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INTERNATIONAL

LABOUR

OFFICE

STUDIES AND REPORTS
Seríes A (Industrial Relations) No. 31

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION
V O L U M E IV
ITALY, SPAIN, PORTUGAL,
GREECE, SERB-CROAT-SLOVENE KINGDOM,
BULGARIA, RUMANIA

GENEVA
1 928
Published in the United Kingdom
For the INTERNATIONAL LABOUR OFFICE (LEAGUE OF NATIONS)

By P. S. KING & SON, Ltd.
Orchard House, 14 Great Smith Street, Westminster, London, S.W.I

PREFACE
In the introduction to the first volume of this work — Freedom
of Association : Comparative Analysis — attention was called to the
manner in which the enquiry arose, the decision of the Governing
Body of the International labour Office in pursuance of which it
was undertaken, the plans on which it was carried out, and the
objects which the International Labour Office had in view.
The fourth volume, now published, comprises monograpEs on
freedom of association in Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Serb-CroatSlovene Kingdom, Bulgaria, and Rumania.
In each of these monographs an effort has been made to study
not. only the national legislation relating to trade unions but also the
relevant legal decisions and administrative practice and the actual
position of trade unions.
It should be noted that these studies have, so far as the differ—
enees in the legal systems in force permitted, been based on a uniform
scheme : the first part traces the history of the trade union movement
and trade union law ; the second part is devoted to the present legal
status of associations ; the third part deals with the possible forms
of action by trade unions in the various departments of social and
economic life and the limits of such action. The conclusion deals
with the position of trade unions in law and in fact.

CONTENTS

Page
PREFACE

ITALY
CHAPTER I : History
Union Movement

of Trade Union Legislation

and the Trade
i

§ i. History of the Trade Union Movement
The Workers' Trade Union Movement
The Employers' Associations Movement

i
i
7

§ 2. History of the Legislation up to the Fascist Reforms . . .
Freedom of Combination and Right to Strike
Freedom to Combine for Trade Purposes
Legal Limitations to the Action of Trade Associations . .

10
10
13 .
22

§ 3. The de facto Position of the Trade Union Movement before
the Fascist Reforms
. . :

CHAPTER II : Present Legal Position of Trade Associations

. . .

§ 1. Constitutional Reform and Preparatory Work for the Reform
of Trade Associations
The Spirit of Trade Union Legislation
Constitutional Reform

33
33
33
35

§ 2. Legal Organisation of Collective Relations resulting from
Employment
Legal Recognition of Trade Associations
State Control for Recognised Associations
The Single Trade Association with a Monopoly of Occupational Representation
Legal Regulation of Collective Contracts of Employment .
The Labour Tribunal
The Offence of Strikes and Lock-Outs

59
62
70
83

CHAPTER I I I : Organisation of Official Trade Unionism : Its Share
in Social, Economic and Political Life . . . . . . . . . .

§ 1. Organisation of Official Trade Unionism
Trade Associations of the Primary Grade . . . . . . .
The Higher Grade Trade Associations
. . .
. . .
Corporative Organisation

43
43
51

92
92
99
101

CONTENTS

Vili

§ 2. Part Played by Official Trade Unionism in Social, Economic
and Political Life
no
Part Played by the Trade Associations in Social Life . . . i n
Part Played in Economic Life
125
Part Played in Political Life
128
CHAPTER IV : Legal Regulation

of AssociaAions of State Employees

CHAPTER V : The Legal and de facto Regulation
Trade Unions

131

Independent
136

CONCLUSION

149

BIBLIOGRAPHY

160

ADDENDA

168

SPAIN
CHAPTER I : History
Movement

of Trade Union Law and the Trade

Union
179

§ 1. Period previous to 1887
Abolition of the Guilds
Prohibition of the Right of Association
Principle of the Freedom of Association
Evolution of the Trade Union Movement
Recognition of the Freedom of Association
Purposes

179
179
181
183
185
for

Trade
190

§ 2. Period after 1887
Growth of the Trade Union Movement .
Bills and Acts Supplementing the 1887 Act
The Right of Combination and Strike
Organisation of Conciliation and Arbitration
Recognition of the Legal Personality of Trade Associations
The Institution of Official Joint Committees
Collaboration of Trade Associations with the Public
Authorities
CHAPTER II : The Legai Status

of Trade Associations

191
191
197
199
201
202
203
206
210

§ 1. Constitutional Principle

210

§ 2. Conditions of Existence
Constitution
Activities of Trade Associations
Suspension and Dissolution of Trade Associations .

211
211
214
. 219

§ 3. The Conditions of Existence and Possibilities of Action of
Trade Associations in the Province of Barcelona . . .
221
Conditions of Existence
223
Possibilities of Action
232
CHAPTER III : National

Corporative

Organisation

of Industry

. 237

§ 1. The Spirit and Antecedents of Corporative Organisation . 237

CONTENTS

IX
Pasc

§ 2. The Constitution of the National Corporative Organisation .
Scope
Structure and Composition
The Powers of the Joint Organisations
The Working of the Corporative System
Suspension and Dissolution of Joint Committees and Mixed
Commissions

242
242
245
254
257
262

§ 3. The Application and Influence of the Corporative System 263
First Measures for the Practical Application of the Legislative Decree
263
Influence of the Corporative System
265
CONCLUSION

267

BIBLIOGRAPHY

277

PORTUGAL

CHAPTER I : History

of the Trade Union Movement

and of Trade

Union Legislation

285

§ 1. The Trade Union Movement

285

§ 2. Trade Union Legislation
The Right of Combination and Strike
Freedom of Association
CHAPTER II : The Present Legal Status of Trade Associations

288
288
289
. 292

§ 1. Constitution of Trade Associations
Basic Conditions
Formalities

292
293
294

§ 2. Activity and Dissolution

295

CHAPTER III : Possibilities

and Limits

of Trade Union Action .

. 298

§ 1. Trade Union Institutions
Independent Institutions
Co-operation with the Public Authorities

298
298
299

§ 2. Functions under Civil and Industrial Law . . . : . . .
Civil Law
Industrial Law

299
299
299

CONCLUSION

302

BIBLIOGRAPHY

304

GREECE

§ 1. Development and Present Position of Trade Associations . 305
§ 2. Freedom to Combine for Trade Purposes

307

CONTENTS
Page

The Individual Right to Combine
The Law on Trade Associations

307
309

BIBLIOGRAPHY

315

SERB-CROAT-SLOVENE KINGDOM
INTRODUCTION

317

§ 1. Development of Trade Associations and the Law on Such
Associations
318
Development and Present Position of Trade Associations 318
History of the Law on Trade Associations
320
§ 2. Conditions of Formation and Existence of Trade Associations
322
General Laws
322
Special Laws
326
§ 3. Activities of Trade Associations
The Relations between Trade Associations and State Social
Institutions
Trade Corporations, " Esnaf ", etc. . . . "
Trade Councils
Determination and Enforcement of Conditions of Work . .
Militant Action (Strikes and Lock-Outs)

330
330
331
332
334
335

CONCLUSION

338

BIBLIOGRAPHY

340

BULGARIA
CHAPTER I : History
Movement

and Present

Position

of the Trade

Union

341

§ 1. The Workers' Trade Union Movement

• 342

§ 2. The Employers' Movement
CHAPTER II : Conditions of Existence

345
of Trade Associations

§ 1. Legal Status
The Constitutional Principle
The Act on Combinations of Officials (1907)
State Employees' Act (28 January 1922)
The Schools and Societies Act (3 July 1922)
Acts for the Defence of the State

347

347
347
348
349
350
351

§ 2. The System in Practice
CHAPTER III : Possibilities

and Limits

352
of Trade Union Action .

§ 1. Collaboration of Trade Associations with the State
Social Affairs

357

in
357

CONTENTS

XI
Page

§ 2. Legal Limitations on the Activities of Trade Associations
(Collective Disputes)
359
Limitations under Penal Law
359
Limitations under Administrative Law
360
Limitations under Civil Law
360
CONCLUSION

362

BIBLIOGRAPHY

364

RUMANIA
CHAPTEK I : History of the Guilds and the Trade Union Movement

365

§ 1. History of the Guilds

365

§ 2. History of the Trade Union Movement
The Labour Movement . •
The Employers' Movement

369
369
374

CHAPTEP. H : The Present Legal Status of Trade Associations

. .

376

§ 1. Trade Associations under the General Law

377

§ 2. The Status of Recognised Associations
Constitution and Working of Associations
Dissolution of Trade Associations — Penalties

378
378
385

CHAPTER H I : The Possibilities

and Limits of Trade Union Action

389

§ 1. Trade Union Institutions and Co-operation with the State 389
Institutions
.'
: . . 389
Co-operation with the State .
390
,§ 2. Civil Capacity and Influence of Trade Associations on the
Contract of Employment
393
Effects of Legal Personality
393
Conclusion and Enforcement of Contracts of Employment 394
CONCLUSION

402

BIBLIOGRAPHY

404

ITALY
CHAPTER I
HISTORY OF TRADE UNION LEGISLATION
THE TRADE UNION MOVEMENT

AND

The history of trade union legislation and the trade union
movement in Italy is of interest to-day merely for the sake of
comparison with the present situation. It is well indeed to bear in
mind from the outset that the trade union system at present in force
in Italy does not hold to the principles which can be deduced by
historical analysis, but takes its inspiration from a special conception
of social relationships which is in some respects radically opposed
to the practice of trade union law in iiiost other countries. Subject
to these observations, the first part of the present study will deal
in the first place with the growth of trade unionism among both
employers and employed, and secondly with the phases of the development of trade union law. Finally, an outline will be given of the
events which have paved the way for the present reforms.
§ 1. — History of the Trade Union Movement
T H E W O R K E R S ' T R A D E UNION MOVEMENT

At the moment when the Kingdom of Italy was united in i860,
the social movement was still in its infancy both as regards trade
union forms and political activity. Nevertheless, the miserable conditions of life of the lower classes, especially in the country, aroused
here and there trouble and risings which were promptly quelled by
the Government. Strikes began to appear (statistics show but a
few dozen each year), and the spirit of association among workers
assumed its first rudimentary form.
Freedom of Association

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

Following the example of an association formed in 1848 among
the printers of Turin, the Society for Resisting the Reduction of
Wages, there arose leagues for resistance and leagues for obtaining
improved conditions. These came to the assistance of the strikers,
supervised apprenticeship, etc, The year 1874 saw the beginning of
annual congresses of workers.
At the same time mutual-aid societies among the workers of the
same trade spread, exercising the double function of mutual help
and resistance. In the country co-operative societies sprang up and
multiplied. Then, inspired by the first workman to be elected to
the Italian Parliament, Mr. Maffi, there were founded workmen's
" Consulates " (1880-1890) whose task it was to co-ordinate the
forces of the workers and of the members of the mutual-aid societies.
But it is from 1890 particularly that the trade union movement,
strictly speaking, becomes clearly marked. From 1891 one may
date the dawning prosperity of the " Chambers of Labour ", whose
mission it was to co-ordinate on a common basis of resistance all the
forces of the workers in a given centre. Finally, in 1893, there was
formed in Parma the first Federation of Chambers of Labour.
Parallel with this went the first appearance of the social movement in a political form. In 1880 was formed at Bologna a Labour
Party, which later became the Italian Labour Party. In 1892 the
Italian Socialist Party was founded (Congress of Genoa). The social
movement, which at first was confused with tendencies towards
conspiracy and insurrection, grew clearer as the doctrines of Marx
gained the upper hand and became, in 1892, finally supreme.
With the opening of the new century the working class movement and the trade union organisation took their places as important
factors in the national life. Chambers of labour, workers' and
agrarian leagues, provincial, regional and national confederations
sprang up in great numbers throughout Italy. Strikes became more
frequent in industry and in agriculture. Up to 1900 statistics record
only a few rare examples each year ; in 1901 and in 1902 there were
nearly four thousand with four million days lost. A considerable
number of these were successful. It is calculated that in one year
the workers raised the total of their wages by about 150 million lire.
Meanwhile, the trade union movement — which was on the
way to organisation on a national scale and had assumed autonomous
forms — was subject to political influence and followed different lines.
Henceforth its characteristic features can be linked up with the

ITALY

political views of t h e great body of the trade unionists and of the
leaders who represented t h e m . I t will be well, therefore, with a view
t o clearness, to follow successively the two main currents : t h a t
which borders most closely on Socialism (including the syndicalist
sections) and t h e Christian-Social movement.
I t should be recalled that already in the course of the ten years
1890-1900 the Italian Federation of Chambers of Labour had been
established. T h a t is to say, a federation of organisations for propag a t i n g in urban centres the policy of organising the proletariat in
harmony with national organisations. T h e Federation was dissolved
in 1898, b u t reconstituted when political reaction declined. I n 1902
the Federation of Chambers of Labour, in common w i t h a certain
number of national federations of particular trades, set u p a general
secretariat for chambers of labour and for purposes of resistance.
I t h a d its seat in Milan and the director was Mr. Cabrini. I t acted
as a co-ordinating bod}' linking t h e chambers of labour with the
federations (whose functions were not yet precisely defined) and was
destined, moreover, to give an impulse to social legislation.
However, t h e growing resistance of t h e employing class, which
was beginning to organise, and the discord between reformists,
revolutionaries and syndicalists caused, about 1905, a w e a k e n i n g of
the trade union movement. T h e trade union leaders, strengthened
by the experience t h e y had gained, turned their attention t h e n chiefly
towards t h e improvement of their technical organisation. I n 1906 the
General Confederation of Labour was founded b y the vote of a
congress representative of 200,000 organised workers. T h i s Confederation had its seat at first in T u r i n , then a t Milan. T h e secretary
was Mr. Rigola. T h e majority of the Confederation pronounced in
favour of parliamentary action calculated t o carry t h r o u g h social
reforms in association with t h e democratic parties, b u t proclaimed
its own independence of all political parties, including the Socialist
Party. T h e programme of the Confederation defined its principal
aims as follows :
(a) To ensure the general direction of the industrial and agricultural
proletarian movement by co-ordinating and disciplining the action of the
trade federations and chambers of labour. The proper functions of the
federations consist in supporting and directing the movement of resistance
made by their members after first consulting the chambers of labour.
The functions of the chambers of labour are the protection and organisation
of the local interests of the working classes ;
°
(b) To create chambers of labour in places where they do not
exist, taking care, however, that there shall be no excessive multiplica-

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

tion of small centres and that all such bodies shall have a regional or
provincial character and, in the second place, to create and develop
national federations of industrial workers taking care to discourage
particularist tendencies in any groups and to encourage the union of all
social groups in one and the same federation ;
(c) To support, regulate and co-ordinate the legislative suggestions
put forward by the affiliated organisations, and to lay any suitable
proposals before the representatives of the proletariat in advisory bodies ;
(d) To give the masses of the proletariat the capacity necessary for
prosecuting their claims directly and with the aid of their representative
bodies ; . . .
(/) To adhere to the Trade Union International, of which it shall
constitute the Italian section ; . . .
(z) To organise the proletariat movement in the matter of resistance
in such a manner that group conflicts shall every day more and more
give place to united struggles directed to raising the standard of living
of the working class as a whole, and making it clear to the said class
that every improvement won in the matter of wages by means of partial
or group struggles is doomed to be of no avail in the long run unless
the whole working class resolves to fight with more unity and in closer
ranks against the existing political and economic power for the radical
transformation of the system of ownership.
T h e progress made by the General Confederation of Labour can
be clearly seen from the following figures, which represent the
number of organised workers regularly paying their contributions :
Years
. 1907
1908
1909
191°
191I
*9 T 2
Ì^Ò
I9Ï4

•

. . . . .

Membership

Years

Membership

190,422
262,006
307,925
356,420
383,770
3 0 9,87i
327,802
320,858

1915
1916
ICI?
I918
I919
1920
I92I
1924

233,963
201,291
337,560
249,039
I,I59,?43
2,150,000
2,200,000
269,800

Mention should be made, side by side with the General Confederation of Labour, of certain other organisations associated with
revolutionary syndicalism. As early as 1906, w h e n the General
Confederation of Labour came into existence,
revolutionary
syndicalists, republicans and anarchists had sought to set u p a
National Resistance Committee (Parma, 1907), b u t the attempt failed.
Under the influence of the ideas of Sorel, which had penetrated to
Italy and found important adherents in t h e persons of Labriola,
Leone, and others, there was founded the Syndicalist Association
(Unione Sindacale Italiana)
which declared itself independent of
every political party and adopted the general strike, not as a measure
of political defence, but as an active method capable of endowing

ITALY

the proletariat with a power of effective action a n d leading it to the
conquest of the State. T h e Association succeeded in gathering more
than ioo.ooo adherents.
T h e Christian T r a d e Union Organisation received its impulse
from t h e Encyclical Rerum Novaruvi promulgated by Leo X I I I in
1891, and was taken under the patronage of the I n s t i t u t e of Congresses, which was the social b r a n c h of the Catholic movement. T h e n
began t h e g r o w t h of Christian associations of industrial and agricultural workers which preferably chose the name of Labour Leagues.
T h e essential features of the organisation were defined in 1903 at
t h e congress of Bologna : the t r a d e associations, while seeking to
bring together the two elements, worker and employer, must be
composed exclusively of workers. T h e y must be denominational,
both in spirit and as regards their directors, b u t they were authorised
to leave their character unexpressed in the titles which they adopted.
Finally, it was admitted that it was desirable to agitate for the legal
recognition of trade unions. At this period there were 400,000
organised Catholics. Since then t h e r e h a s been a falling off which
continued u p to 1911, when the economic institutions regrouped
themselves to form the Social Economic Union of Italian Catholics.
T h i s latter body created a general secretariat for trade organisation.
I n the same year there were 374 Christian t r a d e associations with
101,164 members. T h e Catholic movement spread from 1911 to 1914,
fell off during the war period, and revived vigorously after peace was
restored.
I n 1918, the Italian Confederation of W o r k e r s was formed with
ten affiliated national trade unions and twenty-five labour offices in
different Italian towns. T h i s Confederation included local organisations (professional leagues, trade associations, labour unions) and
national federations or national trade unions, t h e most important of
w h i c h were the Italian T e n a n t F a r m e r s ' Federation, the Italian.
T e x t i l e Federation, etc.
I n 1921, the Christian organisation numbered 992,390 organised
m e m b e r s ; in 1922 597.503 members enrolled in the national federations a n d 581,174 in the local unions.
T h e principles which inspire this movement may be stated t h u s :
(a) Christian inspiration which it seeks to apply to society and to
class relationships ;
(6) Rejection of the idea of revolution and determination to achieve
social reform not by violence but by constitutional means ;

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

(c) A general tendency towards class co-operation rather than
class warfare, but organised co-operation between organised classes
(" integral " 1 corporations) ;
(d) As ultimate aim not collectivism but the development and spread
of autonomous forms of private ownership and production ;
(e) Independence of political parties ; that is to say, while dui}'
recognising its affinities with the Italian Catholic People's Party, it
considered itself autonomous and independent in the technical and trade
union sphere.
T h e Italian Confederation of Workers also suffered from internal
struggles. A n e x t r e m e Left appeared which, in 1920, b r o u g h t about
a schism and created the Christian T r a d e Union Confederation,
but this body did not live.
T h e participation of Italy in the war of 1914-191S was preceded
by a long period of uncertainty and violent dissensions which had
their effects on the trade union movement. A n important section of
the Italian Syndicalist Association favourable to intervention founded
the Italian Association of Labour (Unione Italiana del
Lavoro),
which drew to its ranks t h e Republican and Socialist workers who
were in favour of war. I n 1921 it had 200,000 members.
T h e programme of the Italian Association of Labour proclaimed
t h a t it held absolutely aloof from all political objects and was
committed t o the struggle against capitalism and the wage system.
I t announced as its ultimate aim : " to hand over to the organised
working class the production, distribution and exchange of wealth ".
B u t , in addition to its economic conquests, it announced " the raising
of the proletariat to the dignity and capacity which would enable it
to solve all the problems of production and social justice ".
T h e picture of the trade union organisations would not, however,
be complete without some reference to the relations between the
trade unions, the co-operative societies, the mutual-aid societies, and
other provident societies in general. Just as trade union action
originated from t h e mutual-aid movement, so the trade unions
endeavoured to increase their power of action and strengthen the
bonds of social solidarity by means of co-operative and mutual-aid
organisations. Stimulated by trade unions, the co-operative movem e n t had attained a very high degree of prosperity. I t is impossible
to give here even a brief outline of the movement. Mention m a y be
made, however, of one fact which illustrates its importance to the

i.e. including employers and workers.

ITALY

full : in certain parts of Italy, particularly in the N o r t h a n d centre,
the co-operative system in its different forms (credit, producing and
consumers' societies) had succeeded, especially in agriculture, in
t a k i n g the place to some extent of t h e individual system of
cultivation \
A m o n g the most notable social provident institutions attached
to the General Confederation of Labour m a y be mentioned the
National Co-operative L e a g u e and the Italian Federation of MutualAid Societies and Provident F u n d s .
Along with t h i s organisation of a national character, mention
should be m a d e of the offices for consultation, protection, medical
and legal advice, as well as the numerous working m e n ' s clubs for
recreation and vocational education which are in existence in most
provincial towns.
T h e Christian T r a d e Union Confederation also supplemented the
resistance movement b y the creation of co-operative societies federated
in the Italian Co-operative Confederation, mutual-aid societies, and
protective institutions.
Parallel with the Labour movement, but a little later, came the
development of the employers' associations movement.
THE

E M P L O Y E R S ' ASSOCIATIONS MOVEMENT

T h e employers' movement appeared u n d e r a double form. On
the one h a n d , as an economic organisation aiming at defending the
interests of its class w i t h references to G o v e r n m e n t legislative
measures (taxation, customs regulation, etc.) and, on t h e other hand,
as an organ of defence against the workers' trade union movement.
I t is proposed to give a brief account of the vicissitudes of this
movement, considering in t u r n the most important groups of interests,
agriculture, commerce, and industry.
T h e employers' associations movement in agriculture had its
birth in the P o Valley, and its expansion and activity w a s centred

It should moreover be remembered that the co-operative movement,
which, from G. Mazzini to L. Luzzatti, had always found enthusiastic
supporters outside the Socialist Party, developed until quite recent times
in complete independence of the trade unions, whether Socialist or
Catholic. Cf. Mr. RUINI : " The Co-operative Movement in Italy ", in
The International Labour Review, Vol. V, No. i, Jan. 1922, pp. 13 et seq.Cf. also CARLO COSTAMAGNA : Il Diritto Corporativo Italiano, pp. 146
et seq.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

in Bologna. I t was with t h e beginning of t h e new c e n t u r y t h a t it
grew in s t r e n g t h a n d e x t e n t . Originating as a local movement, it
developed gradually into a vaster organisation, provincial, interprovincial, and national. T h e earliest manifestations of an effort
towards national unification of the agricultural employers' associations, and the first attempts at organising it, date back to i g i i . But
it was only in 1920 t h a t a strong national organism came into being,
the General Confederation of Agriculture, h a v i n g its seat at Rome
with M r . A . Domini as secretary.
Constituted on 18 April 1920, a t the m o m e n t w h e n t h e struggle
of the workers' associations was at its height, t h e Confederation did
not content itself with an uncompromising defence of class interests.
On the occasion of a serious rural agitation (occupation of lands in
the Sorresina), during which the workers' organisations had
demanded a share in the management of agricultural undertakings,
the Confederation laid down the fundamental principle of its action
thus :
Complete willingness to conclude an agreement which would make
it possible for the workers to rise to a higher level, both economically
and morally, under the express condition that the agreement itself should
remain strictly within the legal bounds of a co-partnership association,
keeping intact the idea of individual ownership and the independence of
the functions of management.
I n accordance with this fundamental principle, t h e Confederation,
at its first congress, defined its guiding rules in the following terms :
That all the affiliated associations should support and extend the
system of métayage, as being the most effective instrument for creating
a stable social basis for agricultural progress and for the economic and
moral improvement of the workers themselves, and that, while observing
in the drafting of the economic clauses of such contracts a liberal and
modern spirit, they should defend the necessity for safeguarding the
technical direction of the owner against the efforts of any who may seek,
whether by the limitation of this power or by insisting on the substitution
of farming leases for contracts of métayage, to withdraw the administration of rural undertakings from the hands of those technical experts who
have done good service to the cause of agricultural progress and
production. . . . That the principle of co-partnership should be extended
even to the class of occasional workers and to that of workers with
fixed wages.
T h e Confederation succeeded in building u p a strong organisation in t h e country. I t embraced roughly five h u n d r e d bodies and
associations, which form numerous regional federations (Lombardy,

ITALY

Piedmont, Upper Venetia, The Marches, Emilia, Tuscany, Umbria,
the south of the mainland, Sicily, and Sardinia).
The numerical strength of the organisation was estimated at a
total of 700,000 members.
Quite contrary to the agrarian organisation, the commercial
organisation of the employing class preserved a predominantly local
and economic character, owing to the fact that the most important
interests which it has to consider concern local life. Nevertheless,
in order to offer some resistance to the national movement of
employees and clerks, it formed itself into a General Confederation
of Commerce.
The employers' movement in industry, on the other hand, proved
much stronger and more efficient. The earliest organisations arose
in the district of Biella, at Massa, and at Turin as a counterpoise to
the workers' movement. The attempts at national unification began
in 1910; soon afterwards the Association of Joint Stock Companies
sprang up, and, finally, in 1920, the General Confederation of Italian
Industry was created, embracing all great industrial undertakings
and three-quarters of the medium and small undertakings. Mr. Olivetti was its secretary. It is a highly organised institution which,
closely united to the Association of Joint Stock Companies, exercised
a powerful influence on the whole of the national life.
The General Confederation of Industry, before its recent
reorganisation, comprised some one hundred bodies divided among
federal organisations (of which twenty-five were national) and local
organisations and was made up of two sections :
(a) The Economic Section, which protected all kinds of
industrial interests and set up as its aim the defence of those
interests by means of direct co-operation in the drafting of laws
and also by supporting the interests of its members against the
State ;
(b) The Trade Union Section, which studied and solved
problems connected with the relationships between industrialists
and the staff dependent on them, and also problems connected
with social legislation.
The growing vigour of trade unionism was bound to mould
the legal system in accordance with its requirements. It is proposed
in the next section to give a brief outline of the history and inspira-

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

tions of the trade union law in force before the Fascist Government
came into power.
§ 2. — History of the Legislation up to the Fascist Reforms
FREEDOM OF COMBINATION AND R I G H T TO STRIKE

Period of Relative

Prohibition

At the time of-the unification of the Kingdom of Italy (i860)
there were left in force, out of the different existing Penal Codes,
those of Tuscany and of the Kingdom of Sardinia, which were
extended to all the countries whose Codes had been abolished. The
Sardinian Code of 1859 (sections 385-386), modelled on the French
Code of 1810 \ punished, on the one hand, " every agreement between
employers with a view to unjustly compelling workers to accept a
reduction of wages ", and, on the other hand, " every agreement
between workers with a view to suspending, hindering or raising the
price of work without reasonable motive ". In both cases it was
necessary that the concerted agreement should have begun to have
been put into execution. The spirit of the Tuscan Code, on the
contrary (sections 201-203), was quite different. Following the
French Act of 1864, it punished violence accompanying a strike, but
not the act of ceasing work or even the employment of fraudulent
means for inducing workers to strike. Now, it was this liberal
conception which triumphed in legal theory, if not always in judicial
practice, and which was to be definitively established in the new
Italian Penal Code.
v But the preparation of the new Code progressed slowly, while,
in certain regions, the strike movement gained in extent and intensity.
The governing class and the Government became anxious ; it was
then that Crispi, in 1878, took the initiative and appointed a Royal
Commission to enquire into strikes. This Commission after having
made fully plain the severity of the struggles, formulated its conclusions thus :

Being convinced that no single expedient whatsoever could be
proposed which would be effective in restoring the former concord
between capital and labour, the Commission has put in the forefront of
1

See Vol. II of this work, " France ", Chapter i, § 1, " History prior
to 1884 "•

ITALY

the measures it suggests an Act which will recognise without anv restriction the right of workers and employers to combine- for the defence
of their respective interests, and which will protect this right .against
such violence and fraud as would deprive these combinations of their
character of spontaneous voluntary associations and transform them into
instruments of violent compulsion for the profit of men seeking personal
gain or into instruments of disorder in the hands of turbulent and
ambitious men.
T h e Depretis Ministry adopted these proposals and laid before
the Chamber of Deputies in 1883 a Bill recognising the freedom of
combination among employers and workers, while punishing all
violence, threats, or frauds. T h e Parliamentary Commission which
was appointed to examine the Bill introduced some a m e n d m e n t s ,
and h a n d e d in a report drawn up by Di San Giuliano. T h e latter
discussed the question first of all from the point of view of justice :
The prohibition of combinations and strikes, he said, was less unjust
at a period when wages and the prices of the essentials of existence were
officially fixed. But to-day freedom of contract would lead purely and
simply to acknowledging the right of capital to starve labour, if the
latter were refused the freedom of combination.
It is useless to maintain that combinations of employers, in opposition
to combinations of workers, are equally prohibited, seeing that every
employer in the negotiations for the settlement of the contract of employment is a combination in himself, in view of the irresistible power of the
natural law of supply and demand.
H a v i n g laid clown these principles, Di San Giuliano proved that
the long history of laws forbidding combinations showed irrefutably
that such laws had had no effect except to excite u n d u l y the spirit
of the workers. H e boldly faced the capital objection based on the
abuses a n d excesses of the workers, but h e noted that " freedom of
combination, while subjecting the working classes to the sometimes
rough, but always valuable lessons of experience, has nevertheless
had satisfactory results ", whereas there are very few examples of
industries ruined by strikes. Finally, he replied to the legal objection
which alleged that freedom of combination constituted a constraint
exercised upon the liberty of others by an appeal to the ancient
maxim of R o m a n wisdom : Qui suo jure utitur neminem
laedit.
T h e Bill was fully discussed by the Chamber, but rejected in
the secret ballot by 121 votes to 117. I t was not therefore until the
new Penal Code of 1890 that Italian legislation recognised freedom
of combination and the right to strike, subject to the penalties inflicted
for the'use of threats and of violence.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

Offences

against

the Freedom

Work

T h e P e n a l Code punishes by Chapter 6, T i t l e I I I , offences
against the freedom of work. I t organises, by means of t h e following
provisions, w h a t is k n o w n as the legal guarantee of this liberty :
Section 165 punishes " whosoever, by violence or by threats,
restricts or hinders in any m a n n e r whatsoever the freedom of
industry or trade ".
Section 166 punishes " whosoever, by violence or by threats,
provokes or prolongs a cessation or suspension of work, vvith
i n t e n t to impose either on any workers or on a n y employers or
on the owners of any industrial undertakings a reduction or
increase of wages or a n y contracts other than those which have
previously been agreed upon ".
Section 167 provides a more severe punishment for the leaders
or instigators.
T h e Ministerial report annexed to the Penal Code declares that
this Code " recognises the freedom of combination and t h e right to
strike . . . and presupposes the legality of every combination of
workers or employers, and refrains from considering the cause which
has b r o u g h t it about ". T h e sections are therefore " intended to
recognise and sanction the freedom of work ".
T h e essential feature common to the two categories of offences
is the use of violence or threats. I t is not necessary t h a t there should
be either concerted action or direct interest in the act ; violence may
be exercised against persons or against things and m u s t be direct.
I t is a debatable point whether it must of necessity be physical or
whether it m a y also be moral ; whether it may, for instance, take
the form of intimidation by numbers. On this point there are conflicting theories and judicial practice is not uniform.
T h r e a t s are defined by the Penal Code (section 156); thev must
imply severe and unjust injury ; they are aggravated threats if
effected by means of weapons, or by a person in disguise, or b y
several persons banded together, or by anonymous letters, or in
symbolical form, or if they make use of the intimidatory power of
real or imaginary secret societies '.

1
Sections 165-167 remain in force to-day and are combined with
sections 18-22 of the Act of 3 April 1926 on the legal regulation of
collective relations arising from employment. As regards the interpreta-

ITALY

F R E E D O M TO COMBINE FOR T R A D E P U R P O S E S

Period of Restrictive
Interpretation
of the Right
Association,
1848-içoo

T h e Charter of the K i n g d o m of Italy, the Albertinian Constitution of 1848, guarantees, individual liberty (Article 26), the inviolability of the domicile (Article 27), the freedom of the press
(Article 28), and recognises the right of peaceful assembly w i t h o u t
a r m s (Article 32) x . T h e r e is no express mention made of the right
of association. T h e Constitution reproduces in almost identical
terms Article 19 of the Belgian Constitution of 7 F e b r u a r y 1831, so
far as the right of assembly is concerned, but not Article 20, which
expressly recognises the right of association 2 . W a s this omission
intentional ? I t seems doubtful in view of the liberal spirit of t h e
whole constitution. Be t h a t as it m a y , ithe doubt w a s not long i n
being dispelled by legislation, namely by the Decree of 6 September 1848, delivered with full authority and, as the preamble puts it,
with intent " t o do away w i t h such provisions as have ceased to be
in harmony with present-day policy ". T h i s Decree revoked sections 483-486 of the Sardinian Penal Code, which forbade every
religious, literary, and political association formed without the permission of the competent authorities. All the authorities on public
law and the politicians were unanimous in concluding that Italian
public law recognised implicitly and clearly the principle of t h e
right of association considered as one of the branches of individual
liberty, but not applicable — at first a t least — in t h e sphere of
labour r e l a t i o n s 3 .
tion by the courts of the means of pressure employed by trade unions,
such as mobs, picketing, boycotting, progressive strike, sabotage, trade
union fines, etc., which are forbidden to-day, see various authors, particularly : FLORIAN, Delitti contro la libertà di Lavoro, Milan, 1913 ;
LASCHI, Delitti contro la libertà di Lavoro ; MANZINI, Diritto penale,
Turin, 1913.
1
Article 32 is drawn up as follows : " The right to assemble
peacefully and without arms in conformity with the laws which control
the exercise of this right in the public interest is hereby recognised.
This provision does not apply to meetings in public places or open to
the public, which meetings remain entirely subject to the police
regulations ".
2
See Vol. II of this work : " Belgium ", Chapter I, § 1, " Legislative
History ".
3

Cf.

CARLO COSTAMAGNA, op.

cit.,

section I, pp.

2-5.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

Several attempts had been made to regulate the right of association by legislative measures, but without success until the most
recent times. In 1852 the Sardinian Government had submitted to
the Council of State a Bill concerning associations, but the supreme
assembly had replied that it did not consider it opportune to restrict
a right which had always been exercised without doing the slightest
injury to the public weal.
Some years later the Government, under the leadership of
Rattazzi, presented, on 3 June 1S62, a Bill concerning associations,
consisting of three clauses. It provided punishments for the acts
and deeds of every association whatsoever which should tend to
encourage the enrolment of men and the acquisition of arms and
munitions without the consent of the Government, or to spread
doctrines contrary to the Constitution and tending to compromise
the safety of the State ; it gave the Government power to dissolve
such associations by Royal Decree ; it brought within the law
the acts or deeds which had given occasion for this dissolution;
it punished the members who, despite the dissolution, assembled
again during the course of the trial or after sentence had been passed.
But the Bill was badly received. The Commission of the Chamber
criticised it. It added that to punish the diffusion of principles
contrary to the Constitution would be to attack at the same time
every discussion, even if purely theoretical, and would mean placing
an insurmountable barrier in the way of the peaceful development of
ideas and opinions, which is an essential condition of progress in a
political State ; moreover the life or death of every association
would be left at the mercy of the Government. A counter-proposal
was drawn up, with the character of a penal law, authorising the
suspension of an association in the event of crimes or offences being
committed for which the responsibility devolved on decisions taken
by the association or its representatives. It granted at the same
time to the Court of Assizes, in the event of a conviction, the power
to order the dissolution of the association, while in the event of an
acquittal the suspension ceased by right. The counter-proposal,
however, was not favourably received either and was not passed.
Nevertheless, the Council of State, when consulted by the
Government, recognised that " the Government may take advantage
of its right to preserve economic peace, and is even entitled to order

ITALY

the dissolution of a society w h e n it imperils this peace, a conception
which follows from t h e unlimited powers of t h e Cabinet
T h e action of t h e Government, save for some rare liberal interludes, w a s inspired by this restrictive theory of freedom of association all through t h e second half of t h e nineteenth century.
Period

of Liberal
for

Interpretation
Trade

Purposes,

of the Right

Combine

IQOO-IÇ2I

I t is only after t h e rejection of t h e exceptional measures laid
before t h e Chamber of Deputies by Pelloux, on 4 F e b r u a r y 1899,
that t h e liberal interpretation of t h e principle of freedom of association begins to t r i u m p h .
T h e s e measures of the Pelloux Ministry were intended t o r e g u l a t e
and restrict freedom of assembly a n d of association, to prohibit
strikes in t h e public services, a n d restrict t h e freedom of t h e press.
Chapter I I bis of t h e Bill, entitled " Additions and A m e n d m e n t s to
the Act on Public Safety a n d on t h e Press ", contained t h e following
sections :
1. Besides the cases provided for in the Penal Code, all associations
are forbidden which aim at overthrowing by force the social structure
and the Constitution of the State.
2. The police officials, at the request of the judicial authorities,
shall proceed to dissolve associations of the kind described in the
preceding clause, by closing their meeting places, seizing their documents,
books and badges, and handing over to the judicial authorities all
articles confiscated.
3. The associations dissolved in terms of the above section shall
not re-form, even under another name.
4. The funds of the dissolved associations shall be taken over by
the Public Prosecutor and paid into the Government office for the deposit
of trust funds under litigation (Caisse des dépôts et consignations) in
the name of the dissolved association.
After the passing of sentence, or if for any reason whatsoever the
case be not settled within a reasonable time, the judicial authorities shall,
on instructions being given by the Chamber of Council, hand over t h e
funds of the dissolved associations to the provident fund laid down by
the Statute, or, in default of definite provisions, dispose of it to charitable
societies.
5. Every breach of sections 1 to 3 shall be punished — provided
the action committed does not constitute a graver crime — by a fine not
exceeding 500 lire or by imprisonment up to three months.

1
Applying this principle, the Government proceeded to dissolve t h e
following associations: .500 emancipation societies (1862), the internationalist associations (1871), the republican associations (1874), and, for
a second time, the internationalist associations (1876).

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

The Ministerial report which introduced the Bill justified these
measures as follows :
The Government has considered that it was less opportune than ever
to adopt this principle (that of abandoning preventive authorisation)
to-day, when the necessity for legal regulation of freedom of association
has made itself manifest, seeing that, in default of provisions governing
exactly the dissolving of illegal associations, this freedom of association
tends to be abused and is subject to arbitrary interpretation.
It is for this reason that it is proposed to add to the Act on Public
Safety provisions based on the principle of repressive limitation, because
preventive authorisation constitutes, not a limitation, but a negation
of liberty, and because the preventive prohibitions which would come
to be decreed could easily be evaded and would be the unhappy cause
of a host of punishable contraventions which, far from serving to
maintain public order, would tend to disturb it by leading to continual
demands and protests against the actions of the public authorities.
The proposals aroused strong opposition. The Socialist and
Radical Extreme I^eft organised systematic obstruction.
The
Democrats, led by Giolitti and Zanardelli, were equally hostile to the
Bill. In order to overcome this resistance, Pelloux had recourse to
an Edict for promulgating these measures. But the Edict was
declared unconstitutional by the Court of Accounts, and the Court
of Cassation entirely denied its legal validity. The Government,
powerless to overcome the opposition, appealed to the country. But
the results were such that it was forced to resign soon afterwards ;
in the same way, the Sarocco Ministry was overthrown by the Chamber a year later, after having dissolved the Genoa Chamber of L,abour.
From that time the liberal point of view had finally gained the day.
Constitution of Trade Associations
The principle of the freedom of trade association being thus
definitely established, what was its practical value and what were
its limitations ? Indeed, it does not seem possible that an uncodified
abstract general principle should be sufficient in itself to regulate
such complex social phenomena as the right to combine for trade
purposes. It will be well, therefore, to review briefly the general
and particular principles, mostly in ordinary law, which controlled
the trade union movement until quite recently and the practice of the
courts with regard to it. In the absence of any legislative provision,
and seeing that in general the trade associations did not seek to adopt
the types of society recognised by the law, they were purely de facto
associations. They were constituted on a basis of personal member-

ITALY

ship ; their working was regulated by the same constitution as controlled their voluntary dissolution ; the agreement by which the
society was constituted counted as a contract in terms of general law,
and was drawn up in writing. Personal membership could be notified
either individually or collectively ; it had to be voluntary. _ Membership of the trade association implied acceptance of obligation and a
limitation of liberty which was lawful in so far as it was voluntary,
since the law admits voluntary limitation of liberty. Consent was
not valid if given in error, extorted by violence, or obtained by
trickery (section 1108 of the Civil Code).
There were no general limitations in existence restricting freedom
of association. Membership of trade associations was open to all
individuals without distinction of sex, age, nationality, or occupation.
There was no legal prohibition, no limitation by custom. Foreigners
permitted the exercise of civil rights were free to form associations.
It was generally conceded that the freedom of trade association,
which consisted essentially in the right to combine for the defence
of some interest or other, was not subject to any limitation based on
the assumption of degree of capacity for membership depending on
age, sex, or inferior occupational status (apprentices). As regards
officials, there was no prohibition of any kind, and in fact trade
unions of magistrates and police officials have been known. The
sole exception made was for citizens who formed part of the armed
forces of the State, who were forbidden by their regulations from
combining.
The constitution of trade associations was not subject to the
carrying out of any special formalities whether at their foundation or
later, whether normal or exceptional. The association was considered
constituted from the moment when it had gathered a considerable
number of members and possessed rules.
The registration of associations was permitted for definite limited
purposes. In the course of recent years it had been found necessary
to call upon the trade associations to appoint representatives, not
only to certain Government consultive bodies — Labour Committee,
Provident and Social Insurance Committee, etc. — but also to the
directorate of more important provident institutions — National
Provident Fund, National Accident Fund, etc.
But in virtue of the Royal Decree of 29 October 1922, No. 1,529,
it was ordained that the nomination of vocational representatives to
public committees and advisory committees should be regulated on
Freedom of Association

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

a proportional basis, the right to take part in the elections being
reserved exclusively to registered associations. T h e formalities and
guarantees of registration were laid down by t h e same Decree, which
looked forward to the setting u p at the Ministry of a register for
national associations a n d at the labour inspectorates of registers for
the regional, provincial a n d local associations. Applications for
registration had to be accompanied by documents proving that the
constitution was regular and showing the form of the association.
T h e constitution was to include everything essential that was customary for the proper w o r k i n g of the organisation. Registration as well as
the suppression of registration or suspension was decided b y commissions appointed for t h a t purpose, on which employers and workers
were to be represented. T h e effects of registration were explained
in section 14 as follows :
Associations of workers or employees registered in terms of the
present Decree shall be called upon to elect or appoint, on a basis of
proportional representation according to the number of their members
and in accordance with the rules hereinafter laid down and those which
will be drawn up by an administrative order, representatives of workers
or of employees to the public committees and the bodies to which the
said representatives are admitted.
The same right shall be granted to associations of industrial, agricultural or commercial employers duly registered as laid down by the
present Decree with reference to the public committees and bodies to
which industrial, agricultural or commercial employers are admitted and
which pursue the aims defined in the first section :
(a) The associations defined under section 2, (a) (national
associations of a general nature), shall be called upon to nominate
their representatives to the Committees and bodies having a national
sphere of action and concerned with industry or agriculture or trade
in general ;
(b) The associations defined under section 2, (b) (national associations grouped by categories of production or of commerce), shall
be called upon to appoint their representatives to the committees and
bodies having a national sphere of action and concerned specially
either with their own industry or the group of affiliated industries,
or their own agricultural products or the group of affiliated agricultural products, or the affiliated trades ;
(c) The associations defined under section 2, (c) (regional or local
associations of a general nature), shall be called upon to appoint their
representatives to the committees or bodies concerned with industry
or agriculture or commerce in general and having under their jurisdiction the territory in which they exercise their activities ;
(d) The associations defined under section 2, (d) (regional or
local associations grouped by categories of production or of commerce), shall be called upon to appoint their representatives to the
committees and bodies concerned either with their own industry or
the groups of related industries, or with their own agricultural
production or the group of related agricultural products and having
under their jurisdiction the territory in which they exercise their
activities.

ITALY

But this Decree, which had been very slowly and carefully drafted
and had not been issued without discussion of the various problems
raised by the recognition of trade associations, and which m i g h t seem
to be the beginning of an understanding between the numerous
conflicting interests 1 , was never applied.
However, in view of t h e considerable importance which t h e
associations had acquired in recent years a n d the lack of any special
law, legal practice had allowed t h e m a certain legal and social
competency. T h e positive content of this competency depended in
its essence on the agreements a n d facts which will be examined from
the point of view of the relations between the association and its
members and the relations between t h e associations and third persons.
T h e relations between the association and its members in general
may be outlined as follows :
(a) Membership was personal ; it was neither transferable
nor alienable.
(b) Successive joinings of the association were permitted,
as was also, under conditions laid down by the social constitution, resignation.
(c) T h e member was obliged to pay contributions
social purposes.

for

(d) T h e member was obliged to submit to the requirements
of discipline and solidarity. H e had therefore to fulfil all decisions of the association, even t h o u g h h e were of a different
opinion, provided that they k e p t within the limits of t h e
constitution and had been duly discussed. These provisions
covered strikes, stoppages of work and the contract of employment.
(e) T h e association possessed disciplinary powers which
found their concrete expression in t h e ability to suspend or expel
the member or impose a fine on him. T h e sanctions of these
obligations were of a civil n a t u r e .
T h e legal competency of trade associations in relation to third
parties was also recognised by the legal practice of that day. T h e y

See the report on the Bills Nos. 195 and 1,469 (Chamber of Deputies,
26th session) jrat forward under the signatures of Piemonte, Olivetti, and
Grandi Achille.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

had t h e power of acquisition a n d of ownership ; it was also granted,
although less unanimously, that they had the power of receiving
donations a n d it was likewise admitted that t h e association w a s
competent t o conclude contracts of employment for its members, to
appear in a court of justice a n d to exercise subsidiary trade union
functions.
Various schemes had been p u t forward in Italy with regard to
collective labour contracts, b u t n o n e h a d been ratified b y legislation.
However, there had grown u p in legal theory and in judicial practice
a certain number of principles, which might be outlined t h u s :
(a) T h e organs of t h e trade association h a d , within t h e
limits of their representative powers, t h e right to make collective
agreements which were binding on t h e members \
(6) T h e agreement entered into b y t h e association w a s
binding on those w h o might join it later.
(c) There was a tendency in theory and in judicial practice
to extend t h e collective agreement for i t s whole duration to
all t h e groups concerned, even including those which had not
taken part in it, w h e t h e r because they dissented or because they
had arrived later.
T h i s tendency towards the diffusion of
collective labour agreements appeared chiefly in t h e practice
of t h e Probiviral Courts, which sought to have t h e agreements
in force considered as obligatory local usages 2 .

The Act of 7 April 1921, No. 407, on the prorogation of agrarian
contracts, now abolished, laid down in section 17 that : " collective
agrarian agreements entered into by employers and land workers were
binding on all those who, at the moment when the agreements were
made, were members of an association therein represented ".
2

UFFICIO DEL LAVORO : Il probovirato

in Italia,

Rome, 1921 ;

and

the decisions of the Probiviral Courts published successively in the
Bollettino

del Lavoro.

Cf. CARLO COSTAMAGNA, op. cit., p. 161.

The

author sums up as follows the attitude of legal practice to the personal
and territorial radius of application of the collective agreement :
(a) effectiveness of the collective contract confined to the contracting
parties stricto sensit, to the exclusion of third parties : such was the
doctrine constantly maintained by the traditions of civil law which held
absolute sway in the practice of the courts and in the central commission
for private salaried employment ; (b) effectiveness of the collective
contract in respect of all the members of the categoty to which it referred,
whether or not they had been consenting parties ; (c) legal effectiveness
limited to the contracting parties but possessing- interpretative value for

ITALY

(d) T h e association was responsible for its own actions
and the actions of the persons representing it, but in view of the
practical difficulties which prevented a definite determination
of responsibility, it was found preferable to have recourse to a
system of real guarantees.
A s regards the competence to appear in a court' of justice,
Italian judicial practice had taken its inspiration successively from
three conflicting theories. I t was inspired first by the restrictive
system, according to which all the members act collectively, or give
authority to a person in whom they have confidence ; later it took
its inspiration from a mixed system, which distinguishes between
internal differences between the association and its members and
external differences between the association and third parties. I n
the first case the associations could appear in court either actively
t h r o u g h themselves or else through their authorised representatives.
In the second case, the members were to be parties to the suit either
directly or by mandate. I n recent times it was the extensive system
which generally triumphed. According to this system, the competency of the association de facto to appear in a court of justice was
recognised for all internal and external differences, either as plaintiff
or defendant, save that the third parties had the right, if they so
wished, to cite t h e association in t h e persons of all the members \
Finally, the trade association was authorised to exercise subsidiary
functions ; it had the right to promote and constitute within itself
organisations for co-operation and m u t u a l aid. T h e s e m u t u a l and
co-operative organisations, in so far as they were not constituted in
legal form, were considered as societies de facto.
I n a general way
the associations had been left free to dispose of their resources
within the limits of their constitutions. T h e y were therefore entirely
free to use them for supporting newspapers or in g r a n t i n g subsidies
to political parties.

analogous cases. This conception was upheld by a certain number of
decisions of the Probiviral Courts.
It is only quite recently that the Royal Court of Cassation finally
admitted the validity of the collective labour contract concluded by a
trade association de facto with reference to workers not connected with
the undertaking at the time of the agreement.
1
BORSATTI : La capacità processuale delle associazione prive di
personalità giuridica. Florence, 1906. MORTARA : Commentario al Codice
delle leggi di procedura civile, Voi. II, pp. 717 et seq.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

LEGAL LIMITATIONS TO THE ACTION OF T R A D E ASSOCIATIONS

The action of trade associations was confined within certain
limits : prohibitive limitations affecting the rights of certain categories of persons to combine for trade purposes ; preventive limitations establishing certain forms of control or of supervision ; finally,
repressive limitations, envisaging sanctions in case of violation of the
laws and offences against public order.
One important problem was that concerning officials and citizens
employed in the public services. It has been seen already that
officials, and therefore all the more those employed in the public
service, enjoy freedom of association, but their power to combine
for trade purposes did not include the right to strike. Section 181
of the Penal Code stated, indeed : " Public servants who, to the
number of three or more and after having previously planned
together, do irregularly abandon their proper duties, shall be punished
by a fine of 500 to 3,000 lire and by temporary removal from their
posts. "
The employees of the State Railway had been placed on the
same footing as public officials by section 56 of the Act of 7 July 1907,
No. 429, which stated : " All the employees of the railways
administered by the State, whatever be their grade or duties, shall
be considered as public employees. " This provision was repeated in
identical terms by section 115 of the Act of 9 May 1912, No. i,447,
which regulates the constitution of the secondary railways handed
over to private enterprise.
Finally, a seaman's contract of service had always been considered
as a public contract. It followed that in case of breach of contract
the sanctions were not only of a civil nature but also penal. In
fact, the seaman who, after signing on, left his ship and did not
return on board was guilty of the crime of desertion, which was
aggravated by conspiracy when it had been planned by at least three
members of the crew (Code of the Mercantile Marine, sections 266
and 267). The Code punished disobedience to the captain's orders
(sections 281 and 282) and insubordination marked by refusal to
serve and carry out the work of navigation until the conclusion of
the voyage, as it was defined in the contract on the basis of which
the seaman had signed on (sections 283-293). Other penalties were
incurred by mutiny, which consisted in presenting complaints
riotously and with threats, and which moreover could be committed
elsewhere than on board (sections 294-296).

