states that the reason for the existence of a single trade union system is that workers themselves reject union diversity because it harms their unity and their interests. The government has used precisely the same argument in its reports to the ILO International Labour Organization A tripartite United Nations (UN) agency established in 1919 to promote working and living conditions. The main international body charged with developing and overseeing international labour standards.

See tripartism, ITUC Guide to international trade union rights
.

Right to strike hardly exercised31-10-2009

Workers generally dare not exercise the right to strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
, given the potential heavy penalties and the reintroduction of repression of any activity deemed to be critical of the government. However, in November 2009, some 30,000 United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East employees from the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon went on strike strike The most common form of industrial action, a strike is a concerted stoppage of work by employees for a limited period of time. Can assume a wide variety of forms.

See general strike, intermittent strike, rotating strike, sit-down strike, sympathy strike, wildcat strike
for a brief period. Workers and union members reported they were striking in order to improve services offered to Palestinian refugees, bring an end to service conditions for employees, and increase the number of employees in the region.

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