ITALY

All these provisions, which were based on the necessity for
protecting the public services, did not, properly speaking, restrict
the freedom of membership of trade associations, but limited the
employment of certain methods of action usual to such associations.
The preventive limitations set to the freedom to combine for
trade purposes were, until quite recently, so to speak non-existent in
Italian law. The Public Safety Act (of 30 June 1889, No. 6,044)
prescribed in its first section that previous notice must be given of
all public meetings (with the exception of meetings of electors).
Police were present at the meetings and if they gave rise to seditious
demonstrations or to disturbances they were dissolved. These provisions in fact made subject to police control all public meetings,
which, in practice, could also be prohibited by order of the prefect
under the political responsibility of the Cabinet. Private meetings
were uncontrolled, but the police had the right of surveillance from
without ; they could not interfere except in case of crime or
disturbances.
The repressive limitations referred to violations of the right to
work 1 and to dissolution by administrative or judicial means. The
question whether, in the eyes of Italian general law, it is illegal to
dissolve trade associations and associations more generally had never
been definitely decided. In any case, in the whole arsenal of positive
State laws there was not a single line to be found which authorised
the State or the police to dissolve an association as a preventive
measure as long as there had been no crime or misdemeanour. But
in practice, from 1862 several associations had been dissolved with
or without denunciation before the judicial authorities, so that
finally, quite outside the proper limits of the law, there had come
into existence a kind of zone of vague general legality, the limits
of which were left to the discretion of the Government or of
Parliament. But from 1900 until the most recent years the associations had enjoyed complete freedom of development.
To sum up, the legal position of the trade associations before
the Fascist reforms appeared as follows : recognition of the right of
combination and the right to strike since the promulgation of the new
Penal Code in 1890 ; legal recognition of the right of association by
the Constitution and formal recognition of this right by Government

See pp. 12 et seq.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

practice since 1900 ; possibility of legal action by a trade association
in the name of its members in their relations with third parties (right
of entering into collective contracts and appearing in court to uphold
the enforcement of such c o n t r a c t s ) , a n d in their relations with public
authorities (participation in a great number of State consultative
bodies). Generally speaking, trade associations were completely free
to extend their activities save for the limitations imposed by general
law.
T h i s position was to be greatly modified in fact, first of all as
a result of the upheaval in Italy after the war, and then in law with
the arrival of the Fascist Government.
§ 3. — The " de facto " Position of the Trade Union Movement
before the Fascist Reforms
T h e history of trade unionism after the war is interwoven with
the general history of Italy in t h e last few years. Considering it
generally and as a whole, it is possible to distinguish two periods : a
first period characterised by feverish activity among the Socialist
trade unions from 1919 to the middle of 1922, and a severe period
characterised by the predominance of Fascist activity. I n the course
of the first period the trade union struggle was dominated by the
idea of realising completely, by taking over the means of production,
all the r i g h t s claimed b y t h e proletariat. T h e struggle developed
with great intensity in industry and agriculture as well as among
seamen. I t was stronger in U p p e r Italy, and particularly in the
great valley of the Po and in the surrounding spurs of
t h e Apennines.
I t grew gradually weaker towards the South,
more lost in the life of t h e locality, more deeply influenced
by ancient traditions and adapted to ordered and established
social conditions. I t seemed at first as if the struggle would end in
a social upheaval. But the curve reached its zenith in a u t u m n 1920
with the occupation of t h e factories and the general invasion of landed
property. After this period t h e curve fell continuously, the produci n g classes recovered their fighting spirit and combined with all
their weight and all their power under the stimulus of a common
danger, while the workers, disappointed at the lack of success of
their most powerful efforts, began to disband.
T h e situation in Italy during this period can be illustrated by
the statistics of strikes, which nevertheless give only a very faint

ITALY

approximation to t h e t r u t h , seeing t h a t a good number of strikes
escaped statistical returns. Contrast t h e figures for a period of three
normal years, say, from 1911 to 1913, w i t h t h e period from 1919
to 1921 *:
Days of Strike
Years
191I
1912
1913

Average of the three years,
1911-1914 . . .
1919
1920
1921 . . . . .

Average of the .three years,
1919-1921 . . .

Agriculture-

Industry

Total?

1,863,564
921,217
/03,3?6

2,477,798
1,968,198
3,839,240

4,341,2/2
2,889,415
4,542,636

1,162,726

2,761,715

3,924,441

3,436,829
14,170,961
407,393

18,887,917
16,398,227
7,772,870

22,324,746
30,569,188
8,180,263

6,005,061

14,353,005

20,358,066

T h e figures show that from 1021 onwards t h e revolutionary
trade union push had already been definitely held u p . I n 1922 t h e
strike figures continue t o fall, although b u t slightly.
T h e fall
becomes more rapid in 1923 a n d continues in 1924 a n d 1925.
T h e causes of t h e triumph of the revolutionary sections of opinion
in t h e earlier period were varied a n d complex. T h e y were at once
psychological, economic, social, a n d political. I t is unnecessary t o
analyse them in detail. I t is important however to examine in outline
t h e reasons which determined t h e choice of t h e means employed. T h e
desire to secure a monopoly of labour — t h e old ambition of the trade
union movement — ceased to b e considered as a mere condition of
successful tactics in t h e struggle for wages a n d for a general fixed
scale, b u t was held to be t h e indispensable means of securing an
advantageous position in view of " t h e decisive attack " which was
to b e launched against t h e employers.
T h i s privileged position of t h e Socialist trade unions found
practical expression in the maintenance of a n almost complete monopoly w i t h regard to t h e conclusion of collective agreements a n d t h e
representation of wage-earners on labour advisory bodies and joint
employment exchanges.

The figures are taken from the publication of the MINISTRY FOR

ECONOMIC A F F A I R S :

Rome, 1924.

Conflitti

del Lavoro

nel

decennio

1Q14 à 1Q23 ;

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

The trade union methods of action became more violent ; hence
the succession of strikes, economic and political, local and national,
confined to one trade or general, extending to the most necessary
vital services (railways, tramways, shipping, foodstuffs, lighting).
And along with the strikes went, almost everywhere, individual and
collective threats and acts of violence against persons and things,
riotous agitation in the fields, in shops, in the streets ; there was a
rigorous labour monopoly applied by the severest methods, from
strict, irritating boycotting to the infliction of fines in the country
districts on workers guilty of infringement of trade union discipline.
The hope was indulged in that by the help of such proceedings
it would be possible to obtain not only an immediate improvement
in economic conditions, but also a monopoly of employment and
seizure of the factories by participation in the administration of the
undertakings. Trade union activity moreover was supported by
political activity : numerous seats in Parliament were won and also a
great number of seats in local administrations, and a constant and
energetic pressure was exercised on all kinds of authorities.
The struggle reached its height with the occupation of the
estates and factories. " The land for the peasants ", this slogan
raised during the war was a germ which grew.and bore fruit, especially
in the districts of extensive estates and vast domains where labour
is less bound to the soil than elsewhere and where the life of the
workers was harder and more precarious. More or less everywhere,
but especially in Sicily and Latium, a great number of estates, nearly
always extensive arable estates, were seized in IQIQ and 1920. Private
organisations, at the instigation of municipal parties, hastened to
take possession of the large domains, particularly those which were
within their more immediate reach.
The State sought to stem the movement and to create an irrevocable title to possession based on occupation, and in exceptional
cases a title to ownership, while at the same time insisting on the
payment of the market price.
But thè most important episode in the history of those years was
the occupation of the factories, which took place in September 1920
on the occasion of a conflict in the metal industry. The number of
workers who took part is estimated at about 600,000, chiefly in
Piedmont, Lombardy, and Liguria. The Government allowed the
workers to take possession of the factories and to continue to work
them. But the attempt failed and the trade union leaders tried to

ITALY

¿J

find another solution of their difficulties. A t the meeting held at
Milan on 10 and 11 September between the Council of t h e General
Confederation of Labour, t h e organs of t h e Socialist P a r t y , a n d of
a certain n u m b e r of independent federations, a resolution was passed
by which it was decided to set u p as t h e aim of t h e struggle State
recognition of the principle of trade union control in industry. T h e
President of t h e Council, indeed, opened negotiations with owners
a n d workers, negotiations which ended in t h e Presidential Decree
of 19 September, worded as follows :
The President of the Ministerial Council (acting on an agreement in
principle arrived at between the General Confederation of Labour
and the General Confederation of Industry, deciding on management by industrial categories) decrees : There shall be set up
a Joint Commission of six members nominated by the General
Confederation of Labour and of six members nominated by the General
Confederation of Industry, two from each party being technicians or
employees ; the said Commission shall draw u p proposals which will
permit the Government to put forward a Bill for organising industries on
a basis of participation by the workers in the technical or financial
management or in the administration of the undertaking.
But within t h e Commission t h e representatives of t h e employers
and those of the workers did not succeed in reaching an agreement
over t h e e x t e n t a n d methods of t h e control \
Mr. Giolitti drew u p a compromise Bill, which h e laid before t h e
Chamber without delay and which he presented a second time before
the following Government. But there was no one, even among the
Socialists, who demanded that it should be discussed.
T h e results of the tremendous effort of t h e mass of t h e workers
were not long in showing themselves t o be deceptive.
T h i s reverse of t h e independent trade union movement, indeed, is
the forerunner of the rise of a new trade union movement, bold in
attack : t h e Fascist movement. T h e first Fascist trade union came
into being in J a n u a r y 1921, at F e r r a r a . Helped b y the political
successes of the Fascist P a r t y , t h e Corporations — t h e name by
which they were at first known — spread very rapidly and
were united in the Confederation of Fascist Corporations.
As
this movement increased in extent a n d influence the leaders
of Fascist trade unionism strove to set u p their own principles

BALELLA : //. controllo delle Industrie : Rome, 1921. Cf. INTER-

NATIONAL LABOUR OFFICE : The Dispute

in the Metal Industry

Studies and Reports, Series A, Nos. 2 and 11.

Italy,

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

and m e t h o d s , of action in opposition to the programme of
the old independent trade unions. But it w a s not until the
congress of the Corporations of 5 October 1924 that they definitely
established their programme. T h e old Article 5, the first two parag r a p h s of which have become the present Article 5 of the constitution
of the Confederation of Fascist T r a d e Unions, states it t h u s :
The Confederation, considering that the social structure based on the
trade unions is developing as a representative of the interests of all professional branches and of all classes (interests which tend to build between
the classes a network of economic and social relations which are such
as to determine and define the social functions of each), maintains that
the trade union is established as the essence of all the branches of production and, as such, is identified with the needs and the processes of
production and is incorporated in the nation as a supreme synthesis of
all the moral and spiritual values of the race.
The Confederation maintains that the common interests and duties
of all branches and all classes consist in work and in intensive and,
growing production in proportion to the growing needs of the nation as
also in struggling against parasitism, the squandering of wealth, and
speculation in the essentials of existence. It is for those reasons' that
trade unionism is the expression of the demands of a society in which
the problems of production and cultivation are of the highest importance,
seeking to put all organised productive forces under the control which
science and technical progress demand.
The Confederation admits all types and all systems of production
and of labour, inasmuch as they represent the result of technical and
administrative ability and of foresight; qualities which are indispensable
for the success of any undertaking, and inasmuch as they work in the
field of free competition, admitting neither admixture nor illicit interference on the part of Government bodies.
The Confederation maintains that classes are necessary, seeing that
each has its special function which is essential for the orderly accomplishment of the common task, a division of labour which is indispensable for
the national organisation of labour and production. Hence the dynamic
law of social history does not consist so much in an irreconcilable classwarfare, which would finally prove a denial of the real purpose of society
and reduce it to chaos, as in a struggle of ability, that is to sa}', a
struggle carried on by groups of occupational categories which are
acquiring the ability to carry out the work of management, against groups
of categories which are beginning to lose the ability to fulfil the duties
of control.
The Confederation therefore maintains that the historical justification
of every revolution is to be found, not in poverty, discontent, or a spirit
of discord, but in the peculiar merit of groups which are being formed
or renewed in the bosom of society.
Consequently revolution cannot be hastened or advanced, but can
be nothing more than the passing of supreme power into more capable
hands. The principle of the conflict of ability implies as a rule a
sectional struggle which may also exercise the right to strike, but which
is not entitled to do so unless the strike or other similar forms of
specialised action are likely to remain strictly localised, attacking only
those groups which it is legitimate to eliminate in the interests of laboul
and of national production.
T h e Fascist movement came into existence as a reaction to
defend society against the excesses of independent trade unionism.

ITAXrY

I n its first phase the Fascist reaction was purely destructive. W i t h
all its strength and by all possible means it sought to destroy what
it considered to be the germs of the malady which was infecting t h e
nation. Armed battalions occupied the town halls, provident institutions, association offices, hindered the strikes, pillaged the political
clubs, the trade unions, the mutual-aid societies and the co-operative
societies \
W i t h the coming of the Fascist Government the aspect of events
changed. T h e desire of the Fascist P a r t y to be one with the nation
encouraged it to seek to achieve a new and more extensive monopoly
both over the trade union sphere and over the sphere of labour
relations. T o attain this end the Fascist corporations aimed at t h e
suppression of the independent trade unions and the absorption of
the associations of employers. But if the workers' associations had
felt the weight of the destructive attack, the employers' associations
remained for a time unmoved. T h e corporations succeeded nevertheless in absorbing first of all the Confederation of Agriculture, and
finally in being recognised by the General Confederation of I n d u s t r y
as the sole representative of labour.
T h e Fascist movement, at the same time as it tried to absorb the
existing trade associations, sought also to swallow up in its own
organisation all the social classes and particularly those groups of
citizens (salaried employees, liberal professions, etc.). which u p to
then had to some extent at least remained outside the bounds of trade
union protection.
T h e Fascist trade associations, moreover, promoted the setting
u p of technical councils, such as t h e expert groups entrusted on t h e
one hand with the establishment of relations between the trade
associations and various sections, and on the other hand with the
preparation of plans for a constitutional transformation which would
bring about a n integral and centralised organisation of the social
forces of the country 2 .
W h e n Fascism appeared it had enjoyed the strong sympathy of
the employing class in agriculture. T h e r e were also a good number

1
Cf. discussions of the Seventh and Eighth Sessions of the International Labour Conference, Report of the International
Labour
Conference, 1925. Vol. II, pp. 609-639 ; ibid., 1926, Vol. I, pp. 315-327.
2
Cf. CARLO COSTAMAGNA : II problema dei consigli tecnici.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

of people to be found who favoured the idea of making the corporations a basis of the agricultural employers' association movement.
The resistance of the leaders of the Confederation brought about
the secession of a large section of the agriculturists, who formed at
Bologna the Italian Federation of Agricultural Associations
(F.I.S.A.). The instigators of the secession believed that by this
step they would give a more vigorous impulse to the movement by
means of a closer fusion with the party in power. The year 1923
saw the development of a duel with blunted foils between the old
Confederation and the corporations. Finally, on 19 February 1924,
a treaty of amalgamation was concluded.
The Fascist corporations tried to absorb the General Confederation
of Industry as well, but the leaders of the Confederation succeeded
in maintaining its autonomy for the time being. The employers'
associations hesitated indeed to break with the independent trade
unions, which, although at the moment disorganised, could yet count
on the faithful support of the industrial workers in the great urban
centres, who were less exposed to political pressure than those in
small centres. The independent trade unions therefore continued
to exert a definite influence on labour conditions, either by collective
bargaining or by the action of the internal committees. These
committees had been instituted by an agreement between the
employers and the trade unions in order to supervise the enforcement
of contracts made and to be the interpreter of labour claims to the
heads of undertakings. The members of the committees were elected
by universal suffrage among the workers of the various establishments,
and the independent trade unions always secured the success of
their candidates.
However, the corporations did abandon the struggle. They took
part ex officio in the drawing up of contracts of employment, without
troubling about being empowered to do so, in order that they might
present to the body of workers the signed agreement already settled,
so as to give them the impression that they had no other means of
defending their interests. At the same time they continued their
efforts to obtain recognition from the General Confederation of
Industry as the sole representatives of labour to the manufacturers.
After long negotiations they at last won their point, thanks to the
help of political power : the Fascist Grand Council, under the
presidency of Mr. Mussolini, passed a resolution (November 1923)
by which, " recognising that the majority of the forces of Italian

ITALY

í1

industry are banded together in the General Confederation of
I n d u s t r y ", it declared that " it had not the remotest intention of
creating schisms or imperilling the effective action, either technical
or moral, of this body ", b u t demanded t h a t " the said Confederation
should remember this in its relations w i t h the Fascist trade unions ".
T h i s appeal was listened to. On 19 December, the General Confederation of Industry and the Fascist corporations reached the
following agreement :
The General Confederation of Industry and the General Confederation
of Fascist Corporations :
In pursuit of their common aim of harmonising their own activities
with the guiding principles which inspire the Government of the nation,
which has repeatedly affirmed its conviction that a sincere agreement
and determination to work among leaders of industry, technicians, and
workers is the surest method of increasing the welfare of all classes
and the wealth of the nation ;
And recognising the perfect correctness of this political view and the
necessity of making it play an effective part among all the productive
forces of the nation ;
Declaring that the wealth of the country, the chief condition of its
political power, may be quickty increased, and that it is possible to spare
both workers and employers the losses and harm resulting from interruptions of work, if harmony between the various elements of production
assures the continuity and peacefulness of industrial development :
Do lay down as an irrefutable principle that the organisation of
trade associations should not be inspired by an irreconcilable conflict
of interests between manufacturers and workers, but on the contrary
should be permeated by the necessity of binding more and more closely
the individual ties between their associations with a view to securing
for all the factors of production the best possible conditions for carrying
out their respective duties and the most equitable reward for their labour,
a principle which ought to be reflected likewise in the clauses of
contracts of employment concluded in the spirit of national trade
unionism ;
And do decide :
(a) that the Confederation of Industry and the Confederation
of Fascist Corporations shall intensify their activity so as to organise
respectively the manufacturers and the workers, with the firm intention of working harmoniously together ;
(b) to appoint a standing committee composed of five members
from each of the contracting parties, which shall have the duty of
seeing that the ideas expressed above are more thoroughly carried
out, at the centre as well as on the outskirts, by uniting the governing
bodies of both Confederations, so that the activities of the associations
may develop in accordance with the guiding principles approved
by the head of the Government.
But this friendly alliance was merely the prelude to an agreement
of m u c h greater importance arrived at on 2 October 1925, which
ratified de fació the sole right of t h e Fascist corporations as representatives' of the Italian industrial class.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

H e r e is the text of the agreement :
i. The General Confederation of Industry recognises that the
Confederation of Fascist Corporations and the dependent organisations
are the sole representatives of the workers.
2. The Confederation of Fascist Corporations recognises that the
General Confederation of Industry and the dependent organisations are
the sole representatives of the manufacturers.
3. All contractual agreements between employers and workers shall
be secured by an organisation subordinate to the Confederation of Fascist
Corporations and the Confederation of Industry.
4. The internal committees are abolished and their duties transferred
to the local Fascist association.
T h e vast import of this agreement cannot be better shown than
by recalling the words of appreciation used by the author of the Act
of 3 April 1926 :
The agreement of 2 October 1925 [he writes in the preamble] between
the General Confederation of Industry and the Confederation of Fascist
Corporations, by which the two organisations recognise each other's
position as sole lawful representatives of employers and workers in
industry, marks the triumph of national trade unionism and paves the
way for the most profound transformation that any State has undergone
since the French Revolution, and which the Fascist Government is
inaugurating by the Bill submitted for your approval l .

Preamble, p. 4.

CHAPTER II
PRESENT

LEGAL

POSITION

TRADE

ASSOCIATIONS

§ 1. — Constitutional Reform and Preparatory W o r k
for the Reform of Trade Associations
THE

S P I R I T OF T R A D E UNION

LEGISLATION

T r a d e union legislation, spurred into action by these events, can
be explained, according to its authors, only in terms of the Fascist
theory of t h e State. I t will be well then to commence by considering
the part which the State proposes to assume in this new regime.
A brief comparison of two contradictory points of view, or rather of
two contradictory professions of faith, will serve better t h a n any
long discussion to make the matter clear.
Waldeck-Rousseau, originator of the Act of 21 March 1884, laid
down in t h e following terms, in his Circular to t h e Prefects on
25 A u g u s t 1884, t h e attitude of the Government to the new trade
union legislation :
In removing all barriers to the industrial associations' right to
combine, the Act of 21 March 1884 has, in the same spirit of freedom,
abolished all preliminary authorisation, all arbitrary prohibitions, all
special formalities. . . . Were the duty of the State confined exclusively
to the strict supervision of the enforcement of the laws, your intervention
would doubtless be rarely required. . . . Your duty, however, is more
comprehensive, and you are expected to encourage the spirit of association, to stimulate it, to facilitate the generalisation of this Act of liberty,
to make its practice as easy as possible and to smooth out the difficulties
which will certainly arise from inexperience and want of habit '.
T h e Act of 1884 inaugurated the policy of freedom of occupational
association in France. According to this new policy which has
prevailed in legislation after having won its position in fact, freedom
of association is conceived as a complement of individual liberty.

See Vol. II of this work : " France ", p . 100.

Freedom of Association

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

I t is t h e t r i u m p h of that principle of freedom of trade association
which h a s prevailed in F r e n c h law, b u t which to-day, in almost t h e
same forms, is also the basis of trade union legislation in most
countries.
Henceforth the State recognises independent trade
associations, encourages their progress, b u t refuses to submit them
to a n y other discipline than t h a t imposed by general law and
public order.
N o w t h e rôle assumed b y t h e ruling power in t h e Italian trade
union system is quite different :
The Fascist State [says the preamble] which we wish to achieve,
and which we are on the point of achieving, is the really sovereign State
dominating all the existing forces of the country and directing them
towards the historical aims of the nation *.
According to my conception of Fascism [added, for his part, the
President of the Council] everything is in the State, nothing is outside
the State, and above all nothing is hostile to the State 3 .
T h e State t h u s conceived cannot restrict itself to an attitude of
benevolent neutrality, " b u t must take into its own h a n d s t h e
question of t h e relationships between capital and labour and must
find a solution which tends to peaceful collaboration between social
groups and an increased revenue from national production " 3 . T h e
State t h u s asserts its supremacy in economic affairs a s well as in t h e
realm of politics, it repudiates at the same time economic Liberalism
characterised by the neutrality of the State and also t h e Socialism of
class warfare, and insists upon " t h e genuine solidarity of all classes
of a poor people which must march towards the future like an army
in battle array ". 4 .
F r o m those quotations, which might have been multiplied, t w o
g u i d i n g ideas of the new reform can be clearly distinguished ; first,
the subordination of t h e activity of trade associations to t h e control
of t h e Government ; secondly, class co-operation with a view to
increasing the power and wealth of t h e State, and t h e necessity of
moulding this co-operation from now on in legal formulas.
T h e task of creating t h e legal i n s t r u m e n t of t h e new social and
trade union organisation had been entrusted to a Committee of
1
Preamble to the Bill for regulating collective labour relations, p. 4,
col. 2. Cf. sections I and II of the Labour Charter.
3
Parliamentary Documents, Speech of the Prime Minister in the
Senate, in Trade Union Reform in Italy, p . 206.
3
Ibid., Preamble, p. 5.
4
Ibid., p . 4.

ITALY

eighteen members appointed by Decree of the President of the Council dated i J a n u a r y 1925. T h i s was a double task. I n the first place
there was the constitutional side, the regulating of the relations of
the different authorities with each other ; the other task was the
social one of regulating the relations between the State and the
associations. A s regards t h e first of these problems, the work of the
Committee resulted in various proposals which implied important
amendments, if not in the letter, at least in the spirit of the constitution of 1848 \
T h e s e proposals with certain important alterations have since
been included in the statute book. I t is not necessary here to analyse
the different measures in detail, far less to estimate their political
i m p o r t a n c e 2 , but as the whole trade union organisation can be
conceived only in terms of the preceding political reforms, these
must be at least briefly mentioned..
CONSTITUTIONAL R E F O R M

Strengthening

of the Executive

Power

T h e first group of these Acts refers to the strengthening of the
powers of the Leader of the Government a n d of his direct agents in
the provinces and in the communes.
T h e Act of 24 December 1925 on the attributes and prerogatives
of the Leader of the Government, P r i m e Minister, and Secretary of
State lays down in particular :
Section 2. — The Leader of the Government, Prime Minister, and
Secretary of State shall be appointed and dismissed by the King and
shall be responsible to the King for the general political administration
of the Government. The Decree of appointment of the Leader of the
Government and Prime Minister shall be countersigned by himself, that
of his dismissal by his successor.
The Secretaries of State shall be appointed and dismissed by the
King on the recommendation of the Leader of the Government and Prime
Minister. They shall be responsible to the King and to the Leader of
the Government for all their actions and for all the measures of their
Ministries.
1
See the report and proposals of the President's Committee for the
study of constitutional reforms : p. 81, proposed Act to regulate certain
relations between the Government and the Chamber ; p. 82, proposal to
amend Article 35 of the constitution ; p. 84, proposed Act on the
procedure to be observed in the promulgation of laws and regulations.
2
Cf. A. Rocco : " La réforme constitutionnelle en Italie ", in Revue
politique et parlementaire, Vol. CXXVI, pp. 329-345.

FREEDOM OP ASSOCIATION

The Under-Secretaries of State shall be appointed and dismissed by
the King on the recommendation of the Leader oi the Government, in
agreement with the Minister concerned.
Section 6. — No Bill may be put forward in either of the two
Chambers without the consent of the Leader of the Government.
The Leader of the Government shall have the power to insist that a
Bill rejected by either of the Chambers shall be voted upon again when
at least three months have elapsed since the first vote. In this case,
voting on the Bill shall be proceeded with by secret ballot without discussion. vShould the Government, in demanding a fresh vote, put forward
amendments, the examination and discussion of the Bill shall be limited
to the amendments ; voting on the Bill by secret ballot shall then be
proceeded with.
The Leader of the Government shall also have the power to demand
that a Bill rejected by one Chamber shall be laid before the other to be
examined and voted upon.
When a Bill already passed by one Chamber is passed by the other
with amendments, the fresh examination and the fresh discussion in the
Chamber to which the Bill is returned shall be limited to the amendments ;
thereupon voting on the Bill" by secret ballot shall be proceeded with.
As this Act makes the President of the Council the real Leader
of the Government, so the Act of 3 April 1026, on the extension
of the powers of the Prefects, makes his direct agents the real heads
of the provinces \
T h e same idea finally inspired the institution of Governors 2 in
the most important towns and Podestas in all other towns of the
Kingdom 3 . Governors and Podestas, nominated by the Government,
assume in their respective spheres all the powers which formerly
belonged to the mayors, to the aldermen's corporations
(collège
4
échevinal),
a n d to the municipal councils .
Delegation

of Legislative

Power

to the

Executive

A second group of Acts grants the executive enormous power in
legislative matters, of which t h e Government made great use in the
application of trade union laws.

1
Gazzetta Ufficiale, Act No. 660 : Extension of the powers of the
Prefects.
2
Ibid., Act No. 1,949 : Institution of -^and regulations for the
Governor of Rome.
3
Act of 4 Feb. 1926, institution of Podestas and municipal councils •
in the communes whose population does not exceed 5,000 inhabitants,
completed by the Legislative Decree of 3 Sept. 1926, which extends the
institution of Podestas to all the towns of Italy.
* The part played by the recognised associations in the councils by
which the representatives of authority are surrounded will be examined
later. Cf. " Part Played in Political Life ", p. 128.

ITALY

T h e Act of 31 January 1926 on the power of the executive to
promulgate legal rules ' gives the Government the right to promulgate,
by Royal Decree, such rules as are necessary for regulating the
enforcement of laws, the use which the executive makes of its
powers, the organisation and working of the State administrations,
t h e organisation of the staff attached thereto, the organisation of
civil personalities and of public institutions. Besides, the Governm e n t may, by Royal Decree, after discussion by the Cabinet Council,
publish regulations having t h e force of law : when t h e right to do
so has been delegated to the Government a n d within the limits of
this delegation, or in exceptional cases w h e r e urgent reasons and
absolute necessity make it essential. T h e decision as to the necessity
and urgency is not subject to any control save the political control
of Parliament.
I n these t w o cases t h e Royal Decree m u s t contain a clause
regarding its presentation to Parliament to be made law, and it
becomes null a n d void if not t h u s p u t forward to be made law in one
of t h e t w o Chambers during one of t h e three sessions following its
publication.
T h e Act of 24. December 1925 for its part delegates to the
Government the power to amend the P e n a l Code, t h e code of penal
procedure, and the laws on judicial organisation, and to introduce
fresh a m e n d m e n t s or additions to the Civil Code.
T h e first section authorises the Government :
(1) To amend in the Penal Code the provisions concerning the
system of penalties, the effects and carrying out of penal sentences, the
clauses which exclude or lessen criminal liability, relapses, annulment
of the action and of penal sentences, and the provisions concerning every
offence and the respective punishments, to adapt them to fresh exigencies
of economic and social conditions, as well as to amend the sections of the
Code itself which traditionally give rise to discussion or have been
recognised as imperfectly formulated ;
(2) To modify the laws on judicial organisation, other laws concerning the organisation of the Ministry of Justice, of the law courts and of
the judicial personnel in all its branches ; to bring the rules of judicial
organisation into harmony with the new Codes of Civil Procedure and
of Penal Procedure and to publish a fresh single text of the Act on
judicial organisation ;
(3) To co-ordinate the new provisions of the Penal Code, the Code
of Penal Procedure and the Acts on judicial organisation, and those
relating to the same subject contained im other Acts, incorporating if
necessary the provisions of the latter in the two Codes and in the single
text on judicial organisation ; to amend, always with a view to coordination, other Acts.
1

Gazzetta Ufficiale, Act No. 100.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

Section 3 authorises H i s Majesty's Government moreover : to
introduce in the Civil Code other amendments and additions besides
those indicated in t h e first section, N o . i , of t h e Act of 30 December 1923, N o . 2,814, at the same time preserving the fundamental
principles of the institutions.
It also authorises it to establish co-ordination between the provisions of this Code a n d those which refer to the same subject in
other Acts, incorporating the latter in the Code and amending them
if necessary,, always with the same purpose of co-ordination.
Finally, the Act of 31 December 1925 authorises H i s Majesty's
Government to amend the provisions of the Acts on public safety
and to establish their co-ordination with those referring to the same
subject contained in the Code of Penal Procedure and in other Acts
and to publish a new consolidated text of the Acts on public safety l .
T h a n k s to this extensive delegation of authority, the Government found itself armed to undertake trade union reform, which, as
is well k n o w n , is merely the starting point of a much vaster reform
seeking to reorganise Italian society on an entirely new basis.
The Preparatory

Work

for Trade

Union

Reform

T h e second problem, the trade union problem properly speaking,
with which the Committee of Eighteen was entrusted, has been the
object of two draft Bills, complementing each other. T h e first deals
with the legal recognition of trade unions and the second with
corporate organisation. Both have helped in the building up of the
new trade union law and an analysis of them as a preliminary will
serve to make clear its inspiration.
Draft Bill for the Legal Recognition
of Trade Associations 2. —
I n conformity with the political premises which form the basis of all
Italian legislation, legal recognition is accorded to trade associations
above all in the superior interest of the State rather t h a n in their own
interest \
I t follows that the State is sovereign judge of the
opportuneness or otherwise of endowing trade associations w i t h a
moral personality, a privilege which it will hold subject to the
1

In virtue of this Act the Royal Decree of 6 Nov. 1926, No. 1,848,
was promulgated, approving the single text of the Acts on public safety.
Cf. " The legal and de facto Regulation of Independent Trade Unions ",
pp. 138 et &eq.
2
Report", op. cit., Appendix, pp. 89-102.
3

Ibid.,

p . 102.

ITALY

conditions which it may please to lay down. These conditions may
be summed u p in one single fundamental one : the special activity
of collective bodies m u s t never spread to t h e extent of clashing w i t h
the general weal \
Consequently legal registration will not be proceeded with
wholesale, but shall b e dealt w i t h case by case as may be decreed
by the administrative authorities. T h e guardianship of the State
over t h e associations will continue to b e exercised during t h e whole
of their active existence. I n case of violation of the provisions of
t h e Act or of the spirit which inspires it, the Prefect and the Minister
may decree the dissolution of the administrative councils or t h e
suppression of the associations themselves.
Certain of the principles of t h e proposal have been sanctioned
b y the Act of 3 April, others again have been sacrificed. T h u s , for
example, the Committee, while prohibiting political strikes, granted
trade associations the right of defending, even by a stoppage of work,
the economic interests of the groups represented. Moreover, accordi n g to t h e general opinion of t h e Committee, there was n o t h i n g to
prevent the legal recognition of several t r a d e associations i n categories \
I t will be seen later for what reasons the Government
deliberately p u t aside these two suggestions.
T h e Committee had refused to (acknowledge t h a t t h e trade
associations h a d a n y administrative, social or political attributes ;
these it considered reserved for the corporate organisations.
The
Committee of E i g h t e e n considered in short that in order to realise
completely the programme of State reform the group trade associations ought to merge into the national corporations, the organisation
of which was provided for in the second draft Bill.
Draft Bill on Corporate Organisation".
— T h e idea and scope
of t h e new corporate organisation are defined by the first section of
the draft Bill in the following terms .
In order to promote co-operation and a sense of unity between the
different classes of citizens, to further by an equitable adjustment of
interests the general prosperity of the nation and to secure sovereign
control for the State over all the forces of the nation, there shall be
created a national corporate organisation, which shall include all the
citizens who are divided into different groups according to their economic
activities, and which shall absorb all existing institutions.
1
2
3

Report, op. cit., Appendix, p. 96.
Ibid., p. 97.
Report of the Committee of Eighteen, Appendix, pp. 103 et seq.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

Such being the general programme, the following are some of
the details of the structure and working of the Corporations :
All active citizens will, according to their occupations, belong to
the following three groups :
i.

Liberal professions ; arts and crafts and public offices ;

Agriculture, including all the special branches of agricultural work : proprietors, lessors of landed property, tenants,
" métayers ", technical'workers and farm labourers ;

Industries, commerce, urban or personal property, divided
in turn into different groups according to the purpose of
their activity.
In each province will be set up three Chambers corresponding
to these three groups and able to be federated into national or regional
unions. Each Chamber is represented by an executive committee and
a council 1 .
The three provincial Chambers will constitute the Corporate
College of the province, likewise with a committee and a council.
The provincial colleges will elect representatives to the National
Corporate Council, which in its turn is divided into three committees
which can meet for the discussion of matters affecting all in common. The choice of the President elected by the Council must have
the approval of the Government.
The attributes of the corporate organisations were to be very
far-reaching and to cover all the field of national production. They
were to have at the same time disciplinary, regulatory, advisory and
active administrative functions. As regards the disciplinary attributes, they had the power to settle by means of compulsory arbitration labour disputes affecting the public services ; to intervene at
the request of the interested parties on both sides in disputes
between employers and workers not affecting the public services ;
to give, when requested by the public authorities, their opinion on
collective disputes which have not been submitted to arbitration ;
1
The representatives in the provincial Chambers were tö be elected
by the citizens enrolled in the vocational registers of the commune.
According to the principles formulated by the Committee, the election
regulations to be drawn up later were to provide for the number of
representatives allowed to each Chamber and to each section of the
Chamber and for the method of election so as to secure adequate
representation of the various forms of national activity in proportion to
their economic and social importance.

ITALY

to ratify collective agreements concluded by legally recognised
trade associations ; to superintend the working of the Provisional
Courts and committees for private salaried employment.
The authorities of the corporations will have, in the second
place, the right of issuing regulations for disciplining the economic
and social forces which they represent. In the exercise of this
power and to secure the accomplishment of their task, they will be
empowered to impose, subject to the approval of the administrative
authorities, the payment of membership subscriptions in the
respective groups.
The organisation of the Corporations are bound, moreover, to
give their opinion on all questions submitted to them by the
authorities.
They will finally be endowed with active administrative
functions, the chief among them being : completion of the occupational registers and registration of recognised trade associations ; the
drawing up of statistics ; defining the usages and customs of trade ;
supervision of the enforcement of laws and regulations for the
protection of labour ; co-ordination of the different forms of economic
and occupational activity with a view to reducing the cost of
production and encouraging specialisation and unification of undertakings ; obtaining employment for workers and taking measures to
prevent forced unemployment ; vocational training ; provident and
mutual-aid work ; organisation of assistance for emigration within
the country or abroad ; organisation of saving and of the various
forms of insurance and of health assistance ; assistance to families
in case of death ; supervision and employment of minors ; institution
of pension funds, etc.
The adoption of the corporate regime will in addition entail
profound changes in the system of political representation. Half of
the deputies, henceforth, will be elected by the Corporate Colleges
by voting on the second ballot system, by the members of the Council
of the Chamber in charge at the moment of the election.
The working of the corporate organisation will be placed under
the control of the public authorities. The Government will have in
particular the power of dissolving the corporate organisations in case
of violation of the law and in the interests of public order.
Those two proposals constitute the basis of existing trade union
legislation. The Act of 3 April 1926 has adopted indeed most of
the ideas of the Committee of Eighteen. Nevertheless the Govern-

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

ment has abandoned, in the meantime at any rate, the plans for an
integral corporate organisation ; the reasons for this were partly
practical, partly questions of principle. For practical reasons, because
this organisation presupposed a detailed classification of the occupations of all citizens, which could not possibly be undertaken in a
moment. On questions of principle, because the corporate organisation, which assumes a certain autonomy of action, ran contrary to
the principle of the subordination of all interests to the supreme
power of the State 1. Finally, and this is the fundamental reason,
the corporate organisation as the Committee had conceived it placed
all the active citizens of the nation on an equal footing, which meant
a direct attack on the privileged position which in point of fact the
Fascist trade union organisations had won for themselves.
But in abandoning the plan of an integral corporate organisation,
the Government did not on that account give up its idea of providing
an integral solution for the problems raised by the relations between
the various social classes. It stopped at an intermediate system, which
consists in endowing the recognised association — whether of
employers or of workers — with the social, economic and political
attributes which the Committee had reserved for the corporations.
This system offers the advantage of being capable of immediate
realisation, of resting on a.state of affairs actually arrived at and
conforming in all points to the doctrine of the State.
It is based on the following ideas :
i.
2.
3.
4.

Ilegal recognition of a single trade association by category,
invested with a monopoly of occupational representation.
Privilege, of the recognised trade association to conclude
collective contracts enforceable for all in that occupation.
Institution of a compulsory labour tribunal for all collective
disputes.
Penal sanctions in case of stoppage of work and neglect to
observe decisions given by the labour tribunal.

This regulation, however, is not limited to the organisation of
collective relations resulting from employment. It is extended, as
will be seen later, to the social, economic, administrative and political
spheres as well. Now the working of such a vast system is possible
only if it rests on an organisation of trade associations solidly built
1

See " Corporative Organisation ", p. 101.

ITALY

u p a n d ordered. T o this end t h e Regulations of i July 1926, p u t
into effect b y t h e A c t of 3 April, provide for a double organisation :
an organisation of trade associations b y category and by class with
several grades : unitary associations, federations, confederations a n d
general confederations, which separate a n d to some extent balance
against each other the different factors of production ; a n d a corporate
organisation which on the other hand unites the different factors of
a single branch of national production. A l l this structure of trade
associations is placed under t h e supervision of a special Ministry, t h e
Ministry of Corporations.
§ 2. — Legal Organisation of Collective Relations
resulting from Employment 1
' L E G A L RECOGNITION OF T R A D E ASSOCIATIONS

Fundamental

Conditions

of Legal

Recognition

T h e A c t of 3 April 1926, following t h e example of various
foreign laws, makes legal recognition t h e basis of t h e regulation of
trade a n d occupational associations. A n examination of t h e practice
followed in this respect in most States shows that t h e law tends to
g r a n t , under certain formal rather than substantive conditions, legal
personality to associations simply from t h e fact of their existence
and their social utility 2 . Often, indeed, legal personality is a
consequence attached ex officio to t h e power to conclude collective
agreements, limited, it is true, to this one r i g h t \ I n short, modern
doctrine endows trade associations with legal competence for the sake
of t h e better working of t h e association.
Under t h e Italian system, on t h e contrary, in conformity with
the proposal of t h e Committee of E i g h t e e n , t h e trade associations,
doubtless in consideration of t h e important functions which they a r e
called upon to fulfil, and t h e peculiar privileges granted them, are
recognised chiefly in t h e interests of t h e State. T h a t explains w h y
associations have t o fulfil a certain n u m b e r of preliminary conditions
which have no equivalent in foreign legislation. Certain of these
conditions are of a moral a n d political nature. Others refer to per1

Gazzetta

Ufficiale, Act No. 563 ; INTERNATIONAL LABOUR OKKICK :

Legislative Series, 1926 — It. 2. Gazzetta Ufficiale, Royal Decree No. 1,130
of 1 July 1926 ; Legislative Series, 1926 — It. 5.
2
Cf. Vol. II of this work : " France " and " Belgium ".
3
Cf. Vol. I l l : " Germauv " and " Austria ".

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

sons, to the number of members, and to the aims followed by the
associations. These will be examined in turn.
Moral and Political Competence. — T h e first section of t h e A c t
makes legal recognition subject to the condition " that the directors
of the association offer guarantees of moral character a n d sound
patriotism ".
Section 4 enumerates, among the conditions of
admission of members, " good conduct from a national point of view ".
Finally, section 7 declares that " the rules shall fix the body which is
entrusted with disciplinary powers over the members, and t h e right to
expel those who may have become unworthy on account of their moral
or political conduct ". T h e s e provisions lend a peculiar character
to Italian trade union regulations. T h e y prove that the law does not
aim in the first place merely at defending the occupational or economic
interests of its members, b u t follows chiefly a political or, it m i g h t
be said, nationally ethical object. Now it seems certain t h a t these
conditions of a moral and political n a t u r e must tend to exclude
Catholic and Socialist organisations from the enjoyment of legal
recognition. Such is, moreover, the intention of t h e declarations
which the Minister of Justice made during the debate on the Bill
before the Senate.
We have no difficulty in declaring from now on that recognition
will be granted only to Fascist organisations. Why ? For two reasons.
Because the Fascist organisations fulfil, completely, the demands of the
law ; that is to say, they are associations which propose to defend the
interests of the producing classes, while remaining within the national
sphere, that is to say, that they accept national discipline and the
principle of class co-operation. The second reason is that the great
Majority of organised workers are members of the Fascist associations.
B u t does not this political and spiritual proscription, which
attacks the old independent trade unions, r u n the risk of compromising t h e success of a law based essentially, as is often proclaimed, on
the solidarity of all elements in the nation ? Even the mover of the
law in the Senate seems to fear this. " Doubtless ", he cried, " t h e
success of the law will depend to a great e x t e n t on the enlightened
application of this principle."
Indeed [he added] if in practice one were to close the doors to
associations and to men who, although animated by patriotic feeling, were
not members of definite political parties, it would mean depriving
the law of its most favourable asset, namely, its emphasis on national
solidarity and on justice between social classes, and would inevitably
destroy all respect for the trade associations which are entrusted with
the representation of the different classes of employers and workers '.
1

Ministerial Report of the Senate in Trade Union Reform in

P- 153-

Italy,

IT/TLY

But the Minister of Justice does not share the apprehensions of
the mover of the Bill in the Senate :
In recognising the usefulness of the Fascist associations, we do not
deliver the associations into the hands of one party, for to recognise, as
the Fascist associations do, the principle of national solidarity, to
recognise the great needs of production, to accept the principle of class
co-operation is not a party programme ; it is the duty of all citizens l .
I t is clear from those declarations of the Minister that the law
feared t h a t the success of t h e T r a d e Associations Act m i g h t be
endangered if the political parties were not able to exercise preliminary political supervision, not only over associations as moral
persons, but also over all the members taken individually.
T o this fundamental political condition there is added a second
condition concerning the people w h o m a y become members of
recognised associations.
Who may be a Member of a Recognised Association ? — T h e
Act of 3 April 1926 enumerates (sections 1 a n d 2) the associations
which enjoy legal recognition. T h e s e are associations of employers
and wage earners, whether intellectual or manual workers, a n d
associations which recruit their adherents among the liberal professions a n d arts and crafts.
T h e Regulations of 1 July 1926 (sections 1 and 2) enumerate
the persons w h o may be members of recognised trade associations.
Membership of trade associations is open — always on condition of
good moral and political conduct from a national point of view — to
Italian citizens of both classes who are over eighteen years of age 2 ;
legally constituted commercial associations and other corporate
bodies of Italian nationality ; foreigners residing in Italy for at least

1
»Speech of the Minister of Justice in Trade Union Reform in Italy,
pp. 196 and 197.
3
Against refusal of admission to a legally recognised association,
and against expulsion- or any other form of exclusion, there is always,
as a last resort, not only the resource provided by the constitutions of
the unitary associations, and associations of a higher rank, but recourse
to the Minister of Corporations (section 9 of the Regulation).
The preventive conditions of good moral and political conduct from
the national point of view do not imply compulsory membership of the
Fascist political party. It is well to note, indeed, that if the Fascist
political party numbers 800,000-900,000 members, the membership of the
legally recognised occupational associations has a total of more than
3,000,000. That of the associations of State employees reaches 500,000
members.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

ten years. T h e latter cannot be appointed or elected to any office
or administrative duty.
I t is well to recall t h a t t h e original proposal submitted for
discussion in the Chamber of Deputies granted legal recognition also
to mixed associations of employers and workers. T h i s clause had
given rise to heated discussions in the Chamber of Deputies, b u t in
spite of the eloquent a r g u m e n t s of Mr. Cavazzoni in favour of those
associations, which in his view are a more highly developed form of
occupational organisation and m a r k the first step towards integral
corporations, this clause was suppressed. Instead, the Act provides
for the setting up of central liaison bodies between the associations
of employers and those of wage earners. T h e functions and duties
of these will be studied later.
T h e enumeration of those w h o obtain rights under the law on
trade association is restrictive.
T h e Act excludes in the first place " associations which, without
Government authority, may have contracted obligations of whatsoever
n a t u r e , whether of discipline or of dependence, towards associations
of an international character " (section 6 ) .
T h i s prohibition which, in fact, attacks the associations of
employers as well as the workers' associations, seems, up to the
present at least, to be actually applied -only to recognised associations
of workers. I t can seorcely be imagined, indeed, t h a t employers'
organisations, which are always accompanied by associations for
b u y i n g , selling f ud production, can give up their international
relationships without being exposed to certain risks. I t is known,
moreover, that the General Confederation of Industry has continued
its relationships with foreign bodies of the same type, and that with
the consent of the Government. It may, however, be asked if t h e
same reasons, based upon the economic and social interdependence
of States — and certain orators in the Chamber of Deputies and the
Senate have maintained this — do not apply even more strongly to
organisations of wage earners w h o are still more disposed to seek
solidarity and assistance from t h e international organisations, b u t
here again, the Government holds exactly the opposite opinion. I n
opposition to the doctrine of international solidarity, the Minister
of Justice supported t h e ideal of national solidarity :
Senator Loria [he said] does not approve of the suspicion with
which the law considers international organisations, and he maintains,
on the contrary, that labour tends to be organised internationally, and
that that will happen as a result of the solidarity uniting the working

ITALY

classes of different countries. Now I hold exactly the apposite view
Experience shows, more and more, that there is a close community of
interest within the nation itself, and that this solidarity of the whole
nation far exceeds the motives of solidarity which may unite the working
classes of different nations 1.
T h e Act excludes, also, from legal recognition " associations of
officials a n d administrative agents of the State, the provinces, t h e
communes, and public welfare institutions. T h e same rule applies
to the personnel of the autonomous State railway undertakings ; of
the postal, telegraph and telephone service ; of the Bank for Deposits
and Loans ; of the Bank of Issue ; the banks of Naples and Sicily ;
institutions and establishments of a public n a t u r e and savings banks "
(section 3 of the Regulations) \ Along with those groups which
may not claim legal recognition, there are others which, in conformity, be it noted, with the practice followed by previous Governments, are naturally deprived of the right of association. I t is laid
down in section n that " associations shall, moreover, be forbidden,
on pain of discharge, reduction of rank, dismissal, and other
disciplinary sanctions, among officers, non-commissioned officers,
and men of t h e A r m y , of the Navy, the Air Force a n d other armed
forces of the State, of the provinces and of the communes, for
judicial or administrative magistrates, for officials, employees a n d
agents working for the Ministries of the Interior, of Foreign Affairs
and of the Colonies ". By Special Decree this prohibition was
extended to officials of the Ministry of Corporations.
T h i s list, however, is not restrictive. T h e President of the
Council took pains, indeed, to make it clear at a Session of the
Chamber of Deputies on n December 1925 t h a t the Government, in
virtue of t h e power of control conferred upon it by this Act, reserved
to itself the right to extend this prohibition to other classes of
officials, a n d particularly to professors in universities and intermediate
schools \
Section 94 of the Regulations e x t e n d s this prohibition,
also, to associations set up for the defence of alleged academic and
vocational interests, a m o n g the students of educational institutions of
1
Speech of the Minister of Justice in Trade Union Reform in Italy,
p. 197.
2
The special regime to which unrecognised associations are subject
will be studied later. See " Legal Regulation of Associations of State
Employees ", pp. 131 et seq.
» Parliamentary Documents.
Speech of the President of the Council,
11 Dec. 1925. Cf. Decree concerning the dismissal of professors in
universities, and intermediate schools. See p. 133.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

all kinds. T h e forming of associations of this type and membership
of such associations, it adds, are considered as grave breaches of
discipline, and punished by exclusion from all schools and all educational institutions in t h e kingdom.
Wiiat Aims may Legally be Pursued by a Recognised
Trade
Association ? — Legal recognition is connected with a third series
of conditions referring to the aims of the association. Section i ,
subsection (3), lays down : " Besides the defence of the economic
and moral interests of the members, associations m a y propose to
carry out, and may actually carry out, such work as m u t u a l aid,
training and the moral and patriotic education of its members. " I t is
well to add to those provisions t h e one contained in section 4, last
subsection, which declares that " t h e rules may provide for the
organisation of vocational schools, institutions for financial assistance,
a n d for moral and patriotic education, as also for institutions aiming
a t promoting in the country the progress and perfection of national
production, education or art " *.
T h e field of action of the trade associations laid down by those
sections necessarily goes beyond the mere defence of occupational
interests. T h e associations, institutions recognised b y general law,
are t h u s being prepared for the work which had been reserved for the
integral corporations in the proposal of the Committee of Eighteen.
A study of the developments of the programme, merely touched upon
here, but applied in the different spheres of economic, social and
political activity, will be found later 2 .
Conditions as to the Number of Members. — A final substantive
condition which had to be satisfied by trade associations refers to the
n u m b e r of members. Section 1, subsection 3, says : " Associations
of employers and of workers may be legally recognised if, in the
case of employers, those who voluntarily become members employ
a t least one-tenth of the total number of wage earners employed in
t h e undertakings of that branch of industry for which the association
1
It is necessary to distinguish among the industrial organisations
those which, having a special or local character, are directly connected
with trade associations, and those which, having a national and general
character, such as national associations of co-operative societies, the
National Association for Organising Workers' Leisure, the National
Organisation for Maternity and Child Welfare Work, are placed directly
under the supervision of the Minister of Corporations.
2
See " Part Played by Official Trade Unionism in Social, Economic
and Political Life ", p. n o .

ITALY.

is constituted, and existing in t h e area where t h e association exerts
its activity ; in the case of associations of wage earners, if the wage
earners w h o have voluntarily become m e m b e r s represent at least onetenth of the wage earners in the branch for which the association is
constituted, and existing in the area where the association exerts
its activity ".
W h a t is the real aim of. this provision ? T h e preamble declares
that the n u m b e r is large if one considers that it is an initial, minimum
figure corresponding, moreover, to the percentage of the masses at
present organised in Italy *, b u t important as t h e figure may appear
of itself, and it is plain from t h e most recent trade union statistics
that this legal minimum has actually been considerably exceeded, it
seems, on the other hand, small if one considers that the recognised
association in Italy is called upon to exercise real political and
economic sovereignty over, the masses w h o are not organised.
On t h e occasion of the discussion of this provision in Parliament,
Senator Loria emphasised the paradoxical situation which m i g h t
result, according to him, from the fact t h a t the law would give
preference to the associations which had only one-tenth of t h e
membership, while an association including over nine-tenths would
not be recognised. Therefore a member of the Central Office of
the Senate made the proposal to raise t h e legal percentage to a
m i n i m u m of 25 per cent., b u t the legislature did not see its way to
carry out this suggestion. O n the contrary, the President of the
Council definitely claimed t h e right of control by the Fascist
minorities.
The Fascist Trade Associations [he said] are above all educational.
They want a self-conscious minority of workers convinced of the
necessity for national discipline. A minority, it will be objected. In the
working class movement there has never been a question of anything else
but minorities 2.
T h e agreement arrived at between the Fascist T r a d e Unions and
the General Confederation of Labour at the Vidoni Palace 3 had
1

Preamble, p. 6, No. 2.
Speech of the Prime Minister in the Senate in Trade Union Reform
in Italy, p. 204. Cf. article by Mr. ROSSONI in La Stirpe, Feb. 1927, " The
Legal and Monopolistic Trade Union ". Mr. Rossoni declares, in effect,
that the trade union recognised by the law is essentially a selected trade
union, as opposed to a compulsory trade union.
3
See p. 31.
2

Freedom of Association

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

forestalled, indeed, the solution which has been legally ratified.
There seems to be no doubt, either, that it was for the same reasons
that the law abandoned the proposal for corporate organisation,
which would have given all citizens without distinction of any kind
access to trade associations and, as a result, a share in the regulation
of labour.
Formal Conditions of Legal

Recognition

The trade association which has satisfied these preliminary
substantive conditions is free to apply for legal recognition. A
request for recognition must be accompanied first of all by an
account of the origin and the activities of the association since its
foundation, as well as by a list of the names of members, and of
the persons invested with offices in the association (section 14,
subsection 1, of the Regulations). Thanks to this necessity, the
authorities will be able to frustrate the attempts of the old independent trade unions which might wish to enjoy the benefits of this
legislation. Besides this account of their origin, the associations
must add to their request a copy of the rules, which must show the
aims of the association, the territorial area in which it is operative,
its principal seat, its connections, whether of dependence or of union
with other associations, the conditions for the admission and resignation of members, the methods and the form in which the decisions
of the competent organs of the association are arrived at with
reference to the contributions provided for by section 5 of the Act
of 3 April 1926, the composition, method of election and of appointment, as well as the competence of the managing and disciplinary
organs, the reasons for exclusion from the association, the regulations
for the administration of the income from subscriptions and the
revenue, the proportion of the income devoted to necessary expenses
(section 14 of the Regulations). It results from this section that
in the Italian system, it is not a question merely of lodging the
rules for purposes of publicity, as in the French system, for example,
and in most of the laws in other countries on the same subject, but
of a detailed, although indirect, control of their contents.
The same formal conditions apply to the recognition of associations
of the higher grade (federations and confederations) with the following conditions. To obtain recognition, associations of higher grade
must present not only the rules and the report laid down in section 14,
but also the list of all the associations of a lower grade and other

ITALY

institutions constituted for the aims provided for in t h e last subsection
of section 4 of the Act of 3 April 1926, which are affiliated with it,
w i t h a certified copy of the membership certificate of the rules of
each and a certificate from t h e Prefect of the province in which each
of them is situated. I t must be clear from those documents that all
the conditions prescribed by sections 1 and 2 of the Act of
3 April 1926 are fulfilled, except in the case of national associations
where this is certified directly by the Minister of Corporations.
Approval of the rules of t h e association of a higher grade carries
with it approval of t h e list of all t h e associations of a lower grade
and of all other affiliated associations and institutions.
Later
amendments made in t h e list are approved by Royal Decree.
T h e Decree g r a n t i n g recognition to a trade association of a higher
grade carries with it recognition of all t h e affiliated associations of
the lower grade. It grants also recognition to other associations and
other institutions constituted for the aims laid down in t h e last
subsection of section 4 of the Act of 3 April 1926, which are affiliated
with it. T h i s recognition confers on recognised associations legal
personality (section 36 of t h e Regulations) 1 .
T h e accomplishing of all these formalities, however, does n o t
confer on associations any right to legal recognition, for t h e
recognition of an association of whatever sort may, according to
section 13 of the Regulations, be refused not only when t h e conditions
laid down by t h e Act are not fulfilled, b u t also w h e n it seems
inopportune for political, economic, or social reasons. Recognition
m a y , moreover, be made subject to certain definite a m e n d m e n t s to
be introduced in t h e constitution.
T h e Government reserves for itself, therefore, in any case, t h e
right of g r a n t i n g or not the privilege of legal recognition to trade
associations.
STATE

CONTROL FOR RECOGNISED ASSOCIATIONS

Subject to those substantive and formal conditions, subject to
its being politically and socially opportune, legal recognition is
granted to associations on the proposal of t h e competent Minister in

1
In virtue of the last subsection of section 36 of the Regulatitans,
the Decrees confer legal recognition on national confederations, recognising at the same time the affiliated associations.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

agreement with the Minister of the Interior after consulting the
Council of State. But once the association has been recognised, it
nevertheless remains during its later activity subject to the continual
supervision of the authorities. T h i s supervision is, according to the
mover of the Bill in the Chamber of Deputies, more severe than in
any other country \
I t is exercised over all the activity of the association from the
m o m e n t of its formation u n t i l its dissolution. I t covers at once its
internal activities, supervision of the deliberations of the association
and its financial administration.
Working
Internal

Organisation

of the

and Management

Association
of the

Association

T h e administrative bodies of the association are placed first of
all under the guardianship of the authorities. Every association, says
section 7 of the Act, must have a president or secretary who manages
it, represents it, and is responsible for its activity. T h e president
or the secretary is appointed or elected in conformity with the
methods laid down by the rules.
Section 7, which foresees the double possibility of the election
or of mere appointment of the officials of the associations, refers
for the regulation of this point to the constitution of the association ;
but t h e liberty the Act t h u s grants to associations carries with it
n u m e r o u s reserves. I n the first place, it is known that the rules
m u s t first of all be ratified b y the public authorities and t h a t every
a m e n d m e n t of the association agreement must also obtain the approval
of the representatives of authority. T h e Government is, therefore,
in a position to intervene and prevent any modification of the
procedure adopted for the election of representative bodies of the
society. I t reserves to itself also the r i g h t of ratifying t h e choice
made by the association.
Section 7 declares indeed :
The appointment or election of the presidents or secretaries of
national, inter-regional, or regional associations shall remain null if
1

Report of the Parliamentary Committee, p. 6. " This Government
supervision ", the mover adds, " is, moreover, a logical consequent of the
powers with which recognised associations are invested by general law.
The power of fixing a subscription even for non-members, and the power
of drawing up contractual rules which are compulsory even for nonmembers. " vSee pp. 58, 62 et seq.

ITALY

it is not approved by Royal Decree on the proposal of the competent
Minister, in agreement with the Minister of the Interior. This approval
may be revoked at any moment. In the same way, the appointment or
election of the president or secretary of associations in provinces, districts,
or communes shall remain null if it is not approved by the Decree of the
competent Minister in agreement with the Minister of the Interior.
On t h e other hand, the management committees by w h i c h the
presidents and secretaries are assisted in carrying out their duties
are chosen in conformity with the rules (section 8 ) . However, t h e
competent Ministers, as is laid down by this same section 8, in
agreement with t h e Minister of t h e . Interior, may dissolve t h e committees of management of the associations and concentrate the whole
power in the hands of t h e president or of the secretary for a space
of time not exceeding one year \
T h e Government, having made certain b y these measures t h a t
only persons w h o enjoy its full confidence should preside over the
destinies of the association, considered it could without danger devolve
on t h e m part of its duties of supervision. Section 7 states t h a t the
rules must determine " the body to which disciplinary power over
t h e members is granted ". T h e s e organisations of t h e first grade
are in their turn subject to the jurisdiction of the higher organisations
of the regional and national federations, not only by virtue of t h e
rules (section 6, subsection 2 ) , but also by virtue of a real delegation
of authority. Section 8 says :
In the case of associations affiliated to a federation or confederation,
the Decree recognising the former and approving their rules, may lay
down that supervision and discipline should in part or in whole be
carried out by the federation or confederation.
However, this delegation of power is not unlimited. Section 37.
of the Regulations states that it may in time be revoked by means
of a Royal Decree after consultation with the Council of State, and
it adds that, notwithstanding the delegation, it is within t h e power
of the Minister of Corporations to apply directly to associations subject
to the control of a higher organisation for documents or information,
and to institute directly enquiries and inspections whenever the
requests made to the higher organisations may have remained
fruitless.

Cf. CARLO COSTAMAGNA, op. cit., Title II, Chapter III, pp. 92-97.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

All those provisions proye that the action of the Government
remains the most important factor in the appointment of the governing bodies. B u t once the constitution of t h e association has been
approved — and the Decrees recognising the principal confederations
which have recently been issued have ratified at the same time
without a m e n d m e n t , the accompanying rules ' — it acquires the
force of a legal regulation in the strictest sense, completing the
provisions of t h e statute. I t is well, therefore, to refer to the approved
constitutions to find out the rules which actually cover t h e working
of the association.
By way of e x a m p l e 2 , a few details of the
organisation of the General Confederation of Fascist T r a d e Unions
will be given.
T h e Confederation possesses t h e following organs : the congress,
the president, the executive committee, the national directorate, and
the national council.
T h e national congress is made u p of t h e representatives of the
provincial g r o u p associations appointed by the respective provincial
congresses. T h e national congress meets every two years. I t s object
is to examine the general work of the Confederation, to discuss questions of major importance concerning all t h e relations between
different groups, to appoint the president and to approve the financial
report and the report on the cultural activities of the Confederation.
T h e president represents the Confederation in all manifestations
of its activity. H e appoints the secretaries of the provincial offices
of the Confederation and the secretaries of the national federations,
and he chooses the representatives of the trade organisations in all

See Royal Decree, 26 Sept. 1926, No. 1,718 : " Legal Recognition
of the National Confederation of Fascist Trade Associations. '.'
Royal Decree, 26 Sept. 1926, No. 1,720 : " Legal Recognition of the
General Fascist Confederation of Italian Industry. "
Royal Decree, 7 Oct. 1926, No. 1,1803 : " Legal Recognition of the
General Fascist Confederation of Traders. "
Royal Decree, 7 Oct. 1926, No. 1,804 : " Legal Recognition of the
National Fascist Federation of Agriculturists. "
Royal Decree of 14 Oct. 1926 : " Legal Recognition of the National
Fascist Federation of Transport, Maritime and Aerial Undertakings, etc. "
2
Cf. The constitutions of the other confederations attached to the
Decree of Recognition reproduced almost word for word the same
provisions.

ITALY

the bodies and institutions in which provision is made for representation of workers. It is also the exclusive right of the president of a
confederation to enter into relationships with the Powers of the
State, with the central committees of the National Fascist Party,
with the international organisations recognised by the State, and with
all other authorities. The president also appoints the head of the
technical and administrative offices of the Confederation. Finally,
he supervises the newspaper of the Confederation.
The executive committee and the national directorate have the
duty of carrying into effect the decisions of the congress, to see that
the programme of the association is carried out, to control the
administration of the Confederation by appointing an administrative
committee, and setting up definite rules for the administration of all
the bodies of the Confederation, of appointing one of their members
to replace the president in case of necessity, of summoning, in
agreement with the president, the congress and the national council
in conformity with the Rules set up by the constitution of the
association.
The national council is made up of the representatives of the
provincial federations, the president, the members of the executive
committee and of the directorate ; the secretaries of the provincial
offices of the confederation are ex-officio members of the national
council. It meets at least once per year when summoned by the
president in agreement with the directorate. Its duty is to examine
the general situation of the trade union movement and to solve
problems of a general character.
It is clear from this analysis of the constitutions of the Fascist
trade associations that the president of the confederation has complete power in his own hands, but delegates part of it to the managing
organs of the affiliated associations of lower grade. Appointed by
the National Congress, he is, in fact, chosen by the Government,
by whom he must have been invested before being allowed to exercise
his powers.
Administrative

Control of the Activity

of Trade Associations

Government supervision is not limited to the regulations of the
managing bodies and discipline of the internal working, but extends
also to the other activities. To this end the Act sets up, first of all,
a general supervision over the deliberations of the associations and
a special supervision over the financial administration.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

(a) General Administrative
Supervision.
— T h e associations
are subject to the supervision either of the Minister or of the Prefect
and the Provincial Administrative Council \
Section. 29 of t h e
Regulations lays down, in fact, that the Prefect, in the case of
associations whose activity covers only one province, and t h e
Minister in the case of associations operating in two or m o r e
provinces, may demand documents and information, and order
inspections and enquiries to be m a d e into the working of t h e
associations. T h e Minister of Corporations may at any time, on
denunciation or by virtue of his office, annul t h e decisions of t h e
governing bodies of legally recognised trade associations w h e n they
are contrary to the laws or regulations, to the rules or essential aims
of the associations.
(b) Financial Supervision.
— T h e financial supervision set u p
b y the Act is particularly strict, doubtless because the resources of
the association in view of their source and their ultimate object, are
considered under the Italian system as forming a social fund rather
t h a n a purely trade union patrimony. A s regards the source of
income of the associations, it is well to point out first of all a
peculiarity of the Italian Act which seems unique in t h e annals of
t h e rights of trade association. Section 5 of the Act lays down
definitely that legally recognised associations have t h e r i g h t of
imposing on all employers, wage earners, artists, a n d persons exercisi n g a liberal profession w h o are represented b y them,
whether
•members or not of these associations, a contribution which in t h e
case of employers shall not exceed t h e wage for one w o r k i n g day
for each wage earner employed, and in the case of wage earners,
artists, and persons exercising a liberal profession one w o r k i n g
d a y ' s wage 2 .
Contributions.
— I n view of the great importance of the revenue
t h u s collected by the association from all the wage earners and from
all the employers, the Government had to be careful to regulate in
all its details the method of collecting a n d fixing the contributions.

1
The Provincial Administrative Council is composed of the Prefect
as President, of two Prefectural Councillors, and four members chosen
every two years by the Provincial Economic Council.
2
A similar contribution had been provided for in the draft Bill put
forward by the Committee of Eighteen on Corporate Organisation, but
this levy did not cover all members of the profession except in so far
as they were all compelled to join their respective corporations.

ITALY

T h e discussions for determining the contributions, as is laid down
in section 23 of the Regulations, must be approved by t h e Provincial
Administrative Council in the case of associations operating within
the area of one province, by the Minister of Corporations in t h e case
of associations operating in two or more provinces. T h e Minister of
Corporations himself fixes t h e rules for determining the contributions,
even in cases where by reason of the nature of the work or the
character of the undertaking it is not possible to fix them on a basis
of a daily wage (section 24).
T h i s compulsory contribution automatically applies to all wage
earners, t h a n k s to very simple methods of collection. Section 5 s t a t e s
that for the collection of contributions the provisions of the laws for
the collection of taxes in t h e communes shall be applicable.
T h e contributions of the workers shall be collected by means of a
deduction from the wages a n d salaries, a n d paid into the fund of t h e
association \
Finally, section 26 of the Regulations regulates as
follows the employment of the funds thus collected. T h e collectors
of taxes who are entrusted with gathering the contributions pay the
total of the subscriptions into the special current account of the
Prefecture in the section of t h e Royal T r e a s u r y of the province in
question. T h e Prefect authorises the payment thereof to the unitaryassociation or to t h e associations of a higher grade from which t h e

A Decree promulgated on 24 Feb. 1927 fixed the form of declaration
which each employer must make concerning the number, class, remuneration, etc., of the wage earners and salaried employees under him. It
states also the total contribution which must be paid to associations of
employers and of workers for the current year. The method of calculation
of this contribution varies according to the occupation, industry, etc.
The maximum total contribution due by employers represented by theNational Fascist Confederation of Traders is fixed at 42,800,000 lire, and
that of employers represented by the National Fascist Confederation of
undertakings for land transport and inland navigation at 6,400,000 lire.
The Decree lays down that Provincial Committees and other authorities
shall be set up to draw up lists of persons subject to payment of a
contribution, to determine the wages of the employees of agricultural
workers, etc., and to carry out the administrative functions attached to
those operations. The incidental expenses for the working of these
bodies will be borne equally by the employers and the workers' associations. (Industrial and Labour Information, Vol. X X I I , p. 30.)
For further details, see the Decree of 24 Feb. 1927 on the collectionof trade union contributions. Cf. speech of Mr. Bottai in the Chamber of
Deputies, 1 June 1927, on the system of collection of trade union.
contributions.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

former depends, in the proportion fixed for each of them by the
Decree of the Minister of Corporations. In every case 10 per cent.
of the sum collected is deducted by the State.
Trade Union Expenses. — It has been seen that the occupational
associations may, in addition to their purely occupational aims, pursue
social and political aims. The problem of the employment of the
funds of the society was, therefore, bound to occupy to a great extent
the attention of the law. The Regulations, in fact, divided the
expenses of legally recognised trade associations into compulsory
expenses and optional expenses. Section 18 of the Regulations states
that the following expenses are compulsory : those for the organisation of the association, for social and financial assistance, for moral
and religious assistance, for national education, for vocational training. Compulsory also are the contributions to the National Institution for Workers' Leisure (Opera Nazionale del Dopolavoro), to the
National Institution for Maternity and Child Welfare, to the National
Balilla Institute (for young Fascists), and to the National Charitable
Institution recognised by the Decree of the Minister for National
Economy, dated 26 June 1925, in a proportion which shall be fixed
by Decree of the Minister of Corporations after consultation with the
legally recognised associations of a higher grade on which the
association is dependent. Finally, it is also necessary to set up the
fund provided for in section 5 of the Act destined to guarantee the
fulfilment of the obligations assumed by the associations in virtue of
collective agreements.
The other expenses are optional. Besides those provisions concerning the subscriptions and the expenses of the association, certain
aspects of the financial administration considered particularly important, are made subject to the approval either of the Provincial
Administrative Council or of the Minister of Corporations. For
example, the budgets, documents referring to changes in the
patrimony, expenses which will burden the budget for more than
five years, the regulations concerning the collection of contributions
and payments charged to the Guarantee Fund for collective agreements (section 30 of the Regulations). Nothing could show more
clearly how the recognised trade association is considered to be a
public body than this treatment of the budget of the association as
if it were the budget of a public institution.

ITALY

Dissolution

of Trade

Associations

T h e Act reserves to the State authorities the right either to
dissolve the committee of m a n a g e m e n t or purely and simply to
withdraw legal recognition from the associations.
The competent Minister, in agreement with the Minister of the Interior [says section 8], may dissolve the committee of management of the
associations and concentrate all power in the hands of the president or the
secretary for a period not exceeding one year. In more serious cases he
may even entrust the extraordinary management of the association to a
commissioner appointed by himself.
T h e . t e x t contents itself with asserting t h e right po'ssessed by
political authorities to dissolve committees of management without
specifying the cases in which such intervention is permissible. I n
view of t h e silence, it must be admitted t h a t the intervention of the
Minister is left entirely to his own discretion. I n fact, seeing it is
a case of actions carried out d u r i n g t h e exercise of political power,
they do not come under t h e administrative legal control of the
Council of State.
But t h e most serious sanction which can be incurred by a
recognised association consists in the withdrawal by t h e authorities
of legal recognition.
When there are serious grounds [says section 9] and in any case
when the conditions required by the Act for the granting of legal
recognition cease to exist, such recognition may be revoked on the
proposal of the competent Minister in agreement with the Minister of the
Interior, after consultation with the Council of State.
I t is, however, probable that t h e Government will not have
recourse to this measure unless in cases of extreme necessity, for the
withdrawal of legal competence would take away the whole real basis
of vocational organisation.
THE

SINGLE T R A D E

ASSOCIATION W I T H

A MONOPOLY OF

OCCUPATIONAL REPRESENTATION

Italian law attaches to legal recognition a number of advantages
and privileges such that the recognised association is in a position
to exercise real sovereignty over all m e m b e r s of the occupation. I t
arranges this absolute power of t h e official association over the mass
of the workers who are not enrolled in it, b y the institution of the

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

single association for each group or occupation, invested with a
monopoly of vocational representation.
Legal recognition [says section 6] may be granted only to a single
association for each group of employers, of wage earners, of artists, or of
persons engaged in a liberal profession. Legal recognition for one
territorial area and for the same groups of employers or of wage earners
may be granted only to a single one of the federations or confederations
referred to in the previous paragraph.
Legally recognised associations [says section 5] shall be bodies
corporate and shall represent in law all the employers, wage earners,
salaried employees, artists, and persons engaged in a liberal profession,
in the group for which these associations have been set up and within
the territorial area where they carry out their activity, whether such
persons are members or not.
T h e privilege granted b y this section only takes on its true
significance when one considers that the single trade association has
the sole right of concluding collective contracts, of appearing before
the labour tribunal, and of appointing representatives in all the
councils and institutions in which such representation is provided
for by the laws and regulations. T o this absolute monopoly in the
economic and social sphere will be added in future the right, reserved
exclusively for recognised associations, of appointing political
representatives.
T h i s privilege cannot be explained b y the principles of general
law, for all legal theories on w h i c h such an explanation might be
based (representation, proxy, m a n d a t e , delegation of management,
covenanting for another) rest in t h e last resort on the free expression
of the will of t h e interested parties. Also, to jusify the situation t h u s
created, vocational and political arguments have for preference been
b r o u g h t t o bear. T h e a u t h o r s of t h e Act begin b y invoking t h e
principle of the unity of occupational interests, which has as a
necessary corollary t h e u n i t y of trade associations.
The unlimited freedom [declared the mover of the Bill in the Senate]
to set up within a single occupation an indefinite number of associations
with different or antagonistic aims is in opposition to the idea of the
unity of vocational interests. Unlimited freedom for the associations
leads to disintegration, and consequently to the impossibility of vocational
representation. One association competes with another to the greater
detriment of the collective body of workers, and if there is no public
authority which can say which of the associations is the true representative of the workers, victory remains with the stronger association. As
has been remarked in the course of the discussion in the Chamber of
Deputies, freedom of association resulted in Italy, as elsewhere, in a
multiplication of workers' organisations. Political parties divided all
the workers into such numerous groups that they were weakened in

ITALY

comparison with the employing classes which had never more than a
single organisation '.
I t is certain t h a t n u m e r o u s theoretical supporters of independent
trade unionism, whatever be their views o n other subjects, consider
unity of association on an occupational basis as the indispensable
condition for the collective regulation of labour conditions. I t is
their opinion indeed, that only in the occupational sphere do reasons
of solidarity outweigh the reasons for divergence, which result from
opposing political views. I t m a y , however, be asked whether the
whole system of Italian t r a d e union legislation, which makes
membership of recognised associations subject to preliminary conditions of a political and moral nature, does not form, an insurmountable
obstacle to unity of trade unionism. Be t h a t as it may, non-recognised
associations deprived of all occupational activity have become the
upholders of a solution which would, in their opinion, have permitted
of all the interests involved being considered.
Between the two extreme conceptions [writes Mr. Buozzi, in substance]
the classical one of liberty and equality amongst associations and that
of the single association as held by the State, there are certainly other
more just solutions which might be considered. . There was first of all
the possibility of simple legal recognition of all trade organisations having
a definite percentage of members. It will be recalled that with regard
to this point, the Royal Decree of 29 October 1922, which granted only
to registered associations the right of appointing vocational representatives to the public bodies according to a proportional system, constituted
a valuable precedent in the history of Italian trade union legislation
itself 2 . There had been also the idea of setting up compulsory associations
or " integral " corporations such as had been imagined by the Committee
of Eighteen, which implied compulsory membership, but also compulsory
participation on the part of all members of different occupations in their
respective corporations, and in the regulation of that occupation. But in
adopting this solution [Mr. Buozzi adds] the Government would have had
to grant to all a minimum right of control over the associations, over
the funds at its disposal, and over the directors and officials 3 .
T h u s it was political reasons which decided t h e legal solution.
H e r e again, the agreement of the Vidoni Palace had been the
necessary preliminary. Moreover, the Parliamentary Report does
not hesitate to declare that the Act in this p a r t , as in all the rest, is
inspired purely b y the theories of the Fascist State.

1
The Ministerial Report to the Senate in Trade Union Reform
Italy, p. 150.
2
Cf. pp. 17 et seq.
' Battaglie sindacali, 16 May 1926.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

To grant legal recognition to ¡ncfn-Fascist trade associations [it
declares] would have been in contradiction with the Fascist conception
based upon a single disciplined hierarchy, contrary to all individual and
collective atomism. Moreover, the fact that the association is the only
one fits not only the new needs of the country but also the unitary
conception, which demands the same political aim in all the spheres of
political and social activity '.
There is a single recognised association [the preamble says], just as
there is a single commune, a single province, a single State. The
multiplication of public institutions for the purpose of exercising identical
public functions is a characteristic of periods of disintegration and anarchy.
Only by going back to the Middle Ages can one find situations similar
to that which the champions, not only of liberty but also of equality of
trade association, wish to set up 2.
However, no matter w h a t m a y have been t h e occupational or
political reasons which inspired the law, the fact remains t h a t t h e
recognition of a single trade association endowed with the monopoly
of vocational representation, constitutes the basis for the regulation
of labour relationships and of t h e organisation of the State.
LEGAL REGULATION OF COLLECTIVE CONTRACTS OF EMPLOYMENT

T h e monopoly of occupational representation by a single
association finds its most valuable application in t h e sphere of the
regulation of collective contracts. T h e legal n a t u r e of t h e collective
contract a s defined b y t h e legislation and judicial practice of different
countries has been profoundly modified by this fact, both from t h e
point of view of the contracting parties and t h a t of third parties.
Competence

to Conclude

a Collective

Agreement

T h e recognised association possesses the exclusive right of
concluding collective agreements. Doubts which might exist as to
whether de facto associations were competent to conclude collective
agreements under general law have been definitely set to rest by the
arrival of the T r a d e Union Regulations. Section 47 states : " Every
collective contract of employment concluded by associations not
legally recognised shall be void. "
T h e contract entered into by a recognised association must,
under penalty of becoming void, be signed by the legal representatives

1
2
3

Parliamentary Report, p . 5.
Preamble, p. 8.
Cf. infra, Labour Charter, section IV, and sections X I to X X I I .

ITALY

of the contracting associations or by persons w h o have been granted
a special m a n d a t e . Nevertheless, the conclusion of the agreement is
not left entirely to t h e initiative of associations of the first grade.
By reason of t h e disciplinary organisation of Fascist trade unionism,
no contract of employment can come into existence unless it has
been previously authorised in conformity with the conditions laid
down in their rules by the associations of a higher g r a d e . I n fact,
t h e higher associations have reserved for themselves by their constitutions the right of supervision of t h e conclusion of contracts \
T h e central corporative organisations for their part can set up
general rules relating to the conditions of work which have t h e value
of contracts of employment, properly so called, always provided that
each of t h e affiliated associations has given t h e m t h e authority to
do so. By t h e laying down of these rules .the existing collective
agreements between the affiliated associations are annulled and
amended to such extent as they ¡may in whole or in part be
incompatible w i t h t h e m .
Finally, it results from these provisions t h a t t h e conclusion of
collective agreements is, like all other cases in t h e trade union and
vocational system, made subject t o directions issued by the higher
t r a d e union bodies, which themselves are merely t h e mandatories of
authority.
Extension

of the Collective

Agreement

to Third

Parties

T h e contractual incompetence of non-recognised associations had
as a necessary corollary t h e subjection of all third parties to t h e
conditions of the contracts entered into by the official associations.
T h i s is what is laid down in section 10 :
Collective labour agreements entered into by legally recognised
associations of employers, wage earners, artists, and persons engaged in
a liberal profession shall be compulsory for all employers, wage earners,
artists, and persons engaged in a liberal profession of the class to which
the collective agreement refers, and represented bj r the associations in
conformity with section 5 2.

Cf. Article S of the constitution of the National Confederation of
Fascist Trade Unions ; Article 37 of the constitution of the General
Fascist Confederation of Italian Industry ; Article 17 of the constitution
of the National Fascist Confederation of Traders ; Article 51 of the
constitution of the National Fascist Confederation of Agriculturists, etc.
Cf. section XI of the Labour Charter.
9
Section 5 ; cf. p . 60.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

Section 48 of the Regulations defines as follows the field of
application of the collective contract of employment :
The collective contract shall contain the names of the undertaking
or the undertakings or the classes of undertakings and of workers to
which it refers, and the area within which it is in force. In default of
such a specification, the collective contract shall be effective for all
employers and workers legally represented by the contracting associations
according to the provisions of section 5 of the Act of 3 April 1926.
T h e L a b o u r Charter for its part, dealing with t h e same subject,
states in section X I :
Trade associations are obliged to regulate by means of a collective
agreement the relations arising out of employment between the groups
of employers and wage earners which they represent. The collective
contract of employment is concluded between associations of the first
grade, under the direction and supervision of the central organisations,
and reserving to the association of a higher grade the right which it
possesses of taking the place of the association of the first grade in the
cases laid down by the Act and the rules.
Similarly the rules set u p by central corporative bodies apply
to all t h e workers and all t h e employers whom they represent.
By these provisions, the law solves straight away the problem of
the personal a n d occupational extension of the collective contract, a
problem which has never ceased to occupy the attention of legislation
and legal t h e o r y in all countries. Faced with the risk of depriving
collective regulation of its power, the laws of other countries have
in fact recognised the pre-eminence of this form of contract over
individual contracts, whether b y extending the conditions of collective
agreement to all members of the contracting associations or even
with certain obligations to a certain n u m b e r of t h i r d persons
completely outside the contract \ T h e principle of individual freedom of contract has therefore had to compromise to a certain extent
with the principle of collective agreement. I t has seemed necessary
to the law to reserve for itself the possibility in exceptional cases
of m a k i n g an indifferent minority subject in its own interests t o the
will of the majority; b u t whenever the law or a judge has restricted
in this way the free expression of the individual will, h e has first of
all surrounded himself with numerous precautions.
H e has in
particular ensured t h a t the collective agreement entered into by the

Cf. Vol. II of this work : " France ".

ITALY

interested parties is of indubitable social utility, and t h a t this
contract which is to be extended beyond its original sphere of
application includes henceforth the great majority of the possible
beneficiaries '.
N o legislation on collective agreements, however, has dared to
provide for the compulsory extension de jure of the collective contract
to third parties ".
On this further point t h e Italian Act brings in an important
innovation. T h e collective agreement passes from the sphere of
contractual law into the sphere of a special public law, for if the
collective agreement still partakes of the nature of a contract at the
moment of its conclusion — a n d the competence to conclude it is
moreover reserved to a very limited number of persons — it becomes
right from its formation a regulation compulsory for all. Besides,
as will be clearer later on, w h e n the decision of the magistrate is
given, in default of the actual presence of the parties concerned, it
has the force of a collective contract, properly speaking, in the
formation of which the interested parties will no longer have had any
share.
T h e advantages of the method which consists in proclaiming
the validity of the collective contract erga omnes, axe. obvious. T h e y
consist in the elimination of disloyal competition, whether on the
labour market or on the market for commodities. But there are some
possible defects : the field of action of unitary associations authorised
to conclude collective contracts m a y cover one or more provinces, or
the whole of the country, b u t it is presumable that most of the
agreements concluded under the direct influence of t h e federations
or confederations of workers will be of a national charaoter 3 .

Cf. Vol. I l l of this work : " Germany ".
Compare the regulations for collective contracts in Italian law with
the same regulations in the Russian Labour Code (sections 15 to 26 of
the Russian Labour Code). There exists, however, between the two
systems, a fundamental difference, for while the recognised association
in Italy is a closed institution, the Russian vocational association (having
the sole right as has the recognised association in Italy of concluding
collective contracts which extend compulsorily to third parties) is open
to all members of the occupation.
3
Cf. G. BOTTAI : " Trade Organisation in Italy under the Act
and Regulations on Collective Relations in connection with Employment "
(International Labour Review, Vol. XV, No. 6, p. 821). The author
expresses in the following manner his views on the conclusion of collective
2

Freedom of Association

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

Even if reduced to the region or province, the sphere of application
of the collective agreement will necessarily include undertakings whose
economic and financial conditions are profoundly different.
Then
the collective agreement will be made between two associations
which, it must be repeated, need to include only one-tenth of the
interested parties, and this agreement will bind, nevertheless, all t h e
employers and all the workers in that class and t h a t province. W h a t
will happen in the case of u n d e r t a k i n g s for which the conditions
officially laid down by the single ;association should prove itoo
burdensome? I t is to be feared t h a t t h e y will b e driven to ignore
t h e m in order not to succumb to the competition of more flourishing
undertakings.
T h e Committee of the Senate took upon itself to point out this
possible danger to the Minister of Justice :
The Central Bureau contents itself with expressing the opinion
with reference to collective contracts which may be drawn up by the
most important territorial associations such as regional, inter-regional
and national associations, that these contracts, although valid for the
whole area which they affect, must take into consideration, as regards
wages, differences between places, in default of which the enforcement
of these contracts over the whole area will1 very probably find itself faced
with unsurmountable practical difficulties .
Now, it is those effects of the collective contract which extend
compulsorily to third parties, which explain the firm opposition of
the Confederation of Medium and Small Scale I n d u s t r y to compulsory
membership of the General Confederation of Industry which

contracts : " A s regards the conclusion of collective contracts of
employment, the central organisation has ample powers, which may
take the form of requiring a contract to be submitted for the approval
of the Confederation either before or after signature, the Confederation
having the right to act instead of the primary association concerned.
This tendency towards centralisation appears natural enough in the early
stages of the establishment and functioning of the system. It is imperative
that one of the most delicate attributes arising out of the function of a
public body entrusted to the unions shall not be left to the mercy of the
masses, who are liable to become unstable and irritable. Later on, when
the system is functioning as a complete whole, the conclusion of
collective contracts may well be entrusted to the primary associations,
as indicated by the Labour Charter (section X I ) , which, however, still
recognises the right of higher-grade associations to substitute themselves
for those of primary grade."
1
Ministerial Report to the Senate in Trade Union Reform in Italy,
P- 159-

ITALY

represents chiefly the great industrialists. It is also the same
consequences which form t h e basis of the difficulties met with in
seeking to unite in one body, the General Confederation of Agriculture, the different classes of agriculturists, proprietors, lessors of landed
property, métayers,
just as they generally prove to be at the
root of the difficulty met with in dividing the different elements of
production over their respective organisations. I t will be seen later
by w h a t means the regulations sought to arrange t h e various interests
concerned, by means of a careful organisation based on a detailed
classification of the factors of national production \
Conditions

of Validity

of Collective

Contracts

Most of t h e other provisions of the law : invalidity of derogations
from collective agreements by individual contracts, t h e necessity for
a written agreement, publicity, the duration and renewal of contracts,
conform to international practice on collective contracts. I t will be
sufficient to recall those briefly :
Individual contracts oí employment entered into personally by
employers and workers subject to a collective contract shall conform to
the rules laid down by the latter. Every conflicting clause of an individual
contract of employment, whether previous or subsequent to the collective
contract, shall be legally replaced by the clauses of the collective
agreement except in the case where it is more favourable to the workers
(section 54 of the Regulations).
Collective agreements of employment shall, in order to be valid, be
drawn up in writing. They shall also, to remain valid, specify the period
for which they are concluded (section 10, subsection 2).
The collective contract when it comes to the end of the period for
which it was made, shall be considered renewed for an equal period if it
has not been denounced by one of the contracting parties within a period
fixed by the contract or, in default of such period, two months before its
expiry (section 53 of the Regulations).
Collective contracts of employment shall be effective only if they
are lodged with the competent prefecture and published in the Bulletin
of official notices for the province in the case of associations in communes,
arrondissements and provinces, or lodged with the Ministry of National
Economy and published in the Gazetta Ufficiale in the case of regional,
inter-regional or national associations (section 10, subsection 4).
Collective contracts entered into by associations working in two or
more provinces, shall be lodged not only with the Minister of National
Economy but also with the Minister of Corporations (section 51 of the
Regulations).
I t is clear from this last provision that publicity is intended not
only to inform interested parties, w h o are not members of the

See p. 92, " Organisation of Offical Trade Unionism ".

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

association, about the contents of the agreements arrived at, but also
t o permit t h e Ministry of Corporations, the highest authority in trade
union organisation, to exercise a general control over collective
agreements.
T h e publication of contracts which are void either on account
of their content or their form, will be refused. However, an appeal
may be made against t h e refusal of publication before t h e L a b o u r
Magistrate, w h o gives h i s decision in the Chamber of Council after
consultation with the Public Prosecutor by an explanatory decree.
I n t h e same way as collective contracts, decisions given with regard
t o collective labour disputes have no effect until they are lodged and
published as laid down in the preceding Regulations.

Sanctions

of the Collective

Contract

On the other hand, t h e Act introduces several important
innovations with regard to the sanctions of the collective contract.
Responsibility for breach of collective contract, once established by
law, falls at the same time both on individuals and associations.
The individuals [says section io], whether employers or wage earners,
guilty of breach of contractual agreements shall be civilly responsible
both towards the emplo3 r ers' association and towards that of the wage
earners which entered into the agreement.
I t is well known that, according to the principles of general law,
civil responsibility covers compensation for damage caused directly or
indirectly, provided it can be proved. T h e person who benefits
b y these Regulations cannot be other t h a n the person harmed by the
violation or non-accomplishment of engagements legally undertaken.
T h e Italian Act, on the contrary, substitutes first of all for the right
of compensation which t h e individual w h o is harmed possesses, the
association to which he belongs (whether he is a member or not) ;
in the second place, the individual guilty of breach of the collective
contract not only incurs responsibility towards the other contracting
p a r t y , b u t also towards his own association which represents h i m .
T h e s e provisions, an innovation of the legislation concerning
collective contracts, can be explained only by the public character
which the recognised trade association has in the Italian system.
T h i s system ignores the rights of individuals, or at least, considers
them only under the aspect of of the organised collective body.

ITALY

Besides this individual responsibility, t h e Act provides also for
the case of collective responsibility when t h e breach of contract is
committed by the contracting association itself.
The associations [says section 55 of the Regulations] shall be responsible for damages resulting from the non-accomplishment of obligations
assumed by them in the contract. The association is also responsible for
the acts of all those who are subject to it, whether members or not, if
it has omitted to do everything in its power to.ensure observance of the
contract.
Finally, t h e association may lay down in the contract that it
will be responsible in its own name as fidejussors for its observance
by those w h o are subject to it (section 5 5 ) .
T o ensure, in any case, the solvency of the association responsible
for breaches of t h e contract of employment, at least one-tenth of the
income provided by the compulsory contributions will be set aside to
form a guarantee fund for the execution of obligations assumed by
the associations. Precautions are, moreover, taken in case of the
dissolution or t h e revocation of recognition of one of the contracting
associations. I n this case, t h e social patrimony guarantees the fulfilm e n t of the obligations assumed for the whole period of the collective
agreement and for the following year. Dissolution and revocation of
recognition do not, moreover, influence the rights originating in the
collective contract for all those for w h o m the contract was effective
in terms of the Act.
T o this double civil responsibility are added also penal sanctions
which will be studied in connection with the working of the Labour
T r i b u n a l '.

1
From July 1926, the date on which the Ministry of Corporations
was set up, until 1 March 1927, 457 collective contracts were drawn up
in industry, in conformity with the system instituted by the Act of
3 April 1926 ; 267 agreements regulate working relationships in general ;
igo are agreements about wages. It appears, moreover, from a Circular
of the Minister of the Interior, of 19 November 1920, that contracts drawn
up under the old system shall continue in force during the whole period
of their validity. Only collective agreements concluded after legal
recognition and in terms of the Act of 3 April 1926 (as well as contracts
formed previously but confirmed according to the new Act) will extend
to third parties in virtue of section 5 of this Act. It is premature to
pass a general judgment on the practical consequences of this legislation.

•JO

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

THE LA-BOUR TRIBUNAL

All t h e previous Regulations which seek to control by t h e mediation of the official t r a d e association collective w o r k i n g relations
had, b y t h e very n a t u r e of this system, to end in a L a b o u r T r i b u n a l .
T h e State, whose p r i m a r y p a r t in t h e s e Regulations is already k n o w n ,
cannot indeed remain aloof from the enforcement of the principles
laid down. By virtue of its position as supreme regulator of production — for working relations are determined in t h e last resort b y
agents responsible t o the S t a t e — it could not leave the solution of
labour disputes merely to the conciliation and arbitration bodies set
u p by t h e interested parties themselves, but had to call them before
its own T r i b u n a l \
The institution of State Tribunals [says the Report of the Senate]
is in harmony with the fundamental idea of the Bill. Admitting, indeed,
that the State forbids classes or groups of producers to defend their
interests themselves, that, moreover, it considers that it should not
remain an indifferent spectator in economic disputes, but that it ought,
on the contrary, to exert its influence in the direction of conciliation
and social justice between classes and groups of producers, it follows that
it has the moral and political obligation to set up for such disputes, a
permanent Tribunal which will be a direct representative of the State,
and, in consequence, of the general interests of society 3 .
The Act sets up straight away [the preamble, for its part, states]
a Labour Tribunal. . . . Compulsory arbitration is only a form of State
justice which has lapsed ; the arbitrator has less authority than the
judge. He is elected by the parties concerned ; he represents them on
the arbitration body. His opinion must of necessity be in the nature of
an arrangement and a compromise which lessens his authority. . . .
A sentence which is binding on the parties must come from an impartial
body ; that is why we have felt it necessary to go beyond the intermediate
and imperfect stage of arbitration to reach the more perfect and more
exact form of real judicial decision which can be exercised only by an
impartial judge, neither directty nor indirectly interested in the dispute 3.
I t follows from these statements t h a t labour disputes are removed
from the economic and private field into t h e field of public order.
I n other words, the offence of breach of a contract of employment
no longer affects chiefly the parties concerned but affects above all,
the State itself, which henceforth will intervene officially.

Cf. Labour Charter, section V.
Report of the Committee of the Senate, in Trade Union Reform
Italy, p. 167.
3
Preamble, p. 9.
2

ITALY

But as t h i s intervention of the State T r i b u n a l cannot fail to
make a profound impression on economic and social life, it is well
to analyse its chief aspects.
Competence

of Labour

Tribunals

Section 13, first version of the Bill, limited t h e competence of
the Court of Appeal acting as a Labour T r i b u n a l to all disputes
connected with collective contracts in force and disputes about the
laying down of fresh conditions between agricultural employers and
workers, or between public or public utility undertakings and their
personnel. I n the case of a dispute over the establishment of new
conditions of labour between other groups of the employers a n d
workers (industry) the jurisdiction of the Court of Appeal was only
optional. T o establish it the consent of both parties was necessary.
Section 13 of the Act in its present form, however, extends the
competence of t h e T r i b u n a l to all disputes without exception. T h i s
•is a point of fundamental importance in the Act, and one which has
aroused heated controversy in Parliament.
I t may therefore be
useful to give an account of the manner of its adoption and of the
debates which led to this result.
T h e theory of a compulsory L a b o u r Tribunal for disputes over
the institution of a collective agreement in industry also had found a
supporter in the President of the Fascist Corporations '.
T h e industrialists, on the contrary, through Mr. Beimi, President
of the General Confederation of I n d u s t r y , at first declared themselves
entirely opposed to the extension of the Labour T r i b u n a l to t h e
fixing of the clauses of collective contracts in industry. Mr. Benni
stated particularly :
It is absolutely impossible for the Labour Tribunal to take into account
the complex and essentially changeable conditions of industry. That is
why it is impossible to rely ou its arbitration for the solution of labour
disputes. I consider that the extension of the competence of the tribunal
to industry would pass sentence of death on Italian industry 2.
But this was not the opinion of the Leader of the Government.
W h e n he took part in the discussion on section 13, he pronounced in

Parliamentary Documents, speech of Mr. Rossoni, 9 Dec. 1925.
- Ibid., speech of Mr. Bermi, 9 Dec. 1925.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

favour of t h e universal competence of the Labour T r i b u n a l , and won
t h e support of his adversaries of the previous day. H e r e are the
principal points in his argument :
Our trade unionism [he said, first of all] differs from " Red " trade
unionism for one fundamental reason, namely, it does not seek to strike
at the right of property.
When an employer finds himself faced with a " R e d " trade union,
he has before him a trade union fighting for the increase of wages merely
as a side issue of its ultimate aim, which lis to overthrow existing
conditions, that is to say, to abolish the right of property.
Much could be said about the definition of the right of property,
but this is not the place to discuss it. Our trade unionism is a selective
trade unionism wishing to improve the conditions of the categories and
classes grouped under its banners, and it has no finality about it.
Our trade unionism applies the principle of class co-operation at
different periods in the process of production. It applies it first of all
in connection with the production of wealth. It applies it again when
it is a question of getting due value out of this iwealth. It cannot
continue to apply the principle of co-operation in the third case when it
is a question of sharing out the gains obtained, but even then, if good
faith exists on both sides, the principles of class co-operation shows itself
again in the form of a compromise which restores the equilibrium which
may have been disturbed for a moment.
H a v i n g reassured the opponents of the reform by this preliminary
declaration, he attacked the root of t h e matter as follows :
This law [he said] which is really fundamental, considers two
systems : the industrial system and the agrarian system. According
to this conception, the two systems proceed along parallel lines. At a
certain point the agrarian system comes to the compulsory Tribunal,
while the economic system stops at the optional stage. Now, it seems
to me, that such a law is imperfect. It must be compulsory or optional
for both. Either the industrial system must take a step forward, or the
agricultural system must take a step back. I believe [he added] that
it is absolutely necessary to gain the unitary conception of the national
economic svstein.
But apart from those technical reasons based on t h e equality of
conditions in agriculture and in industry, the President of the Council
appealed to the fundamental argument, the reason of State interest,
which, according to him, comes above all other considerations:
I have come to this conclusion, starting from the point of view which
is fundamental. Whenever I wish to examine the Italian situation, I
consider the Italian nation as being in a state of perniauent war. I have
already said, and I repeat that the next five or ten years will be decisive
for the fate of our people. They will be decisive because the international
struggle has begun and will spread more and more. We, who have arrived
rather late on the stage of the world, are not allowed to dissipate our
energies. Just as during the war at the Front, disputes were not
permitted in factories, conciliation bodies having been established to

ITALY

settle them and the results having proved satisfactory (for there was
never any suspension of work), so also, to-day, by means of those
organisations we shall be able to raise national productive power to a
maximum. . . . I beg you, therefore, to consider, in order to give the
vote on this section its full value, that this law has its origin in a
definite political and moral atmosphere and is the product of a definite
system. There is no danger so long as this system remains invincible
and so long as the moral atmosphere which the nation breathes is not
altered. As far as human foresight can judge, this political system and
this atmosphere cannot be changed. This certainty justifies our confidence
in the present law *.
T h e r e could be n o clearer statement of the subjection of every
interest, even the most vital, to the political and spiritual control of
t h e authorities.
T h i s intervention produced an immediate change of front on t h e
part of the industrialists. Mr. Benni declared :
After the statements of the President of the Council, I obey with
enthusiasm and with that sense of duty which the Italian industrial class
has always shown to the Government 2 .
T h e new section 13 established the result of these discussions
in the following formula :
All disputes referring to the arrangement of collective working
relationships whether they
concern the enforcement of collective contracts
and other existing rules s , or whether they aim at obtaining new conditions
of work, shall come within4 the competence of the Courts of Apfieal
acting as Labour Tribunals .
T h e principle of the universal competence of t h e Labour Tribunal
having t h u s been gained completely, how shall it be p u t into practice ?

Speech of the President of the Council in the Chamber of Deputies
in Trade Union Reform in Italy, p. n o .
2
Parliamentary Documents, speech of Mr. Benni, n Dec. 1925.
s
The Act, by the expression " existing rules " refers to regulations
in factories and to all other provisions concerning conditions of work,
rights and obligations of the worker, internal discipline, etc., in short,
all matters not directly controlled by the collective contract. Cf. infra,
" The National Labour Charter ".
4
As regards its competence, ratione loci, the principles of general
law apply. The action is brought before the Court of Appeal within
whose jurisdiction the labour relations to which the litigation refers are
enforced.
If the labour relationships to which the litigation refers are in force
within the jurisdiction of two or more Courts of Appeal, the action is
brought before the Court of Appeal at Rome (section 72 of the Regulations).

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

In particular, what was to be the organic constitution of the Tribunal ?
Its method of work, the procedure to be followed, according to
what criteria was judgment to be passed, and what sanction was to
be attached to its judgments? The Act of 3 April suggests in
principle certain solutions which are defined into the most minute
details by the Regulations of 1 July.
The Working of the Labour

Tribunal

Composition of the Labour Tribunal. — The Labour Tribunal
is composed of three elements : three magistrates, of whom one is
the president of a section ; two councillors of the Court of Appeal ;
two laymen who are experts in industrial and labour problems, and
the Public Prosecutor.
The only concession made by the Act to the principle of autonomous regulation of labour disputes consists in co-opting along with
the general law judges two expert laymen chosen in the following
manuer. For each Court of Appeal a register is drawn up of laymen
who are experts in industrial and labour problems. These experts
are divided into groups according to the different classes of undertakings existing within the jurisdiction of the Court of Appeal, the
list being revised every two years (section 15 of the Act).
The proposals for the registration of citizens called upon to
undertake the duties of expert advisers are drawn up for each
province by the provincial economic councils. These proposals are
transmitted first of all to the competent central corporative bodies,
who may introduce amendments or additions, and then to the President of the Court of Appeal.
On receipt of the proposals and after consultation with the
President of the Labour Tribunal, the First President of the Court
of Appeal draws up the general list of citizens called upon to carry
out the duties of expert advisers.
The choice of expert advisers called upon to act on "the bench is
made in each case by the President of the Labour Tribunal. However
the latter may at any time ask the First President of the Court of
Appeal to appoint to act upon this body one or more experts not on
the special list of persons for that section (seotions 61 to 67 of the

ITALY

Regulations) '. I t is clear from all those provisions that the associations concerned have no direct part in the appointment of the expert
judges 2 .
Legal Action. — T h e right of bringing an action and of representi n g in court all t h e employers and all t h e workers of one class or
occupation is reserved solely for recognised associations.
T h e action, as is stated in section 68 of the Regulations, is
brought by legally recognised associations of the first grade and of
higher grade. I n any case, a trade association of higher grade can
intervene in an action brought against a lower grade association, and
vice versa. An action may also be brought by the Public Prosecutor
w h e n it seems necessary in the public interest. I n such a case, the
association concerned m a y intervene in the action.
T h e associations are represented in court b y their president or
secretary or by a special attorney. I n the case of disputes regarding
the enforcement of the collective contract and other existing rules,
legal action is taken against the legally recognised association, which
represents t h e employers and workers w h o are subject to these rules
and obliged to carry t h e m out. A n action concerning disputes arising
from t h e fixing of new conditions of work is brought against t h e
legally recognised association representing the employers and workers
for w h o m the new conditions of work are proposed (sections 68-72
of t h e Regulations).
T h e monopoly of legal representation granted b y these provisions
to the recognised association is in fact only a corollary of the general
occupational and political monopoly established by section 5 s . It
comes practically to this conclusion : in the place and stead of individuals directly harmed and often not members of the recognised association, the latter alone has t h e right to appeal to the court. On the

1
It appears from a Circular which the Minister of Corporations sent
at the end of May to the competent authorities that the Labour Tribunal
has in fact been set up and may from that date exercise its functions in
any of the courts of appeal of the Kingdom (cf. Industrial and Labour
Information, Vol. X X I I , p. 322).
2
At the inauguration of the legal year (1927) Mr. Bottai, UnderSecretary of State in the Ministry of Corporations, declared in substance
that " the expert advisers for the Labour Tribunal must be State
technical authorities, that is to say, having no interest in the labour
disputes and drawing their authority solely from the State. "
s

See p. 60.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

other hand, decisions given against associations take effect on all
members of the occupation which they represent.
It is only when no recognised association exists — a possibility
which doubtless will never actually occur — that a special trustee
(curatore) is appointed by the president of the court of appeal, and
that the voluntary intervention of the interested parties is permitted 2.
The Regulations also lay down in detail the methods of procedure
to be followed before the Labour Tribunal. A summary of them will
suffice. The parties, that is to say, the representatives of the recognised
associations, may appear in court personally, or by means of a legal
representative, and may have the help of counsel and advisers;
but the judge can limit the number of the latter and can at any point
demand personal appearance in court.
The petition is sent directly to the president of the Labour
Tribunal, who within twenty-four hours determines by an order the
date of the hearing and the period allowed for producing the defence.
The petition and the order are communicated to the interested parties
and published in the bulletin of legal notices for the province or in the
official journal. The president must always try to effect a reconciliation. The bench arranges the necessary preliminary proceedings.
Once these proceedings are over, the decision must be arrived at
within a space of ten days and given in a judgment in which the
reasons are clearly stated. All decisions are arrived at in the Council
Chamber and the text publicly promulgated.
The Criteria for the Decision. — A review of the different systems
for the solution of disputes by conciliation or arbitration in other
countries shows that everywhere, and for the same technical reasons,
the exclusive competence of the general law courts has been ruled out.
The author of the preamble, in opposition to international opinion
on this point, hopes to gain certain technical advantages by the
intervention of the general law judge. After recalling similar
precedents in Italian legislation, which grants the judge in particular
the right of determining fair prices for goods (Commercial Code,
sections 38-60), or which calls upon him to regulate certain
patrimonial relationships between individuals (Civil Code, sections

The competence for individual labour disputes arising out of the
interpretation or the enforcement of collective contracts belongs to the
ordinary court which acts along with the assessors appointed by the
associations concerned (cf. section X, Labour Charter).

ITALY

544-678), t h e author concludes t h a t experience has shown in these
cases t h a t the magistrate carries out his task splendidly, despite t h e
variety and difficulty of the subjects on which he has to give his
decisions. " E v e r y day " h e adds, " our courts settle questions of
civil responsibility and of competence, etc. . . . questions which
demand even wider technical knowledge than is required for deciding
the capacity of an industry to pay certain wages corresponding to
a certain amount of work performed " \
But quite apart from the independence and t h e legal technique
of the labour magistrate, there is nevertheless a fundamental difference
between his new t a s k and those which u n d e r the constitution devolved
upon the general law judge. I t is well k n o w n indeed that the general
law judge, when giving his decision on disputes submitted to him,
does so according to formal rules, or at least according to precise
principles illustrated by established legal practice.
But w h a t criterion can guide him in settling labour disputes?
Is it a case of interpreting the existing collective contracts ? T h e n t h e
judge will certainly find a basis for his decision in the clauses of the
agreement or in the general legislation concerning contracts 2 . Again,
it must be remembered that the collective contract, especially in certain
particular occupations, is a very complex legal i n s t r u m e n t regulating
at the same time such diverse problems as : h o u r s of work, p a y m e n t
by results, family allowances, cost-of-living allowances, p a y m e n t
during holidays, etc., and affecting at one t i m e single individuals,
at another t i m e whole groups or categories of workers \
But on what will the decision be based in the case of establishing
new conditions? I n this case there is no established legal regulation,
no existing legal practice t o guide the judge in his decision. I n
such a possibility his d u t y does not seem to be limited to the interpretation of existing laws, b u t to involve creating on the spot a new
law on a subject, which u p to the present it has been t h o u g h t
impossible to mould into rigid legal formulae.
I t is t r u e that t h e law has taken care to lay down a certain n u m b e r
of principles to guide the action of the judge : " T h e court of appeal

Preamble, p. 10.
Compulsory arbitration is generally limited to the interpretation
of existing contracts : " justiciable disputes ".
5
The Labour Charter lays down on this point certain principles to
which the contracting parties must conform. See below, particularly
section XII : " Fixing of Just Wages ".
2

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

acting as a Labour Tribunal shall, when d r a w i n g u p new conditions
of employment base its j u d g m e n t s on t h e principles of equity seeking
t o harmonise the interests of the employers and of t h e workers and in
every case protecting the higher interests of industry " (section 16).
T h e s e instructions are indeed wide enough to leave the judge
great freedom of interpretation. T h e manner in which the labour
magistrate m a y carry out t h e task t h u s entrusted to him will without
doubt be decisive for the future of the Act. I t is therefore necessary
to examine it with the greatest care, in order to see the consequences
arising from it.
T h e first rule for decisions indicated by section 16 is the criterion
of equity. T h e decision, according to the author of the law, must
not be a compromise, b u t must state what is just. I t follows that
the judge must, as a preliminary, gather all useful elements of
information. H e must in particular know all the documents, industrial
and commercial certificates, balances, account books, etc., which
could possibly explain the situation either of a special undertaking or
of the whole of a branch of industry.
B u t this necessity for gathering detailed information must, in the
nature of things, end in a real control of industrial undertakings by
the State t h r o u g h the- Labour T r i b u n a l . N o w , it is doubtless this
result counted upon by the head of the Fascist workers' trade unions
which explains the enthusiastic support he gave to the idea of the
extension of the Labour T r i b u n a l . I t is this result also which made
the representative of the General Confederation of I n d u s t r y state that
arbitration would mean the ruin of industry \
I n fact, the regulations of i July 1926 set u p a certain method of supervision of
undertakings. T h e Tribunal, as is stated in section S i , orders, when
expedient, ex officio, the necessary preliminary proceedings, including the production of documents. However, investigations for the
purpose of collecting evidence as to the economic strength of undertakings extend only to certificates and documents supplied by the

1
Mr. Buozzi points out in his commentary on the Act that this
control would have to be exercised continuously. According to him, it
is impossible to restrict oneself to an estimate of the economic capacity
of an undertaking at a given moment. This can only be estimated for
a period of several years. Equity would demand that part of the profits
should compulsorily be put aside as a reserve in order to make it possible
to grant wages corresponding to the cost of living in years of depression.
(Battagglie Sindacali, 1 June 1926.)

ITALY

parties or published, to the interrogation of the parties, to visits to
t h e places concerned and to the evidence of expert laymen not
connected with t h e u n d e r t a k i n g (section 83 of the Regulations).
E v e n although t h u s limited, it is nevertheless true t h a t t h e
principle of supervision is henceforth incorporated in t h e law.
But the problem has also another aspect. I t has been seen that in
carrying out his task the magistrate is obliged to u n d e r t a k e
preparatory technical a n d economic research of a very varied n a t u r e .
Now it is presumable that he will find it impossible to keep in mind
t h e innumerable special casés, and t h a t on this account h i s decision
will be of a very general n a t u r e . T h i s fact became particularly clear
d u r i n g t h e discussion, at a meeting of the F r e n c h National Association
for t h e L,egal Protection of W o r k e r s , of the Bill for the amicable
settlement of disputes on labour conditions, introduced by M r . Millerand. D u r i n g the discussion of this Bill, Mr. Nogaro t h u s defined
the scope of compulsory arbitration :
It is often imagined that arbitration puts an end to disputes between
employers and employed within a limited group. In reality, when an
arbitration court has imposed a certain decision on certain employers
and certain workers, then all employers and all workers, that is to say,
a whole corporation or a whole region, will necessarily be subject to the
same conditions or to similar ones. If arbitration councils do not, as in
the Austrian courts, give corporative decisions, that is to say, decisions
applicable to a whole corporation, they will be called upon to do so by
the demands of the workers. Hence it is necessary to consider the
problem of arbitration as a whole. When compulsory arbitration is set
up it implies regional corporative control, at least for each industry.
This is inevitable. It is not an objection, but simply the way in which
the problem must be looked at. The position is this : the arbitrators,
whoever they may be, must impose the same conditions on producers
who are not working under the same conditions ; they will have to take
into account local differences and all other differences which make
competition unequal. They must take account of internal and external
competition. This is a practical problem which must be faced in compulsory arbitration. The solution of a dispute cannot be more or less
individual ; it implies regional and even national corporative control.
Mr. Millerand himself admitted t h e t r u t h of this r e m a r k :
You are perfectly right in saying that when a regulation is imposed
by arbitration on one establishment, it will inevitably extend to the
whole region '.

See MILLERAND : " La grève et Vorganisation
and 36.

ouvrière ", pp. 35

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

T h i s consequence will be all the more inevitable in the Italian
system. T h e conclusion of collective contracts extending compulsorily
to third parties, legal action reserved to recognised associations, which
will certainly mean p u t t i n g aside purely individual or local differences,
all those new factors peculiar to the Italian system will tend to give
t h e magistrate's decisions a general corporative character, and t h u s
to accelerate the spread of uniformity of working conditions and t h e
concentration of industry.
Besides the criterion of equity, section 16 introduces another
factor in helping the labour magistrate to arrive at his decision : the
necessity of harmonising t h e interests of the employers and the
workers and of safeguarding in every case the higher interests of
industry.
T h i s provision arouses a certain hesitation both on the part
of the employer and on t h e part of the worker. T h e employer fears
t h e political pressure which the masses, having numbers on their
side, m a y be able to exercise on the Labour T r i b u n a l ; the workers
fear that t h e Tribunal may be tempted to see in the personal interests
of the employer the higher interests of industry ; for, they maintain,
if it is possible to lower wages until they have reached the minimum
for existence, their improvement will be limited by the possibilities
of economic expansion of the industries, which is the same t h i n g as
the interest of the State.
Be t h a t as it may, the interests of t h e respective classes must bow
before the higher interests of industry and in face of this necessity the
idea of State justice is no longer more t h a n a relative one.
This justice [the Minister of Justice states] will have only one limit :
the higher interests of the nation, which are, from an economic point of
view, the higher interests of industry l . Finally, it is the element of public
interest which predominates in deciding the judgment of the magistrate 2 .
T h i s interest is represented by the Public Prosecutor who takes
p a r t ex officio in the proceedings and is obliged to state his conclu-

Speech of the Minister of Justice in Trade Union Reform in Italy,
pp. 193 and 194.
2
" There is indeed ", the preamble states, " an element of public
interest which must influence the magistrate's decision, because a dispute
between employers and workers affects not only the parties involved
but the whole body of society which is interested in the state of industry. "
(Preamble, p. 31.)

ITALY

sions. I t is therefore by t h e intervention of t h e Public Prosecutor
that t h e State exercises its direct influence on the Labour T r i b u n a l .
T h e reason is t h a t the State wishes to be present d u r i n g the last and
most important phase of the arrangement of collective relations, just
as it has been present in all t h e previous phases.
But w h a t is the objective value of the formula : " safeguarding
the higher interests of industry " ? I t is indeed well k n o w n t h a t the
interests of industry are very far from being the same in every case.
One need only consider the antagonism between export and import
industries, the struggles which take place between free traders and
protectionists to obtain from the State the tariff system best suited
to their own interests.
Will it then be part of the duty of the labour magistrate t o
discriminate between the fundamental and secondary interests of
national i n d u s t r y ? Will he have to set u p a scale of economic values
to judge if certain industries must be condemned because t h e y hinder
the general economic progress, and favour certain others which are
solidly rooted in the national economic system? I t is certain that
the wording of the law gives the authorities every possibility for
intervention, not only as regards individual undertakings, but also
for the system in general. T h e Leader of the Government _has
moreover pointed this out with considerable emphasis during hi?
speech in the Senate :
We are now going to supervise [he said] all the forces of industry,
of agriculture, oí the banks and of labour. The task is difficult,! but
experience helps us and makes us confident in the happy issue of this
attempt. . . . All that cannot be done in one day, but the important
thing is that it should/ be in existence and should be enforced '.
Effects of the Decision and Penal Sanctions. — J u d g m e n t s passed
with regard to collective labour relations and fixing new conditions
of employment have all the effects of a collective contract.
E v e r y judgment referring to individual litigation which infringes
a collective contract of employment or contradicts a judgment
previously given with reference to collective labour relations may be
challenged by any of the parties or by the Public Prosecutor with a
view to its being annulled.

1
Cf. Speech of the Minister for National Economy, Mr. Belluzzo,
on 12 March, in the Chamber of Deputies. Cf. also p. 125, " Part Played
in Economic Life ".

Freedom of Association

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION
J u d g m e n t s or orders are subject to annulment, revision

and

reversal b y the Court of Cassation.
Revision may be determined by one of the parties or b y the
prosecution in the case of any important change in the state of
affairs.

But if this demand is rejected, the p a r t y p u t t i n g it forward

is subject to a fine not exceeding 10,000 lire.
A petition for appeal to the Court of Cassation, whether made
by one of the parties or by t h e Public Prosecutor may be sent in
within a period of a fortnight.

If the decision is revised, t h e Labour

T r i b u n a l , to which the matter is sent back, must in every case
confirm the decision of the Court of Cassation on the point of law
on which t h e latter pronounced.
On the other hand, section 22 of the Act imposes severe sanctions
for non-observance

or violation of

the

decisions of the

Labour

Tribunal :
Without prejudice to the enforcement of the principles of ordinary
law on civil responsibility for the carrying out or not of court decisions,
employers and wage earners who refuse to accept the decisions of the
Labour Tribunal shall be punished by imprisonment of from one month
to one year and to a fine of 100 to 5,000 lire.
Officials of legally recognised associations who refuse to accept
decisions of the Labour Tribunal shall be punished by imprisonment
of from six months to two years and subject to a fine of 2,000 to 10,000 lire,
and shall, in addition, be removed from their positions.
When refusal to carry out the decisions of the labour magistrate is
accompanied by a lock-out or strike provoked by t h e guilty parties,
then the provisions of the Penal Code concerning the concurrence of
crimes and penalties shall apply.
1
T h e law, anxious to ensure respect for decisions given by the
Labour T r i b u n a l , however severe these might appear to be, considers
it desirable to increase the severity of the regulations concerning
distraint on goods by ordinary law by adding penal sanctions even
to t h e extent of bodily constraint.
The Compulsory

Attempt

at Conciliation.

— D u r i n g t h e discus--

sion in April of sections 16 and 17, Mr. Olivetti, Secretary of the
General Confederation of Industry, supported an amendment which
sought to make judicial action subject to a preliminary attempt at
conciliation, which was adopted in the following form :
When associations of employers and of wage earners belong to a
confederation, or when associations of employers and of wage earners
are concerned for which central liaison bodies have been set tip, legal

ITALY

action is permissible only when it is proved that the federation or
confederation or control liaison body (the corporation) has tried to settle
the dispute amicably and that this attempt has failed 1.
T h i s addition to the t e x t satisfies a double need. On t h e one
hand, it seeks to m a k e legal action on the part of an association of a
primary grade subject to t h e control of associations of a higher
grade. On t h e other hand, it seeks to settle collective disputes
amicably without setting in motion the complex and dangerous
organism of the Labour T r i b u n a l .
If this attempt were to succeed to the full, t h e Labour T r i b u n a l
would be reduced to the rôle of intimidation or t o being a mere
interpreter of collective contracts.
T H E O F F E N C E O F S T R I K E S AND L O C K - O U T S

I t has been seen that the draft Bill drawn up by the Committee
of Eighteen, while prohibiting political strikes and lock-outs, admitted
stoppages of work to defend the economic interests of the groups
represented 2 . Similarly, the first version of the Bill admitted
' implicitly strikes and lock-outs in all cases where the Labour T r i b u n a l
was not compulsory by reason of the Act or by consent of both
parties \
But as a result of the a m e n d m e n t s t o section 13, strikes and
lock-outs are now completely prohibited. T h u s the strike has once
again been made an offence as has also mere combination. I n t h e
system set up by the Italian Act the strike and lock-out do not imply
simply the (civil) offence of breach of t h e contract of employment,
b u t constitute offences against the administration of justice and
against the social body represented by the State. I n other words,
1
Cf. injra, Labour Charter, section X. Section X of the Labour,
Charter states that " in collective labour disputes judicial action may not
be taken unless the corporative body has made a prior attempt at
conciliation ". It seems to follow from this section that in contrast to
section 17, subsection 2, of the Act of 3 April 1926, only corporative
bodies, that is to say, excluding higher grade associations, will be
competent to undertake attempts at conciliation with regard to collective
labour disputes. On the other hand, in individual disputes concerning
the interpretation and the enforcement of collective contracts the higher
grade occupational associations will keep their power of offering their
services for the purpose of conciliation.
= See p. 39.
3
¡See p. 71.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

collective stoppage of work is n o longer a n affair concerning t h e t w o
parties, b u t is considered r a t h e r as a direct attack on public order
a n d is repressed in t h e same w a y as sedition.
T h i s n e w conception of t h e strike explains t h e gradation of
penalties provided according t o t h e persons who a r e guilty or t o
t h e aim in view. Section 18 lays down t h e general principle of
prohibition of strikes a n d lock-outs. I t states :
The lock-out and the strike are prohibited. Employers who, without
justification and for the sole purpose of obtaining from their employees
changes in the existing conditions of employment, shall stop work in
their factories, establishments or offices, shall be subject to a fine of
10,000 t o 100,000 lire.

Employees and workers who, to the number of three or more, after
premeditated agreement, shall cease work or shall work in such a way
as to interfere with the continuity or the regularity of the work in order
to obtain from their employers conditions of employment other than
those in force, shall be subject to a fine of 100 to 1,000 lire.
When there are several people guilty of the offences mentioned in the
preceding paragraphs, the leading instigators and organisers shall be
punished by imprisonment» for *a period of not less than one year nor
more than two years in addition to the fine laid down in the said
paragraphs.
A comparison of t h e wording of section 18 with t h e texts of t h e
revolutionary legislation forbidding combination shows t h e same
difference of treatment between combinations of employers and those
of workers. While all strikes which have been premeditated and
agreed upon a r e suppressed, t h e lock-out is punishable only when
it is announced without justification. Moreover, a n y irregular performance of work which interferes with t h e continuity or t h e
regularity of t h e work is forbidden for t h e workers only. On the
o t h e r h a n d , t h e Act takes into account w h e n deciding t h e fine t h e
superior financial position of t h e employer \

1
If Italian law suppresses the lock-out only when it is not justified,
that is because it does not insist on a preliminary understanding between
employers with reference to the lock-out, while it demands combination
on the part of the workers before it punishes a strike. Moreover,
admitting the conception of respect for individual initiative adopted by
Italian law, it would seem logical that legal intervention should not be
carried so far as to repress freedom of initiative with regard to the
improvement of the economic possibilities of an undertaking. Besides,
the text of the Trade Union Act does not prevent an employer from
incurring penal responsibility when he deliberately provokes a falling off

in production.

Cf. CARLO COSTAMAGNA, op. cit., Title V, Chapter 2.

ITALY

Section 18 seems to affect only such stoppages of work as a r e
made to enable t h e employers " to obtain, from their employees
changes in t h e existing conditions of employment ", and for the
workers " to obtain from their employers conditions of w o r k different
from those in force ". Must it be concluded t h a t lock-outs, and
strikes with other aims (concerted stoppages of w o r k t o force t h e
opposing parties to respect engagements undertaken, sympathetic
strikes) are not repressed ? T h e t e x t of the law might seem t o suggest
this, although the whole system flatly contradicts it. T h e Regulations
have filled this blank :
When the lo.ck-out or strike or irregular performance of work [says
section 95] take place for ends other than those indicated iin section 18
of the Act of 3 April 1926, then the penalties laid down by section, 235,
subsection 1, and section 236 of the Penal Code shall apply, the actions
being brought officially *.
T h e penalties laid down by section 18 may be re-enforced also
by the sanctions provided for by sections 166 and 167 of the Penal
Code (offences against the freedom of work) when the lock-out or
strike or irregular performance of work are accompanied by violence
or threats 2 . If the violence and threats are used in t h e m a n n e r laid
down in section 154, subsection 1 of the Penal Code, t h a t is to say,
to force a person to agree to or to refrain from doing something, t h e
penalties provided for in t h e said section (imprisonment with hard
labour up to one year and a fine not exceeding 1,000 lire) shall apply,
or else those of t h e Act of 3 April 1926 if the offences are more
serious.
I n short, the penalties provided in section 18 of t h e Act of
3 April 1926 m a y be made stricter by special provisions of the Penal
Code, b u t t h e y can never be mitigated.
T h e sanctions with reference to interruptions of w o r k in public
or public utility services are naturally even more rigorous :
Officials and. servants of the State and of lother public bodies, ,as
also those of undertakings providing a public or essential service, who
to the number of three or more, after premeditated agreement, shall cease
to work or shall work in such a way as to hinder the continuity or
regularity of work shall be punished by imprisonment of from one to six
months and shall be prohibited from carrying out their public duties
for six months.

1
2

Section 235 and 236 refer to the arbitrary exercise of
See p . 12.

rights.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

The leading instigators and organisers shall be punished with imprisonment of from six months to two years and shall be prohibited from
carrying out their public duties for a period of not less than three years.
Contractors providing a public or essential service who, without
sufficient justification shall stop work in their factories, establishments,
or offices, shall be punished by imprisonment of from six months to one
year, and by a fine of 5,000 to 100,000 lire besides temporary suspension
from the exercise of their public duties.
When the act referred to in the present section shall have endangered
the safety of any persons, the penalty of imprisonment shall be at least
one year. If the act has caused the death of one or more persons the
imprisonment shall bé not less than three years (section 19).
E v e n simple negligence on the part of officials or servants of the
State during strikes or lock-outs is punished :
Officials and servants of the State or other public bodies, contractors
providing a public or essential service and the employees and workers
of the latter who, during strikes or lock-outs, shall neglect to do all in
their power to ensure the regular continuity or the resumption of a public
or essential service shall be punished by imprisonment of from one to
six months (section 26).
F o r t h e purpose of enforcing sections 19 and 20, which p u t
public services and public utility undertakings on the same footing,
the Minister of Corporations fixes by Decree the classes of services
which should be considered as public utility services. O n the basis
of this Decree the communes draw up in the m o n t h of J a n u a r y of
each year a list of the firms and undertakings in the commune carrying
on public utility work.

Section 98 adds that the work of persons

connected w i t h the preservation of health, of barristers, solicitors
and notaries, of engineers, architects and geometricians, and of
agricultural engineers is always considered as being of public utility \
Those provisions are wide enough for the authorities to include
most private industries in the list of public utility undertakings, and
t h u s make them subject to the system set up by sections 19 and 20
of the Act.
Finally, in t h e Italian system the political strike

must

considered as a crime against the nation deserving to be repressed
most severely.

Section 21 a d d s :

The Decree determining classes of public utility services for the
purpose of enforcing sections 19 and 20 of the Act of 3 April 1926
appeared on 20 March 1927. See Gazzetta Ufficiale, No. 72.

ITALY

When stoppage of work by the employers or cessation of work or
irregular performance of work on the part of the employees shall take
place for the purpose of exercising compulsion on the will or influencing
the decision of a public body in the State, the provinces or the communes,
or a public official, the leading instigators and organisers shall be
punished by imprisonment of from three to seven years and shall be
prohibited for all time from exercising public duties, and the other guilty
parties shall be subject to imprisonment of from one to three years and
shall be temporarily prohibited from the exercise of public duties.
S u c h t h e n is the system of sanctions against t h e offences or
crimes of strikes. H o w far will they b e effective? Since the advent
of the Fascist Government t h e n u m b e r of strikes has grown less
from year to year. But the Act is so recent t h a t it would be premature
to judge its future effect.
T h e mover of the Bill in the Senate admits himself that " in the
economic sphere there may be m o m e n t s of severe depression, during
the course of which elemental forces are let loose breaking all bounds
and overthrowing all institutions " \
Moreover, if it is hoped b y t h e severity of t h e repression t o
prevent workers from having recourse t o strikes, it is to b e feared
t h a t it will not be within t h e power of t h e L a b o u r T r i b u n a l , at least
in the present circumstances, to prevent employers from dismissing
wage earners en masse if they consider t h a t the interests of their
undertakings demand it. On this supposition forced unemployment
will very often take the place of voluntary stoppage of work.

*
As the Labour Tribunals have only just been set u p , there is at
present a lack of detailed information as to the working of these
T r i b u n a l s with reference to strikes and lock-outs. However, a p a i t
from several examples of prevention of interruptions of work by
ordinary law courts, particularly at Treviso, Casale-Monferrato,
Alessandria, etc., reference may b e m a d e to one decision given
recently by the special section of the Court of Appeal in Rome acting
as a Labour T r i b u n a l .
I n view of t h e importance of this decision which m a r k s the first
a t t e m p t at interpretation by a Labour T r i b u n a l of certain important
provisions of the Act of 3 April 1926, of the Regulations of 1 July 1926,
a n d of the Labour Charter, it seems desirable to analyse it briefly.
1

Ministerial Report in the Senate in Trade Union Reform in

p . 142.

Italy,

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

T h e following is first of all an outline of the facts :
A collective contract had been entered into by the employers atid
workers in the rice-fields for the work of the new season. Negotiations
for the contract had begun in Milan in February and the contract had
been concluded at Rome on 16 March 1927, helped by the intervention
of the competent national organisations. The wage for an eight-hour
day had been fixed at 19.50 lire for the immigrant workers (male and
female) and at 18.50 and 17.50 lire respectively for local workers from
the provinces of Piedmont and Lombardy where the ricefields are situated.
I n the course of the following months the agricultural depression
having become appreciably more severe the representatives of the farmers
declared that they could not continue the harvest work with such high
wages, and they demanded that the wages should be reduced by
20 per cent. All attempts at harmonising the opposing interests having
failed, including that made by the Ministry of Corporations, the National
Fascist Federation of Agriculturists took the question to the Tribunal
to ask that new just conditions of employment should be laid down in
terms of section 16 of the Act of 3 April 1917 and of section 71 of the
relative regulation.
Mr. Cacciari, President of the National Fascist Federation of
Agriculturists, and Mr. Rossoni, President of the National Confederation
of Fascist Trade Unions, appeared in person assisted by counsel and
technical advisers. The President of the Court of Appeal, Mr. Preda,
tried twice during the case to persuade the parties to have recourse to
a just compromise, but this attempt failed.
During the hearing the argument put forward by the counsel for the
agriculturists was that the latter based their demand, not on the depression
that was affecting production as a whole as the result of the deflation
of the lire (a depression which had showed itself already in the month
of March when the contract was drawn u p ) , but on the existence of an
exceptional depression peculiar to the production of rice, the prices of
which have suffered and are still suffering, as is clear by the marketprice-lists, a much more rapid fall than that affecting other products.
The counsel for the Confederation of Fascist Trade Unions, on the other
hand, sought to prove that the changes which had occurred in market
conditions since the month of March were not of a nature to justify a
reduction of wages of more than 10 per cent., a reduction which had
already been applied' for the season 1927 in comparison with 1926, and
which corresponds to the reduction in other spheres of national production.
These arguments were taken up by Mr. Rossoni who emphasised that
it is not in conformity with the spirit of the Act for judicial organisation
of collective labour relationships that the conditions of a contract laid
down in due form by the national, organisations of employers and workers
should change from month to month with each fluctuation in prices,
especially when the workers' concessions had already attained their
maximum limit. Mr. Rossoni recalled the amendment made in paragraph 13 of the Labour Charter by the suppression of the firsf phrase
which was worded as follows : " The consequences of depressions in
production and momentary fluctuations must be borne equally by all the
factors of production. "
This paragraph was suppressed just because it had been recognised

ITALY

89.

as impossible to put into practice strictly such a provision without at
the same time and to the same extent making allowance for the periods
of prosperity in production. Now the rice-growers have certainly not
granted an increase iu wages at times when the market showed a rise
in prices as compared with what had been expected when the contract
was drawn up. If these ideas were accepted it would mean admitting
the control of the workers over the profits of the undertakings, for wages
would always have to be adapted to the conditions of each particular
undertaking.
Such were the arguments put forward.
T h e Court in giving its
j u d g m e n t took into consideration the following points :
" The court has taken notice that the collective agreement
concluded on 16 March 1927 between the employers and workers in
the rice-fields had not been published in the Gazzetta Ufficiale nor
lodged with the Minister of National Economy as is laid down in
section 10 of the Act, but it considers that if these forms of publicity
are necessary to make agreements binding upon all employers and
wage earners in the group who may not have taken part in the actual
drawing up of the agreement, the omission of them does not affect
the validity of the agreement between the contracting associations
and their members.
" The demand for the reduction of wages put forward by the
Fascist Federation of Agriculturists was based 011 the paragraph of
section 71 of the Regulations, which states : ' Legal action for the
purpose of setting up new conditions of emplo>inent is permissible,
even when a collective contract has been made and even before the
period fixed by the contract has lapsed, if any important change is
observed in the state of affairs existing at the moment when the
contract was drawn up. '
" Examining the argument that this paragraph is not applicable
to seasonal work of very short duration such as the husking of rice
which lasts from 35 to 40 days, the court has decided that this
argument was not admissible. It has based its decision on the spirit
of the Act in general and on the precise wording of section 13, according to which all disputes concerning the regulation of collective
labour relationships whether for the enforcement of collective agreements or of other existing rules, or demanding changes in the
conditions of work come within the competence of the Courts of
Appeal functioning as Labour Tribunals.
" As regards the fundamental question, the Court recognises
that an important change did take place in the state of affairs existing
at the moment when the contract was drawn up. Since the uncleaned
rice quoted at 120 lire per cwt. in March 1927 had fallen to 90 lire
or even less by the beginning of June, general temporary measures
(the large existing stocks, the deflation of the currency) have
certainly had an influence on this fall in price. Nevertheless, it
depends chiefly, in the opinion of the Court, on the special position
of the national rice production in both the Italian and foreign markets
with regard to foreign competition, but this economic phenomenon
is not of a transitory nature. Seeing that it is determined chiefly
by a fall in the cost of production of foreign rice, it is therefore

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

necessary not only to improve the technical side of rice growing,
but also to reduce the labour costs which in the production of rice
form a very important item.
" However, the Court did not consider it fair that the consequences of this change in the state of affairs existing at the moment
when the contract was drawn up should be borne exclusively by the
workers and more particularly by those engaged in husking the rice,
which is a most painful task. This is all the more true because the
fall in the cost of living which has appeared recently has not yet
had a general and appreciable effect on the position of the working
classes.
" The Court has therefore agreed to the demand for a reduction,
but limits it to 60 centimes per day for all classes, which, in view
of the special circumstances, seems to it to be in harmony with the
principle of equity mentioned in section 16 of the Act. "
T h i s judgment was very well received by the press, which
considered it as supporting the a r g u m e n t of the workers. T h e
representatives of t h e latter h a d indeed already accepted during t h e
attempts at previous arbitration a reduction of wages equivalent to
t h a t decreed by the Court.
The Lavoro d'Italia, in its editorial of 22 July, makes, however,
certain reservations with regard to the remark of the Labour Tribunal
that important changes in the state of affairs existing at the moment
of the conclusion of the contract are shown by a variation in the price
of the products :
" If every variation in the price of agricultural and industrial
products were to lead de jure to a revision of the contract of employment, this would mean setting up a very serious and perhaps
dangerous principle. Indeed, sometimes the employers and sometimes
the workers would be induced to demand a revision of the contracts
made, at least with regard to the clauses affecting salaries, every
time that changes — whether a rise or fall — appeared in the prices
of commodities.
" Really, that would lead to the possibility of setting up in
labour contracts sliding scales of wages which would take account
of all possible market fluctuations.
" As far as we are concerned, we are by no means opposed to
the establishment of this principle in law provided that the practical
application of the system be reciprocal. That is to say, that if
wages have to be reduced during a period of market depression they
should be raised to the same extent and by the same methods when
the opposite phenomenon occurs. "

CHAPTER H I
ORGANISATION OF OFFICIAL TRADE UNIONISM:
ITS SHARE IN SOCIAL, ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL LIFE

Fascist trade union legislation pursues a double aim : first, to
regulate collective relations arising out of employment, and secondly
to organise the forces of society on new bases with a view to their
taking part in the life of the State. These two problems are,
moreover, closely linked together. The Act of 3 April 1926, completed by the provisions of the Regulations of 1 July, sought to solve
the first problem ; but as soon as it came to be a question of putting
into practice the principles laid down by this Act, the second
problem, that of organising the forces of society, at once became
urgent. It had been observed, indeed, that the uniform and compulsory regulation of conditions of employment was likely to compromise the interests of certain classes of producers if they were not
guaranteed sufficient representation in the different organisations
for the defence of their vocational interests.
Collective regulation of conditions of employment demanded,
therefore, in the first place, a very clear differentiation between the
organisations of a primary grade based on a careful census of all
the professions. It is only in the second place that the primary
associations must be re-grouped in a more limited number of centralised organisations either of employers or of wage earners. But the
problem of trade organisation by the Government did not stop there.
In conformity with the principle of class solidarity which is at the
basis of all this legislation, the law wished to reunite the different
factors of production which up to the present had been split up into
class organisations, and make of them one single body — the
corporation based on occupation or trade and endowed with special
attributes.
Hence the Government has been led to create, alongside of the
trade organisation properly speaking, a corporative organisation

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

sui generis, which, it is true, differs fundamentally from that proposed
by the Committee of E i g h t e e n , as does the corporative idea in general.
T h e Regulations of i July laid the foundation of the new reform.
Other Acts have continued the work in the economic and administrative sphere. Proposals being discussed at present seek to finish off
the work by extensive political reform on a corporative basis.
§ I. — Organisation of Official Trade Unionism '
T R A D E ASSOCIATIONS OF T H E PRIMARY G R A D E

T h e first problem raised b y the difficulties in applying t h e Act
of 3 April 1926 is that of dividing up t h e parties w h o enjoy legal
recognition into t h e different primary associations. Certainly this
distribution might seem simple if one were faced b y groups of producers whose duties are clearly defined : employers, wage earners,
liberal professions. But t h e interests of different classes of producers
within the same branch of industry a n d the interests of different
classes of wage earners are very far from being the same 2 . But
the law is faced with greater difficulties when seeking to classify in
their respective organisations producers who possess some of the
characteristics of employers a n d at t h e same time those of wage
earners, farmers, artisans, etc.
T h e Regulations of 1 J u l y 1926 sought to solve the different
problems of distribution b y setting up various distinctions. T h e
following are t h e rules which were finally laid down.
T h e proprietors of rural estates w h o have rented their lands to
others are admitted, according to section 4, to membership of legally
recognised associations of agricultural employers, b u t must be formed
into a special section with its own representatives on t h e m a n a g i n g
bodies of the association. Nevertheless, the representative bodies of
this type cannot take part in the conclusion of collective contracts.

Cf. G. BOTTAI : " Trade Organisation in Italy under the Act and
Regulations on Collective Relations in connection with Employment ", in
International Labour Review, Vol. XV, No. 6, pp. 815 to 827.
2
It should be remembered in this connection that during the first
months of 1926 before this trade organisation had been finally decided
upon, the General Confederation of Medium and Small Scale Industry
continued to insist that it desired to remain independent of the General
Confederation of Industry.

ITALY

F o r the purpose of concluding collective contracts of non-agricultural
employment on the part of the proprietors themselves, t h e representatives of the agricultural section will act as representatives of an
autonomous association.
Artisans working for themselves on a small scale and on their
own account ; small traders and subsidiary traders ; middlemen,
commission agents a n d representatives not enjoying the legal
provisions concerning the contract of private employment ; proprietors
and farmers working their lands themselves, must form special
primary associations, but may be members of higher grade trade
associations of employers.
On the other hand, the special associations of metayers must
be affiliated to the higher grade trade associations of agricultural
workers (sections 5 and 34).
A m o n g associations of wage earners the Regulations draw a
clear distinction between intellectual and manual workers. Section 6
says :
Intellectual workers and manual workers cannot belong to the same
association even if they are employed in the same type and the same
class of undertaking.
T h e Regulations further make a triple distinction among intellectual workers between technical employees, administrative employees
and technical and administrative managers. Technical employees
and administrative employees may be united in the same association,
but in separate sections with separate representatives. Technical and
administrative managers, on the other hand, as well as office managers
and heads of sections with similar functions, administrative officials,.
and agents with powers of attorney must belong to separate associations. T h e s e last associations must belong to the federations of
employers' associations. S u m m i n g up, among the wage earners in
a single u n d e r t a k i n g will be found, first of all, a n association of
manual workers, then an association of administrative and technical
emplo3-ees, finally a separate association of the m a n a g i n g staff.
As regards u n d e r t a k i n g s of all kinds carried on in a co-operative
form which may be legally recognised in terms of the Act of
3 April 1926, the Regulations declare t h a t t h e y must constitute
special associations distinct from the associations of similar capitalistic
u n d e r t a k i n g s and also from workers' associations. T h e y must belong

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

to higher grade associations either of employers or workers according
to their nature and their method of working (sections 8 and 34) .
Finally, by reason of their economic character, which does not
permit of their being classified in any single group, either of employers
or of wage earners, the Regulations authorise employers and workers
who are permanently and continuously members of different categories
of employers or of workers respectively to belong at the same time to
different trade associations. Similarly, the Regulations authorise
anyone who, in different fields of activity, is at the same time an
employer and a worker, to belong simultaneously to workers' and
employers' associations (section 7).
It has been seen that the Act of 3 April also grants legal
recognition to associations of persons exercising an art or a liberal
profession. Now here the new legislation came in conflict with a
number of legal provisions which, by virtue of previous Acts, already
regulated the exercise of a certain number of liberal professions.
According to the constitutions of these professions, enrolment in the
public registers was a condition of the exercise of the profession. The
compulsory registration was justified by the necessity of keeping this
class of workers, who had a very close community of interests,
independent of the control of the public authorities \
But these
associations, while legally representing the professions, were also the
interpreters and defenders of their class interests. Amongst their
attributes they had the right of fixing the scale of charges. The
managing bodies were elected by direct, equal and secret voting.
Those compulsory associations included the most important liberal
professions. It will be sufficient here to mention the principal
groups and outline briefly their constitution :
(a) Barristers and attorneys (Act of 8 June 1874, No. 1,937) :
The College of Barristers was governed by a regulative council ;
the College of Attorneys by a disciplinary council. They were
set up in the towns in which there were courts.
(b) Notaries (Act of 18 February 1913, No. 89) : The
College of Notaries was governed by a council; its seat was
that of the court.

BAKASSI

: Contratto di Lavoro, Vol. II, p. 58.

ITALY

(c) Professions connected with public health : The Act of
io July 1910, No. 455, instituted in each province, with its seat
in the capital, an order of doctors and surgeons, an order of
veterinary surgeons and an order of pharmacists. Registration
was compulsory for the exercise of the professions. Each order
appointed an administrative council which, amongst other
functions, supervised the observance of professional etiquette and
independence.
(d) Engineers and architects. The Act of 24 June 1923,
No. 1,395, made the exercise of these professions subject to
registration established in each province. The members appointed
their own regulative council which, amongst other duties, supervised the freedom of exercise of the profession and the observance
of professional etiquette.
(e) Accountants: The Act of 15 July 1908, No. 327, set
up in each province a college of accountants with its seat in
the capital. These colleges were divided into sections for the
different districts.
This brief analysis shows that it was difficult, if not impossible,
to harmonise certain rights acquired by these orders and colleges
with the prerogatives of the recognised trade associations for the
liberal professions. Therefore, the new legislation had, of necessity,
to institute a complete re-moulding .of the existing system. If it
does not go so far as simply to suppress these orders and colleges,
it practically deprives them of all their privileges for the benefit of
the recognised associations. The Regulations laid down, first of
all, a restriction as to the creation of new orders and colleges in the
future. Existing orders and colleges legally recognised at the date
on which the Act of 3 April 1926 came into force are, according to
section 12, to remain, but no new ones shall be recognised even
though their constitution may be provided for by previous Acts.
But the constitution of existing orders and colleges is also amended
on points of fundamental importance ; when exercise of a given art
or profession is subject to registration, controlled in virtue of the
Acts at present in force by an order or college, then according to
section 11, a trade association may be legally recognised concurrently
with the order or college. In such a case, the trade association is
subject to the Act of 3 April 1926, and it is this association and not
the previously existing bodies which may assume the obligations of
protecting the moral and material interests of their members and of

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

supervising t r a i n i n g and education, as provided for in the A c t . T h e y
alone are entitled to appoint representatives to t h e administrative
and technical political bodies of the State or of public institutions
w h e n such representation is provided for by Statutes and Regulations.
Moreover, and this is t h e most important provision, when the exercise
of a given art or profession for which no order or college h a s been
set u p is subject to enrolment in a special register, all the functions
belonging to the orders or colleges r e g a r d i n g t h e keeping of the
register and the supervision of the members are exercised by the
legally recognised trade associations, or, in their absence, are entrusted
t o the president of the court (section 12, subsections 2 and 3 ) .
T h e logical consequences of this reform are t h a t while the
previous registration, giving the right to exercise certain functions,
was subject only to purely professional conditions (possession of
university' qualifications), henceforward enrolment, and therefore
t h e exercise of the profession, in terms of the Act of 3 April 1926,
m a y be refused for reasons of moral ór political incapacity \
T h e same t h i n g happens in other classes of liberal professions,
such as artists and journalists. Section 2 of the A c t of 3 April 1926
decrees that the constitutions of associations of artists and of persons
exercising a liberal profession which have obtained legal personality
previous to the promulgation of the Act shall be subject to revision
to b r i n g them into harmony with the provisions of the Act.
I n conformity with these provisions, the old associations of
journalists and artists, which h a d a special legal constitution and
enjoyed legal personality, have had to be transformed into trade
associations in terms of the Act of 3 April 1926 \ T h e keeping of
registers of enrolment, made compulsory for journalists by section 7
of the Act of 31 December 1925 on the periodical press, will henceforward be entrusted to the legally recognised associations. I t fol-

1
Act of 25 March 1926, No. 453, on the organisation of the professions
of barrister and attorney, Gazzetta Ufficiale, No. 70. Royal Decree of
6 May 1926, No. 747 : Regulations for the co-ordination of the Act of
3 April 1926 with the Act of 25 March 1926 on the exercise of the
professions of barrister and attorney. Royal Decree of 26 Aug. 1926
approving the regulation for the enforcement of the Act of 25 March 1926.
2
See Decree of 27 Sep. 1926, Gazzetta Ufficiale, 1926, No. 1,718,
granting recognition to the National Fascist Association of Journalists.
Decree recognising National Fascist Association of Newspaper Editors,
ibidj. 1927, No. 48.

ITALY

lows that the enrolment necessary for the exercise of the profession
m a y be refused on the ground of moral and political incapacity \
T h u s , by the logic of things, political monopoly over t h e press
is arrived at, and more generally, a political monopoly of the exercise
of t h e liberal professions.
1
The secretary-general of the National Fascist Trade Association,
Mr. Amicucci, comments upon the constitution of the trade association
of journalists in the following terms :

" If a solution is sought for the problem of the enrolment of
journalists, the preliminary political qualification cannot be overlooked. The qualitative association is indispensable in journalism,
which is essentially a political profession. That is why only Fascist
journalists and journalists who have given constant proof of sympathy
for that system may belong to Fascist trade associations. All other
journalists who do not fulfil these political conditions may be
registered in the professional lists which guarantee the right to
exercise the profession. But even for enrolment in the register, a
certain minimum of political guarantees will be demanded in
conformity with the criteria laid down in the Act regarding the
exercise of the profession of barrister and of attorney. The keeping
of the registers will be entrusted to the association in accordance with
a regulation included in the Act on the press and which will be
promulgated by the Minister of Justice.
" With the legal recognition of the National Trade Association
of Journalists and of the National Association of Newspaper Editors
the typical contract of employment will soon be lodged with the
Minister of Corporations. "
As regards the part which journalism is called upon to play in the
national life, the secretary-general declares that newspapers must take
into account the political creed of their editors. The Italian press is
destined to play an important part in the State. " It must not be
forgotten ", he added, " that the head of the Government, in a memorable
speech delivered in the Senate in the winter 01 1924, proclaimed that the
parliamentary system was destined to be replaced by two basic
institutions : trade unionism and journalism. Trade unionism already
constitutes the basis of national society ; the task now is to give
journalism its proper place so that it may fulfil the duties for which it
is destined. "
As a result of the recognition of the professional associations of
journalists, the leaders of the Fascist Party decided, in a session i.n
3 March 1927, to proceed with the reorganisation of the press system.
Newspapers and publications will be divided into two main categories
— newspapers recognised by the party and those not recognised. The
first group will consist of newspapers which, by their origin, their
support of the Fascist cause, and the political fidelity of all the managing,
editing and administrative staff, offer sufficient guarantees to be
considered true and proper organs of the State.
All other newspapers will belong to the second class. The Party
will take the necessary steps to supervise the recognised newspapers as
¡Freedom of Association

9«

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

T h i s regulation h a s aroused m u c h criticism, even on t h e part
of the interested parties. Some have maintained indeed t h a t t h e
duties carried out b y t h e liberal professions can only with difficulty
be compared to collective relationships resulting from employment.
I n an article in the Critica Sociale, Mr. Gaio Ulpiani shows, by w a y
of example, t h a t the relationships between a barrister and his client
are essentially of a personal and qualitative n a t u r e , a n d hence unsuited
for a single compulsory system of collective regulation. T h e a u t h o r
considers this as a proof t h a t t h e object of the Act is not so m u c h
economic as essentially political \
S u c h then, are the difficulties which the law had to overcome
in order t o bring the liberal professions under the new trade legislation. T h e following are the criteria by which it was guided in
enrolling the associations of the liberal professions in the higher g r a d e
t r a d e organisations.
T h e orders and colleges of persons exercising liberal professions,,
according to section 35, c a n n o t constitute federations or other h i g h e r
grade organisations nor be affiliated to other higher grade associations. T h e different associations of editors and authors must belong
to t h e General Confederation of I n d u s t r y . T h e associations of
artists, on the other hand, must b e affiliated to the Theatrical F e d e r ation and t h r o u g h it to the General Confederation of T r a d e Associations of Fascist Workers. T h e associations of journalists will belongto the Federation of Associations of Intellectual W o r k e r s .
But it was not sufficient to lay down the principles g o v e r n i n g
the division of the citizens into different trade associations.
A

regards their political and possibly their administrative activity,, and will'
urge all Fascists to support onty these newspapers.
Only journalists who belong to the associations and are faithful to the
State may collaborate in recognised newspapers. On other newspapers,
not only Fascist, but any journalists admitted for enrolment in the
register, may collaborate. (Lavoro d'Italia, 1-4 March, 1927.)
At the moment of going to press the Regulations for the enforcement
of the Act regarding the registration of journalists have not yet been
promulgated.
1
" Collegi, Sindacati e Corporazioni ", Critica Sociale, 16 April15 May 1926, pp. 110-113. The president of the Italian Society of
Authors, in his report addressed to the President of the Council, explaining the difficulties met with by the society in adapting its constitution
to the requirements of the new legislation, advanced similar arguments.
with reference to authors.

ITALY

further discrimination was necessary in order ito make certain that
t h e conditions prescribed by the first section of the A c t for membership of recognised associations had been complied with T o make
certain of this the Government had to u n d e r t a k e annually a general
vocational census of all citizens.
F o r this purpose section 5 of the Act orders all employers to give
annually, before 31 March a t the latest, t o t h e associations which
represent t h e m , a return of the number of wage earners in their
employment. If this declaration is not m a d e , or if it is false or
incomplete, t h e offenders are punished b y a fine n o t exceeding
2,000 lire. T h e associations, for their p a r t , m u s t immediately
communicate t h e declarations received to. the prefects. As regards
the liberal professions, section 10 of the Regulations lays down t h a t
whosoever undertakes in a commune the exercise of an art or
profession m u s t m a k e a declaration to this effect t o the said comm u n e within t h r e e months, on pain of a fine of 100 lire. W i t h the
help of t h e data received from the associations and the communes,
the prefects draw u p , after consultation with t h e provincial economic
council, definite occupational registers.

THE

H I G H E R G R A D E T R A D E ASSOCIATIONS

Section 6 of the Act of 3 April 1926 recognised besides the
u n i t a r y associations t h e higher grade associations, federations and
confederations.
Section 7 and the following sections regulate the legal constitution of these higher associations a n d their relationships w i t h the
lower associations.
T h e organisation of these higher t r a d e associations is as follows :
second grade associations or federations ; third grade associations or
confederations; fourth grade associations or general confederations.
Trade

Federations

Several unitary associations form a federation which m a y b e local
(communal, provincial, or regional) or national. I t is, however, not

_' We borrow part of this commentary from an article of the Minister
of Justice which appeared in the review Gerarchia, July 1926, entitled
" La Nuova disciplina del Lavoro e la State corporativo ".

100

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

necessary that the union of the different elements of a given category
in larger areas or even over the whole of I t a l y should be on a federal
basis; it may also be done by means of unitary associations. T h u s
a given category m a y be organised by provinces, regions, or even
on a national basis in one unitary association. T h e fact of choosing
a federal organisation or unitary organisation depends solely on the
technical problems of the association. I t is therefore left to the
initiative of the organisers who may approve according to the type
of the branch of industry concerned, the n a t u r e of the persons
interested, and the number of members, either one or the other
scheme.
Trade

Confederations

Several federations are united into a confederation. T h e latter,
therefore, includes several categories of employers and of workers
and represents one or more classes of u n d e r t a k i n g s or even t h e whole
of a given branch of production. T h e confederations also may be
local (provincial or regional) or national. I n the first case, the
provincial or regional confederations unite to form a national confederation. T h e national confederation m a y include federations as
well as unitary associations.
T h e number of national confederations is limited. Section 41
of the Regulations provides indeed for the recognition of only
thirteen national confederations, six for the employers, six for the
workers, and one for the liberal professions. T h e six national
confederations of employers or of workers are drawn up according to
the six chief classes of economic production : industry, agriculture,
trade, maritime and aerial transport *, land transport and inland
navigation, and b a n k s . Besides these twelve confederations divided
according to the branches of production, the Regulations also provide
for the setting u p of a thirteenth national confederation, t h a t of
artists and liberal professions.
The

General

Confederations

T h e Regulations authorised finally, t h e formation of two general
confederations. A general confederation includes all the employers
1
Contrary to the provisions of the Regulations of 1 July 1926, which
provided for the union of all the federations of wage earners' in the
appropriate National Confederation of Workers an autonomous Federation of Workers and Salaried Employees in Maritime and Aerial
Transport has been formed. (Gazzetta Ufficiale, 24 Nov. 1926.)

ITALY

101

or all the workers and consequently extends to all branches of
production. Following the example of the simple federations, a
general confederation may be either local or national.
By means of the institution of general confederations, the law
hopes to solve the problem of unitary provincial organisation either
of employers or of workers. It succeeded in this by one of the
following methods. The organisers may in the first place take the
province as the basis of the organisation, and thus they constitute
a general provincial confederation comprising all the provincial
organisations whether of employers or of workers. It is only as a
second step that the provincial organisations in their turn unite to
form national confederations. The organisers may also constitute
straightway a general national confederation having branches in
each province. This, again, is a question of the system of organisation, the solution of which is left to the organisers, who may choose
either the more centralised form of a single national confederation
with local branches or the more decentralised form of general local
federations united in a national confederation.
The Regulations admit only two types of general confederations :
one for employers and one for workers and the liberal professions.
Such are the main outlines of the trade organisation properly
speaking, but once these frameworks have been definitely established
a new element appears which gives Italian trade organisation its
particular stamp : corporative organisations.

CORPORATIVE ORGANISATION
The corporative organisation was already hinted at in the Act
of 3 April 1926. Section 3 of this Act provides indeed for the
constitution of central liaison bodies, and section io, subsection 3,
and section 17, subsection 2, sketch outlines of their duties. It is
on these provisions of the Act that the Regulations have built up
corporative organisations.
As this new organisation is generally considered of fundamental
importance, it is well to give a brief outline of its purpose and scope.
It has already been seen that the Act of 3 April 1926 was the result
of a compromise between the plans for integral corporative organisation put forward by the Committee of Eighteen and the system of the
legally recognised trade association ; but the idea of integral
corporative organisation has always found and still finds at present
enthusiastic supporters in Italy, in particular, the national Catholic

I02

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

school makes it a central point in its social programme. The suggestion of the Committee of Eighteen corresponded to this ideal. It
should be recalled, for the sake of comparison with the situation
established by the Regulations on trade organisation, that, according
to the idea of the Committee of Eighteen, a corporation was to be
formed by the union of all the social activities of the nation in a
single body, and was finally to harmonise or rather to merge all the
individual interests in the general interest of the nation. Being open
to all, the corporation was to constitute an autonomous organisation
endowed with legal personality. Although its working was to be
subject to the supervision of the State, it was nevertheless authorised
by its constitution to issue its rules controlling vocational and social
life.
Later, it was the Fascist trade unions which became, and still
are to-day, the champions of corporative organisation. Formed under
the banner of the corporation, the Fascist trade union had attempted
to unite the different factors of production in their own organisation.
This union, had it been realised, would according to them, not only
have afforded the greatest possibility of co-operation in the sphere
of labour disputes, but would also have formed thé best possible
foundation for the reorganisation of society on a basis of social
duties. The Fascist trade union theory based its action indeed on
the idea of social duties. According to this theory, production is
no longer exclusively the personal business of the employer, and the
right of property no longer extends simply to the control exercised by
•persons over things but must correspond to a social duty, the exercise
of which will be entrusted to whoever is most suited to fulfil it. It
follows that the Fascist trade unions, which reject the idea of class
warfare, substitute for it " the struggle of social ability, that is to
say, the struggle carried out by groups of vocational categories who
acquire ability to carry out duties of management against groups of
categories who are gradually losing ability to fulfil the duties of
control " \

1
Cf. the programme of the Fascist corporations p. 28. Cf. also
the constitution of the Confederation of Fascist Trade Unions (Article 7)
and that of the Federation of Employers (Article 3), which repeat in
almost identical terms this theory of the social duty of capital and labour,
thus showing that by mutual agreement they have made it the basis of
their trade union action.

ITALY

IO3

But t h e leaders of Fascist trade unionism consider t h a t the setting
up of the corporative organisation is a necessary preliminary to this
struggle of abilities \
On t h e other hand, t h e idea of corporative organisation h a s
always aroused the hostility of the employers in large-scale industry.
It can be understood [states the Minister of Justice, who has been
spokesman of these doubts] how much the idea of unitary organisation,
of a single disciplinary force in employment and in production must
terrify the employers if the corporation were
constituted outside the
State in a system of liberty full of dangers 2.
T h e institution of the integral autonomous corporation necessarily
came in conflict with the Fascist theory of t h e State ; t h a t was the
result already of the report of t h e nationalist minority in t h e Committee of E i g h t e e n , which summed up its objections to t h e system of
integral corporative organisation in the following sentence : " Corporative reform reduces the State to a mere systematised federation
of interests in direct contradiction to t h e modern conception of t h e
State as the synthesis of all t h e moral and material interests of t h e
nation. " 3
T h e Minister of Justice, for his part, in a speech delivered in
the Chamber of Deputies during the discussion on the Act of
3 April 1926, laid down even more clearly t h e ideas of the Government on this point :
I must say, finally, a few words about the relationships between
the trade organisation provided for in this Bill, and the corporative
organisation for which some people hope.
According to the conception of the corporative organisation, all
citizens would be enrolled according to the occupation which they fill in
such a way as to create a rigid and systematic organisation without any
possibility of freedom of development.

However, the idea which the Fascist trade unions have of corporative
organisation differs in one fundamental way from that of the ChristianSocial school ; it is plain indeed from numerous articles which Mr. Rossoni
has devoted to this question in the Lavoro d'Italia that, in his opinion,
the corporation formed by the union of different factors of production
within one single body must be composed exclusively of Fascist employers
and workers.
2
A. Rocco : La nuova disciplina del Lavoro e lo Stato Corporativo,
p. io.
3
Report and Proposals of the Presidential Committee for the Study
of Constitutional Reforms, p. n o .

I04

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

We consider that such a corporation of the Italian population does
not fit present conditions of Italian life. It is better to start from an
existing body, a reality, that is to say, from the trade associations.
We develop this reality, we give it new aspects and we create the legally
recognised trade associations. If the life of these associations becomes
as strong as we hope, so that all those who are worthy to enter may
be active members, the result will be a system very similar to the
corporative system, but distinct from it in one essential point. The
members of the association who will direct the economic life of the
country and regulate class relationships must constitute an élite of
persons of ability and of definite convictions. On the day when all
employers and all workers in Italy possess this ability, this consciousness
of the aim to be achieved and these convictions, then, but only then, the
trade association will automatically become a corporation '.
F o r all these reasons the law has stopped at a n intermediate
system which gives u p two characteristics considered essential in the
corporation, namely, universality and autonomy. Universality has
been lost because the Regulations have contented themselves with
setting u p corporative bodies formed by t h e union in one single body
of the legally recognised associations of workers and employers within
one single branch of i n d u s t r y only. T h e result is t h a t all those who
are excluded from this single trade association are automatically
excluded from the corporative organisation. A u t o n o m y has been
lost because the Regulations not only d e n y t h e corporation its own
legal personality b u t makes it an administrative body within the
State.
T h e following are a few details of the corporative organisation
sui generis as conceived by the Regulations of i July.
T h e national trade organisations of the different agents in
production (employers, workers, artists and persons exercising' a
liberal profession), w h e t h e r representing a given branch of production

1
Speech of the Minister of Justice in the Chamber of Deputies in
Trade Union Rejorin in Italy, p. 129.
It has been pointed out, moreover, that the idea of the corporation
as an autonomous legal personality has had to be abandoned because
it would have endangered the principle of the autonomy and equality
of social classes, a principle which constitutes one of the foundations of
the whole Fascist system ; consequently in the Fascist system the
corporation has become a public institution, without real personality, so
as to respect the legal individuality and autonomy of the vocational
associations of which it is composed. Within these limits the universality
of the corporative organisation is guaranteed by the fact that the
corporative bodies formed for every branch of production, are united and
co-ordinated amongst themselves by the National Council of Corporations.

ITALY

IOS

or one or more given categories of undertakings, may be set u p as
corporations by Decree of the Minister of Corporations (section 4 2 ) .
T h e corporation is not, therefore, a union of all social activities
in one single organism, as was intended b y the proposal of the
Committee of E i g h t e e n , b u t is peculiar to each given branch of
production. Consequently, t h e r e will be in the system of trade
organisation general corporations for industry, for agriculture, for
trade, for maritime transport, for land transport, and for b a n k s .
Although section 42 of the Regulations declares t h a t t h e corporation has a national character, there is n o t h i n g to hinder it h a v i n g
local branches.
T h e Decree setting u p a n y corporation determines, at the same
time, its attributes, its powers, and its organisation (section 4 3 ) . T h e
corporation is governed by a council formed by representatives of the
different trade associations united in the corporation, a n d directed
by a Chairman appointed by the Minister of Corporations.
T h e incidental expenses for the working of corporative bodies
are a burden on the State. T h e latter puts aside for this purpose the
share of subscriptions which it receives according to t h e Regulations \
S u m m i n g u p , the structure of Fascist trade unionism is based upon
a double organisation, a purely trade union organisation working
for the defence of the interests of each group and of each class, and
a corporative organisation entrusted with the defence of the interests
common t o each branch of production a n d t o each g r o u p of undertakings.
• T h a n k s to this double organisation, as the Minister of Justice
maintains, the double aim pursued by the Act of 3 April 1926 and
completed b y the Regulations of 1 J u l y 1926 is realised : t h e peaceful
solution of labour disputes, and the organisation of the forces of
production under State supervision \
T r a d e union organisation is completed b y the institution of a
special Ministry, the Ministry of Corporations.

No corporation has yet been set up in the course of the year 1926,
or the first months of 1927.
- A. Rocco, op. cit., p. n .

io6

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

The Ministry

Corporations

T h e w o r k i n g of t h e T r a d e Union Act has all t h r o u g h been p u t ,
as has been seen already, u n d e r the direot control of the authorities
and their agents. H e n c e the need for setting up a supreme controlling body. T h e Ministry of Corporations was constituted by a Decree
of 2 July 1926.
T h e first section of the Decree defines its attributes. T h e
Minister of Corporations, and under his direction, the prefects of
provinces, carry out all the duties of organisation, co-ordination and
supervision entrusted to the Government b y virtue of the Act and
t h e Regulations.
Section 4 institutes a National Council of Corporations along
with the Ministry of Corporations. T h i s Council is composed of the
Minister, the Under-Secretary of State, the General Labour Director
of the Ministry of National Economy, representatives of different
Ministries, representatives of t h e g r e a t t r a d e associations of employers
a n d workers which are legally recognised, representatives of the
National Institute for W o r k e r s ' Leisure, representatives of the
National I n s t i t u t e of Fascist Y o u t h , and of the National I n s t i t u t e
for M a t e r n i t y and Child Welfare. T h e meetings of t h e Council will
also be attended by a delegate of the National Co-operative I n s t i t u t e
(Ente nazionale della Cooperazione),
representatives of the associations of wage earners employed by t h e State, and of the Fascist
Political P a r t y . T h u s composed, t h e Council will form a synthesis
of all the different forces of the nation \
T h e members of the
Council are appointed by Royal Decree for four years, and are eligible
for re-election.
T h e Council is called upon to give its opinion on questions
concerning the different corporations and associations belonging to
t h e different corporations, and in general, on any question submitted
to it b y the Ministry of Corporations.
T h e Legislative Decree of 17 M a r c h 1927, N o . 401, completes
t h e organisation of the Ministry of Corporations, as was proposed b y

1
Cf Speech of Mr. Bottai in the Chamber of Deputies on 1 June 3927
— " Organisation of the Ministry of Corporations ". The Under-Secretary
of State declared, on the same occasion, that the corporations still
remained to be set up, that the members of the Council have still to be
appointed, and that the relations between the corporations and the Council, and between the Council and the Ministry have still to be defined.

ITALY

I07

the Decree of 2 July 1926. It sets up within the Ministry two
general managing bodies : the general managing committee of the
trade associations and the general managing committee of the
corporations. The attributes of the general committees will be
determined later by a Decree of the Ministry of Corporations in
agreement with other Ministers concerned.
Besides the National Council of Corporations, other bodies will
act along with the Ministry of Corporations :
(1) The six national corporations which will be set up in
conformity with the Trade Union Regulation of 1 July 1926 ;
(2) The several permanent advisory committees which
will be instituted by Decree of the Minister, and which will be
required to carry out a preliminary study of any given problems,
and to attend to the publication of reviews and other periodicals
dealing with questions within the scope of the Ministry.
The chairmen of the different corporative bodies will be citizens
distinguished by their outstanding merit in the sphere of production,
of labour, or the management of public services.
In each province, the services within the scope of the Ministry
of Corporations will be placed in the hands of an official of the
prefecture, or of services depending upon the Ministry of National
Economy. This official, besides the task thus imposed upon him,
will co-operate with the prefects in the work of supervision entrusted
to him by the Act of 3 April 1926, and the Regulations of
1 July 1926. He also superintends the working of the local offices
of the corporative bodies, laid down in section 43 of the Regulations
of 1 July 1926. He collects the documents connected with collective
contracts of employment and similar rules, which in terms of section 10 of the Act of 3 April 1926 must be lodged with the prefect
of the district, and he authorises their publication.
This official is ex officio a member of the Provincial Administrative Council when it acts as a protective body for the trade associations and of the Provincial Economic Council.
Finally, a Decree of the Head of the Government dated
8 May 1927, and published in the Gazzetta Ufficiale of 21 June
defines, as follows, the attributes of the Ministry of Corporations \

Cf. Industriai and Labour Information, Vol. XXI, p. 152, and
Vol. x x n , p. 22.

io8

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

SECTION I
( I ) To control the exercise of the duties of representation reserved
for legally recognised trade associations by section 5 of the Act of
3 April 1926, without, however, allowing this control to extend to acts
performed by bodies or institutions outside the corporative organisation,
but participated in by the representatives of the latter.
(2) To co-ordinate the activity of the trade associations with that
of the national institutions in terms of section 19 of the Regulations of
1 July 1926.
(3) To supervise the schools which may be set up for training the
managing officials of trade associations.
(4) To direct the scientific and popular diffusion of the principles
inspiring co-operative organisation.
(5) To control, supervise and co-ordinate in their different spheres
the working of the trade associations and complementary institutions
according to the principles laid down in sections I and IV of the Labour
Charter with reference to the relations of trade associations, either with
each other, or with the agencies of corporative and inter-corporative
action subsidised by the special fund which is at the disposal of the
Ministry, òr created conjointly by several trade associations. To encourage
and subsidise similar undertakings in terms of section 44, (b), of the
Regulations of 1 July 1926 without infringing the competence of the
Ministry of National Economy.
(6) To co-ordinate the data referring to production and labour
gathered by other branches of the State administration, by the Central
Institute for Statistics, and by the trade associations for the purposes of
applying section XIII of the Labour Charter.
(7) To supervise the drawing up of collective contracts of employment, and to attend to the publication of the latter, in agreement with
the Ministry of National Economy, and with other Ministries which may
be concerned ; to communicate to the Ministry of Justice all the necessary
information for the exercise of the duties laid upon the Public Prosecutor
with regard to the Labour Tribunal by the Act of 3 April 1926, ' and the
Regulations of 1 July 1926.
(8) To support and direct the advisory, regulative and organising
activity of the corporations within the sphere of their competence ; to
take part in attempts at conciliation in collective differences ; to study
and put forward legislative measures for the enforcement and development
of the Labour Charter, and with regard to collective labour relations.
(9) To promulgate the decisions and ratify the Orders of the
corporations, to superintend the carrying out of these Orders, tc coordinate the action of the central and local corporative bodies in their
mutual relations, and in their relations with the National Council of
Corporations.
(10) To supervise within the limits of its special competence the
services set up by the corporations ; to administer the funds not included
in the budget which are put at the disposition of the Ministry by section
4 of the Decree of 17 March 1927.
SECTION 2

The State administrative bodies shall transmit periodically to the
Ministry of Corporations the data collected in conformity with subsection (6) above. The Ministry of Corporations shall, in agreement with
these administrative bodies, take steps, in urgent cases, to make the
enquiries which may be necessary in virtue of the said paragraph. It
may also ask the Central Institute for Statistics to carry out special

ITALY

IOC

work and, after consultation with this Institute, may set up special
criteria for enquiries concerning relations in labour and in production.
SECTIONS 3 AND 4

Sections 3 and 4 give the Ministry of Corporations the power to
divide the attributes enumerated above among the different services of
the Ministry, to decree, in agreement with other Ministries, regulations
for the administration of the provincial services, and to organise the
Secretariat of the National Council of Corporations.
SECTION 5

Section 5 decrees that the special fund placed at the disposal of the
Ministry of Corporations, and under the supervision of the Court of
Accounts, shall be administered by the Minister and the Under-Secretary
of State, assisted by a committee composed of two General Directors of
the Ministry, the Head of the National Secretariat of Corporations, a
counsellor of the Court of Cassation, a State counsellor, and a member
appointed by the Minister of Finance. The regulations for the constitution
of the fund, its administration and the organisation of institutions
subsidised by it shall be drawn up by Decree of the Minister of
Corporations in agreement with the Minister of Finance.
lit is clear from all those provisions t h a t the Ministry of Corporations will be essentially the supreme regulating body in the trade
union, economic and social organisation.
T h e following table gives an idea of t h e structure of Fascist
trade unionism *.

1
Cf. G. BOTTAI : ¡-.^ordinamento corporativo dello Stato, Edition
Del Diritto del Lavoro, Roma, 1927. The author gives the complete table
in the appendix.

ItO

F R E E D O M OF ASSOCIATION

NATIONAL

CONFEDERATION

National organisations 2

FASCIST TRADE

UNIONS

Provincial and local
organisations

National Federation of Fascist 47 national trade unions
and national groups co a
Trade Unions in Industry.
a v
of unions.
Cl T3
National Federation of Fascist 6
a <u
CS ' S
Trade Unions in Agriculture.
S'a
T3-2
National Federation of Fascist 13
Trade Unions in Commerce.

CB . ß

•u 1& a

National Federation of Fascist
Trade
Unions
in
Land
Transport and Inland Navigation.

I!
!{
S bo

National Federation of Fascist
Trade Unions of Bank Employees.
National Federation of Fascist
Trade Unions of Intellectual
Workers.

"E <u

•r o o
o «J

0.2
¿3 a

~£
O

¡U

a S

S £ .2 '2
¿ H a 'g
'S -S
C3 O

.a «

<L>

$ 0

1
The General National Confederation of Fascist Associations of Employers is
constituted on a similar basis.
2 There should be added to the list of national organisations the autonomous Federation of Workers and Salaried Employees in Maritime and Aerial Transport.

§ 2 . — Part Played by Official Trade Unionism in Social,
Economic and Political 'Life
On the basis of this trade union and corporative organisation it
is proposed to u n d e r t a k e b y legislation the complete reform of Italian
society. T h i s reform will have various aspects. I t is at the same
time social, economic and political, a n d in all these spheres it is
on t h e way to completion.
Mention will be made here only of the most characteristic
expressions of this reform in each section of national activity.

/
l l 1

ITALY

P A R T P L A Y E D BY T H E T R A D E A S S O C I A T I O N S I N S O C I A L L I F E

The National

Labour

Charter

Section i o of t h e Act of 3 April 1926 g r a n t s the central liaison
body, t h a t is to say, the corporative organisations, the right of setting
u p general rules regarding conditions of work in the u n d e r t a k i n g s
with which they are connected. I t has been seen that these rules,
like collective contracts in t h e strictest sense, are effective for all
employers and all wage earners of t h e g r o u p to which they refer, and
w h o are represented in terms of section 5 by the unions of associations
(see a b o v e ) .
T h e mover of the Bill in t h e Senate had drawn the attention of
t h e legislators to the danger of leaving the control of such an
important matter affecting t h i r d parties entirely to the contractual
will of the parties 2 .
T h e Regulations of 1 July 1926 e n u m e r a t e in section 44 t h e
powers granted in this respect to corporative bodies, b u t w i t h o u t
g i v i n g exact details of the m e t h o d s of enforcing t h e m . T h e section
s t a t e s t h a t the central corporative bodies have in particular the right r
To undertake conciliation in disputes which may arise between
groups of organisations and to draw up the provisions outlined in
section 10 of the Act of 30 April 1926 ;
To stimulate, support and subsidise every effort made by the trade
associations to co-ordinate and organise production, to set up employment
exchanges wherever there is need for them. Where such exchanges
exist the right of seeking employment and the working of other agencies
may be forbidden by Royal Decree, having regard in every case to any
special legislative provisions on the subject ;
To regulate periods of probation or apprenticeship by enforcing
the general rules on this subject and seeing that they are observed. These
rules are subject to all the provisions regarding collective contracts of
employment.
T h e National Labour Charter, which has just been promulgated,
s u m s u p all t h e provisions of the Act a n d the Regulations on these
points.

1
Editorial Note. — This work was in the press when the Labour
Charter was promulgated on 21 April 1927. That is why we have been
content to reproduce this document without comment at the end of this
chapter, and have refrained from altering the general plan of the work.
2
See the Ministerial Report to the Senate in Trade Union Reform-.
in Italy, p. 165.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

112

General

Factory

While

Regulation-

waiting for the p r o m u l g a t i o n of this new legislation, the

Fascist organisations of employers and workers had agreed t o d r a w
up general plans for factory regulation which were to be enforceable
o n all parties concerned.
T h e following, according to a resolution adopted in April 1926
by the General Confederation of Fascist W o r k e r s , are the g u i d i n g
principles of the reform. T h e Council of the General Confederation
of Fascist T r a d e Unions expresses the desire :
That all questions affecting all classes of workers as regards finding
of employment, welfare work, mutual aid, the annual holiday and
compensation for dismissal, should be promptly settled in such a way
as to make possible complete corporative control of the labour market ;
That social assistance in the case of involuntary unemployment, of
sickness, disablement, old age or retirement should be guaranteed to
the workers.
U p to the present the discussions between the two parties have
n o t reached a definite decision, b u t t h e aims of t h e Fascist organisations are already sufficiently obvious from the actual situation resulting from local or regional agreements arrived at b y discussion between
t h e parties concerned.
According to the Fascist political or trade union press, t h e
situation is as follows : Fascist t r a d e unionism found in force the
factory regulations laid down b y the independent trade unions in
1919. T h e latter have already been gradually modified for certain
classes of workers such as chemists, sugar workers, electricians, etc. ;
on the other h a n d , for other g r o u p s there have so far been n o
important amendments. N o w it is necessary to remove t h e inequalities in this situation and to amend t h e internal factory regulation, in
particular the provisions regarding internal committees, the finding
of employment, and social assistance.
On these three points solutions have been arrived at in practice
which establish the monopoly of the official trade unions in representing labour in the workshops, in finding employment and in establishing social welfare institutions.
Monopoly

of Labour

Representation

I t has been seen in the chapter devoted t o history t h a t the internal
committees h a d been definitely suppressed according t o t h e Vidoni
Palace a g r e e m e n t ; they have not yet been officially replaced. I t

ITALY

is moreover doubtful what bodies will take their place, but the
Fascist press asserts that it is already clear that the members of the
new bodies will no longer, as formerly, be elected by universal
suffrage on the part of the workers in their undertakings.
In fact, labour representation in the workshops has been
exclusively assumed by the representatives of the official organisations.
Monopoly of Finding

Employment

Equally important is the problem of finding employment. While
waiting for legislation which will decree new regulations through
the central corporative bodies for reorganising completely the system
of finding employment, heads of undertakings and representatives
of the Fascist trade unions have already reached an understanding
for regulating the engagement of their staff. Now the difficulties
which may result from the exercise of a monopoly in finding employment by party institutions can scarcely be disguised. It must indeed be
feared that the parties will be tempted to give preference to members
of official trade unions, all the more so because as the result of an
economic depression the possibilities of employment are limited. The
following example, based on documentary evidence, tends to show
that the danger is not merely a possible one. A thousand workmen
in Molinella had formed, in conformity with existing legislation, an
independent trade union affiliated to the General Confederation of
Labour. Becoming involuntarily unemployed, these workers applied
to the employment exchange in Bologna for employment in the
construction works in the region of the Reno and Crevalcore. They
were told that to obtain employment in this work they must be
members of a Fascist trade union. The trade union (then applied
to the President of the Central Employment Exchange and claimed
the right of employment for their members, basing their argument
on the regulations of the exchange itself, which is supported by
contributions from all the workers employed in these works. The
Joint Committee of the Exchange replied that as the independent
trade union had no claim to legal recognition, it had no right to
represent collective labour interests.
The Central Exchange
confirmed the decision taken by the Employment Exchange at
Bologna. Meanwhile the trade union of Molinella was dissolved for
reasons of public order without the question of its members being
admitted to the work referred to having been settled. In the appeal
Freedom of Association

114

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

which the m a n a g e r s of the dissolved associations sent to the Minister
of the Interior, they stressed once again the fact t h a t at t h e busy
season for agricultural work, and at a moment when there was
a shortage of labour, a t h o u s a n d persons could n o t find work for t h e
simple reason t h a t they refused to be members of a Fascist t r a d e
union. T h e y added t h a t even many employers deplored such a
situation which is prejudicial t o the economic system of t h e country.
Nevertheless, not only did their complaints remain fruitless, b u t t h e
proprietors went so far as to eject several families from the dwellings
which they had occupied for a number of years \
I t may certainly be said t h a t the e x a m p l e quoted is isolated
— as a matter of fact, cases of dismissal or non-engagement for
refusing to join official trade unions are becoming more and more
frequent — and t h a t exceptional measures had to be t a k e n to meet
a n exceptional situation, b u t it remains t r u e , a n d t h i s is the most
serious consequence of the T r a d e Union Act which g r a n t s a monopoly
of occupational representation to the sole recognised union, t h a t
t h e right to employment runs the risk of being b o u n d u p with
membership of a Fascist t r a d e union (cf. below, L a b o u r Charter,
Section X X I I I , " Preferential Clauses of E m p l o y m e n t " ) .
" De jacto " Monopoly
for Mutual Aid,

over Co-operative Institutions 'and
Institutions
Vocational Training and Social
Welfare

T h e Act of 3 April 1926, lays on recognised associations the
obligation of a t t e n d i n g t o m u t u a l help and vocational t r a i n i n g , as
well as merely defending occupational and economic interests.
T h e Regulations of 1 July 1926 includes in the list of those
enjoying legal recognition civil bodies whose members are of Italian
nationality as well as co-operative u n d e r t a k i n g s of any kind. Penally,
section 18 of t h e Regulations mentions among necessary expenses
for associations those incurred for economic and social assistance, for
moral and religious assistance, for national education and vocational
training. I t also classes as compulsory contributions those made t o
the National Institution for W o r k e r s ' Leisure, the National Institution
for Maternity and Child Welfare, the National Institution Balilla
(for Fascist y o u t h ) , and to the National Relief Institution for
Assistance and Social Welfare.
1

Cf. Report of the Discussion of the Governing Body of the International Labour Office with regard to the. Molinella incidents.
Geneva,
1926.

ITALY

'IS

T h e s e provisions show t h a t the Government attaches special
importance to t h e different branches of welfare work. T h i s m a t t e r
will doubtless be the subject of special regulations. T h e situation
actually existing at present gives a hint of what future legal solutions
may be.
I t has been seen that before t h e beginning of the Fascist movement, the independent and the Catholic trade unions were rightly
proud of the exceptional prosperity of their co-operative and m u t u a l aid movement. T h e Fascist trade unions, conscious of the importance
of this movement, have spared no effort to absorb the existing
institutions in the framework which they themselves have set u p .
To-day the process of absorption is almost complete, t h a n k s to t h e
suppression of t h e institutions connected w i t h t h e independent trade
organisations \
T h e Italian Federation of Mutual-Aid Societies was dissolved
by Decree of t h e Prefect of Milan on 23 November 1925 for the
following reasons :
Seeing that the Italian Federation of Mutual-Aid Societies and of
Provident Funds, having its seat in Milan, has through its managers
engaged in activities directly contrary to national policy, activities
aiming at making an eminently and exclusively economic institution
serve political ends to the detriment of the public authorities and the
Government, the said Italian Federation of Mutual-Aid Societies and of
Provident Funds, as well as all branches and federations of mutual-aid
societies existing either in Milan or in the provinces, are hereby
dissolved.
T h e former independent federation was subsequently attached
to the Institute for Mutual Aid and Social Welfare (Istituto
di
Mutualità e di Previdenza
fascista).
F o r similar reasons at the same time the National Co-operative
League (Lega
nazionale
delle Cooperative)
was dissolved and

Nevertheless, the co-operative and mutual-aid movement connected
with the General Confederation of Labour has been the object of harsh
criticism by the Fascist Party. It is accused of letting itself be governed
by the Socialist Party, and hence having become an instrument for
political propaganda by the State. Cf. M. PREZIOSI : Il cooperativismo
rosso, piovra dello Stato ; Bari, Laterza, 1922. Cf. also the Parliamentary
Report of the Committee of Enquiry into War Expenses, Rome, Government Printing Office, 1923.

nò

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

replaced b y the National Fascist Co-operative Institution \
The
same fate awaited ithe institutions for medical and legal assistance,
which were replaced by the N a t i o n a l Fascist Relief Institution for
Social Assistance and Welfare W o r k . Finally, t h e w o r k m e n ' s clubs
for recreation and vocational training, in so far as such existed,
were replaced by t h e N a t i o n a l I n s t i t u t e for W o r k e r s ' Leisure
(Opera nazionale del
Dopolavoro).
T h u s co-operative institutions and independent welfare institutions in all their forms are definitely centralised in the h a n d s of
Fascist trade unionism which i n t e n d s under the supervision of t h e
authorities to give t h e m uniformity of management so as to make
t h e m more efficient.
I t should be added t h a t only representatives of Fascist t r a d e
unions and institutions have a seat on the public social welfare
insitutions such as national insurance funds, national funds for
industrial accidents, etc.
But everything concerned either directly with the collective
regulation of employment or more generally .with t h e problems of
social welfare and w o r k e r ' s protection is henceforth subject to a
uniform general system of regulation b y the institution of the
National Labour Charter.
T h e following
document.

are

the

phases

the

development

this

Mr. Bottai, in a speech of i June 1927 in the Chamber of Deputies,
gave the following information about the organisation of the National
Co-operative Institution. He declared first of all that a Royal Decree was
being prepared, according to which the co-operative associations for the
•purposes of the legal organisation of collective labour relations must
belong through their special bodies to trade associations.
But in order to keep the co-operative movement free from the
influence of individual interests which, in the working of the different
confederations, might possibly prevail over the interests of the movement
as a whole and in order to avoid dangerous interference and wasteful
duplication of offices in the national co-operative institutions and the
confederations, it has been decided that the power of representation for
economic and technical purposes will belong solely to the National Cooperative Institution to which the different federations of co-operative
associations must belong. The Minister of Corporations may moreover
grant the National Co-operative Institution the same powers with regard
to its members as the law grants to corporative bodies. Cf. " Central
Co-operative Organisations in Italy ", in Industrial and Labour Injormation, Vol. X X I I , pp. 324 et seq.

ITALY

II7

T h e first m e e t i n g for the drafting of the L a b o u r Charter was
held on 13 F e b r u a r y 1927 at the Ministry of Corporations under t h e
chairmanship of Mr. Bottai, Under-Secretary of State. T h e general
discussion ended in the drawing u p of a questionnaire, which was to
b e discussed at successive meetings. T h e following points in t h e
p r o g r a m m e were p u t down for preliminary study :
1. Co-ordination and definition of the work for social assistance and
vocational instruction among trade associations, national institutions,
and the Ministry of Corporations.
2. Extension of social welfare work ; duties which the trade associations may assume in this sphere ; uniformity in insurance policies ;
possible transfer of accident insurance from private funds to the trade
associations.
3. Co-ordination and discussion of the laws for the protection of
workers ; opportunity for codifying the same ; method to be followed ;
functions which may be assumed by trade associations in the supervision
of labour.
4. Functions of the trade associations in the economic system ;
co-ordination of economic and credit institutions in co-operation with
the central corporative bodies ; economic attributes of the trade organisations in connection with the functions actually exercised by the State in
this matter ; regulation of prices, reduction of the cost of production.
5. Standards for fixing wages in relation to the output of the
ent»iprise and the depreciation of the currency.
6. Procedure for drafting collective contracts of employment ;
sphere of application of collective contracts, and general conditions .of
labour and of conciliation of collective disputes as regards institutions
set up by the Act of 3 April 1926, No. 563, and the Regulations for its
enforcement.
7. General provisions of the individual contract of employment
(periods of probation, dismissal, holidays, hours of work, transference
of the undertaking, etc.) ; limits of legal intervention by the State in
the realm of the collective contract and with regard to new functions
granted to this contract.
8. Organisation of the jurisdiction over individual labour disputes,
taking into account the general rules concerning contracts of employment
and the indefeasible right of the State to exercise legal protection over
its citizens.
9. System of co-operative societies in their relations with the State
and with the Fascist trade union organisation.
10. Institution of official labour exchanges ; preferential classes of
employment l .
T o make quite clear the fundamental importance attached by the
Fascist regime to the institution of the N a t i o n a l Labour Charter,
M r . Mussolini had addressed t h e following message to t h e members

Lavoro d'Italia

and Corriere della Sera, 12 Feb. 1927.

ii8

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

of the preparatory committee which defines once again the fundamental principles of the co-operative organisation :
Realisation of the equal rights of all social classes — equality which
has never been secured by liberal and democratic systems — and proclamation of the solidarity of all citizens in view of the higher interests of
their country, interests which form the limit and the standard of all
individual rights from the right of property and the > right of private
profit to the right of work and the right to wages.
Raising the occupational association (trade association) to the dignity
of a public institution invested with power to regulate the interests of
the category of citizens which it represents and with social duties which
make it an organ of economic policy and of national education. The
principle to be followed in this matter is : maximum functions for the
»State, no power against the State.
Responsibility of the citizens belonging to various associations
towards the trade association as regards careful observation of the rules
governing the work and production.
Responsibility of the trade associations towards the State as regards
the discipline of the occupational categories which they organise, regulate
and represent ; duty of the trade associations to maintain this discipline
among their members, if necessary by a revision of their rules.
Co-operation of the trade associations with the Ministrv of Corporations, which is an organ of political and social reconstruction in. Italy,
to ensure that the State may effectively control all social forces and
obtain the maximum of solidarity and discipline among Italians, both
in the moral and the economic sphere.
Under the Fascist system, which is an organic system, the declaration
of rights and duties concerns both the citizens considered individually
and the associations in which the citizens are grouped and which constitute
within the framework of the corporative organisation the fundamental
element of the system.
The legal and political consequences of these principles will be studied
in the course of successive meetings and made concrete in the Labour
Charter. They will develop the corporative system in the framework
determined for it by the sovereign Fascist State and the duties of cooperation and organisation granted to the confederations of trade
associations.
The first conclusion which can be drawn from these principles is that
the Fascist system appears, thanks to the institution of the central
corporative bodies, as the first which grants the workers the right of
participation in the control of production, that is to say, in the supervision
of the whole economic system of the nation and not only in that of every
single undertaking. This it grants as a right and a duty for the worker,
for he is urged to subordinate his own claims to the higher needs of the
national economic system. Moreover, within the limits of these rights
and these duties, that is to say, within the limits of the corporation of
the Fascist State, there arises a new economic constitution, the exact
form of which cannot be defined at present but which can already be
guessed at, under the influence of the collective labour contract and the
work of co-ordination of production which is being undertaken by the
trade associations and the corporations.
T h e L a b o u r Charter was definitely promulgated on 21 April 1927.
T h e following passages from the report of Mr. Bottai, Under-Secretary
of State in t h e Ministry of Corporations, w h i c h accompanies the
document, show its legal n a t u r e and its political and social scope.

ITALY

The idea of a Labour Charter, which the Head of the Government had
conceived as soon as the Regulations for enforcing the Act on the organisation of collective labour relations had been promulgated, is connected
with the whole original conception of the Fascist Revolution. When
the news spread that the Government and the Party intended to put this
idea into practice and that a Labour Charter would, by the decision of the
Fascist Grand Council, be promulgated on the occasion of the anniversary
of Rome, year V of the first national Italian era, the greatest uncertainty
reigned in many circles as t o its contents. Certain persons were in
favour of setting up a Labour Code. According to this conception, the
Labour Charter would have been the result of a systematic revision and
a compilation in a single text of the legislation in force regarding the
supervision of labour, of social assistance, welfare work and insurance,
completed by the recent legislation on trade organisation and collective
contracts of employment.
In reality, the principles laid down by the Labour Charter are based
on another idea. Fascism, which is essentially revolutionary and political,
could not be satisfied with a technical and legal systématisation of the
regulations issued during the last decades with regard to labour
legislation. It aspired to something higher than a legal document. It
was a question of giving concrete form to our aspirations, which are
already almost ten years old, and to proclaim to the Italian people and to
the world the reasons for its existence and for its peculiar historical and
political individuality. That is why the Labour Charter could not be
drafted by the usual procedure for law. It was destined not to have the
external form nor the immediate value of an Act, but to express the
will of the new organisms created by the Revolution and to constitute
the basis not only for the guidance of future legislation but for a new
point of view for the whu'e society of the nation.
Objectively, the Labour Charter must be considered as a fundamental
act of the Government, resulting from the constructive forces of the
Revolution. . . .
T h e report, after recalling t h e different phases in the drafting
of the Labour Charter and giving a summary of its contents,
concludes :
The organisation of labour — and by labour is meant all activities
tending to increase the moral and material wealth of the nation —
constitutes, therefore, the fundamental aim of the Charter. Thanks to
it, all citizens grouped in trade organisations will be incorporated in the
Fascist State. The interests of the most humble workers, those connected
with contracts of employment and with manual labour, will be placed on
the same level as the interests of industrial undertakings and will, for
the first time, be included, not only in private law in conformity with
the democratic programme, but also in public law and more definitely
still in constitutional law.
It is for the State to carry into practice the principles enshrined in
the Charter, but certainly the National Council of Corporations instituted
by the Decree of 2 July 1926 will contribute to this end, as also the
Ministry of Corporations, which is the supreme body in the whole
system of full collaboration which is identified with the State.
The judgment passed on the Labour Charter, a document without
precedent in constitutional history, is a question for the future, but
already we consider it as the most valuable result of the mutual interest
and the confident co-operation with the State which the social classes
have ever realised up to the present either in Italy or abroad.

120

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

I t is clear from these quotations t h a t the L a b o u r Charter does not
so much codify legal rules properly speaking, b u t rather lays down
certain general principles which m a y later b e translated into legislation, b u t which already have executive legal value and shall be
enforced i n t h e contractual relationships of t h e parties.
T h e following is t h e t e x t of t h e L a b o u r Charter approved b y t h e
Directorate a n d the G r a n d Fascist Council.
T H E CORPORATE STATE AND I T S ORGANISATIONS X

I. The Italian nation, thanks to its strength and its history, is an
organism with specific ends, a separate life, and methods of action
superior t o those of the individuals or groups which compose it. It
constitutes a moral, political and economic unity the complete realisation
of which is found in the Fascist State.
II. Labour in all its forms, intellectual, technical and manual, is
a social duty. On this count, and on this count alone, it is protected by
the State. Production as a whole must be regarded as a unit from the
national point of view. Its objectives are all of the same kind, and may
be summarised as the well-being of producers and the development of t h e
national power.
III. Occupational or trade union organisation is free, but only trade
associations which are legally recognised and subject to State control are
entitled legally to represent all the categories of employers or workers
for whom they are constituted, to protect their interest vis-à-vis the State
or other occupational associations, to conclude collective labour agreements
which are compulsory for all persons belonging to their category, to
impose contributions on their members, and on their behalf to exercise
delegated powers in the public interest.
IV. The concrete expression of solidarity between the various factors
in production is the collective agreement, through the conciliation of the
opposing interests of employers and workers, and their subordination
to the higher interests of production.
V. The Labour Tribunal constitutes the organisation through which
the State intervenes to settle labour disputes, whether in connection with
the observance of agreements or other existing provisions, or in connection
with the determination of new conditions of labour.
VI. Legally recognised trade associations secure juridical equality
between employers and workers, and maintain and seek to improve t h e
regime of discipline in production and labour. The corporations are t h e
unifying organisation of the forces of production, and fully represent its
interests. In virtue of this plenary representation, the corporations are
legally recognised as State organisations, since the interests of production
are national interests. As representatives of the united interests of
production the Corporations themselves may issue binding regulations
governing the discipline of labour relations and the co-ordination of
production whenever they have received a mandate from the affiliated
associations.

Cf. G. BOTTAI : La Carta del Lavoro (Commentary on the Labour
Charter). Studi e documenti di diritto e economia del lavoro, Series B»
Document No/ 3. Rome, Diritto del Lavoro, 1927.

ITALY

121

VII. The corporate State considers private enterprise in the sphere
of production as being the most effective and useful method of securing
the interests of the nation. Since private organisation of production is
a work of national importance, the head of an undertaking is responsible
to the State for the development of production. From the collaboration
between the forces of production is derived a reciprocity of rights and
duties. The worker, whether a technician, a salaried employee, or a
manual labourer, collaborates actively in the work of an economic under•taking, and the direction of the undertaking devolves upon the employer,
who is responsible for it.
VIII. Trade associations of employers are required by all means in
their power to increase and improve the production of the goods which
they produce, and to reduce the cost thereof. The representatives of
persons who carry on a liberal profession or an art, and associations of
employees in public undertakings, are required to combine in protecting
the interests of art, science and letters, in the improvement of production,
and in the achievement of the moral objects of the corporate system.
IX. State intervention in economic production takes place only
when private enterprise is wanting or inadequate, or when the political
interests of the State are at stake. Such intervention may take the form
of control, encouragement or direct administration.
X. In the event of collective, labour disputes, legal action cannot
take place unless the corporate organisation has first made attempts at
conciliation. In individual disputes concerning the interpretation and
enforcement of collective labour agreements, trade associations are allowed
to proffer their good offices for conciliation. Competence in such disputes
belongs to the ordinary courts, with the assistance of assessors appointed
by the trade association concerned.
THE

COLLECTIVE LABOUR A G R E E M E N T AND LABOUR GUARANTEES

XI. Trade associations are compelled to regulate labour relations
between the categories of employers and workers whom they represent,
by means of the collective agreement. The collective labour agreement
is concluded between associations of the first degree, under the direction
and control of the central organisations ; but the association of the
first degree may be replaced by the association of the higher degree in
the cases provided for by law and by the rules of the associations. All
collective agreements must, under pain of being null and void, contain
precise rules concerning disciplinary relations, the period of probation,
rates of wages and the methods of paying wages, and hours of work.
Determination

of Fair Wages

XII. Trade union action, the conciliation work of the corporate
organisations and the awards of the labour courts all constitute guarantees
that wages will correspond to the normal requirements of life, to the
possibilities of production and to the output of labour. The work of
determining the wage is carried out without reference to any general
rules, and is entrusted to the parties to the collective agreement.
XIII. Data established by the public departments, by the Central
Statistical Institute, and by the legally recognised trade associations,.
concerning conditions of production and of labour, the situation of the
money market and variations in the standard of existence of the workers
will, when co-ordinated and collated by the Ministry of Corporations,
supply the criteria for the reconciliation of the interests of the various
categories and of the various classes among themselves, and also of
their interests in comparison with the higher interests of production.

122

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

Piece-Rates
XIV. Payment should be made in the manner which best meets
the needs of the worker and of the undertaking. When payment is
calculated on a piece-rate basis and is made for periods longer than a
fortnight, accounts by the fortnight or the week are required.
Night work not carried out in regular shifts is paid for at a higher
rate than day work. When payment for labour is made on a piece-rate
basis, the piece-rates must be determined in such a way that the hard
worker with a normal capacity for work receives a minimum remuneration
higher than the basic wage.
The Weekly

Rest

XV. The worker is entitled to a weekly rest coinciding with
Sunday. Collective agreements will enforce this principle, taking account
of existing legislation and of the technical requirements of the undertaking and, within the limits of these requirements, will take steps to
secure that civil and religious holidays are respected in accordance with
local tradition. Hours of work must be fully and strictly observed by
the worker.
Paid

Holidays

XVI. After one year's uninterrupted service, a worker in a continuous
process undertaking is entitled to an annual holiday with pay.
Dismissal

Indemnities

XVII. In continuous process undertakings the worker is entitled,
in the event of his dismissal through no fault of his own, to an indemnity
proportionate to his years of service. Such indemnity is also due in the
event of the worker's death.
#

Continuation

of the Contract of Employment
in case of
or Transfer of the Undertaking

Sickness

XVIII. In continuous process undertakings the transfer of the
undertaking does not cancel the contract of employment, and the staff
of such an undertaking preserve their rights as against the new proprietor.
Similarly, sickness on the part of the worker, which does not exceed a
certain period, does not cancel the contract of employment. A worker
may not be dismissed because he is called up for service in the army
or in the militia.
Internal

Discipline

XIX. Infringement of discipline and acts committed by workers
calculated to disturb the normal working of the undertaking are punished,
according to the gravity of the delict, by fines, suspension from work
and, in serious cases, immediate dismissal without an indemnity. The
cases in which the employer may inflict fines, suspend from work or
dismiss on the spot without indemnity will be specified.
Probation Periods
XX. When a worker is engaged, he must undergo a period of
probation, during which period the agreement may be cancelled on either
side, provided only that work actually done during the period in question
must be paid for.

I23

ITALY

Extension

of the Collective Agreements

to Home

Workers

XXI. Collective labour agreements are extended, both as regards
their benefits and the discipline which they impose, to home workers
also. Special rules will be laid down by the State for securing conditions
of cleanliness and hygiene for home work.
EMPLOYMENT EXCHANGES

XXII. The State is the only body which can ascertain and control
the state of employment and unemployment among the workers, which
is the final index of conditions of production and of labour.
Preferential

Clauses

X X I I I . The joint employment office is under the control of the
corporate organisations.
Employers are compelled to take workers
registered with these offices, and are entitled to choose them from a list
of persons registered, giving the preference to members of the Fascist
Party, to Fascist trade unionists, and also to seniority of registration.
Occupational

Selection

XXIV. "Workers' occupational associations are compelled to make
a certain choice among the workers, with the object of improving
continuously their technical capacity and their moral worth.
Supervision

of Workers'

Protection

Acts

XXV. The corporate organisations see to the observance of legislation
concerning the prevention of accidents, and labour regulations on the
part of all the individuals who are members of an affiliated association.
Welfare, Social Assistance,

Education

and Vocational

Training

XXVI. Welfare is an important manifestation of the principle of
collaboration. The employer and the worker must contribute proportionately to welfare charges. The State, through the medium of the corporate
organisations and the trade associations, will, so far as possible, coordinate and standardise the system and the various welfare insitutions.
XXVII. The Fascist State proposes : (1) to perfect the system of
accident insurance ; (2) to improve and extend maternity insurance ;
(3) to set up a system of insurance against occupational diseases and
tuberculosis, as a first step towards a general system of insurance against
all diseases ; (4) to perfect the system of insurance against involuntary
unemployment ; (5) to adopt a special insurance system for endowing
young workers.
XXVIII. It is for the workers' associations to protect the interests
of their members in administrative and judicial matters connected with
accident insurance and social insurance in general. In collective agreements, whenever technically possible, mutual benefit funds for sickness
will be set up, fed by contributions from employers and workers, and
administered by representatives of both, under the control of the corporate
organisations.
X X I X . It is both the right and the duty of the trade associations
to assist the persons they represent, whether members or non-members.
The trade associations must exercise their functions of assistance directly
through the medium of their own organisations, and may not delegate
them to other bodies or institutions, except for reasons of general interest

124

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

which go beyond the scope of the interests of any single category of
producers.
X X X . Education and instruction, in particular, the technical
instruction of the persons they represent, whether members or nonmembers, is one of the chief duties of the trade associations. They must
collaborate in the work of the various National Workers' Spare Time
Institutes, and in other educational schemes.
After the promulgation of t h e Charter,
Council adopted t h e following resolution :

the Fascist

Grand

The Grand Council expresses the wish that the Government should,
on the initiative of its Head, the Minister of Corporations, and in agreement with the other Ministers concerned, prepare the necessary legislative
measures for the promulgation of the principles affirmed to-day, the
object of which is to develop Fascist legislation on the legal disciplining
of collective labour relations and on the corporate organisation of the
State ; and decides that, in the present year, there should be concluded,
either in a new or in a modified form, collective agreements on the basis
of the clauses contained in the " Charter ", and that the duration of the
agreements should be such as to allow undertakings the possibility of a
sufficient lapse of time to adapt themselves to the new financial situation
and to the difficulties of international competition.
T h e H e a d of the Government, for his p a r t , declared t h a t the
Charter constituted a document of fundamental importance for the
Fascist system and that it might, in its different sections, be transformed into law, b u t t h a t it already possesses executive legal value.
H e expressed his conviction t h a t the provisions regarding collective contracts of employment, labour exchanges a n d social assistance would quickly be realised.
Finally, the Fascist Grand Council, at Mr. Mussolini's
suggestion, adopted t h e following resolution :
On the occasion of the promulgation of this Charter, one of the basic
documents of the Fascist regulation, inasmuch as it lays down the rights
and duties of all forces of production, the Grand Council seizes the
opportunity to bring it to the attention of the whole Italian people and of
all those throughout the country who are concerned with the social
problems of our time because, by this act of will and faith, the Black
Shirts show that the forces of production may be harmonised and that
their harmony is the sine qua non of their fertility.
Fascism thus demonstrates that, as opposed to the absurd and ruinous
Socialist demagogies which are everywhere bankrupt, disconnected and
impotent, its effect is to raise the moral and material standard of the
most numerous class in society which has consciously taken its place
in the national existence, both in theory and in fact.
A n examination of this document and the official commentaries
shows t h a t the social reform established by the L a b o u r Charter not
only affects vocational organisation, as has already been shown, and

I25

ITALY

in a more general w a y t h e regulation of t h e whole economic production of t h e country, b u t even t h e political constitution of t h e State.
T h e principles laid down in t h e Charter, which complete a n d
define t h e principles of the T r a d e Union A c t of 3 April 1926 a n d t h e
T r a d e Union Regulations of 1 July 1926, will, w h e n translated into
law, form t h e basis of t h e future Fascist Labour Code \

P A R T P L A Y E D I N ECONOMIC L I F E

I t h a s been noticed in all countries where trade "unionism
represents a social force t h a t it t e n d s to t a k e a direct share in t h e
regulation of economic life. T h e public authorities, for their p a r t ,
realising t h e value of such co-operation, give t h e trade associations
of employers and workers a share in drawing u p social and economic
legislation. T h i s co-operation, which tends more and more to become
p e r m a n e n t and official, is a result of t h e trade union representatives
being elected to consultative and technical bodies such a s t h e H i g h e r
Economic Council in F r a n c e , t h e Provisional Economic Council in
Germany, t h e Vocational Committees in Austria and L u x e m b u r g , e t c .
Similarly, the Italian State, which wishes t o exert a more direct
influence than any others on social and economic relations, and
intends t o take t h e work of economic reorganisation u n d e r its o w n
direct control, gives t h e recognised trade unions an important share
in this work. T h e proposal of t h e Committee of E i g h t e e n h a d
already granted t h e corporative bodies important economic duties
while t h e T r a d e Union Regulations of 1 July enumerate a m o n g t h e
powers granted to t h e central liaison bodies t h a t of stimulating,
encouraging, and subsidising every attempt of t h e trade associations
t o co-ordinate and organise production. Finally, t h e recognised trade
unions have, according to t h e L a b o u r Charter, " t h e r i g h t to s h a r e in
the regulation of production ; t h a t is t o say, in t h e control of t h e
whole economic system of t h e nation. "
T h e Minister of Justice, d u r i n g t h e Parliamentary discussion
on t h e Act of 3 April 1926, described this aspect of trade union
activity as follows :

It is useful to compare this attempt at a uniform regulation of labour
conditions in Ital\- with the provisions of the Russian Labour Code
(cf. INTERNATIONAL LABOUR O F F I C E : Legislative

Series,

1922, Russ. 1).

126

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

The State [he said] has sometimes, particularly in war-time, found
it necessary to assume economic functions as a result of certain urgent
necessities. . . . But the day may come when the nation will again be
called upon to organise itself into a unity for some great effort. When
that day comes, the trade unions will give us men who are technically
trained ; that is another special and important task of the trade unions 1 .
But tins work of organisation is slow. A t present it depends
on the reform of the Government and the institution of a H i g h e r
Council for National Economy and of Provincial Economic Councils.
T h e reform of the Government consists in the union of the
Ministries of Agriculture, I n d u s t r y , L a b o u r and Commerce into one
single department : T h e Ministry of National E c o n o m y .
By this reorganisation the G o v e r n m e n t intends to establish a
uniform system of m a n a g e m e n t of t h e different factors in national
production.
The Higher Council of National
Economy
set up by Royal
Decree of 6 September and 2 December 1923, completed by the
Legislative Decree of 4 September 1925, consists at present of sixty
m e m b e r s divided into four sections : agriculture and forestry ;
industry ; commerce, credit a n d private insurance ; labour and social
welfare.
T h i s Council, whose members are appointed directly by the
Government, b u t in which recognised organisations of employers
and workers are represented by several members, has only consultative powers.
A more important reform for t h e future would seem to be the
creation of the Provincial
Economic
Councils b y the Act of
18 April 1926.
Besides the members who belong to t h e m by rights, recognised
trade associations have the right t o appoint a certain number of
delegates to these Councils. I n the same way as in the H i g h e r
Council of National Economy, the Provincial Economic Councils are
divided into four sections : industry, agriculture, commerce, labour.
T h e Provincial Councils are called upon to assume all the attrib u t e s which formerly belonged to the Chambers of I n d u s t r y and

1
Speech of Mr. Rocco, Minister of Justice, in the Chamber of
Deputies, in Trade Union Reform in Italy, p. 128. Cf. provisions of the
Military Act with reference to the civil mobilisation of the country : speech
quoted by Mr. Belluzzo, Minister of National Economy, in the Chamber
of Deputies.

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127

Commerce, t h e Provincial A g r a r i a n Councils, the agricultural
committees, e t c . T h e y have also power to take a n y steps which
seem useful for the creation of educational institutions, services and
societies for the benefit of production and of the wage e a r n e r s ; to
control under the Government the action of existing bodies carrying
out social aid and also to take p a r t in d r a w i n g u p collective and
agrarian contracts. T h e action of these councils aroused, at first,
t h e hostility of older bodies, particularly of the Chambers of Commerce, who very reluctantly agreed to forfeit their power. I t is,
moreover, necessary to amend the constitution of the Provincial
Economic Councils in connection with the administrative reform of
the province at present under consideration. (See below, page 128 \ )
P e r h a p s more important t h a n the reforms mentioned are the
steps t a k e n by the Government, such as t h e recent regulation of
trade with a view to m a k i n g the exercise of a trade subject to a
licence granted by the public authorities, or again the Legislative
Decrees constituting the National I n s t i t u t e for E x p o r t a t i o n , the
National I n s t i t u t e of Silk Industries, and the Society for Research
into Deposits of Petrol and Combustibles. All these institutions work
w i t h the support and under the direct control of the State. It is
sufficient to mention these measures, which are very characteristic
of t h e new economic policy of t h e Government, b u t which would
require too much time to study in detail.

1
A new Legislative Decree was indeed promulgated on 16 June 1927,
No. 1,071 (Gazzetta Ufficiale, 7 July). The new regulations, while
respecting in general the system set up by the Act of 13 April 1926,
No. S31, instituting Provincial Economic Councils, introduced, however,
certain important amendments. In the first place, it establishes in the
capitals of other provinces under the direction of the Ministry of
National Economy, Provincial Economic Committees composed of a
chairman and other employees, who are all State officials.
These
committees supervise the carrying out of measures taken by the Ministry,
and under its control work for the economic development of the province.
At the same time they act as secretariats for the provincial economic
councils.
The chairmanship of these councils is given to the Prefect assisted
by a vice-chairman and heads of sections appointed by the Minister of
National Economy. The Councils are composed of twelve to twenty-eight
members appointed by the provincial institutions, whose aims are similar
to those of the economic councils and of the legally recognised trade
associations. Membership is also granted with consultative powers to
certain officials of the province (the chairman of the itinerant agricultural
committee, the inspector (provveditore) of Public Works, the Provincial

128

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

P A R T PLAYED IN POLITICAL L,IFE

T r a d e union legislation contains the germ of one other reform,
political representation b y the trade associations. A first step in this
direction has been t a k e n by the institution of governors and podestas
in all the communes in I t a l y .
T h e podestas and the governors appointed by Royal Decree will
t a k e over, in future, all t h e functions which the communal and
provincial laws formerly granted to t h e mayors, to the aldermen, and
to the municipal authorities. I n carrying out their duties, t h e governors and podestas will be assisted by an advisory council and t h e
council of the podestas.
I n communes of less t h a n 100,000 inhabitants, this Council will
consist of a m i n i m u m of ten, or a m a x i m u m of twenty-four members ;
in communes of more than 100,000 inhabitants, the n u m b e r m a y be
increased to forty.
W i t h i n the limits indicated above, the prefect will decide on
the n u m b e r of councillors for each commune. H e also will appoint
t h e m , choosing them from a list of three names for each place
vacant. T h e list will be d r a w n u p b y the legally recognised trade
associations in t h e communes.
Nevertheless, the r i g h t to appoint the councillors of the podestà
belongs to the Minister of the Interior if the population exceeds
100,000 inhabitants. F o r reasons of public order or of a n administrative n a t u r e , the Minister of the Interior may order t h e council
to be dissolved or suspended. Councillors, who, without justification
fail to attend three successive meetings, are declared to have forfeited
t h e i r m a n d a t e . T h i s forfeiture is pronounced either b y the Minister
of the Interior or by t h e prefect, as the case may be. T h e councils
of the podestà have only advisory powers. I n communes of less than
100,000 inhabitants, t h e opinion of the council must be taken in all

Doctor, the Regional Railway Director, the Factory Inspector, the
Harbour Masters, etc.).
In the course of the year 1927, the Extraordinary Commissioners
appointed by the Chamber of Commerce shall give up their duties, which
will be taken over by the Prefects, assisted by the vice-chairman and
the heads of sections appointed by the Ministry of Economy, who will
proceed without delay to set up councils. From 1 Jan. 1928 onwards,
the sphere of action of the Chambers of Commerce and the Provincial
Economic Councils, which are to replace them, will coincide with the
area of the province.

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I29

cases where according to terms of. Acts previously in force, the measure in question would have belonged to the exclusive competence of
the communal council. I n communes with a larger population, the
opinion of the council is necessary in the cases ' provided for by
section 217 of the Communal and Provincial Act of 4 F e b r u a r y 1915,
t h a t is to say, as regards the funds, the budgets of t h e communes and
the direct appointment of agents to the public services.
If the step taken by the podestà has not been approved by the
council, an official report will be drawn u p and the matter must be
submitted to the prefect for his approval.
T h e decisions of the council are valid only if at least half the
councillors were present at the meeting, and they shall be taken
b y an absolute majority. Municipal reform will soon be completed
by the administrative reform of the province.
A proposal at present under consideration seeks to set u p on
a basis similar to t h a t established by the reform of the commune,
a new administration which will unite all the attributes hitherto
belonging to t h e president of t h e provincial deputation, t h e body of
provincial deputies (Deputazione
provinciale)
and the provincial
council (Consiglio
provinciale).
T h e president of the new body will be appointed by the Government and assisted by the provincial council, composed generally of
representatives of the recognised trade associations.
I t appears, moreover, from communications in the press, t h a t
the Institution of Provincial Economic Councils will be connected
with t h e new provincial body, which will t h u s possess b o t h economic
and administrative functions.
But the municipal and provincial
reforms are only preliminary steps for the Parliamentary reform.
T h e President of the Council has announced in t h e following
terms the impending transformation of the political State into the
corporative State :
Our aim [he stated] is the corporative State. To confer the vote
on a person who has reached his twentieth year seems to me absurd.
The only persons who ought to share in the direction and administration
of the State are those who work, who produce, and who, in any manner
whatsoever co-operate with the State. We wish to set up a corporative
Chamber without any opposition. We neither wish nor require anypolitical opposition. On the other hand, I accept healthy constructive
criticism as an absolute necessity because it is a kind of effective cooperation.
Freedom of Association

130

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

I n another interview, he expressed his ideas in t h e following
manner :
The future Italian Parliament will be the expression of the new
corporative State which is at present being formed. Its powers will
be renewed and defined, it will be better adapted to the duties which it
is called upon to fulfil, and it will represent more truly the will of the
nation. The right of suffrage will be exerted through the corporations as
the citizens will have no right to vote as electors but only as workers
and producers.
T h e reform supported by the President of the Council seems
about to be accomplished. F i r s t of all, it had been intended t o
proceed with a partial reform of t h e Senate on a corporative basis ;
but this proposal has been definitely abandoned a n d t h e present
constitution of the Senate will remain without any change \
T h e reform of the Chamber of Deputies on the other h a n d ,
appears according to official information in the press, to be as
follows.
T h e Chamber of Deputies will be transformed into a
corporative assembly. T h e right to vote will be a privilege only of
producers and more generally of all those who co-operate with the
S t a t e . T h e election will take place in two steps : F i r s t of all, each
elector will appoint his m a n d a t o r y within the official b o d y to which
he belongs ; those elected in this first step will then be called upon
to elect representatives t o the Chamber. I t is not yet k n o w n w h e t h e r
it will be the national or the provincial area which will form the basis
of the corporative assembly, nor is it known by w h a t means the
recognised associations will appoint the candidates for the corporative
assembly. B u t it already seems certain t h a t only members of official
trade associations will possess the right to vote.
I t is well, moreover, to await the publication of the Government
proposals before j u d g i n g t h e system of w o r k i n g and t h e political
and social scope of the reform announced.
By all those actions and proposals which complete the T r a d e
Union Act of 3 April 1926 and the Regulations of 1 July, the monopoly of Fascist trade union representation is completely realised in all
spheres, social, economic, and political.

1
The Senators are appointed by the King at the suggestion of the
Government and chosen from certain classes of important officials.
generals, admirals, university professors, etc.

CHAPTER IV
LEGAL R E G U L A T I O N OF ASSOCIATIONS
OF STATE EMPLOYEES

T h e Act of 3 April 1926 and the Legislative Regulations of
1 July exclude from legal recognition :
(1)

associations of State employees and employees in similar
undertakings ;

(2)

the former independent trade unions.

T h e legal regulation of each of these classes will be briefly
examined.
T h e principal provisions regarding associations of State
employees and employees in public u n d e r t a k i n g s are as follows :
T h e Royal Legislative
Decree of 6 November
1Q26, which
annuls, but reintroduces textually t h e provisions of the Act of
26 November 1925 on the regulation and the action of associations,
societies and institutions, and the conditions under which officials
of ithe State, provinces, communes and institutions controlled by
the State, provinces and communes may be members.
T h e Act of 24 December
T h e Legislative

1Q25, on the dismissal of State officials.

Regulations

of 1 July

1Q26, Title 6, on associa-

tions of employees of t h e State and other public establishments.
Section 216 of the Royal Decree of 6 November 1926 forbids
officials to belong to secret societies. I t states :
Officials, employees and civil and military agents of the State of any
class or any grade, and officials, employees and agents of the provinces,
communes or establishments controlled by the State, provinces and
communes, who belong, even as ordinary members, to associations,
societies or institutions constituted within the Kingdom or without it,
whose activity is even only partially secret or hidden, or whose members
are bound by any secret oath, shall be dismissed, discharged or cashiered.

I32

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

Subsection 2 of t h e same section compels officials, on pain of
heavy disciplinary sanctions, to announce their membership of
societies of any kind :
Officials, employees, military and civil agents, as described above,
must announce if they are members, or if they have been members, even
ordinary members, of associations, societies or institutions of any kind
constituted or existing within the Kingdom or without it. This declaration
must be made to the Minister, in the case of State officials, and to the
prefect in all other cases if it is demanded from them individually.
The aforesaid officials, employees, civil and military agents who
do not reply to this request within a space of two days from the date
of notification will be punished by suppression of their salary for a
period of not less than fifteen days and not more than three months. If
the official has knowingly given false or incomplete information, the
stoppage of his salary is extended to six months.
I n virtue of t h e Act of 24 December 1925, the Government has
the power, according to section 1, to dismiss, even apart from the
cases provided for by existing laws, officials, employees and agents
of all classes and all grades, civil and military, in any branch of the
State service who, as a result of their conduct, whether in the
exercise of their duty or outside it, do not give a complete guarantee
of faithfully carrying out their d u t y , or have placed themselves in
a position incompatible with the general aims of the Government.
Dismissal is ordered b y a Royal Decree on the suggestion of the
competent Minister.
N o appeal
in the case of
be made to the
All other legal

is allowed against t h e provision of section 1 except
incompetence or violation of the law, w h e n it m a y
Council of State, or in exceptional cases, to the K i n g .
or administrative action is forbidden.

I t is necessary to complete these provisions by a whole series
of Legislative Decrees concerning the classes of public agents, not
included in the general list of officials, such as t h e Legislative Decree
of 29 November 1925 on the dismissal of the staff of the public
transport services which have been handed over to individual undertakings, or again the Legislative Decree of 23 December 1926 .
concerning the right of removing seamen from the register. A m o n g
other provisions these Decrees give either Government authorities
or heads of enterprises the right to dismiss agents w h o , b y their
political attitude, are in a position of moral incompatibility with the
aims of the Government. Now, the fact of belonging to an independent trade union has very often been interpreted as constituting an
infraction of these various legislative provisions and been punished

ITALY

by dismissal. But the example which shows most clearly the desire
of the law to institute everywhere and always the same political and
moral conformity with regard to associations is given by the measures
regarding the dismissal for political reasons of university professors.
One of the provisions of the Legislative Decree makes it compulsory
for university professors to take an oath of fidelity to the Government
at the moment of taking up their duties. They must, in particular,
promise not to belong either at present or in the future to any
association or secret society or to any political party which is opposed
to the Government.
Finally, the Regulations of i July 1926 devote a special chapter
to associations of State employees. Associations of employees of the
State, provinces, communes, public charitable institutions, the
autonomous State railway undertaking, the postal, telegraph and
telephone service, the Deposit and L/Oan Bank, the Bank of Issue,
the Banks of Naples and Sicily, institutions and establishments
haying public functions and savings banks must, if their constitution
is permitted by law, be authorised by Decree of the Head of the
Government in agreement with the Minister under whom the persons
concerned are serving in the case of associations of State employees,
by Decree of the Minister of the Interior for associations of wage
earners in local public establishments working in two or more
provinces, by Decree of the prefect for associations of wage earners
in local establishments working within the area of one province
(section 92).
The conditions laid down in section 1 of the Act of 3 April 1926
— conditions concerning the numbers, the aims pursued and especially
the guarantees of ability, moral character, and sound patriotism —
must be fulfilled.
Moreover, the higher and lower grade associations including
State employees and employees of other services and public establishments must always be authorised by Decree of the Head of the
Government in agreement with the Minister of the Interior and
other Ministers concerned. Therefore, independent trade unions
must demand special governmental authority if they include amongst
their members State employees.
Associations of State employees are subject to yet other restrictions. As for legally recognised trades unions, authorisation cannot
be granted except to one single association for each class of public
employees, and even this authorisation does not bring recognition in

134

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

terms of the Act of 3 April 1926 '. Moreover, associations of State
employees are not allowed to enjoy the provisions regarding collective
contract and Labour T r i b u n a l s (section 92, subsections 3 and 4) 2 . I t
is clear from all these provisions that the constitution of associations
of State employees and employees of public utility services is left to
the discretion of the political and administrative authorities who, in
fact, do not g r a n t authorisation except for orthodox political
associations 3.
Once authorisation has been granted the existence of associations
of State employees remains none the less subject t o regulation by

1
The Head of the Government has made the following comments on
this provision :
" In authorising a single association, it was the object of the
Government to determine what was the association which, from all
points of view, gave the best guarantees that it would collaborate
with the Government in the various reforms in which the staff and
the administrations concerned were interested. For practical reasons,
and in order to avoid harmful competition, the Government did not
think it desirable to authorise different organisations, and in this it
was adopting a criterion which had been adopted by the trade unions
themselves. The name and quality of "Fascist ', which these association had spontaneously adopted, meant only that it was their intention
to work in the spirit of the Fascist system for the supreme gtood
of the nation. Moreover, as in the case of the trade unions, public
employees were entirely free to decide whether or no they would
become members of the authorised associations. " (Cf. Industrial
and Labour Information, Vol. XXI, p. 399.)
2
It was pointed out during the Parliamentary' discussion that the
associations of State employees (including such classes as the employees
of the autonomous railways, whose economic and contractual position
is in many respects similar to that of employees of private undertakings)
are deprived of the advantages of the regulations regarding collective
contracts and are therefore placed in an inferior position to other social
groups. The Minister of Justice said, in this connection, that the
regulation of legal relationships between the State and its officials would
form the subject of later legal provisions intended to complete the
present system (Provincial Administrative Committee and fourth section
of the Council of State) as regards administrative justice.
3
See Decree of Authorisation of Trade Associations of State
Employees (Gazzetta Ufficiale, 24, 28 and 31 Aug., 24 Sept. and 18 Oct.
1926). Legal authorisation has been granted in particular to the following
associations : National Fascist Association of State Railwaymen ; National
Fascist Association of Postal and Telegraph Employees ; National
Fascist Association of State Telephonists ; National Fascist Association
of Primary School Teachers ; National Fascist Association of Tax
Collectors, etc.

ITALY

ISS

the State administration. This authorisation, according to the last
subsection of section 92, may at all times be annulled. Moreover,
according to section 96, the Head of the Government, in agreement
with the competent Minister, the Minister of the Interior, and the
prefect, may always order the dissolution of an association of State
employees even if it has been authorised, when its action is incompatible with the order and discipline of the service. Any offence against
the order of the Head of the Government, the Minister or the prefect
is considered as a serious breach of discipline and punished by
dismissal.

CHAPTER V
THE LEGAL AND" DE FACTO " REGULATION
OF INDEPENDENT TRADE UNIONS
Section 12 of the Act of 3 April 1926 allows former independent
trade unions to exist as de facto associations:
Associations of employers, wage earners, artists, or persons exercising a liberal profession, which are not legally recognised, exist as de facto
associations in conformity with existing legislation except those mentioned
in subsection 2 of the preceding section. These associations are subject
to the provisions of Legislative Decree No. 64 of 24 January 1924.
T h e Legislative Decree to which section 12 alludes inaugurated
to some e x t e n t the new trade union policy of the Government
towards independent t r a d e unions. I t set u p , in effect, control b y
the Government and more definitely by the political authorities over
associations or bodies of a n y k i n d which ow'e their existence t o
contributions from the workers.
Certainly, the prefects h a d already been k n o w n to interfere in
certain isolated cases in emergencies. Henceforth, b y reason of this
Decree, such intervention is made regular and legal. A s this Decree
fundamentally altered t h e outlook of previous trade union legislation
it seems i m p o r t a n t to give t h e complete t e x t . T h e following is t h e
final form :
SECTION I . —-. Associations or bodies of all kinds, however entitled,
even when regularly constituted, which derive the whole or part of their
funds employed for the support of their activities from workers' contributions, whether these contributions be fixed or variable, voluntary or
levied compulsorily under the rules, or obtained in any other way from
the members or from third parties who may wish to give economic or
moral support to the workers, irrespective of the form in which they
are organised and even when they are directly managed by the persons
concerned, shall be subject to the control of the political authorities of
the province for the purposes and within the limits prescribed by the
following section.
SECTION 2. — Should there be good reason for suspecting abuses of
public confidence or illegal application or appropriation of funds to the

ITALY

I37

detriment of the members, or employment of the funds for objects other
than those of affording financial or moral support to workers, the prefect
may proceed to hold an inspection or an enquiry into the working of the
said associations or bodies, and may repeal or annul their certificates
and even, in particularly serious cases and if necessity demands it,
declare the administrative committees of the association concerned to
be dissolved and temporarily entrust for a period not exceeding one
year the management of the property of the association to a commissioner
appointed for this purpose, with instructions to preserve the same and
to take any other steps which may seem desirable for the interests of the
association or body.
SECTION 3. — The Decree by which the prefect has recourse to any
of the measures mentioned in section 2 above is published in the official
gazette for the province. An appeal against the Decree may be made
to the Minister of the Interior by administrative procedure by any person
concerned.
The appeal shall not be valid unless lodged within a fortnight from
the date of publication of the Decree. The appeal shall not stay the
execution of the Decree unless the prefect grants a stay pending the
result of the appeal.
An appeal against a Decree of the Minister of the Interior may be
made to the Council of State by the procedure for actions against
administrative authorities under section 22 of the consolidated text
approved by the Ro}ral Decree of 17 August 1907, No. 638.
SECTION 4. — If the management of the property of the association
or body has been entrusted to a commissioner appointed by the prefect
in conformity with the provisions laid down in section 2, the said
commissioner shall, a month before the expiry of the period fixed by the
Decree, draw up a. detailed report on the position of the association, its
assets, and any irregularities which he may have noticed.
The prefect, after having heard, if necessary, the interested parties
or their representatives, shall issue a Decree with reasons therefor to
state whether the special arrangement for the management of the property
of the association shall cease and the management be given back to the
representatives ot the association, or wüether, on/the contrary, tne said
special arrangement shall be continued, or whether on the other hand
steps shall be taken to wind up the affairs of the association. In the
last-mentioned case, the prefect shall make proposals for the utilisation
of the balance (if anyj of the funds oí the association in the manner
which he considers most suitable to the purpose of financial and other
interests of the workers belonging to the association or body. The
continuation (if any) of the special arrangement shall not be ordered for
a period longer than that specified in section 2 above. The Decree of
the prefect is published in the official gazette of the province.
SECTION 5. — Without prejudice to any action which may be brought
under ordinary jurisdiction in case of prejudice to private rights, an
appeal may be made by any person concerned to the Minister of the
Interior by administrative procedure against the Decree of the prefect
providing for the winding u p of the affairs of the association under
section 4 above.
The appeal shall not be valid unless lodged within a fortnight of
the date of the publication of the Decree in the official gazette of the
province, and shall stay the execution of the provision respecting the
winding up of the affairs of the association.
An appeal against the Decree of the Minister of the Interior may
be made to the Council of State by the procedure for actions against
administrative authorities under section 22 of the consolidated text
approved by Royal Decree No. 638 of 17 August 1907.

Î38

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

SECTION 6. — If the provision respecting the winding up of the
affairs of the association has become" final, the manner of the winding
up and the utilisation of the balance of any funds shall be prescribed
by a Royal Decree issued on the proposal of the Minister of the Interior
after consultation with the Council of State.
In any case, any balance of funds shall not be assigned to other bodies
or institutions or to persons other than the members of the association,
unless it has been found impossible to ascertain the proportion of the
funds belonging to each member of the association or his heirs, in
conformity with the rules of the association, or, in default thereof, in
conformity with the general provisions 1.
In any case the decisions of the judicial authority with respect to
any action which may have been brought under the first subsection of
section 5 of this Decree in order to enforce the claims of any person
before the liquidator or liquidators of the property of the association shall
take effect.
Without prejudice to any arrangement to the contrary provided for
in the Royal Decree referred to in subsection i of this section, the
liquidator or liquidators shall be appointed by the president of the local
court upon the request of the prefect.
SECTION 7. — If any of the measures referred to in the preceding
sections have been adopted prior to the coming into operation of this
Decree for reasons of public safety or public order or for other urgent
reasons, the prefect, by a Decree with reasons therefor to be issued five
days from the date of the coming into operation of this Decree, shall
examine any actions of the special management and confirm or repeal
them, and shall issue the provisions referred to in section 4. An appeal
against such provisions may be made or laid down in section 5, without
prejudice to actions under ordinary jurisdiction as laid down in the
first paragraph of section 5.
T h i s Decree is drawn u p in wide terms so t h a t it can be applied
not only to trade unions, but also to co-operative and mutual-aid
societies constituted under ordinary law.
T h e Decree of 24 J a n u a r y is, however, not the only legislative
measure regulating the legal status of de facto associations. T h e y
also are subject to section 3 of t h e Act for communes and provinces
and of the Royal Decree of 6 November 1926 approving the
consolidated t e x t of the Acts for public safety.
Section 3 of the Act for communes and provinces confers on the
prefects exceptional powers in emergencies, a wide term which allows
them to intervene whenever they consider it desirable.
Section 214 of the Legislative Decree of 6 November 1926
obliges all constituted or de facto associations, societies and institutions within the K i n g d o m or in the colonies, to communicate to the

1
In virtue of this section, the funds of numerous voluntary cooperative and mutual-aid institutions which have been dissolved have
been handed over to the corresponding Fascist organisations.

ITALY

I39

police authorities their certificate of establishment, their constitution,
their internal regulation, a detailed list of their social functions and
of their members, and all other information regarding their organisation and activities whenever such indications m a y be demanded by
the above authority for reasons of order or public safety.
These communications must be made by all w h o manage or
represent associations, societies, or institutions in their central or
local headquarters. T h e y must be made within t w o days after receipt
of the request. Offenders will be punished by imprisonment for not
less than three months and a fine of 2,000 to 6,000 lire.
If t h e declaration has knowingly been made falsely or incompletely the imprisonment imposed will be not less t h a n one year
and the fine from 5,000 to 30,000 lire, while the offender is also
suspended from occupying any public position during five years.
I n ajl cases where the declaration is omitted or is false or incomplete,
the associations may be dissolved by Decree of the prefect.
.Section 215 also gives prefects the power to order the dissolution
of associations, organisations, and institutions constituted within the
Kingdom which shall, by any means, engage in any activity
endangering the safety of the State. T h e order of dissolution m a y
also decree confiscation of the social fund. An appeal against the
decision of the prefect m a y be made to the Minister of t h e Interior.
However, no appeal is possible even on legal grounds against the
decision of the Minister.
Section 218 adds that under t h e title " association " all parties,
groups, and political organisations in general are included.
On the basis of these different regulations, the authorities have,
in the course of the last few years ordered the dissolution of most
of the independent trade unions, labour exchanges, mutual-aid and
co-operative societies, and in general all t r a d e union institutions \
Moreover, trade union propaganda either t h r o u g h the press or
by means of public or private meetings is strictly controlled. T h e
Act of 31 December 1925 on t h e periodical press makes all publications, newspapers and periodicals subject to the supervision of the
authorities. Severe penalties, from simple confiscation to temporary

1
For details of the dissolutions ordered, the reader may refer to
the documents laid before the International Labour Conferences in 1923,
1924, 1925, and 1926 by the Secretary of the Italian General Confederation
of Labour.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

140

or p e r m a n e n t suspension of the newspapers involved, are inflicted
for any infringements.
T i t l e I I of the Legislative Decree of 6 November 1926 lays down
the following regulations respecting public meetings and assemblies :
According to section 17 the organisers of a public meeting or a
meeting open to the public shall be bound to give notice at least three
days in advance to the police authorities of the district. A private meeting
shall be considered to be public if, as a result of circumstances (place
of the meeting, number of persons concerned, purpose of the meeting),
the meeting is not really of a private nature.
Offenders shall be punished by imprisonment of not less than one
month and a fine of not less than i,ooo lire. The same penalties shall
be inflicted on those who address such meetings. The police authorities
of the district may forbid the meeting if no declaration is given, or if
it is considered necessary for the sake of public order, public morality,
or public health. The police authorities may, for the same reason, decide
the time and place of the meeting.
Whoever infringes the prohibition or instructions of the authorities
shall be punished by imprisonment of not less than two months and
a fine of not less than 2,000 lire. The same penalty shall be inflicted
on anyone who addresses the meeting.
According to section 19, if, on the occasion of public meetings or
assemblies, anything shall happen which gives rise to expressions of
sedition or attacks on the dignity or prestige of the authorities or which
may endanger in any way public safety or the security of the citizens
or if in these meetings or assemblies any other offences shall be
committed which are subject to the Penal Code, these meetings and
assemblies may be dissolved.
Section 20 describes as sedition the exhibition of flags or emblems
which are symbols of social revolution or of revolt or of contempt for the
State, the Government, or the authorities '.
T o complete the s u m m a r y of the legal measures referring t o
de facto associations, it is well to quote also section 4 of the Act on
t h e defence of the State.
Whosoever re-establishes, even under a different form and a different
name, associations, organisations, or parties dissolved by order of the
public authorities shall be punished by imprisonment of from three to
ten years, besides being permanently forbidden to fulfil public duties.
Whoever belongs to such an association, organisation or party shall
be punished simply on account of this membership by imprisonment of
from two to five years and shall be permanently prohibited from
carrying out public duties.
The same penalty shall be inflicted on anyone who spreads in any
way the doctrine, programmes, and methods of action of these associations,
organisations, or parties.

See also sections 184-193 of the same Legislative Decree regarding
compulsion to remain domiciled in a certain place.

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141

Such are the regulations concerning the rights of association of
independent trade unions.
T h e Confederation of Labour, in one of the circulars addressed
at the end of t h e year 1925 to its affiliated organisations, criticised
these regulations as follows :
The Fascist trade unions hold the legal and de facto monopoly of all
social action. They have a trade union monopoly because, as a result
of the enforcement of the Act on the legal organisation of labour relations,
occupational representation for all classes of workers has been taken over
by the Fascist Confederation of Trade Unions. They have the co-operative
monopoly which, as a result of the suppression of the National League
of Co-operative Societies, has been taken over by the National Institution
of Fascist Co-operative Societies. They have the monopoly of the mutualaid societies which, as a result of the suppression of ithe Italian
Federation of Mutual-Aid Societies, has been taken over by the Fascist
National Institute for Mutual Aid and Provident Work. They have the
monopoly of social assistance and social welfare which, as a result of the
suppression of the welfare institutes and the medical and legal offices
attached to the independent organisations, has been taken over by the
National Fascist Relief Society for Social Assistance and Welfare. They
have the monopoly of vocational education and workers' spare time
organisation which, as a result of the suppression of the independent
workers' clubs, has been taken over by the National Institute for Workers'
vSpare Time.
It must also be added that the legally recognised trade unions have
or will have in the future the monopoly of labour representation :
(1) from the economic point of view by their being represented on the
higher council for national economy and on the provincial economic
councils ; (2) from the social point of view by their being alone
represented on the national funds for social insurance and accident
insurance ; (3) finally, from the political point of view when the impending reform of the Chamber of Deputies as a corporative assembly is
carried out.
I n view of the situation t h u s described, which has recentyl been
growing worse, the management committee of the General Confederation of Labour (Confederazione
Generale
del Lavoro —
" C . G . L . ") on 4 J a n u a r y 1927, decided unanimously save for a
single vote to dissolve this organisation.
I n an official communiqué issued by t h e committee, the following account is given of the events since the e n d of October 1926
which have led to the decision now taken :
On 1 November 1926, the headquarters of the C G . L . at Milan were
occupied and ransacked. On the same day the headquarters of the
Italian Federation of Metal Workers (" F . I . O . M . " ) , at T u i i n , and
those of the International Secretariat of T r a m w a y Employees, at
Rome, suffered the same fate.
On 2 November the editorial department of the trade union
journal Battaglie Sindacali was notified that, by Decree of the Prefect

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of Milan, dated i November, the publication of this paper was suspended.
On g November, the headquarters of t h e C . G X . and the
F . I . O . M . were restored to the secretariat of the Confederation. A s a
result, however, of the damage done, the tramway workers' headquarters at Rome could no longer be used.
On 16 November the secretariat of the Confederation made the
following communication to the press, with a view to contradicting
rumours of the dissolution of the C.G.L. :
(i) The General Confederation of Labour has not been dissolved.
The police authorities who sequestrated the premises at Milan, after the
pillage of i November, restored them to the representatives of the
C.G.L. on g November last ;
(2) Up to the present no meeting has been held and no decision
taken concerning the reorganisation of the work of the C.G.L. ;
(3) The C.G.L. has for the moment confined itself to suspending
all its work from the organisation point of view. Decisions which may
be necessitated by existing conditions of political and social life in Italy
remain to be taken in the near future ;
(4) Until notice to the contrary, the C.G.L. will continue to exist,
and its headquarters will continue to be at No. 2, Via Manfredo Fanti,
Milan.
T h i s communication was not published in any paper. I t should
be remembered (adds t h e statement) t h a t all non-Fascist papers have
been suppressed, and all non-Fascist political parties dissolved. T h u s ,
the situation of the C.G.L., which no longer had its own organ and
could no longer count on the daily press to publish t h e simplest
communications to its members, tended to become more and more
precarious, and it was practically impossible for it to u n d e r t a k e any
useful action in the social sphere.
A few weeks later the general secretary addressed a request to
the Commissary of Police to be allowed to resume possession of the
objects and documents stolen of destroyed during the occupation of
the headquarters of the Confederation on 1 November 1926. N o
reply was vouchsafed to this letter.
F u r t h e r , the General Secretary requested the Prefect to raise
his embargo on the appearance of t h e trade union journal.
On
15 December last he received the reply that the Decree suspending
Battaglie Sindacali would continue in force.
I n the meantime, t h e secretariat of the Confederation had been
Informed that two members of the m a n a g e m e n t committee, the
secretary of the Federation of Agricultural W o r k e r s , the secretary
of the Federation of Wood W o r k e r s , and the Federal Representative

143

ITALY

of Liguria, had been

condemned to

reside in certain

specified

localities.
Such was the actual situation which the management committee
had to consider at its meeting of 4 J a n u a r y .
I t had to be admitted that, in face of these enormous difficulties,
the organisations of the Confederation h a d tried in vain t o continue
to exist and to operate under section 12 of the T r a d e Union Aot of
3 April 1926.
An uninterrupted series of illegal acts and acts of vandalism (adds
the communiqué), the dissolution of trade unions for political and not
for legal reasons, the promulgation of new Acts on public safety and the
protection of the Realm, the continual pressure exercised by the Fascist
trade unions to force the workers to leave the independent organisations
and to join the official unions, the sentence of undisguised economic and
political ostracism pronounced on workers who have remained faithful
to the independent organisations — all this constitutes such a general
record, and gives such slight ground for hopes for the future, as to
prove that there is no room in Italy for unrecognised trade unionism.
T h e management committee therefore after discussion adopted
the following resolution :
The management committee of the Italian General Confederation of
Labour met on 4 January 1927 at its headquarters at Milan,
After noting the reports from local headquarters on the situation of
the trade unions and also the views expressed by the managements and
by the representatives of the Confederation :
Considers that the experiment of carrying on a de facto trade union
organisation, under the terms of section 12 of the Act of 3 April 1926 and
subject to other police regulations and control, has failed, and that it is
impossible to distribute membership cards for 1927 ; and
Declares its work at an end and instructs the executive committee
to proceed to wind up the General Confederation of Labour l .
As a result of this resolution a split, which had already been
latent for some time, showed itself in the independent trade union
movement. A certain number of the former leaders now living abroad
had decided, in agreement with the International Federation of TradeUnions, to transfer t k e headquarters of the General Confederation
of L a b o u r abroad. T h e majority of the trade union leaders, on the
other h a n d , sought to create in I t a l y itself a centre for cultural
association and assistance intended t o support the social action of the
Government by its advice and criticism. According to a resolution

Industrial

and Labour Information,

Vol. XXI, pp. 294-296.

i-H

FREEDOM OK ASSOCIATION

adopted at Milan on 16 J a n u a r y 1927 t h e reasons which led t h e
leaders to adopt this decision were as follows :
The Italian trade union movement has hitherto been almost exclusively
concerned with securing economic and general advantages for the working
classes. It is true that one of its ultimate objects was the socialisation
of the means of production, but in practice the trade union movement was
confined to very definite and limited objectives. Similarly, the object
of its political activity was to secure the "passing of laws for the
completion and consolidation of the reforms achieved by direct trade
union action.
It is true that the capitalist class was confronted by a working class
conscious of its strength and of its rights ; but this class appeared rather
to be marking time, hindered as it was by collectivist ideals. It would
never make up its mind to declare either for or against the State. On
behalf of its occupational interests it brought pressure to bear on the
State ; on behalf of its political ideals, it ignored the State. .
In the long run this ambiguous position became untenable, and it
was only to be expected that a time would come when the workers would
have to choose between the alternatives of pronouncing for or against the
State ; against the bourgeois State, if the workers considered that the
trade unions should themselves take over the duties hitherto reserved
for the State ; in favour of the State, if they thought it desirable to
incorporate the trade unions in the general political fabric.
From whatever point of view the question be considered, it is certain
that the denial of the State as conceived by the Italian working classes
was a symptom of the infancy of the working-class movement in the
country.
In this early phase, the workers really confined themselves to claiming improvements. The undertaking belonged solely to the capitalists,
and the workers had no voice in its management. The State was a
bourgeois State, and it was for the bourgeoisie to undertake the duty of
defending it. Neither political compromises, which were almost always
provisional, nor alliances between the various classes and parties,
concluded for a common but limited purpose, substantially altered the
theoretical position of the working classes with regard to the State, since
the alliances in question were formed with the sole object of obtaining
advantages.
Centuries of experience in Europe have clearly shown that, when
a working-class movement has become a real social force, it can no
longer continue to maintain an attitude of this kind. Historical evolution
has always proceeded by the following stages. At the outset the State
forbids the trade union, but when, in spite of all, the trade union
succeeds in existing and in prospering, the State ends by recognising it
and subjecting it to legal discipline. The limits of recognition vary
according to the criteria applied in a given State, just as, from another
point of view, the antagonism between the State and the trade union is
in close relation to the policy pursued by the working classes.
If the working classes deliberately take up the constitutional attitude,
the State is not concerned to subject their actions to discipline. But if,
on the contrary, working class organisation constitutes a threat to the
State, the latter is compelled to take firmer action, since there can be
no question of admitting the co-existence of a State de jure and a State
de facto. The only method by which the working classes could escape
from this dilemma was to enter upon a campaign for the destruction of
the de jure State (i.e. the bourgeois State).
There is another conception of the question, which involves the
abandonment of the principle of the class war. This does not mean,
however, that the objective reality of the class war is denied or that the

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145

sphere of action of the working-classes is restricted. What is abandoned
is only the theoretical principle in its strictest one-sided interpretation.
vSocialism is not discontinued, but interpreted in a more realistic way as
a goal towards which society is tending. In freeing themselves from
the theoretical principle, the working classes acquire greater liberty of
action. What is vital for them is that the State proclaims the principle
of intervention in the relations between classes.
The various possible forms of administration must in this case be
considered in relation to their efficiency, and in relation to the general
interest. Under certain specified conditions, public administration might
be preferred to private enterprise, and vice versa. What a State, which
really takes up a position over and above classes, cannot do is to crystallise
itself in an attitude of defending a given system.. It must admit all
forms of administration, and it's sole desire, as between private enterprise,
co-operative enterprise, and public administration, should be that the
administration which is the fittest to survive should be decided by
competition alone.
The germs of these conceptions were already to be found in the old
independent trade union movement, however much it may have appeared
spiritually bound by tradition to the formula of pure collectivism. Today, however, the time has come for the clear expression of such ideas.
The revision and adjustment of programmes is an every-day necessity
ot life. We wish in: particular to affirm that production is not merely
the result of manual labour, and that there is a solidarity between the
various factors of production which can exist without prejudice to a
campaign for the defence of class interests. If we take this position,
we are compelled to recognise that there must in practice be limits to
class self-defence and that such limits are binding not only upon the
employers, but also upon the workers.
It is of importance that the whole doctrine should be stated explicitly
and that the problem of the working classes should be raised as a
problem of national responsibility.
An explanation of this kind is the more necessary in view of the
political situation in Italy. The Fascist regime is a reality, and all
realities must be taken into account. It is a reality which, as much as
any other, is an emanation of the principles which are binding upon us.
The trade union policy of Fascism, for instance, is on certain points
identical with our own. We were not in agreement with the Liberal
State because it did not intervene in the economic sphere. We may
probably make considerable reservations as to the objects and methods
of Fascist intervention ; but, since intervention takes place, it is
important for us to follow the developments of it as closely as possible.
The Fascist regime has enacted a law on the control of collective
labour relations, and this law is no doubt an audacious experiment. In
it we see that appeal has been made to principles which are also ours.
So long as there was, on the one side, the Liberal State, and, on the
other side the workers, firm in their disregard of that State, a law of
such importance could not be proposed. The Fascist Revolution has cut
the Gordian knot, and the fact must be recognised.
In all countries where the political method of intervention has been
applied, something has been achieved which is analogous to the legally
recognised trade union and the Labour T r i b u n a l ; and, more than
anywhere else, in Russia. There can, therefore, in principle, be no
opposition to the reform in question.
• We should equally be contradicting our own principle if we opposed
the Corporate State and the Charter of Labour, which it is the object
of the Fascist regime to secure. It will be enough to remember our past
resolutions and schemes to make it clear that it is our duty to contribute
by action and by criticism to the success of this experiment.
But it may be asked in what way we can do this. The Act of 3 April
1926 solved the question by allowing non-Fascists to take advantage of
Freedom of Association

146

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

section 12, which authorised de jacto trade union organisations. The
subsequent changes in general conditions in the country made it impossible
to pursue this policy. It is a matter of common knowledge, however,
that there is in Italy a whole body of experience on this question which
can be used in the general interest, that there are men who by years o£
working-class propaganda have become specially competent to understand
social problems and to explain them to the masses. The theoretical
and practical guidance of the masses towards the general principles set
forth above can only be the result of a process of individual education.
We shall endeavour to develop this process by placing our work at the
service of the nation for the establishment of some centre of cultural
association and assistance '.
T h i s document provoked the following reply from the Italian
General Confederation of L a b o u r abroad :
The Italian General Confederation of Labour states that it has nothing to do with the astounding declaration which, according to information
in the press, would appear to have been signed by a certain number
of ex-militants of the Italian trade union movement.
It is needless for the C.G.L. to record the fact that, some time ago,
in agreement with the International Federation of Trade Unions, of
Amsterdam, it transferred its headquarters abroad because of the
impossibility of non-Fascist organisations carrying on even the minimum
of trade union activity in Italy.
In addition, the C.G.L. has no hesitation in stating that, if the
document in question actually exists, its signatories
should be stigmatised
as unworthy of the name of trade unionist 2.
T h e signatories of the declaration, t h e t e x t of which has been
given above, have in fact set u p , according to the provisions of
existing legislation, a National Association for t h e Study of L a b o u r
Problems. A periodical magazine, under the direction of Mr. Rigola,
entitled Labour Problems, has just appeared.
T h e new association proposes to disseminate theoretical and
practical knowledge of labour problems keeping strictly within t h e
limits of objectivity and instruction. I t will follow the principles
and the programme indicated in the declaration of 16 J a n u a r y 1927.
I t s work is to be considered as " completing t h a t of the bodies to
which the law entrusts exclusive representation of the workers
regarding collective agreements, co-operation, mutual aid, relief and
education " '.
Since the enforcement of t h e Fascist T r a d e Union Acts, the
Christian trade union movement has suffered the same vicissitudes
as the Socialist trade union movement. T h e former Christian Con1
2
3

Lavoro d'Italia, 3 Feb. 1927.
Le Populaire, Paris, 4 Feb. 1927.
Industrial and Labour Information,

Vol., XXT, p. 462.

ITALY

federation of Labour, which had decided to continue in existence as
a de facto association not legally recognised, h a s ceased to function.
Nevertheless, the social sections of the Catholic movement, which
form the right wing of the Christian trade union movement, joined
on 9 October 11925 Fascist trade unionism on condition t h a t the
authorities should give them full guarantee of liberty of conscience
for Catholic members. As a result of a decision arrived at by the
central committee of the Catholic movement on 18 F e b r u a r y 1927,
this union has been confirmed.
I n reality the Christian trade union organisations t h o u g h t that
they could take refuge m a compromise which would allow them
at the same time to preserve the autonomy of the Christian t r a d e union
movement and to take a direct share in the occupational regulation
of employment. F o r this purpose the}' had authorised their members
to join, at the same time, recognised trade unions, b u t the text of
section 7, subsection 3, of the Regulations seemed to oppose this
solution. Section 7 states in fact t h a t members of legally recognised
associations cannot, on pain of expulsion, belong at the same time
to de facto associations constituted for the same trade union purposes
in terms of section 12 of the Act of 3 April 1926.
W h a t interpretation was to be given to this section?
The
executive committee of the Catholic movement asked the Head of
the Government for an explanation of this point. Mr. Mussolini's
reply was as follows :
De facto associations are not prohibited. There is 110 restriction of
liberty in this respect. The Regulations do no more than make adherence
to, and membership of, a legally recognised union, which is open to all
whose intention it is to work for the nation, subject to the amount of
discipline involved in providing that such a union cannot include persons
who are simultaneously members of other organisations with the same
trade union objects ; that is to say, organisations which, like the
Socialist and similar trade unions, are in direct competition with and
antagonistic to the legally recognised organisation.
It would be absurd to allow a legally recognised trade union to
accept persons who belong to associations (in this case associations of
workers are primarily meant) at home or abroad, the object of which
it is to compete with the legally recognised organisations.
This prohibition does not affect the members of the occupational
sections of the Catholic Association, which, while they have their own
organisation and their own constitution, are not pursuing the same
objects as the legally recognised trade unions, are not in fact trade union
organisations as such, but rather propose to work for the progressive
adaptation of the legally recognised trade union to the principle of
national collaboration and to the social and national purposes which,

I48

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

under the present organisation, the Fascist system is endeavouring to
achieve '.
I t is clear from this statement that there is incompatibility between the status of membership of a Socialist or Christian trade union
and membership of a recognised trade union, but this incompatibility
does not affect members of social groups which are not trade unions
in terms of section 12 of the T r a d e Union Act.
T h e fact remains that, since t h e dissolution of t h e General Confederation of Labour and of t h e Christian Confederation of Labour,
the Fascist trade associations monopolise not only de jure but also
de facto t h e occupational organisation movement in Italy.

Industrial

and Labour Information,

Vol. X X I , Mo. I T , p. 399.

CONCLUSION

It would be premature at present to pass a definite judgment on
Fascist trade union legislation. It is of too recent date to have stood
the test of experience, and exists to-day only in a state of theoretical
construction. How could it be otherwise? The mechanism of this
legislation is so complex, the wheels which it sets in motion are so
numerous, the reforms begun or planned are so important, the effects
in every sphere of national life are so serious and so widespread that
the enforcement of the legislation must necessarily be a slow and
progressive process.
But from all these Acts and plans it is possible already to
deduce the idea which has been guiding the legislators and the aims
which they are pursuing. In principle, as in practice, this legislation
is, above all, political. It is only through the Fascist doctrine of the
State that it is possible to explain the trade union reform, which is
really only one aspect (the most striking, indeed) of the general
political reform.
^
It is noteworthy in this connection that the same Committee for
Constitutional Reform set up by the Decree of the Government of
33" January 1925 had to fulfil the two tasks of putting forward
political reforms and of drawing up plans for social reform.
The political reform, already to a great extent complete, seeks
to centralise all authority in the hands of the Head of the Government. The Act of 24 December 1925 on the attributes and prerogatives of the Prime Minister, the Act of 3 April 1926 on the extension
of the powers of the Prefects, and the Act of 4 February 1926,
completed by the Legislative Decree of 3 September 1926 on the
institution of podestas, have all the same aim of strengthening the
power of the Head of the Government as the central authority and
the power of his direct agents, the prefects and podestas in the
provinces and in the communes. A second series of Acts, the Act
of 31 January 1926 on the power of the Government to establish
legal rules, the Act of 24 December 1925 on the power of 'the

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

Government to amend the Penal Code, the Code of Penal Procedure,
the Acts on judicial organisation, etc., delegate to the executive
ample powers of legislation. There must be one single head from
whom all power comes. That is the formula which sums up,
according to the secretary-general of the Fascist Party, the new
legal and. political system of Fascist Italy.
Thanks to this delegation of authority, the Government is
armed to undertake the trade union reform which in itself is merely
a starting point for a much wider reform seeking to reorganise all
Italian society. On what basis is this to be done? The Fascist
Government has never made a secret of its wish to break with the
systems.of the past — " laisser-faire Liberalism and the Socialism of
class warfare " — and to set up a new system which, under the
control of the authorities, would solve the social problem on a basis
of class co-operation and thus strengthen the power of the State.
The Committee for Constitutional Reforms had advocated the
institution of a national corporative organisation which would include
all existing institutions, and all the citizens divided according to their
activities into their respective groups. This organisation would be
granted extensive powers for regulating social, economic, and political
life. It has been seen for what reasons the Government gave up the
proposals of the Committee for Constitutional Reform. It stopped
at an intermediate system based on the recognition of one exclusive
trade association for each occupation, an official institution endowed
with the monopoly of all rights, not only as regards colleotive labour
relations, but also in the social, economic, and political sphere.
This solution follows from the fundamental principle of Fascism :
all rights have their only source in the Government. It is therefore
the State which grants to recognised trade associations the right,
which may at any time be annulled, of regulating social relations.
This application of power is a discretionary act on the part of the
authorities, who may refuse it for reasons of political or social
expediency or revoke it ad nutum without requiring to justify this
refusal or annulment except by the reason of State interest. Thus
in the sphere of collective relations, neither individuals nor groups
really possess any rights. The principle of the autonomous organisation of labour conditions has been replaced by the principle of
authoritative and delegated regulation.
It is in the light of this new conception that the trade union
and social reform in Italy must be examined. It is this conception

ITALY

IS!

which, according to its authors, explains the conditions which the
State imposes for the constitution and working of recognised
associations.
According to them it justifies the content of these conditions :
refusal of recognition to Catholic, Socialist, and international organisations ; reduction of the minimum number of members to ten
per cent, in order to grant the effective control of vocational organisation to a minority of proved fidelity ; investing the trade unions
with duties which, far from being merely occupational or social,
must also be political and moral. It also justifies the formal conditions : obligation imposed on the trade associations of giving an
account of their origin and previous activity, of lodging their
constitutions for ratification and of communicating, upon request
of the authorities, reports of their trade union meetings ; the compulsory institution of managing bodies responsible for their work to the
authorities and also to the higher trade union bodies. I t also
justifies the methods of supervision which the authorities exercise
over recognised associations through the prefects and the provincial
administrative councils, the higher trade union bodies, and the
Ministry of Corporations. Finally, it justifies the institution of r
compulsory contribution to the" funds of the recognised trade
association, a contribution which is deducted from all members of the
occupation even although they have not joined the association.
It is on the basis of this recognised trade association, whose
activity (that of the managing bodies as well as of the ordinary
members) is subject to permanent supervision by the authorities,
that the Government proposes to reorganise the whole life of the
nation.
The monopoly of occupational representation held ' by the
exclusive trade association finds its most valuable application in the
regulation of contracts, but even here the application of the fundamental principle of Fascism involves a profound change in the legal
conception of the collective regulation of conditions of employment :
now the regulation of collective relationships no longer falls within
the sphere of private law but is subject to special public law. This
explains why the Act grants the right of concluding collective
contracts to the recognised trade associations only, subject to the
supervision of the higher trade union authorities, but excluding
de facto trade organisations. This explains also why the contract
entered into by the recognised associations (who often do not

I52

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

represent either amongst the employers or the workers more than
a minority of the interested parties) is extended de jure to all
members of the class or of the occupation — a provision which results
in the collective contract being in reality a legal occupational regulation. Finally, this explains the organisation of a new system of \
sanctions, both civil (constitution of a special guarantee fund) and
penal, guaranteeing the execution of collective agreements.
Similarly, collective disputes no longer concern only or even
primarily the contracting parties; they concern chiefly the State.
Therefore, the Act, while allowing for a preliminary attempt at
conciliation, sets up straight away for labour disputes a State
tribunal presided over by a body composed of three judges
of the Court of Appeal and two technical State judges, with the
assistance of the Public Prosecutor as a direct representative of the
Government; the competence of this court is universal. It deals
with disputes concerning the interpretation of existing., contracts
and also with disputes regarding the conclusion of new contracts.
Legal action can be taken only by recognised associations and by
the Public Prosecutor, excluding, therefore, even, those, who are
directly injured. On the other hand, decisions given byVthe court,
accompanied by civil and penal sanctions, apply to all members,
even if not registered, of the group or occupation represented by :the
exclusive trade association.
The institution of the Labour Tribunal, which forbids all classes
and groups of producers to defend their own interesfi.; themselves;has, as a corollary, the complete prohibition of strikes^tid lock-outs,
For, according to the Fascist conception, strikes and lock-outs and'
even mere negligence or irregularity in carrying out work not only
affects the interests of individuals, but, more important still, affects
the interests of the whole social body represented by the State.
Inopportune suspension of work is therefore no longer considered
merely a civil offence but un offence against the nation as a whole,
and, therefore, a crime in the nature of sedition. This new conception explains why sanctions have been set up again for the offences
of strikes and of combination, as during the revolutionary period,
and also the gradation of penalties, which are more severe for
officials and employees of the State and of public utility undertakings
than for those in private undertakings.
Such is, in short, the system of the Act of 3 April 1926
regarding the legal regulation of collective labour relations. This

ITALY

Act, in its principles and in the institutions it sets up, aims at a
unitary and general corporative organisation. It cannot take into
account purely individual interests nor special cases interesting
collective bodies. But it would seem that in practice this uniform
and compulsory regulation of conditions of employment would run
the risk of sacrificing the interests of certain classes of producers
if they were not assured of an adequate representation in the
different bodies for occupational defence. Hence the necessity for
undertaking on the basis of an annual occupational census a very
highly differentiated organisation of trade union institutions of
primary grade. It has been seen how the Trade Union Regulations
of i July sought to take account of the different interests involved.
This multiplicity of trade organisations of primary grade
representing opposing interests was in opposition to the principle of
unitary organisation ojf which the whole of this trade union legislation
rests. For this reason, the Regulations in the second place are careful
to reconstitute by degrees this unity of organisation. First of all,
the primary grade organisations must be attached by bonds of
discipline and dependence to more and more centralised organisations :
federations, confederations and general confederations. Thus the
central liaison bodies which are to be set up by a Special Decree
of the Ministry of Corporations are to unite the different elements
(separated up to the present) of any particular branch of production,
. em^ö^.er^ieetyiicians, -workers, for the defence of their common
interests, j^ánd the unity of organisation will be completed by the
institution of the Ministry of Corporations, which is to play the part
of a central supervising body and also of supreme regulator of
occupational, social, economic and political life.
It is on the basis of this trade union and corporative organisation that the Government intends to proceed with the complete
reform of Italian society, in which it permits the recognised trade
associations to play an important part. In this sphere also the State
asserts its complete predominance. It preaches and it practises not
only the principle of intervention, but also that of authoritative
regulation of the national life in all its various manifestations. This
reform has several aspects, of which the most characteristic may be
recalled.
In the social sphere the State intends to take under its own
supervision the regulation of the labour market. To this end, the
Labour Charter codifies not only the general provisions of the

154

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

•collective contract (such as probation periods, dismissal, holidays,
hours of labour, guarantees in case of transfer of the undertaking,
•etc.), but also all questions connected with social welfare, whether
private (unification of mutual-aid and co-operative institutions, of
societies for medical and legal assistance, of institutions for relief and
occupational training, etc.) or official (insurance funds for sickness,
old age, accidents, unemployment, etc.) and the protection of the
worker (public health, maternity and child welfare, etc.).
In the economic sphere, the trade unions will have the right to
share under State supervision in the regulation of production, that is
to say, in the control of the whole economic system of the nation
This participation by the trade unions is henceforth exercised through
the Higher Economic Council, the consultative body of the Ministry
of National Economy, and the Provincial Economic Councils, which
exercise the duties formerly carried out by a series of institutions
run by private initiative such as chambers of industry and commerce.
provincial agrarian councils, agricultural committees, etc.
In the political sphere it is the recognised trade associations
which from now onwards appoint representatives to the advisory
councils of the podestà and which in future will appoint the deputies
to the Corporative Assembly which shortly is to take the place of
the Chamber of Deputies.
These are the main outlines of the new social edifice. It is clear
that it is a complete system of social organisation in which the
State is the alpha and omega. This new organisation, according to
its authors, could not be built up except by doing away with the
previous system. Now the independent trade unions, Socialist and
Catholic, had played an important part in the political and social
evolution of the country. Fascism, first by its actions, and then by
legislation, tried to destroy their influence. First of all, by their
actions, the Fascist trade unions sought to thwart the work of the
independent trade unions by all means in their power and to win
the monopoly of labour representation. Then, by legislation, they
ratified this existing state of affairs, instituting a special legal system
to control associations of State officials and employees and, finally,
the former independent trade unions.
The system adopted for associations of State officials and
employees has the following characteristics : first of all it comes under

ITALY

'55

the Legislative Decree of 6 November 1926 ' which forbids State
officials, on pain of dismissal, to be members of secret societies. In
the second place, it is regulated by the Act of 24 December 1925,
which authorises either the Government or the heads of public utilityundertakings to dismiss, even in cases not provided for by the
existing Acts, officials or agents " who put themselves in positions
incompatible with the general aims of the Government ". Finally,
in conformity with Chapter IV of the Trade Union Regulations of
1 July 1926, associations of State employees are subject to the same
conditions as regards content (moral and political fitness, etc.) and
of form (authorisation of a single association for each group) and
also to the same methods of supervision as the recognised trade
unions, but without being granted the same privileges and prerogatives as the latter.
The existence of the independent trade unions is just as strictly
regulated. The laws have set up harsh control over the constitution,
•the-functions, and the activity of the independent trade associations
by a whole number of Acts : Legislative Decree of 24 January 1924,
instituting supervision by the public authorities over associations
of any nature whatsoever which owe their existence to contributions
by the workers ; Legislative Decree of 6 November 1926, approving
the consolidated text of the Acts for public safety, which oblige
associations to communicate to the police administration their certificates of establishment, their constitutions, their internal regulations, their list of members and any other information regarding
their organisation or activity whenever the authorities may demand
it for reasons of public order or security.
Similarly, trade union propaganda through the press or in public
or private meetings is strictly supervised. The Act of 31 December 1925 on the press, completed by the system set up with the
constitution of the Fascist trade unions of editors and journalists,
makes every publication of whatsoever nature subject to preliminary
supervision by the authorities and in fact suppresses the whole
influence of the Fascist press. Chapter I I of the Royal Decree of
6 November 1926 makes every public meeting, and, in some cases,
private meetings, subject to preliminary control by the public

This Legislative Decree, as will be remembered, reproduces word
-for word the provisions of the Act of 26 Nov. 1925.
"

156

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

authorities. Finally, section 4 of the Act, for State defence, punishes
by imprisonment of from three to ten years anyone who sets up,
even under a different form and under a different name, associations,
organisations or parties which have been dissolved by order of the
public authorities.
It should be added that the Trade Union Act of 3 April 1926,
while expressly authorising (section 12) the constitution of
independent trade unions, actually deprives them of all possibrlity
of action and of every reason for existing.
In face of a situation rendered so dangerous by legislation and by
the facts,, the independent trade unions dissolved. To-day the
Fascist trade union organisations have the sole monopoly in law and
in aotual fact of the occupational.organisation movement in Italy.
The social sections of the Catholic movement have joined Fascist trade
unionism. A certain number of former leaders of the General
Confederation of Labour have given adherence to the principles if
not to the methods of Fascism. These last two facts seem to some
people to herald a real solution of the trade union problem. The
conditions seem indeed to be present for transforming, the exclusive
trade union, which is at present a closed political institution, into
a really unitary association including the great majority, of the
workers without distinction of political views. At the same time
the central liaison bodies would be changed into real corporations
open to all interested parties without distinction.
It does not seem that for the moment at least the leaders of
Fascist trade unionism wish to go back on their original uncompromising theories. Several times Mr. Rossoni has protested against the
tendency of various organisers to grant admission to all workers and
all emplo3'ers into the single trade association. According to him,
the latter must, on pain of losing its true charaoter, remain a
qualitative, educative, and moral organisation (Stirpe, February
1927). Mr. Rocco, Minister of Justice, stated in the Chamber of
Deputies that only on the day when all employers and all workers
in Italy had the same ability, the same consciousness of the aim
to be achieved, and the same convictions would the trade union
automatically become a corporation. The secretary-general of the
Fascist Party, Mr. A. Turati, in a speech delivered on 21 February 1927 in the Augusteo at Rome, proclaimed that the corporative
organisation must be completely subordinate to the political control
of the Fascist Party.

ITALY

*57

To imagine [he said] that the new organisation will presently take
the place of our existing political life would be an error. I do not know
if all those who occupy or who will occupy to-morrow positions of
responsibility in the great corporative movement have a clear and
precise idea on this point. I do not think so. But we are fully and
entirely conscious of it. The Party has not yet completed its task of
setting up the new organisation born of the Fascist revolution. . . . Just
as in positions of command in economic and administrative life, so at
the head of trade union organisations there must be everywhere and
always very faithful Black Shirts.
All authority for the whole of Fascism — that is the complete
conception of our doctrine '.
One final question demands attention. W h a t is, or rather, w h a t
will be, according to t h e promoters, the future scope of this reform?
T h e y state t h a t it really anticipates the future system of vocational
organisation.
I t goes ahead of present tendencies and realises,
according to them, certain fundamental aspirations common to t h e
whole trade union movement of every school. I t sets up exclusive
occupational representation, which is an essential condition for all
effective occupational action and is too often paralysed b y division's
within t h e trade unions. T h é exclusive trade association constitutes
a solid foundation for the collective regulation of conditions of
employment. T h e compulsory collective contract extending de jure
to all members of the occupation eliminates individual competition
and t h u s becomes the essential instrument of occupational organisation. T h e compulsory Labour T r i b u n a l , together with the complete
prohibition of strikes, ensures economic stability and industrial
peace. Finally, the State grants to recognised trade associations the
right of taking an active part in the organisation of social, economic
and political life.
Besides these advantages from the point of view of the occupation,
the enthusiasts see in this organisation the prelude to a much wider
reform, viz. the reform of the very basis of Italian society. Certainly,
at various times the Government has declared that Fascist trade
unionism differs fundamentally from " red " trade unionism because
it recognises the social value of t h e principle of property. But it
is certain also that t h e very conception of capital on the one hand
and of labour on t h e other has been profoundly modified.
The
institutions of the T r a d e Unions Act (exercise of vocational control
by the recognised trade association over third parties who are not

Lavoro d'Italia,

22-23 Feb. 1927.

158

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

registered members, the compulsory n a t u r e of the collective contract
erga omnes, the Labour T r i b u n a l with, as a corollary, State supervision of undertakings) limit on very important points the autonomy
of the heads of undertakings. T h e s e limits have been narrowed
by the coming into force of the Labour Charter. It will be recalled
t h a t d u r i n g t h e first discussion of this proposal the President of t h e
Council described in the following formula the aim pursued b y the
State :
Realisation of the equal rights of all social classes and proclamation
of the solidarity of all citizens in view of the higher interests of their
countiy, interests which form the limit and the standard of all individual
rights from the right of property and the right to profit to the right
of work and wages. The principle to be followed fhe added] is the
following : the maximum of duties for the State and no authority
against the State *.
Moreover, in virtue of the theory of the social duties of capital
and labour which forms the basis of action for Fascist trade unionism,
both for employers and workers, the organisation of produotion is
no longer considered as being exclusively a personal matter for the
employer, but must be considered as a social duty the exercise of
which must be entrusted to whoever is most suited to fulfil it. I t
follows from these official statements t h a t from now onwards the
State claims a clear right over national property.
A p a r t from all these questions of what has already been
accomplished and of the reforms still being planned and the difficulties
of enforcement which may be foreseen, one question arises — will
the State be able to force all personal and collective interests to
become subject to its discipline? T h e evidence of all leaders of t h e
Fascist movement agrees on this point t h a t t h e new Act will have no
chance of being enforced and of remaining in force except as a
result of the disciplinary power of the nation. T h e preamble asserts
this in the following terms :
The social and political conditions of Italy give our country the
1
Cf. Labour Charter, sections II, VII, VIII, and IX. It should be
recalled in particular that section VII states that the employer is
responsible to the State for the organisation of production. Section IX
states that State intervention in economic production may take place
when private initiative is lacking or is insufficient or when the political
interests of the State are at stake. This intervention may take the form
of supervision, support, or direct management.

ITALY

!59

possibility, which is really an historical privilege, of putting an end to
the chaotic attempts at the defence of class interests by their own forces
and substituting for it State justice. A State stronger than any that
has yet existed, thanks to the prestige of the Government and the support
of the population ; a trade union organisation permeated with patriotic
feeling and perfectly disciplined ; employers convinced of the excellence
of the Government's proposals and of the necessity for supporting them —
all these guarantee the loyal enforcement of the new legislation.
B u t is not the realisation of such a far-reaching reform, dependent
on the regularity and continuity of enforcement, not so much a
question of national discipline as of t h e evolution of economic
conditions? T o attempt to answer this question would be out c
place here.
By w a y of conclusion, it may be well t o recall the memory of
Mr. Luzzatti and of the following words spoken by him in Paris on
29 M a r c h 1926, not indeed in connection with the Fascist trade union
legislation b u t with reference to all social institutions : " W e are
all merely searching, and the last word will always remain w i t h
experience, examination of the facts, and comparison of experiments."

BIBLIOGRAPHY

CHIEF LEGISLATIVE TEXTS QUOTED IN T H E WORK
Trade Union Reform
i. Act of 3 April 1926, Gazzetta Ufficiale, No. 563, on the legal
organisation of collective relations resulting from employment.
Legislative Series, 1926, It. 2.
Bill, first version, presented to the Chamber of Deputies by the
President of the Ministerial Council in agreement with the Minister of
the Interior and the Minister for National Economy, at the sitting of
18 November 1925 ; Parliamentary Documents, Nö. 624.
Report of the Parliamentary Committee on the above Bill presented
to the President of the Chamber on 1 December 1925 ; Parliamentary
Documents, No. 624-A.
Bill, second version, approved by the Chamber of Deputies on
12 December 1925 and laid before the Senate on 17 December 1925 ;
Parliamentary Documents, No. 350.
Report of the Central Committee of the Senate on the above Bill
laid before the President of the Senate in March 1926 ; Parliamentary
Documents, No. 350-A.
2. Royal Decree of 1 July 1926, Gazzetta Ufficiale, No. 1,130, regulating the public administration of the Act of 3 A^/ril 1926, No. 563, on the
legal organisation of collective relations resulting from employment.
Legislative Series, 1926, It. 5.
,
3. Royal Decrees granting legal recognition to the chief national
confederations :
Royal Decree of 26 September 1926, Gazzetta Ufficiale, No. i,7iS :
legal recognition of the National Confederation of Fascist Trade Unions.
Royal Decree of 26 September 1926, No. 1,720 : legal recognition
of the Fascist General Confederation of Italian Industry.
Royal Decree of 26 September 1926, No. 1,719 ; legal recognition of
the Fascist General Confederation of Banks.
Royal Decree of 7 October 1926, No. 1,803 : legal recognition of the
Fascist National Confederation of Traders.
Royal Decree of 7 October 1926, No. 1,804 : , e » a l recognition of the
Fascist National Confederation of Agriculturists.
Royal Decree of 14 October 1926, No. 1,901 : legal recognition of
the Fascist National Confederation of Maritime and Aerial Transport
Undertakings.

ITALY

l6l

Royal Decree of 24 October 1926, No. 1,908 : legal recognition of the
Fascist National Confederation of Land Transport and Inland Navigation.
Royal Decree of 14 October 1926, No. 1,900 : legal recognition of the
autonomous Fascist Federation of Agents for Maritime and Aerial
Transport.
Royal Decree of 14 January 1927 : legal recognition of the autonomous
Fascist Federation of Societies of Artisans.
Royal Decree of 5 December 1926, No. 2,088 : legal recognition of the
Fascist National Association of Managers of Industrial Undertakings.
4. Legal recognition of the chief national associations of employees
of the State or public utility undertakings.
Decree of the Head of the Government, of 23 August 1926, Gazzetta
Ufficiale, No. 196 : authorising the constitution of the Fascist National
Association of State Railwaymen.
Decree of the Head of the Government of 27 August 1926 : authorising the constitution of the Fascist National Association of Postal and
Telegraph Employees.
Decree of the Head of the Government of 30 August 1926 : authorising
the constitution of the Fascist National Association of Postal Sub-Office
and Rural Agents.
1
Decree of the Head of the Government of 30 August 1926 : authorising
the constitution of the Fascist National Association of State Telephone
Employees.
Decree of the Head of the Government of 17 September 1926 :
authorising the constitution of the Fascist National Association of
Primary School Teachers.
Decree of the Head.of the Government of 10 October 1926 : authorising the constitution of the Fascist National Association of Tax Collectors.
5. Appointment of presidents of the principal confederations :
Royal Decrees of 18 November 1926 : appointing presidents for the
Fascist General Confederation of Banks, the Fascist General Confederation
of Italian Industry, the National Confederation of Fascist Trade Unions,
the Fascist National Confederation of Traders and the Fascist National
Confederation of Agriculturists.
Royal Decrees of 28 "November 1926 : appointing presidents for the
Fascist National Confederation of Land Transport and Inland Navigation,
and the Fascist National Confederation of Maritime and Aerial Transport
Undertakings.
Reorganisation of the Legal Constitution
of the Liberal Professions
1. Act of 25 March 1926, Gazzetta Ufficiale, No. 453 : on the
organisation of the professions of barristers and attorneys.
Royal Decree of 6 May 1926, Gazzetta Ufficiale, No. 747 : regulating
the co-ordination of the Act of 3 April 1926 on the legal organisation of
collective relations resulting from employment with the Act of 25 March
1926 on the organisation of the professions of barristers and attorneys.
Royal Decree of 26 August 1926, Gazzetta Ufficiale, No. 1,683 : approving the regulation for the enforcement of the Act of 25 Mar-ch 1926.
Freedom of Association

IÓ2

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

2. Royal Decree of 23 October 1925, Gazzetta Ufficiale, No. 2,537 :
approving the regulation for the exercise of the professions of engineers
and architects.
Royal Decree of 3 September 1926 : establishing standards for the
exercise of the professions of architects and engineers in the new provinces.
Establishment of the Ministry of Corporations
Legislative Decree of 2 July 1926, Gazzetta Ufficiale, No. 1,131 :
instituting the Ministry of Corporations.
Royal Decree of 17 March 1927, Gazzetta Ufficiale, No. 401 : organising the Ministry of Corporations.
Social Reform
1. Promulgation of the National Labour Charter, 21 April 1927 :
Report on the National Labour Charter by Mr. Bottai, Under-Secretary
for Corporations.
2. Reorganisation of the system of rnutual-aid and co-operative
societies and institutions for vocational training.
Ministerial Decree of 26 June 1925 : granting recognition to the
National Medico-Legal Relief Society.
Royal Decree of 30 December 1926, Gazzetta Ufficiale, Nò. 13, 1927 :
on the organisation of the Fascist National Institute of Co-operation
(Ente nazionale della Cooperazione fascista).
Royal Decree of 23 September 1926, No. 1,732 : approving the
regulation for the National Association for the Prevention of Industrial
Accidents.
Royal Decree of 31 December 1925, Gazzetta Ufficiale, No. 2,392 :
approving the regulation for the National Institute for Workers' Spare
Time (Opera nazionale del Dopolavoro).
Royal Decree of 11 November 1926, No. 1,936 : amending the constitution of the Opera nazionale del Dopolavoro.
Legislative Decree of 9 January 1927 : organising the institute
A. Balilla (Fascist Youth).
Royal Decree of 6 August 1926, No. 1,408 : granting legal personality
to the Fascist National Institution for Culture.
3. Reorganisation of public institutions for social welfare and workers'
protection.
Legislative Decree of 5 December 1926, No. 2,051 : amending the
Act of 31 January 1904, No. 51, on industrial accidents.
Legislative Decree of 16 May 1926, No. 853 : organising the insurance
fund for industrial accidents.
Legislative Decree of 25 November 1926, No. 2,052 : containing
supplementary provisions for the reorganisation of the National Insurance
Fund for Industrial Accidents.
Act of 14 April 1927, Gazzetta Ufficiale, No. 570 : converting the
Legislative Decree of 25 November 1926 into an Act.

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163

Royal Decree of 3 January 1926 : dissolving the Managing Committee
of the National Fund for Social Insurance and appointing a new
Committee.
Act of 10 December 1925, No. 2,277 : for the protection and assistance
of maternity and child welfare work.
Royal Decree of 15 April 1926, No. 718 : approving the regulations
for carrying out the Act of 10 December 1925.
Legislative Decree of 21 October 1926, No. 1,904 : amending the Act
of 10 December 1925.
Economic Reform
Act of 18 April 1926, No. 731 : instituting ' provincial economic
councils.
Royal Decree of 3 April 1926 : concerning the reorganisation and
composition of the Higher Council for National Economy.
Legislative Decree of 16 December 1926, No. 2,714 : regulating
retail trade.
Ministerial Decree of 31 December 1926 : setting up standards for
the enforcement of the Legislative Decree of 16 December 1926.
Legislative Decree of 18 April 1926, No. 800 : establishing a National
Institution for Exportation.
Legislative Decree of 3 April 1926, No. 556 : constituting the
Association for Research into Deposits of Petrol and Combustibles.
Political and Administrative Reform
Act of 24 December 1925 : on the attributes and prerogatives of the
Head of the Government, Prime Minister, and Secretary of State.
Act of 31 January 1926, No. 100 : on the power of the Executive to
promulgate legal rules.
Standards for the enforcement of the Act of 31 January 1926, No. 100,
Gazzetta Ufficiale, No. 22.
Act of 24 December 1925 : delegating to His Majesty's Government
the right to amend the Penal Code, the Code of Penal Procedure, and
the Act on judicial organisation, and to introduce fresh amendments and
additions to the Civil Code.
Act of 31 December 1925 : delegating to the Government the power
to amend the Acts on Public Safety and to promulgate a new consolidated
text of the Acts relating to public safety.
Act of 3 April 1926, No. 660 : extending the powers of the prefects.
Legislative Decree of 28 October 1925, No. 1,929 : on the institution
and organisation of the Governor of Rome, amended by the Royal Decrees
of 10 June 1926, No. 1,023, and of 9 December 1926, No. 2,055.
Act of 4 February 1926, No. 237 : instituting the Podestas and the
Council of the Podestà in communes of less than 5,000 inhabitants.
Legislative Decree of 31 December 1926, No. 1,910 : extending the
organisation of the Podestas to all communes in the Kingdom.

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FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION
Legal Regulations concerning State Officials and Employees

Act of 24 December 1915, No. 2,300 : exempting State officials from
service.
Circular for the enforcement of the Act of 24 December 1925 on the
dismissal of State officials.
Title VI of the Legislative Decree of 1 July 1926 : regulating the
administration of the Act of 3 April 1926 on associations of employees
of the vState and other public establishments.
Legal Regulation of the Independent Trade Unions
Legislative Decree of 24 January 1924, No. 64 : instituting supervision
by the public authorities over associations or societies of any nature
whatsoever which owe their existence to contributions from the workers.
Ro3ral Decree of 6 November 1926, 'No. 1,848 : approving the single
text of the Acts on Public Safety.
Act of 25 November 1926, No. 2,008 : containing measures for the
defence of the State.
Royal Decree of 12 December 1926, No. 2,026 : containing rules for
the enforcement of the Act of 25 November 1926 on the measures for the
defence of the State.
Act of 31 December 1925, No. 2,307 : containing provisions regarding
the periodical Press.
Act of 31 December 1926, No. 2,308 : changing the Legislative Decree
of 10 July 1924, No. 1,081, into an Act containing rules for the enforcement
of the Legislative Decree of 15 July 1923, No. 3,288, on the administration
and supervision of newspapers and periodicals.
Royal Decree of 4 March Í926, No. 371 : approving the Regulations
containing provisions on the periodical press.
OTHER OFFICIAL PUBLICATIONS
Reports and proposals of the Presidential Committee for the study
of constitutional reforms. Rome, 1925.
La Réforme syndicale en Italie et la Charte du travail (French
translation of the chief Parliamentary documents relating to trade union
legislation).
GENERAL BIBLIOGRAPHY PRIOR TO T H E
TRADE UNION REFORM
AMBROSINI, G.
Rome, 1925.
AMBROSINI, V.
BARASSI.

Sindacati,

consigli

La battagglia

BoGGiANO-Pico. Le organizzazioni
di classe. Turin, 1903.

GiANTURCO, M.

e Parlamento

per lo Stato sindacale.

Il contratto di lavoro.

GiANTURCo, Emm.

tecnici

Rome, 1925.

Milan, 1901.
professionnali

Il contratto di lavoro.

La rappresentanza

politico.

e la

rappresentanza

Naples, 1902.

di classe.

Naples, 1919.

165

ITALY

MusTO. Sulle organizzazioni

operaie.

Naples, 1908.

ORLANDO. " Lo Stato sindacale e le condizioni attuali della scienza
del diritto pubblico. " Rivista del Diritto pubblico, 1924.
PANUNZIO. " Stato e sindacati. " Rivista internazionale di filosofia
del diritto, 1923.
PERGOLESI. Sindacalismo operaio. Città di Castello 1922.
La rappresentanza
corporativa
nelle assemblee
Rome, 1923.
PRATO.
" Realtà economiche et miti sindicalistici. "
sociale, Voi. X X X V I .
PREZZOLINI.

La teoria sindacalista.

RANNELLETTI.
Rocco, Alfredo.
ROMANO.
pubblico,

politiche.
Riforma

Naples, 1905.

" I sindacati e lo Stato. "

Politica, 1920.

" Crisi dello Stato e sindacati. " Politica, 1920

" Lo Stato moderno e la sua crisi. "

Rivista

del Diritto

1910.

RUFFINI.
SOMMI.

Guerra e riforma constituzionale.
La riforma constituzionale.

Turin, 1920.

Milan, 1924.

VIANA. Sindacalismo, teoria e praxis delle organizzazioni
e di resistenza. Bari, 1923.

economiche

GENERAL BIBLIOGRAPHY AFTER T H E TRADE UNION REFORM
ARIAS. " Trade Union Reform in Italy. "
Review, September 1926.

International

—— " La riforma sindacale e corporativa. "
June 1926.

Nuova

Labour
Antologia,

Economia /corporativa.
Rome, .published by " Diritto del
Lavoro ", 1927.
BOTTAI, G. La Carta del Lavoro. Rome, published by " Diritto del
Lavoro ", 1927.
" Trade Organisation in Italy under the Act and Regulations
on Collective Relations in connection with Employment ".
International
Labour Review, Vol. XV, No. 6, June 1927.
Il diritto della rivoluzione.
Lavoro ". 1927.

Rome, published by " Diritto del

BÜOZZI. " Mentre va in vigore la legge sui sindacati. "
sindacali, 16 May 1926.

Battaglie

" Ancora della legge sui sindacati. " Battaglie
sindacali,
1 July 1926. (Commentaries on the Act of 3 April 1926 on the legal
organisation of collective relationships connected with employment.)
CARLI. " Il sindacalismo nel dopoguerra e la legge 3 aprile 1926. "
Rivista di Politica economica, Rome, Part VI, 30 June 1926.

166

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

CARNELUTI, B. Sindacalismo.
Lavoro ", 1927.

Rome, published by " Diritto del

COSTAMAGNA, C. Diritto corporativo
scritti giuridici e sociali. Turin, 1927.
Il problema dei consigli

italiano.

raccolta di

Il Diritto

del Lavoro,

tecnici.

" Teoria delle corporazione fascista. "
January-February 1927.
CELENTANO.

Nuova

La legge e il regolamento

sui sindacati.

Naples, 1926.

CONSTANZO. " Le nouvel ordre syndical en Italie. " Revue internationale des institutions économiques et sociales. Published by l'Institut
international d'agriculture, July-September 1926.
D'AMELIO. " La magistratura del lavóro." Le Assicurazioni
Rome, No. 1, January-February, 1926.
D ' O N O F R I O E PELLEGRINO GIANPTETRO.

rapporti

collettivi

del Lavoro.

La discipliina

sociali,

giuridica

dei

Naples, 1926.

GIANTURCO, M. " La legislazione sindacale fascista e la riforma
constituzionale. " Quaderni Imperia, Genoa, No. 13, 1926.
" Le monopole syndical et l'organisation
Revue politique et parlementaire, June 1926.
MARCHI, C. La pplizza unica del lavoro.
" Diritto del Lavoro ", 1927.
MAROZZI.
1926.

professionnelle. "

Rome, published by

Problemi sindacali. " Il Giornale d'Italia,

" Questiono sindacali. " Il Giornale d'Italia,

Rome, 8 July

Rome, 3 August

1926.
PANUNZIO.

LO Stato fascista.

Bologna, 1925.

Il riconoscimento rivoluzionario dei sindacati. Rome, published
by " Diritto del Lavoro ", 1927.
RIGOLA. " Una teoria dei sindacati. " Critica sociale, April-May
1920.
Rocco, A. " La réforme constitutionnelle en Italie. " Revue politique et parlementaire, Vol. CXXVI, p. 329.
La nuova disciplina del Lavoro e lo Stato Corporativo.
chia ", July 1926.

" Gerar-

RossoNi. " Il sindacalismo nello Stato. " Il Lavoro d'Italia,
30 June 1926.

Rome,

" Sindacato giuridico e monopolio. " La Stirpe, February 1927.
TTi.p.rANO, G. " Collegi, sindacati e corporazioni. "
April-May 1926.

Critica

VIRGILI. " Il riconoscimento giuridico dei sindacati. "
nazionale, Vol. LTI, June 1926.

sociale,
Rassegna

ITALY

167

Consult also the collections for the last years of the following reviews :
Il Diritto del Lavoro (organ of the Ministry of Corporations, recently
published) ; Gerarchia ; La Critica fascista ; La Stirpe ; La Nuova
Antologia;
Echi e Commenti ; La Critica sociale (suspended) ; Battaglie
sindacali (organ of the former General Confederation of Labour, at
present suspended) ; I problemi del lavóro (organ of the group
" Rigola").
Consult also the collections of the following important periodicals :
Il Popolo d'Italia ; Il Lavoro d'Italia ; Il Tevere ;

l'Impero.

La Tribuna ; Il Giornale d'Italia ; Il Resto del Carlino ; Il Corriere
delle Sera ; Il Secolo ; La Stampa.
Il Mondo (suspended) ; L'Avanti

(suspended) ; l'Unità (suspended).

ADDENDA

The present study was already completed when the following
events happened with which it was therefore impossible to deal in
the text itself.
ad. : Legal regulation of collective contracts of employment. —
Conditions of validity of collective contracts (p. 67 after the
quotation).
A Royal Decree of 6 May 1928, published in the Gazzetta Ufficiale
of 15 June 1928, No. 139, contains detailed provisions as to the
lodging and publication of collective contracts. This duty devolves
on the contracting associations and embraces not only the text of
the contracts but also that of any approbation, authorisation or
ratification subject to which contracts have been entered. into or
which are required by the regulations of the associations.
The Decree fixes the period within which contracts must be
lodged, usually thirty days, and the penalties incurred by any person
who, being by virtue of his office under obligation to make such
deposit, fails to comply with the regulations in the matter.
The prefects or the Ministry of Corporations must forward a
copy of every such contract to the competent factory inspection
services or to the Ministry of National Economy for the purposes of
the supervision of the observance of the laws for the protection of
workers. No collective contract of employment may be published
unless it clearly indicates the disciplinary measures contemplated, the
rules relating to the employment of workers during their period of
probation, the amount of wages and the method of payment of the
same, the hours of work, the weekly rest, and for undertakings
continuously carried on, the period of annual paid leave, the measures
provided for in case of sickness or death of the worker, dismissal of
the worker through no fault on his part, change in the management
of the undertaking or the calling-up of the worker for service with
the colours or in the voluntary militia for the maintenance of national
security in accordance with the principles contained in Articles 14 to
20 of the Labour Charter, which thus receive legal sanction.
ad: Legal regulation of collective contracts of employment — Sanctions of the collective contract (p. 69, Note (1), substitute for
the first sentence).
According to the statistical returns up to 31 July 1928 the number
of collective contracts concluded since the constitution of the Ministry

I69

ITALY

of Corporations amounted to 3,181, of which 67 were national,
106 regional and 3,008 provincial.
As regards the different branches of production, these contracts
were divided as follows : 373 for agriculture, 2,334 for industry,
193 for commerce, 63 for banks and 218 for transport.
ad: The labour tribunal. — The working
(p. 76, Note (1), at the end).

of the labour

tribunal

The principle proclaimed by Article 10 of the Labour Charter
was applied by a Royal Decree of 26 February 1928 published in the
Gazzetta Ufficiale of 22 March 1928, No. 69. . This Decree abolishes
the colleges of prud'hommes and commissions of private salaried
employees and transfers to the justices of the peace (pretori) or the
ordinary courts within the limits of their respective jurisdiction,
individual disputes, disputes arising from the relations of private
employment and all other individual disputes arising from relations
subject to collective contracts of employment or other regulations
having the force and effect of collective contracts. The justices of
the peace are also to have jurisdiction in all actions which may be
brought by associations legally recognised against employers or
workers civilly liable for an infringement of a collective contract.
For the decision of such disputes the justices of the peace and
the courts are assisted by two expert assessors, one representing the
employers and the other the workers, chosen from special
lists. The participation of these assessors is • not, however,
required, under penalty of nullity of sentence, unless the same is
demanded at the first hearing by one of the parties. The lists of
assessors are revised every two years by the Labour and Social Welfare
Section of the Provincial Economic Councils on the basis of proposals
by the legally recognised trade associations, having regard to the
industries of each province. The executive officers of the trade
associations must not be included in the lists. Experts who are
interested in the dispute or who are employers, employees,
representatives or relatives up to the fourth degree or connections
by marriage up to the second degree of one of the parties must also
not be chosen as assessors in any given matter.
Actions based on the non-observance of collective contracts of
employment may not be brought unless the plaintiff has previously
protested against such non-observance to the legally recognised
association of the vocational category to which the plaintiff belongs.
The legally recognised associations may always appear in any such
action.
The difference must be brought before the justice of the peace or
the court of the circuit in which the undertaking or establishment
employing the worker is situate.
The parties may appear personally or by representatives. Such
representation may be entrusted to the secretary of the legally
recognised association.
The procedure is simple and rapid. The action is commenced by
a petition signed by the parties or their representatives. A copy of the

170

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

petition, with a notification of the day of hearing, is in all cases
officially communicated to t h e persons concerned at t h e cost of t h e
plaintiff by registered letter. A t the hearing, if the parties maintain
their respective contentions, the justice of the peace or the president
of the court endeavours to bring them to a speedy agreement. T h i s
effort must be renewed at every opportunity in t h e course of the
action.
If the attempt at conciliation is unsuccessful, the justice of the
peace or the president may immediately commence the hearing or
summon t h e parties to a fresh hearing within a period of not more
t h a n ten days.
T h e parties have three days in which to lodge their pleadings.
W h e r e the value of the matter in dispute does not exceed
2,000 lire, j u d g m e n t is without appeal. I n the case of j u d g m e n t s
in which the value exceeds 2,000 lire, appeal lies to t h e L a b o u r
T r i b u n a l . Appeals are subject to the rules of the Code of Civil
Procedure.
Employers or workers fraudulently infringing obligations under
collective contracts of employment or regulations made b y ' t h e corporative organs are liable to fines from 100 to 5,000 lire, w i t h o u t
prejudice to the rules of t h e ordinary law relating to civil liability.
T h e employment of workers with offers of remuneration inferior to
that established by a collective contract is deemed to be an infringement of the contract.
T h i s Decree came into force on 1 October 1928.
a d : Part played by the trade associations in social life. — The
nal Labour Charter (p. 120, after the first p a r a g r a p h ) .

Natio-

A t its session in September 1928 the Fascist G r a n d Council
approved a Bill to be subsequently introduced in Parliament authorisi n g the Government to issue all necessary provisions for giving
complete effect to the principles contained in the Labour Charter.
a d : Part played by the trade associations
in social life.
National Labour Charter. — Employment
exchanges
note to t i t l e ) .

— The
(p. 123,

Articles 22 to 25 of the Labour Charter have been p u t into force
by a Royal Decree of 29 March 1928, No. 1,003, published in the
Gazzetta Ufficiale, of 18 May 1928, N o . 116.
U n d e r this Decree free employment exchanges for the different
vocational categories will be established as and when the desirability
of the same is recognised by Decrees of the Minister of Corporations
in agreement with the Minister of National Economy and after
consultation of the corporations concerned.
T h e s e exchanges will be established at the offices of the workers'
associations. T h e y will be managed by committees presided over by
the Federal Secretaries of the National Fascist P a r t y a n d consisting
of an equal n u m b e r of representatives of the employers' and w o r k e r s '
associations concerned.
T h e Committees will select the officers of the exchanges from

ITALY

171

the executive officers of the workers' associations concerned on the
proposal of such associations.
The supervision of the employment exchanges and their coordination in accordance with uniform principles will be effected in
the territory of each province by the labour and social welfare section
of the Provincial Economic Council.
This section will be presided over by a delegate of the Ministry
of Corporations and will consist of representatives in equal numbers
of the trade associations of employers and workers, an inspector of
industry and labour, the Director of the Institute of Social Welfare
and the Commissioner for Public Works or the Civil Engineer-inChief.
The regional and national co-ordination of the employment
exchanges, even as regards internal and foreign migration, will be
secured by the Ministry of Corporations in agreement with the
Ministry of National Economy, the Ministry of Finance, and the other
Ministries which may be interested, and in consultation, if the same
is deemed necessary, with the central offices of the Corporations.
The Minister of Corporations, in agreement with the Minister of
National Economy, may, in the event of the irregular working of
the employment exchanges and after consulting the Labour and
Social Welfare Section of the competent Provincial Economic Council,
dissolve the administrative committee and appoint a commissioner.
The Minister of Corporations, in agreement with the Minister
of National Economy, may by Decree published in the Gazzetta
Ufficiale forbid all individuals, associations or institutions of any kind
whatever to carry on the business of finding employment, whether
gratuitously or otherwise, in specified localities or in the whole Kingdom or for specified categories of employers and workers.
Employers are forbidden to engage unemployed persons not
registered in an employment exchange. They are empowered to
choose among the persons so registered and to give the preference to
members of the Fascist Party and of Fascist trade unions. These
provisions apply to manual workers, with the exception of workers
in the employment of Government administrations.
All persons out of employment must register in the employment
exchange of the district in which they reside which is competent as
regards their occupation or industry.
All employers, with the .exception of Government administrations, must within five days after the engagement of any worker,
notify the employment exchange in which such worker was registered,
indicating the nature of -the employment for which he has been
engaged. Within the same period and subject to the same conditions,
the worker so engaged must notify the employment exchange in
which he is registered.
All employers, with the exception of Government administrations, must within a period of five days notify the employment
exchange of all workers who have been dismissed or have left their
establishment for whatever reason, specifying the nature of their
employment and the period for which they were employed.
Any person performing any acts with a view to finding employment for any person in contravention of the rules established shall
be punishable by a fine not exceeding 5,000 lire. In more serious

I72

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

cases, where the act does not constitute a first offence and has been
carried out for purposes of gain, provision is made for. imprisonment
for not exceeding one month in addition to the fine.
Any employer engaging unemployed persons not registered in the
employment exchange through any intermediary shall be punishable
with a fine of from 50 to 300 lire for every worker illegally engaged
and not exceeding in the whole 3,000 lire.
Any unemployed person accepting an engagement without having
been previously registered in an employment exchange shall be
punishable by a fine not exceeding 300 lire.
Every employer who does not, within the period prescribed,
notify his engagements and dismissals shall be punishable by a fine
of from 30 to 100 lire for every worker engaged, not exceeding an
aggregate maximum of 2,000 lire, and from 50 to 200 lire for every
worker dismissed, not exceeding an aggregate maximum of 4,000 lire.
Every unemployed person who neglects to register in the employment exchange shall be punishable by a fine not exceeding 200 lire.
Every such person neglecting to notify his engagement to the
employment exchange in which he is registered shall be punishable
by a fine not exceeding 50 lire.
ad: Part played in economic life (p. 125, following title).
As regards the part played by the trade associations in economic
life, mention should be made also of the " inter-association committees" of the provinces. These committees were not contemplated by
any law, but have come into existence for the purpose of dealing
with special problems raised by the necessities of the economic and
financial policy of Italy during the period of the gradual rehabilitation
of the lira which preceded the de facto and subsequent legal stabilisation of the lira.
The first stage to be covered was that of the reduction of wages
up to a maximum of from 10 to 20 per cent, in conformity with a
decision adopted by the Directorate of the Fascist Party under the
presidency of the Head of the Government. The inter-association
committees had the task of adapting this measure to local conditions.
With a view to co-ordinating their action, these committees have in
their turn been placed under the direction of a central committee
presided over by the Secretary of the Fascist Party, and including the
Under-Secretaries of State of the Ministry of Corporations and the
Ministry of National Economy, the representatives of the great trade
federations, of the National Co-operative Institute and of the
Federation of Autonomous Bodies (enti autarchici) (communes, provinces and charitable institutions).
The Government had previously, by Decree law, established a
system of rent restriction, which did not allow rents to be raised to
more than four times their pre-war amount. It had also lowered
postal and transport charges and authorised the communal authorities
to fix prices for the principal articles of consumption. This last
measure not having produced the required effect, it was considered
desirable, with a view to the adjustment of retail prices and the
reduction of the cost of living, to entrust the inter-association com-

ITALY

)73

mittees with a moderating action for the determination of prices,
calculated with due regard to the various elements in cost, which the
federations of traders, themselves represented on the committees, also
undertook to enforce as the basis of actual prices, and which were to
serve as standards for t h e local authorities.
T h e method followed for adapting economic values to the r a t e
of exchange is regarded in I t a l y as one of the first important manifestations of corporative activity in the economic sphere. Recently
the functions of the inter-association committees in the determination
of retail prices have been assigned to the Provincial Economic Councils, which must establish price committees for the purpose. T h e
inter-association committees continue in operation for the purpose of
agreements concerning relations of employment, especially for agreements concerning wages '.
ad: Part played in political

life (p. 128, following t i t l e ) .

T h e reform of parliament on a trade union and corporative basis
has now been approved (Act of 17 May 1928, N o . 1,019, published in
the Gazzetta Ufficiale of 21 May 1928, N o . 118). T h e number of
deputies has been reduced from 560 to 400. T h e Kingdom forms a
single electoral constituency. T h e thirteen great economic organisations which comprise the general body of Italian producers a n d
workers submit to the Fascist G r a n d Council the list of candidates
which they propose. T h e number of candidates so proposed is double
the number of the deputies to be elected (800). E a c h of the great
organisations proposes a number of candidates fixed according to its
importance, and in each organisation the candidates are selected, one
half by the associations of producers and the other half b y the associations of workers comprised in the organisation.
T h e power of proposing candidates is granted, in the second
place, to public institutions and associations, including de facto associations, of national importance p u r s u i n g objects connected with
culture, education or assistance. T h e number of candidates proposed
by such institutions and associations m u s t not exceed one-fourth of
the total number of deputies to be elected ( 100).
T h e candidates so proposed are submitted to the consideration of
the Fascist G r a n d Council, which fixes the list of nominated deputies,
who are freely chosen from the candidates submitted, a n d , if necessary, also from persons not included in the proposals, w i t h a view to
introducing into the list persons of note in the sciences, letters, arts,
politics and the army who have not been proposed. T h e list is subsequently submitted for the approval of the electoral body, which m a y
vote " yes " or " no " in reply to the formula printed on the balloting
ticket: " Do you approve of the list of deputies nominated b y the
National Grand Council of Fascism ? "
If at least one-half of the votes is not favourable, a new election
takes place, for which the associations and organisations n u m b e r i n g
1
Cf. U. AILLAUD : " The Growth of the Corporation in Italy ".
International Labour Review. Vol XVII, May 1928

174

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

at least 5,ooo members regularly inscribed on the electoral lists may
submit lists of candidates comprising not more than three-fourths of
the deputies to be elected. The candidates in the list which obtains
the greatest number of votes are elected. The places reserved for the
minority are distributed among the other lists in accordance with the
number of votes obtained by each.
The old universal suffrage is replaced by a suffrage of persons
paying a trade union contribution or a certain amount of direct
taxation, or who are owners or usufructuaries of public securities for
a certain annuity, or who are in receipt of a salary of a continuous
character from the funds of a public institution, or who are members
of the Catholic clergy or the clergy of any other religious body
recognised by the State.
The Fascist Grand Council, to which the last-mentioned Act
assigns such important functions, and the part played by which has
been seen in the references made to the origin of the Labour Charter
(pp. 116-125 of the text), was constituted by Mr. Mussolini immediately after the accession of Fascism to power. It has acted as the
supreme liaison instrument between the revolutionary party and the
Government, its task being to ascertain and define the broad principles
of the new political, economic and social order.
Although it played a preponderant part in political life, the
Grand Council remained until recently merely a de facto body. It
was accordingly decided a short time ago to transform it into a
fundamental organ of the Constitution, and a Bill with that object,
which was submitted to the Council during its session in September 1928 and unanimously approved, will be introduced into Parliament before the end of its legislative existence. *
This Bill recognises the Fascist Grand Council as " the supreme
organ for the co-ordination of all the activities of the régime resulting
from the Revolution of October 1022 ". It will have a voice in the
decision of all matters provided for in the Act and will be consulted
in all questions of a constitutional character and in all other political,
economic or social questions of national importance which may be
submitted to it by the Government.
To the first-mentioned domain of activity belong, in the first
place, the formation of the final list of candidates for the Chamber
of Deputies, which will subsequently be submitted to the vote of the
electors in pursuance of the provisions of the Act previously mentioned, the approval of the rules, regulations and political aims of
the Fascist Party and the nomination and dismissal of the secretary,
deputy-secretary and the members of the directorate of the Party.
As regards the constitutional questions on which the Grand
Council must be consulted, the Bill, while not giving a complete
enumeration of such questions, mentions the following as having in
all cases this character: legislative proposals relating to the succession to the throne, the royal powers and prerogatives, the composition and operations of the Grand Council itself, of the Senate and
the Chamber of Deputies, the attributes and prerogatives of the Head
of the Government, the power of the executive to promulgate legal
rules, trade union and corporative organisation, the relations between
the State and the Catholic Church, international treaties involving a

ITALY

modification of the national territory or the renunciation of the
annexation of new territories.
.The Grand Council will also prepare and revise from time to time
a list of names to be presented to the King, in case of vacancy, for
the nomination of the Head of the Government. It will also prepare
and revise from time to time a list of persons whom it considers
suitable for assuming governmental functions in case of vacancies.
The Head of the Government will be the President of the Fascist
Grand Council. He will convene it when he considers it necessary
and will fix its agenda. The Secretary of the National Fascist Party
will be the Secretary of the Grand Council. He will convene and
preside over the Grand Council in case of vacancy in the office of
President or of the latter being unable to act.
The sittings of the Grand Council will be secret and its decisions
will be valid whatever the number of members present.
Internal regulations approved by the Grand Council will fix the
other rules for its operations.
Members of the National Grand Council will receive no remuneration for their services.
The Secretary, Deputy-Secretary, Administrative. Secretary and
Members of the Directorate of the National Fascist Party will be
appointed and dismissed by Decree of the Head of the Government in
pursuance of a decision of the Grand Council. They will serve for
three years and be re-eligible.
By Royal Decree, on the proposal of the Head of the Government,
the Secretary of the National Fascist Party may be called upon to take
part in the sittings of the Council of Ministers.
The following persons will form part of the Grand Council as
ordinary members : the Presidents of the Senate and the Chamber
of Deputies, the Ministers and the quadrumvirs of the March on Rome,
the Under-Secretaries of State of the Presidency of the Council, the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of the Interior and the
Ministry of Corporations, the Commander of the National Militia, the
Secretary and Deputy-Secretary, the Administrative Secretary and the
Members of the Directorate of the National Fascist Party, exministers who have served for at least five years since 1922, the
Secretaries of the National Fascist Party retiring from Office since
1922, the President of the National Fascist Institute of Culture, the
President of the General Confederation of Public Bodies (Enti Autarchici) (provinces, communes and charitable institutions), the President of the General Federation of Fascist Trade Unions, the President
of the National Federation of Agriculturists and the President of
the National Federation of Industry, the President of the National
Institute of Co-operation, the President of the National Institution
of the Balilla (boy Fascists) and the President of the Special Tribunal for the Defence of the State.
The quality of member of the Grand Council is compatible with
that of senator or deputy. No member of the Grand Council may be
subjected to criminal proceedings or police measures without the
authorisation of the Grand Council. Similarly, no disciplinary
measure may be taken against the members of the Grand Council as
members of the National Fascist Party without the authorisation of
the Grand Council.

176

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

T h e quality of ordinary member of the Grand Council is conferred
by Royal Decree on the proposal of the Head of t h e G o v e r n m e n t .
T h e latter may by Decree call upon a n y persons w h o have deserved
well of the nation or of t h e cause of the Fascist Revolution to take
part in the labours of t h e G r a n d Council for a specified time or m a y
call u p o n persons specially competent in any questions submitted for
consideration by the G r a n d Council to participate in such labours as
regards specified matters.
a d : The legal and de facto regulation
(p. 146).

of independent

trade

unions

T h e National Association for the Study of Labour Problems held
its first general meeting on 17 J u n e 1928. I t will be interesting to
reproduce the text of the two resolutions which it passed and which
were communicated and explained to the Government on 9 July 1928:
I
The National General Meeting of 17 June 1928 held at Milan, referring to and supplementing the programme contained in the resolution
of 16 January 1927, namely :
The incorporation of the trade union as a public body in the
State ;
The co-existence on the one hand of associations legally
representing an occupation open to all producers, and on the other
hand of independent cultural associations pursuing objects of instruction, education and assistance ;
The impartial examination of corporative trade union evolution
and of all the institutions of the corporative State ;
The intervention of the State in the regulation of economic
activity and unprejudiced experimental judgment of the forms of
management adopted ;
Application of Socialism as a tendency of society in the moral,
legal and economic sphere ;
Renews its affirmation that the conception of liberty according to
Socialist doctrine must be understood in a clear and categorical manner
as implying complete and entire respect for the life of the individual
so far as higher social considerations do not prevail and that the right
of affirming ideas and expressing opinions should be normally
guaranteed to all within the limits of national discipline ;
Declares that the action of the association up to the present has
entirely fulfilled the objects for which it was established; that is to
say, the revision of independent trade unionism, the formation of a
popular conscience v and the education of the masses with a view to
rendering them capable of governing ; the moral assistance of the
masses and the popularisation among them of the principles of public
and private law which most directly concern them ;
Accordingly, the meeting invites all persons present to co-operate
in every way in the development and improvement of the association for
the sole object of serving the nation and the socially useful and
productive classes in a disinterested manner.

ITALY

I77

II
The General Meeting of 7 June 1928 held at Milan, considering
that it is premature to pass any judgment on the manner in which the
institutions of the State are regulated, inasmuch as it is not yet
possible to ascertain with precision :
(a) In what bodies the official representatives of the productive
citizens as a whole will be definitively incorporated and what
will be their political and legislative powers ; how and with
what prerogatives it will be possible to secure the continuity
and legitimacy of the executive power ;
(b) In what manner the organisation of production by the corporations, which is a necessary condition of the " corporative
economy " contemplated, will be realised ;
Again undertakes to make a thorough study of the constructive
developments of these institutions.
The meeting considers, on the other hand, that :
By the legal recognition of trade associations and their coordination ;
By the rules relating to the conclusion, lodging and validity
of collective contracts;
B3' the establishment of employment exchanges which in
addition to their ordinary functions are entrusted with the supervision of the application of the conditions of contracts ;
By the establishment of a tribunal for regulating individual
and collective disputes ;
By the services of social assistance created by employers ;
By the measures of legal protection and compulsory insurance
in force or in preparation ;
The revision of the laws and the reform of the institutions for the
protection of labour may be considered as almost completed.
On this subject, however, the meeting observes that, as a result
of certain imperfections and omissions which are not irremediable, the
practical effect of these arrangements does not correspond to the imposing
constructive effort.
Accordingly the meeting,
While formulating the following principles which it considers as
absolutely necessary for securing the spontaneous and fruitful cohesion
of the productive classes :
(a) All producers should be able in complete liberty to
participate in the legally recognised trade association, to co-operate
m its technical and moral action, and be empowered to represent it
and participate in its direction ;
(b) Guarantees of continuity and free operation should be
granted to independent associations established for objects of culture
or assistance ;
Calls the attention of all competent persons to the following points
which it considers as calculated to contribute to the improvement of
trade union organisation and institutions of assistance and social
insurance ;
1. Legal associations should be officially constituted for all occupational categories not yet organised (failing this, the power of
representation should be confided to the workers' organisations as a
whole) in order that the contractual clauses contemplated by the Labour
Charter may be applied, imperatively if necessary, to all workers
without exception.
Freedom of Association

i78

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

2. Trade union representatives in factories or undertakings should
be recognised for the purpose of the rapid and pacific settlement of
conflicts arising in work-places and the supervision of the application
of all conditions (contractual, legislative or administrative) established
for the physical, hygienic and moral protection of the workers.
3. Employment exchanges should be established throughout the
national territory and for all occupational categories so as to exercise
a regulative action on all labour markets and to eliminate agents
carrying on business for gain. Further, the date of registration and
occupational capacity should alone determine the right of priority in
engagement.
4. The corporative functions of assistance to workers should be
vested exclusively in the recognised trade associations, and carried out
for the latter by the Institute for Social Assistance and similar offices,
with the moral and advisory co-operation of the independent cultural
associations.
5. The tribunal for the regulation of collective disputes should
act in all cases where a direct agreement has not been obtained, and not
only in exceptional cases. The judicial machinery for individual
disputes which will be in operation from October should be rendered
more easily accessible, particularly in matters of small material
importance by means of periodical sittings iu districts least well provided
with tribunals.
6. Accident insurance (extended to all categories of workers and
supplemented by the assimilation of occupational diseases to accidents
and carried out by a single semi-public institution according to the
principles of public social services) should have for its object, in addition
to the payment of an adequate pension in case of serious invalidity, the
development of preventive measures both technical and hygienic and the
re-establishment of the capacity for work in the victims of accidents by
means of effective medical treatment and vocational re-education.
7. Insurance against involuntary unemployment (extended to
categories at present excluded and organised as a trade union or
corporative function) should pay daily allowances more nearly corresponding to the elementary requirements of existence. It should be
considered not only as an object in itself but also as a necessary
complement to the functions of supervision of the labour market and
finding employment and as an instrument for the development and
improvement of the occupation. It will find in the joint trade funds the
form of administration most suitable to its objects and offering an
initial basis for a corporative co-operation capable of undertaking the
study of the economic, hygienic, technical and vocational problems
inherent in the different categories of production.
8. General sickness insurance (to be introduced as soon as possible
and extended to all the workers) should have for its object the granting
of complete medical assistance to families (side by side with the
economic assistance separately granted to insured persons and their
dependants). It should accordingly include the complete protection of
maternity and childhood. Administered by a single fund in each territorial district, it should become the centralising organ of the public
administrative and health services and of other branches of social
insurance. Including all workers and penetrating directly by virtue
of effective assistance into family life, it will the better stimulate
throughout the country a real educative comprehension of the material
and moral advantages of social insurance.

SPAIN
CHAPTER I
HISTORY OF TRADE UNION LAW AND THE TRADE
UNION MOVEMENT

The legal status of trade associations in Spain was profoundly
modified by the growth of political institutions and industrial development in the nineteenth century. The old guilds gave way to new
organisations of workers and employers, founded on the free initiative
of those actually concerned. To-day, on the basis of these free trade
organisations, the legislature has established a new corporative
organisation which, like the old guilds, though on modern lines,
aims at co-ordinating all the forces of national activity.
That is, in outline, the process of development. Taken broadly,
two periods may be distinguished. The first is from the abolition of
the guilds until the regulation of the freedom of association in 1887 ;
the second is the period of the statutory freedom of association that
started in 1887, and lasted until the promulgation of the Decree on
corporative organisation in industry.
This first chapter will deal briefly with the principal events
characterising each of these two phases of evolution.
§ 1. — Period previous to 1887

ABOLITION OF THE GUIÌ.,DS
As in most other countries, the Middle Ages had bequeathed
to Spain a social, economic and religious organisation which found
expression in the guilds and brotherhoods.
The guilds and the brotherhoods satisfied different needs.
According to certain authors, the formation of the latter under the
old regime was inspired by " class motives ", whereas the former

i8o

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

were t h e outcome of " economic motives ". T h i s distinction explains
w h y certain monarchs organised guilds but prohibited brotherhoods.
T h u s , the Burgos Order of 1500, for instance, concerning tailors,
governed their industrial conditions, b u t prohibited t h e members of
the trade from forming a brotherhood, union, or similar association.
I n spite of all restrictions, however, t h e n u m b e r of brotherhoods
increased, and m a n y were still in existence a t t h e beginning of t h e
nineteenth century. I n 1770, according to t h e information collected
by the Superior Council of Castile, t h e r e were 25,927 '•
Similarly t h e guilds, a l t h o u g h t h e y had lost their original
importance, survived in their capacity as industrial organisations,
during the eighteenth and the first decades of the nineteenth
centuries.
But after their conversion into compulsory closed
corporations, strictly supervised by the State, they lost all life and
practical.influence. Moreover, they were vigorously fought by the
economists of the day. T h e y were accused of " putting a stop to
honest emulation, preventing the progress of the arts, provoking
a p a t h y , and introducing a monopoly injurious to the public and
national commerce " 2 .
A first step towards the system of industrial freedom was taken
in 1783. A n Order of 5 J u n e of t h a t year provided t h a t " t h e
brotherhoods of workers and the. guilds must dissolve and take the
form of friendly societies and funds for providing the arts and crafts
with raw materials ". A few years later t h e Orders of 25 M a y 1790
and 1 March 1798 prescribed t h a t all persons, whoever they might
be, had the right to work in their trade or occupation without other
formality t h a n t h a t of certifying their competence. But the decisive
step was not taken until after t h e constitutional reform that was
begun at t h e first meeting of the Cortes at Cadiz in 1810. On
8 J u n e 1813 a Bill for introducing industrial freedom was passed.
I t provided t h a t " any Spaniard or any foreigner who decides to settle
in one of the towns of the K i n g d o m m a y freely establish a factory or
t r a d e of a n y k i n d without being compelled to obtain a licence or enter
a guild ".
1
CANGA-ARGÜELLES : Diccionario d'e hacienda.
Second edition,
Vol. I, p. 211. Madrid, 1833.
2
Bernardo W A R D (of His Majesty's Council, and member of the
Junta of Commerce and Currency) : Proyecto económico en que se
proponen -varias providencias dirigidas a promover los intereses de
España con los medios y fondos para su plantificación, escrito en el año
1762. Madrid, 1782.

SPAIN

l8i

But the principle of the freedom of industry and work had not
been finally established. A few years later t h e " absolutist reactionary " Government repealed the Decree of 8 J u n e 1813, and, on the
p r e t e x t t h a t the powers given by the Cortes t o carry on an industry
outside a guild were the ruin of civil order, a Royal Circular of
29 June 1815 prescribed t h e re-introduction of the Orders relating
to guilds.
T h i s interlude, however, lasted only t w e n t y years. On 20 January 1834, the Queen Mother again raised the question and introduced
the following distinction :
It shall be lawful to form a guild or assembly of men moved by a
common interest, for the purpose of stimulating the progress of the respective industries, and assisting each other to satisfy their needs, on
condition that it is placed under the authority of the municipal authorities, that it enjoys no privileges, that it does not monopolise work or
organise trade in the products for the benefit of specific individuals.
On the other hand, the rules of guilds were not to be approved
if t h e y were " contrary to the freedom of manufacture, the home
circulation of goods and products of the K i n g d o m , or the unlimited
competition of labour and capital ".
T w o years later the Government, by the Decree of 6 December 1S36, restored the Decree of 8 J u n e 1813, and definitely established
the principle of t h e freedom of work in Spain. After t h a t t h e guilds
could exist only as mutual-aid and charitable associations.
PROHIBITION OF T H E R I G H T OF ASSOCIATION

T h e proclamation of the freedom of industry was to produce farreaching changes in social organisation.
T h e new regime by
encouraging the growth of large-scale industry, contributed to t h e
concentration of large masses of workers, whose only resources lay
in t h e remuneration for their work. Moreover, economic competition,
by its tendency to reduce wages as a factor in the cost of production,
made the association the only weapon of defence of the wage earner.
T h e problem of the freedom of association was raised as early
as 1820 b y patriotic societies and associations of ttíe partisans of
constitutional monarchy, w h o drew their argument from Article 371
of the Constitution of Cadiz, guaranteeing to all Spaniards " the
freedom t o write, print and propagate their political views without
previous authorisation and without other restrictions and liabilities
than those established by the law ". But the Government of the

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FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

day considered that a distinction should be made between " the right
of freedom of speech and the action of societies which surreptitiously
may create a state within the State ". The Act of i November 1822
accordingly authorised political meetings only on condition that
certain preliminary formalities were fulfilled. If these meetings were
to be held periodically, the persons who took pant were to submit the
rules to the authorities, " not with a view to obtaining approval, but
only for examination whether they contain provisions calling for the
attention or intervention of the Government " . These societies had
no right of petition, a privilege reserved for recognised associations.
The system of regulation was aggravated in 1845 : in the first
place by the Act of 2 April 1845, giving the political authorities or
provincial governors the power, at their discretion, to grant or refuse
authorisation for all public meetings, as well as the right to preside
over such meetings; and, secondly, by the Order of 30 May 1848,
which defined all societies as unlawful " where newspapers were read
or political questions discussed ".
All these measures related only to political associations, but the
question of freedom of association was also to arise for trade
associations. The attention of the Government had been particularly
drawn to this aspect of the problem when in 1862 a Deputy presented
to the Congress a petition of 15,000 workers at Barcelona for " the
right to associate so as to fight against capital in a noble and peaceful
manner ".
At that time, what was the position of workers' associations?
For them the prohibitions of the general law briefly described above
were strengthened by the repressive provisions of the Penal Code
against combinations. The first Penal Code, adopted in 1822,
prohibited, on pain of severe penalty, all leagues and combinations
of employers or workers. The 1848 Code, which took its place and
was in turn amended in 1850, was no less rigorous. In section 450
it prohibited agreements for the purpose of modifying prices, and
punished combinations for increasing or reducing the remuneration
of work in an abusive manner, or for regulating conditions of work.
The members of a combination actually formed were liable to a fine
and imprisonment, the maximum penalty being imposed on the
leaders and promoters.
The Penal Code of 1850 also punished secret societies with
special severity. Persons who acted as leaders in such a society were

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183

punished", according t o circumstances, by imprisonment, banishment,
and t h e final loss of civil rights.
T o complete this account of the repressive regulations on associations in force in the first half of t h e n i n e t e e n t h century, reference
should also be made to certain exceptional measures, such as the
martial law of 17 April 1821 on conspiracies, a n d the Order of
20 October 1835 on the state of siege, which further intensified the
regulations of the general law.
P R I N C I P L E OF T H E FREEDOM O F ASSOCIATION

T h e r e was no change in the situation until after the revolutionary
movement of 1868, which led to the fall of the Bourbons.
On
20 November 1868, Sagasta, a member of the Provisional Revolutionary Government, promulgated a Decree guaranteeing to all citizens
t h e r i g h t freely to form associations without other formality t h a n
t h a t of notifying the local authorities of the aims, rules, and agenda
of the association. T h i s was the prelude t o t h e recognition of t h e
right of association for trade purposes by t h e Constitution.
T h e Constitution of 1869, which gave expression t o the revolutionary movement of 1868, expressly mentioned freedom of association for the first time. According to Article 17, " n o Spanish citizen
m a y be deprived of the right freely to express his opinions, the right
t o meet peacefully, the right to associate w i t h others for all purposes
of h u m a n life not contrary to public morals, and the right,
individually and collectively, to petition the Cortes, t h e K i n g , and
the authorities ".
Article 19 restricted this right as follows :
Any association whose members break the law by the means supplied
by the association may be liable to the penalty of dissolution. The
Government authority may similarly pronounce the suspension of an
association which breaks the law, and immediately denounce the guilty
party to the competent judge. Any association whose aims or means
of action compromise the State may be dissolved by an Act.
T h e Constitution of 1869 was only transitory, but the
of the freedom of association h a d been established. I n
Cortes of the Republic similarly included in t h e draft
Constitution prepared by Castelar t h e right of peaceful
and association " among the natural, personal rights that no
shall have the power to suppress and no law may limit ".

principle
1873 the
Federal
assembly
authority

Finally, the Constitution of t h e Bourbon restoration of 1876,

l84

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

which is still in force, continued on this point with the tradition of
the Revolutionary Constitution of 1869, and in Article 13 definitively
guaranteed the right of assembly and association.
On another point, on the contrary, the new Constitution was
more severe than that, of 1869. Article 17 of the 1876 Constitution
empowers the Government in emergency, and in the absence of the
Cortes, to suspend certain constitutional guarantees, in particular
that of the right of association. On several occasions, as will be
shown below, the Government made use of this power.
The proclamation of the constitutional principle of the freedom
of association led in turn to the reform of the Penal Code and the
revision of the special laws on assemblies and associations referred
to above. The new Penal Code of 1870 contains a special chapter
on the punishment of offences committed in connection with the
exercise of the rights guaranteed by the Constitution. In application
of Article 13 of the Constitution, the Code punishes, on the one hand,
offences committed by private individuals, and on the other the
abuses of power of which public officials may be guilty.
A public official who is guilty of arbitrary acts likely to hamper
citizens in exercising the right of assembly and association renders
himself liable to a fine, the suspension of his employment, or the
loss of his civil rights.
As regards private individuals, the Code' imposes the penalty of
a fine, imprisonment, and even hard labour, for the organisation of
other than peaceful assemblies or demonstrations (see Penal Code,
sections 189 to 197) and unlawful associations (sections 198 to 203).
The revised Code also imposes Fhe severest penalties for rebellion and
sedition (sections 243 to 262). These provisions of the Penal Code
are supplemented by those of the Act of 20 to 23 April 1870 concerning public order, which gives the Government exceptional powers
to deal with " the state of siege and the state of war ".
Definitive regulations as to the public assemblies not covered
by the Penal Code or special laws were not adopted until the Act
of 15 June 1880. According to this Act, the right of peaceful
assembly guaranteed to all citizens by Article 13 of the Constitution
shall be subject to the following restrictions only : the promoters of
a public meeting — the law defines a public meeting as one attended
by more than twenty persons, which is held outside the ordinary
domicile — must notify the public authorities in writing of the
purpose, time, and place of the meeting. Meetings, demonstrations,

SPAIN

ISS

and processions on the high road must be authorised in advance.
The representatives of the public authority may attend meetings,
but not take part in the discussions. The public authorities have
the right to dissolve all meetings held contrary to these provisions,
or dealing with other matters or held at other places than those defined
in the statement, as well as those likely to interfere with communications. Obviously the assemblies defined in section 189 of the Penal
Code are prohibited, as well as those at which offences are committed
or it is decided to commit offences. In the last case the authorities
notify the Government and institute proceedings before the ordinary
courts.
These are. the legal changes in the general regulations as to
assemblies and associations which followed on the proclamation of
the principle of the freedom of association in the Constitution. On
the other hand, the constitutional recognition of the freedom of
association had no effect on the provisions relating to the offence of
combination. I,ike the earlier Codes, the Penal Code of 1870 imposesa penalty of one to six months' imprisonment for combinations
intended to produce a rise or fall in the remuneration of labour, or
to regulate the conditions of work — on condition, however, that the
combination has actually begun to act. The maximum penalty is
imposed on the heads and promoters of the combination and persons
responsible for violence or threats, without prejudice to any more
serious penalties for such offences under the general law.
In brief, although the principle of freedom of association was
thus established, the constitutional guarantee did not apply automatically and without reserve to trade associations. In the absence
of special regulations for such associations, the special legislation
on unlawful associations gave the authorities the greatest power to
intervene in the constitution and working of trade unions. Combinations and strikes were still prohibited.
In Spain — as, indeed, in all other European countries — it
was not until trade organisations had become sufficiently strong in
fact that the legislature was led to grant them constitutional rights..
EVOLUTION OF T H E T R A D E UNION MOVEMENT

Benevolent

Societies

Under the legislation briefly analysed above, most associations,.
such as guilds, brotherhoods, and secret, patriotic or revolutionary
societies, were alike subjected to persecution. Only charitable

l86

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

societies, mutual-aid societies, and co-operative societies were
regarded with approval by the executive authorities. It followed that
(the workers in their desire for association turned for preference
towards these forms of organisation. Thus,.as early as the first half
of the nineteenth century many charitable associations were founded,
as well as mutual-aid societies, some of them definitely educational
in character, such as the Barcelona labour schools, relief funds, and
even co-operative societies.
In the same way the legislature, at least at first, regarded these
societies with toleration ; a Royal Order of 28 February 1S39
recommended the formation of mutual-aid societies to take the place
of the guilds. By degrees, however, as these societies, which at first
often comprised both employers and workers, became centres of
labour resistance, the Government began to react. The Royal Order
of 26 November 1859 gave the public authorities a right to examine
their constitution by treating them on the same footing as benevolent
institutions, which they could set up or suppress at their own discretion. After that the restrictions became more marked. In Catalonia,
a province which had been the pioneer of the movement, special
restrictions were adopted. The societies in question were no longer
authorised under a general measure, but the Government confined
itself to approving particular societies and then only after the fulfilment of many formalities.
As regards co-operative societies, it was not until 26 June 1870
that an Order of the Revolutionary Government granted them the
privilege of the constitutional freedom of association.
In spite of these restrictions, mutual benefit and co-operative
societies continued to develop, and they strengthened the spirit of
organised solidarity among the workers. Parallel with, and often
under cover of, this movement, specifically labour organisations were
also formed, either political or trade union in character.
The International

Working Men's

Association

The political revolution of 1868 and the creation at the same
date of the Spanish Section of the International Working Men's
Association marked an epoch in the evolution of the trade union
movement. Before that date the ideas of social emancipation had
hardly gained any hold on the workers; Socialist propaganda had
kept more to the political ground than to that of the trade organisation of the working class. Barcelona, the principal industrial centre

SPAIN

I87

of Spain, had been the stronghold of this movement. As early as
1*840 the workers had taken an active part in the Republican and
Socialist Pronunciamento of that year. They had similiarly supported
the regency of General Espartero, and had taken part in the
revolutionary movements of 1850 and i860. But side by side with
this political action the Barcelona workers had laid the foundations
of trade association, properly so called. A first workers' federation,
" The Union of Classes " was constituted.
In 1855 the new federation organised the first general strike,
taking as its motto " Association or death; bread or work ". In
reaction against the persecution of the charitable societies, it claimed,
in addition to the freedom of association, a ten-hour day and the
creation of joint committees.
All these movements, whose arena was the industrial area of
Catalonia, reacted on the agricultural districts of Andalusia,
particularly beyond the Guadalquivir in Lower Andalusia. As an
example of the many campaigns characteristic of these movements,
reference may be made to the rising of the inhabitants of Casa
Bermeja in the province of Malaga, who in 1840 divided up among
themselves certain large estates. Similar disturbances in which the
workers' organisations were involved took place at Madrid in 1840,
Saragossa and Valencia in 1S55, Valladolid, Palencia, and Zamora
in 1856, Olivenza and Badajoz in 1859, and elsewhere.
It was in this disturbed atmosphere of party feeling that the
Spanish Section of the International Working Men's Association was
formed, thanks to the 1868 revolution. Its aim was to unify the
labour movement and give it a definite programme. Its first action
was the issue of the " Manifesto of the Madrid Section of the
International Working Men's Association to the Workers of Spain "
on 24 December 1869, as soon as the state of siege had been raised.
Soon after, the first Labour Congress was held at Barcelona, which
attracted much attention throughout the country.
The rapid progress of the new organisation, however — even
at that date the Spanish Section of the International Working Men's
Association had 25,000 members, grouped in 149 federations, with
361 sections and 12 regional unions — began to prove a source of
anxiety to the public authorities. The question of the legality of
the International Association was raised in the Chamber of Deputies.
Supported by the Chamber, the Government issued the Royal Order
of T6 January 1872, giving the provincial governors instructions as to

l88

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

" public order, the International, and filibustering ". The International Working Men's Association was declared' unlawful and
unconstitutional, and was sued for breach of the provisions of the
Penal Code relating to unlawful associations. At the same time, the
Order instructed the governors " to protect the right of association
with a view to all the lawful aims of human activity, and to promote
the formation of co-operative and other kinds of societies aiming at
the improvement of the conditions of the working classes and the
reconciliation under cover of the law of the possibly distinct, but not
antagonistic, interests of employers and workers ".
The result of these measures was to put a stop to the development of the trade union movement for a time. Moreover, the young
organisation [was already undermined by conflicting tendencies :
Federalism and Anarchism on the one hand, Socialism and Marxism
on the other. At the Saragossa Congress in 1872 the rupture was
complete; the Anarchist elements, which much outnumbered the
others, held a congress at Cordoba, while the Socialist elements
founded a new organisation at Toledo in the following year.
Although weakened by dissension, the movement gained fresh
impetus during the brief republican interlude of 1873, but the revival
was of short duration. On 10 January 1874,. on the eve of the
restoration, General Serrano announced that the Government of the
Republic, " persuaded as it was of its duty to go to the root of
the disturbances and destroy it, and having decided to prosecute any
association which, like the Spanish Section of the International Working Men's Association, attacked the family and the other foundations
of social life ", decreed the immediate dissolution " of all political
assemblies and societies whose members conspired by word and deed
against public safety, the sacred interests of the country, the
integrity of Spanish territory, and constituted authority ". This
was in fact the legal suppression, pure and simple, of the Spanish
Section of the International Working Men's Association.
However this may be, these first attempts at labour organisation
had the advantage of drawing the attention of the authorities and
public opinion more and more to the social problem as a whole, and
the problem of trade association in particular. The Government was
thus led to make a general enquiry into the social position of wage
earners.

189

SPAIN

The Enquiry

into the Social Position

of Wage Earners

of 1882

• As early as 1855 certain politicians had demanded the creation of
a committee " to define, and estimate the t r u e value of t h e causes
of the difficulties between employers and workers in the manufacturing provinces, and to propose to the Government t h e most suitable
means of b r i n g i n g these to a happy end " l .
T h e Cortes of 1869 had similarly asked t h a t a parliamentary
enquiry into the position of the working class of Spain should be
undertaken. T h e subject was taken up again in 1871, but nothing
came of it until Moret, by the Royal Decree of 5 December 1882, set
up " the Commission for studying questions relating to the improvement of t h e conditions of life and welfare of the w o r k i n g classes, both
agricultural a n d industrial, and affecting the relations between capital
and labour " 2 . •
T h e G o v e r n m e n t proposed, on the one h a n d , to create a
permanent organisation for enquiry, and, on t h e other, to prepare
social legislation on the data furnished by the Commission. I n this
way it aimed at obtaining t h e assistance of the persons for whom it
would legislate. T h e Commission was empowered to ask t h e workers'
associations to take part in the enquiry, and in 1884 municipal and
provincial committees were set up on which t h e w o r k e r s ' associations
were to be represented by five and ten members respectively.
Organised bodies and institutions were invited to designate the
persons responsible for such representation, w h e t h e r of employers or
workers. T h i s w a s equivalent to an official recognition of t h e
social utility of t h e workers' associations, a n d m a n y of them decided
to take part in the enquiry.
One of t h e results of the enquiry was t o induce the Government
to pass the Act of 30 June 1887 on associations.

Adolfo BUYLLA : La riforma social en España.
Address to the
Academy of Moral and Political Science, Madrid, 1917.
- See the brochure with this title published in Madrid in 1890, which
contains the Royal Decree setting up the Commission, the Circular to
the governors, the instructions as to provincial and local committees, and
verbal and written enquiries. It also contains a detailed questionnaire.

I90

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

RECOGNITION OF T H E F R E E D O M OF ASSOCIATION FOR
TRADE PURPOSES

I t will be remembered that t h e principle of the freedom of association h a d been finally established b y the 1S76 Constitution. T h e
purpose of t h e 1887 A c t was t o define t h e methods of application.
W i t h o u t entering now into a detailed analysis of this Act, which
still constitutes t h e basis of t h e status of associations a n d will b e
studied later, some account should be given here of t h e principles
u n d e r l y i n g t h e A c t . Certain authors have summarised t h e m as
follows : A n association constitutes a social person which is born
naturally a n d spontaneously a n d n o t b y t h e will of t h e administrative
authorities.
I t is for the judicial and not for t h e executive
authorities to intervene in cases of breach of t h e law i n connection
with the constitution a n d working of an association. I n other words,
instead of t h e preventive system so far in force, t h e system should
be repressive. T h e legal status of all associations, w h e t h e r of
employers or of workers, should be t h e same, without privilege or
favour.
T h e discussion on t h e Bill was not thoroughgoing, for t h e r e was
a tacit agreement between the 'parties on the subject of these
principles. T h e only manifestation of the Liberal opposition was t h e
counter-project of Comas, introduced in the Senate, where it was not
even discussed. T h e following are some of Comas' objections to t h e
1887 A c t :
The fact of association (he said) had creative virtues from the point
of view of law. An Act on associations should aim at governing the
relations that ought to exist between free associations and the public
authorities as regards : (1) the official recognition of their existence,
which is indispensable for guaranteeing the integrity of the personality
of the association and the security of its property ; (2) their independence and liberty in exercising their functions ; (3) the responsibility
for their acts with a view to protecting the right of supervision which it
is the duty of the authorities to exercise as the foundation of social order.
In the opinion of the author of the counter-project, the 1887 Act did
not satisfy these needs, but was incomplete, unjust, and open to many
ambiguities.
However this m a y be, t h e Act of 1887, such as it was, was some
improvement on t h e previous situation. F u r t h e r m o r e , under the
influence of the g r o w t h of the trade union movement, this Act became
completed by a series of laws to be analysed below.

SPAIN

ICI

§ 2. — Period after 1887
GROWTH OF THE T R A D E UNION MOVEMENT

After the split of 1872 1 the Spanish trade union movement
developed on two distinct lines, that of Revolutionary Anarchism and
that of Reformism. The principal stages of this evolution will be
rapidly sketched.
The Labour
The Anarchist Revolutionary

Movement

At the Anarchist Congress of Valencia in 1888 the Spanish
Section of the International Working Men's Association was finally
dissolved, and instead a Committee of Relations and Statistics was
created. In accordance with their doctrine, and no doubt also to
evade the repression of the authorities, the Anarchist leaders
considered that there was no need for centralised organisation, nor for
large funds for effectively supporting the fight against employers. In
their view, strikes, whether partial or general, based on the
spontaneous solidarity of the working masses, were the best weapon
for enforcing their demands for improvement in conditions of work \
At the same time the Committee tried to keep in touch with the.mass
of wage earners by periodically holding congresses, and by creating
new federations and centres of labour solidarity.
In 1910, however, the central organisation of the revolutionary
trade union movement was reconstituted under the name of " The
General Confederation of Labour ". This body, whose influence
was exercised mainly in the industrial centres of Catalonia and the
agricultural centres of Andalusia, played a predominant part in all
the social disturbances — partial and general strikes, strikes in public
services, attempted insurrection — which have characterised the last
twenty years of public life in Spain.
After the war, in particular, the General Confederation of Labour
attained first-rate importance. It acted then as the champion of the
1

See p. 188.
Among the more important strikes of this period were those in
Biscay and the Asturias in 1890, Barcelona and Bilbao in 1892, Malaga
in 1894, Madrid in 1895, Gijon, Corunna and Seville in 1901, Barcelona
and Alcalá del Valle in 1902. In 1892 there was a strike of telegraphists
in State employment.
2

ÎÇ2

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

complete organisation of wage earners on the widest possible
territorial basis. For this purpose k founded unified trade unions,
grouping wage earners in the various trades and belonging to the
various industries, and these were in turn combined in regional and
national federations. The Confederation reached the climax of its
development when in 1919 k was joined by the National Federation
of Agricultural Workers, founded in 1913 at the Cordoba Congress,
and consisting mainly of agricultural workers of Andalusia. At the
Madrid Congress held in December 1919 the General Confederation
of L,abour stated that its membership was from 800,000 to a million.
The Government, disturbed by the rapid progress of the
revolutionary movement, had recourse to all the measures of repression
placed at its disposal by the law : suspension of constitutional
guarantees under Article 17 of the Constitution, judicial proceedings
against the unified trade unions under the provisions of the Penal
Code on unlawful associations, proclamation of a state of war under
the Act of 23 April 1871. Further, the Governor of Barcelona,
Count de Salvatierra, instituted by a Circular of 21 January 1920 a
system ot general supervision of all associations in that province.
As a matter of fact, after this measure, the large majority of the
trade unions found it legally and practically impossible to exist.
Those which continued in existence after the application of the
measure did so by virtue of special toleration, whether express or tacit.
On 6 August 1920 the attorney of the Supreme Court issued a Circular
to the attorneys of all the high courts in the country, making the
collection of contributions by workers' associations, which had been
declared suspended by the Government authorities, a fraudulent act.
By this Circular the act of closing down the headquarters of an
association and 'seizing its books and documents, by virtue of the
suspension of constitutional guarantees, was made equivalent to a
sentence, without appeal, of dissolution by judicial authority as
provided for in the Act on associations.
In consequence of these repressive measures in the first place,
and subsequently of the military revolution, the influence of the
General Confederation of Labour rapidly declined
To-day it has
practically ceased to exist.
The Reformist Trade Union Movement
Side by side with the Anarchist revolutionary movement, those
trade union organisations developed which had withdrawn from the

SPAIN

I93

International Working Men's Association in 1887. The General
Federation of Spanish Workers, which represents this tendency, was
formed in 1888 at Barcelona on the occasion of the International
Exhibition and it was immediately joined by the National Union of
Societies of Resistance.
The Reformist trade union movement is distinct from the
revolutionary movement as regards both methods of organisation and
programme of action. At its first congress the Federation adopted
rules defining its aims and the means it proposed to use. The end
in view is the improvement of the social position of its members.
The means to be used are, on the one hand, organised strikes and,
on the other, public action- with a view to promoting the adoption of
social legislation. The General Federation tries in the first place to
prevent unorganised and ruinous strikes, and, in accordance with its
strike regulations, only to support well-organised movements which
have the greatest chance of success. Secondly, and often in close
agreement with the Socialist Party, it acts as the principal' promoter
of labour legislation. It was under its direct influence that the first
laws for the protection of labour were voted, from 1900 onwards.
Since then, the Federation has taken part in the work of the official
bodies set up by the Government, such as the committees of the
Institute for Social Reform and the local offices (delegación) of the
Ministry of Labour, the Government having made it easier for tra'de
associations to collaborate with these official bodies by leaving it
to the organisations themselves to designate the worker and employer
members.
The prudent tactics adopted from the first by the General
Fedeiation usually won for it the toleration of the public authorities.
It may be recalled, however, that on the occasion of the general
strike of 1911, the General Federation of Spanish Workers, like most
trade unions, was dissolved as an unlawful association whose rules
had not been approved by the Government. But this measure of
prohibition had no lasting effect.
The result of the severe repression which followed the widespread
social agitation of the last years of the'war and after the war was
for a time to bring together the two principal labour organisations
in Spain, the General Confederation of Labour and the General
Federation of Spanish Workers. Negotiations with a view to agreement were conducted during three years and led to the conclusion
of an alliance in 1920, but this union was only transitory, for it was
Freedom of Association

194

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

denounced t h a t same year on the occasion of the general strike
proclaimed by the General Confederation of Labour, but not approved
b y the General Federation of Spanish W o r k e r s .
T h e very increase in its importance after the war compelled t h e
General Federation of Spanish W o r k e r s to define its programme of
action and strengthen its structure. Until 1918 trade union rules of
t h e kind established by the first congress, which have already been
analysed, were modified only in detail. I t was not until the fourteenth
National Congress (1918-1919) that t h e General Federation decided
on the programme which, in the main, still inspires its action \
T h i s programme proclaims the principle of t h e class war as the
fundamental doctrine, establishes the political and religious neutrality
of the trade union movement, demands the introduction of workers'
control with a view to the nationalisation and socialisation of u n d e r takings, and defines t h e attitude of t h e General Federation of Spanish
W o r k e r s towards various social, economic, and political problems.
T h e revision of the programme of action was accompanied by t h a t
of methods of organisation. T h e Federation proposes to substitute
for the system of organisation by trade that of organisation by
industrial federations. T o this end, it recommends t h e e x i s t i n g
organisations, founded on the principle of organisation by trade and
maintained in view of their local utility, to join their respective
industrial federations. Finally, the General Federation announces
its intention of taking a direct part in political life.
The political apathy of the masses (says Mr. Caballero) has certainly
contributed to Government repression. In Spain, the political and social
rights of the workers have always been a myth. The constant suspension
of constitutional guarantees and the frequent proclamations of a state
of siege have prevented the workers from exercising in full freedom,
the rights of assembly, association, free speech, and thought 2 .
T h e General Federation of Spanish Workers is to-day the most
important and representative wage earners' organisation in Spain :
t h e following table shows t h e steady growth of its membership.

1
F. L. CABALLERO : Presente y jw-uro de la Union general
trabajadores de España, pp. 185-225.
2
Ibid., p. 239.

I95

SPAIN

Year

Number of
trade unions

MemberA

Year

ship

Number of
trade unions

Membership

!
i88q

1890
1891
1892
1893

36
54
79
no
79
69
65
69

1895
189Ó
1899
1900
1901
1902
1903
1904
1905
1906

246
240
301
305
328

6,276

1907
1908
1909
1910
1911
1912

376

128,914

6,154
15,264

1913
1914

147,729
127,804

352

14,737
29,383
32,778
46,896
56,900

373

56,905

274

36,557

1915
1916
1917
1918
1920
1922
1923
1924

351
393
384
438
464

172
226
282

3.355
3,896
5.457
7,170

8,848

457
1,078
1,198
1,275
1,299

32,405
32,6l2

43,478
40,984
77,749

121,553
76,304
99,52°
89,601
211,342
208,170
310,617
•»10,741

The Free Trade Unions
Besides the two principal organisations of wage earners, the
General Confederation of Labour and the General Federation of
Spanish Workers, reference should also be made to the Federation
of Free Trade Unions and the National Federation of Catholic Trade
Unions.
The free trade unions, which were first formed in Barcelona in
191S, brought together workers of various tendencies who were united
in their opposition to the General Confederation of Labour. It may
be remembered that this rivalry soon degenerated into free fights
between the " unified trade unions " and the " free trade unions ".
Being supported by employers and the public authorities, the free
trade unions soon acquired a privileged position. Certain features
of trade union legislation may in fact be explained by the wish of
the Government to promote the development of a trade union movement based in essence on organisation by undertaking and trade, and
in favour of class collaboration. Already at the outset, the Federation
of Free Trade Unions had over 50,000 members, and its influence has
steadily grown, its membership now being over 100,000.
The National Federation of Catholic Trade Unions, whose
programme may be summarised in the well-known motto " free unions

196

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

within the organised trade ", now has 220 affiliated unions and over
50,000 members. At the present moment, an attempt is being made
to amalgamate the Federation of Free Trade Unions and the Catholic
Federation. If these attempts succeed, the new organisation would
no doubt very soon become larger than the General Federation of
Spanish Workers.
The Employers'

Movement

Faced with the growing influence of the organised labour movement, especially as embodied in the General Confederation of Labour,
employers began to feel the need of establishing a united front against
the workers' organisations. They gave up their first associations,
which were religious rather than economic in character, and began
to organise on the basis of social resistance. The Spanish Employers'
Federation was founded in 1911 with a view to co-ordinating the
action of employers' organisations, placing them in touch with official
bodies and the Government in respect of all social and fiscal legislation, and improving the relations between employers and workers.
The first National Congress was held in Madrid in 1914, on which
occasion the Spanish Employers' Federation decided to make itself
an association in accordance with the 1887 Act on associations. At
the second Congress held at Barcelona in 1919, the Employers'
Federation defined its attitude towards social policy. Among other
things, it expressed its disapproval of various actions of the Institute
of Social Reform and of certain reforms in the field of labour
legislation. As a matter of fact, in its campaign of resistance, the
Employers' Federation made use of the weapons current in the
opposite camp, no doubt in order to cope with the risk of revolution,
which was considered imminent during the troubled period from
1917 to 1922. This explains the frequency of partial and general
lockouts, their intervention in trade union conflicts with a view to
producing scission and fomenting rivalry in the ranks of the workers,
attacks against certain Governments which were accused of favouring
the labour movement, and even appeals to public force and military
organisations.
But with the weakening of the General Confederation of Labour
and the return to a normal situation, the policy of the Employers'
Federation has changed. To-day employers' and workers' organisations collaborate on an equal footing in the joint official bodies set
up by the Government.

<97

SPAIN

Some mention had to b e m a d e of t h e bitterness w i t h which t h e
social struggle was conducted on both sides, for it was the desire to
p u t an end to this state of constant disturbance t h a t explains t h e
m a n y legislative measures taken successively by the several Governments a n d the military dictatorship for t h e stable organisation of
collective labour relations.
.

B I L L S A N D A C T S S U P P L E M E N T I N G T H E 1887

ACT

Most of the Acts passed since 18S7 are still in force to-day, but
their principal provisions have been codified in the l e g i s l a t i v e Decree
of 25 November 1926 on the organisation of industry on a corporate
basis. I t will therefore be sufficient to give a brief account of their
contents.
I n view of the marked growth in trade organisations, the Spanish
Government had become convinced t h a t the 1887 Act, which was
confined to prescribing in what conditions associations might be
constituted and worked, without giving t h e m any kind of representative character, no longer satisfied all trie new needs arising out of the
trade union movement. All the Bills for amending the Act of 1887
aimed in fact at giving t r a d e associations — whether on the basis
of compulsory or of free association — sufficient power to enable t h e m
to intervene effectively in the regulation of conditions of work. T h e
first of these Bills was based on the principle of compulsory association. T h e Royal Order of 16 J a n u a r y 1919 instructed the I n s t i t u t e
of Social Reform to prepare a Bill on the compulsory association of
employers and workers in accordance with the following principles :
(a)

T h e obligation for employers and workers in each t r a d e to
form their respective associations in each locality ;

(b)

T h e recognition of t h e legal personality of t r a d e associations ;

(c)

T h e condition for the formation of these associations t h a t
they comprise 75 per cent, of the employers or workers in
each branch of industry or trade;

(d)

T h e obligation in all disputes to have recourse first to
conciliation and arbitration proceedings, without which a
strike would be illegal.

T h i s attempt failed. T h e same applies to the Bills submitted in
t h e same year to the Senate and Chamber of Deputies based on the
principle of free trade organisation. T h e Maura Bill introduced in

198

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

the Senate of 9 July 1919, proposed to combine the formation of free
workers' and employers' associations with the institution of chambers
of labour on which employers and workers would be compulsorily
represented. The Bill submitted to the Senate on 13 November 1919
by Burgos y Mazo, Minister of the Interior, proposed that trade
associations, which should be open to all employers and all workers
included in a social census and engaged in a trade or profession,
should have full legal personality, with the exclusive right
to declare strikes and lockouts after the failure of compulsory
conciliation and arbitration proceedings.
This last Bill was
very much amended by the Parliamentary Committee. According to the text prepared by the Chamber, the Government
was first of all to define the territorial areas in each province
in which employers and workers in any one branch of industry,
trade or profession might separately form trade associations
to a limited number. These associations would be given sufficient
legal capacity to conclude collective agreements, which would be
binding not only on members of the association, but under certain
conditions, on employers and workers in the same branch of industry,
trade or profession, not belonging to an association.' The associations
would be allowed to form federations only for the protection of their
collective interests, and then on condition that they had their headquarters in the same territorial area, and that they belonged to
branches of industry, trades and professions engaged in the manufacture of a given product.
The Parliamentary Committee's Bill introduced a new idea which
was to serve as the basis for the Decree of 23 November 1922 on the
free trade unions of Barcelona : the idea of the territorial delimitation
of the associations superposed on that of delimitation by trade and
occupation. This preoccupation, which is characteristic of Spanish
legislation, may be explained by the particular conditions in which
the trade union movement has developed. It tends principally to
make it impossible to create associations on a wide territorial basis
such as the " unified trade unions " belonging to the General Confederation of Labour, and, on the contrary, to favour the creation of
" free trade unions " which, being organised by undertakings, satisfy
this requirement.
In this historical survey, it has been sufficient to draw attention
to this fundamental feature of the Royal Decree of 23 November 1922
on the free trade unions of Barcelona. In the following chapter, the

I99

SPAIN

other provisions of this Decree will be studied in detail, for, together
with t h e A c t of 1887, as amended by t h e Decree of 10 March 1923,
it forms t h e basis on which the new corporate organisation of industry
has been established.
T H E R I G H T OF COMBINATION AND S T R I K E

I n spite of t h e proclamation of t h e freedom of association by
Article 13 of t h e Constitution a n d t h e regulation of t h e right of
association by the Act of 30 J u n e 1887, t h e Penal Code continued t o
punish t h e old offence of combination. Section 556 of the Penal
Code defined as an offence " any combination intended to bring
pressure to bear on t h e price of goods or labour ". A s long as this
regulation was in force it might well be asked whether trade unions,
being in fact p e r m a n e n t a n d organised combinations whose very
purpose was t o influence conditions of work, were entitled t o legal
existence. B u t i n point of fact, owing t o t h e increasing s t r e n g t h of
w o r k e r s ' and employers' organisations, and t h e accompanying rise
in t h e n u m b e r of strikes and lockouts, section 556 of t h e Penal Code
was hardly ever applied in practice. T h e result was t h a t the A c t of
27 April 1909 1, which repealed section 556, merely b r o u g h t t h e law
into relation w i t h actual facts.
I n section 1, this A c t recognised t h e right of combination, strike,
a n d lockout in t h e following terms :
Both employers and workers shall be entitled to form trade combinations, to strike or to declare a lockout for the furtherance of their
respective interests, without affecting the rights arising out cf contracts
previously concluded.
Every individual person therefore possesses t h e full right t o
strike, as both t h e elements of this right — t h e r i g h t of agreement
and t h e right to stop work without incurring a penalty u n d e r criminal
law — are simultaneously recognised.
T h e same right is granted to trade associations. According t o
section 9 " legally constituted associations ma}' form trade combinations or decide on or continue strikes or lockouts in conformity with
the provisions of this Act ".
According to this section, only legally constituted associations

Cf. Bulletin

p . 276.

oj the International

Basle, 1909.

Labour Ojfice (Basle),

Vol. IV.

200

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

m a y make use of the right to strike. T h i s provision therefore tends
to prohibit existing trade unions which failed to place themselves
under the 1887 Act, such as the General Confederation of Labour,
and for a long time also the General Federation of Spanish W o r k e r s ,
from organising strikes or lockouts. But a n y penalties imposed could
apply only to the organisations as such, and not to t h e strikers taken
individually, whose right to strike was guaranteed b y section 1.
T h e r i g h t to strike for individuals a n d associations was t h u s
established in principle by the A c t of 27 April 1909. A t the same
time, t h e A c t introduced various restrictions of this principle, relating
in particular to the protection of individual freedom a n d the protection of the r i g h t t o work.
T h e Act guaranteed that any individual belonging to a trade
association would have the r i g h t not t o take p a r t in a combination
organised by the association and freely to withdraw from the association. Section 9 runs :
c

It shall not be lawful for such associations to force their members to
join the trade combination, strike or lockout by methods which would
obstruct them in the free exercise of their rights.
Members who do not acquiesce in decisions respecting a trade combination, strike or lockout, shall be free to retire from the association
without incurring by their action any liability towards the association.
This provision shall not affect any civil obligations previously contracted
by the members in question towards the association.
Section 2 organises the protection of the right to work, for which
purpose it provides the penalties of imprisonment and fine from 5
to 125 pesetas for—
any person who in order to promote or prevent trade combinations of
employers or workers or strikes on the part of the workers or lockouts
on the part of employers has recourse to violent acts or threats or who
uses compulsion sufficient to check or to take away the desire of employers or workers to carry on their trade or work in a free and lawful
manner.
Section 3 prohibits peaceful picketing, and imposes the penalty
of imprisonment for—
any person who disturbs the public peace or who organises a riotous
assembly with the obvious intention of forcing any person to strike or
to declare a lockout or to cease striking or to discontinue a lockout.
I n addition to these restrictions which apply to all labour
disputes, t h e Act provides for others based on t h e Heed of p r e v e n t i n g

20I

SPAIN

interference with the working of public services or public utilities.'
Sections 5 and 6 fix a definite period between t h e declaration of a
strike and its taking effect, so t h a t the necessary measures m a y be
adopted :
In the following cases the authorities shall be notified of any intended
strike or lockout at least eight days beforehand : (1) if they may lead
to the stoppage of the light or water supply or the suspension of the
railway service ; (2) if in consequence of the strike or lockout sick persons or hospital inmates are likely to be left without assistance (section 5).
The authorities shall be notified of any intended strike or lockout five
days beforehand if it may lead to the suspension of the tramway service,
or if in consequence of such strike or lockout the inhabitants of a locality are likely to be deprived of some article of general use. In such case,
and in the case contemplated in the previous section, the.causes of the
strike or lockout shall be set forth in the notification sent in to the
authorities (section 6).
Leaders and promoters of strikes or lockouts specified in sections 5
and 6 who fail to give notice of the same to the authorities within the
prescribed period shall be liable to imprisonment (section 7).
T h e legislation on the settlement of disputes, as will be shown
below, also fixes a definite period of notice for strikes so as to allow
time for conciliation and arbitration proceedings.

O R G A N I S A T I O N O F C O N C I L I A T I O N AND A R B I T R A T I O N

I n Spain the problem of settling collective disputes has been given
serious consideration and has to some extent determined the direction
taken by trade union legislation. T h e attention given to this subject
has taken practical form in a series of Acts and Decrees which are
still in force, although their substance has been modified in t h e
Decree on the organisation of industry on a corporate b a s i s ; t h e
principal provisions are as follows.
T h e Act of 19 May 1908 on conciliation and arbitration councils '
was a first a t t e m p t at introducing conciliation for.disputes. According
to section 1 :
When a strike is threatened or at least twenty-four hours before it
commences, the workers shall inform the president of the local Committee
for Social Reform of their intention by means of a duplicated notice
written^ on ordinary paper and briefly setting forth the causes of the
strike and the name and residence of the emplo3'er or employers concerned.

Cf. Bulletin

p . 14S.

of the International

Basle, 1909.

Labour Office (Basle),

Vol. IV,

202

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

When one or more employers determine to lock out the workers in
their businesses or undertakings or in a considerable part of the same
they shall inform the president of the local Committee for Social Reform
a week beforehand by means of a duplicated notice written on ordinary
paper and briefly setting forth the causes of the lockout and giving the
name of the place where their undertakings, factories, mines, or workshops
are situated and the number of workers who in consequence of the lockout
will be thrown out of employment (section 2).
On receiving this notice t h e president of t h e local Committee of
Social Reform must immediately set u p a conciliation board consisting
of a president a n d six members, of whom t h r e e are chosen from t h e
list of persons elected b y t h e workers, a n d three from the list provided
b y employers, in accordance with section 12 of t h e A c t on industrial
courts \ If conciliation seemed impossible, t h e board was to propose
that t h e parties concerned should appoint one or more arbitrators.
T h e 1909 A c t did not go so far as t o make arbitration compulsory.
Moreover, a n d this was perhaps t h e chief reason for t h e weakness of
the system, employers and workers took part in t h e conciliation and
arbitration proceedings only in a personal capacity a n d not as representatives of their respective associations. T o remedy these defects
a n d associate t h e unions directly in the settlement of collective
disputes t h e system was completed i n t w o directions, first by giving
the trade unions legal personality, a n d secondly by extending the
system of joint committees.
RECOGNITION OF ¡THE LEGAL PERSONALITY OF T R A D E ASSOCIATIONS

I t was t h e Royal Decrees of 10 A u g u s t 1916' a n d 25 August
1923 " that gave the trade unions legal personality a n d made it compulsory for employers to recognise t h e m .
T h e Royal Decree of 1916 required companies or industrial
u n d e r t a k i n g s which perform public services under a concession from
t h e State to recognise t h e associations or trade unions legally formed

1
This Act was also promulgated on 19 May 1908 ; it was amended
by the Act of 22 July 1922 and codified in 1926. As the scope of the
Act exceeds that of the question of arbitration and conciliation it will
be sufficient to make a direct reference to the sources. Cf. Código del
Trabajo : " De los Tribunales industriales ", pp. 111-133.
2
Cf. Bulletin of the International Labour Office (Basle), Vol. X I I ,
p. 67. Basle, 1917.
3

Sp. 5.

INTERNATIONAL LABOUR

OFFICE :

Legislative

Series,

1923,

SPAIN

203

by their employees and workers. This obligation was further defined
and extended by the Royal Decree of 1923 to :
(a)

industrial companies or undertakings engaged in working
the following public services in virtue of a concession from
the Government : railways, tramways, telephones, wireless
telegraphy, and water, light and power supply ;

(6)

industrial companies or undertakings and employers'
associations which supply the public with any necessary
article of general consumption ;

(c)

mining companies or undertakings and banking businesses ;

(d)

any other industrial companies or undertakings and employers' associations whose members normally employ more
than 300 workers ;

(e)

associations, unions and federations of wage-earning and
salaried employees of the bodies mentioned under (a)
to (d) ;

(/)

any other associations, unions, or federations of workers
belonging to the same trade which have more than 300
workers.

According to this Decree, the recognition of the legal personality
of the trade unions implies for the undertakings an obligation to
discuss with the legal representatives of the unions any collective
demands or claims relating to the conditions of work of their members
in such undertakings.
Without carrying the analysis of these Decrees further, it may
merely be mentioned that, thanks to these measures, the representatives of the workers' unions thenceforward had the right to approach
their employers in any matters relating to the regulation of conditions
of work. Similarly, the recognition of the trade union is the underlying principle of the institution of the joint committees, the permanent
or temporary bodies for preventing and settling labour disputes.
T H E INSTITUTION OF OFFICIAL JOINT COMMITTEES

The organisation of joint committees entailed the following
legislative action : the Royal Decree of 24 April 1920 setting up the
first Mixed Labour Commission in the province of Barcelona ;
the Royal Decree of 5 October 1922 concerning the establishment of

204

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

p e r m a n e n t and temporary joint committees; t h e Royal Decree of
25 A u g u s t 1923 relating to strikes of public interest \
T h e first of these Decrees aimed at t h e amicable settlement of
differences between commercial employers'and workers in Barcelona,
and for this purpose set up a joint committee for each of the following branches : b a n k i n g , transport, wholesale trade, and retail t r a d e ,
as well as a Mixed Commission consisting of authorised representatives
of each of t h e four joint committees a n d presided over b y a magistrate
of the court of Barcelona.
T h e joint committees' function was conciliatory. T h e y h a d to
submit all their decisions relating to wages, hours of work, and working regulations to the Mixed Commission for approval.
T h e Mixed Commission had to settle all questions submitted to
it by the joint committees. I t was further competent to fix the
minimum wages payable in each commercial category, to secure t h e
observance of the laws for t h e protection of workers, to m a k e proposals
to the G o v e r n m e n t for legislative reforms, and to organise technical
and administrative offices. I t s principal task was to unify and
harmonise the action of t h e four joint committees, and to endeavour
to secure an amicable settlement of any disputes which m i g h t arise.
T h e Decree of 24 April 1920 applied only to Barcelona and dealt
exclusively with commercial undertakings.
T h e Royal Decree of 5 October 1922 2 provided for the constitution of joint committees for t h e settlement of disputes between capital
and labour in particular industries or branches of production ; such
a committee m i g h t be set u p either o n official initiative or at the
request of the parties concerned, and m i g h t be either p e r m a n e n t or
temporary, according to the circumstances. P e r m a n e n t committees
could only be established by a Royal Order.
F o r determining the characteristics of each joint committee
account was to be taken of the principal classes of employment,
namely, agriculture, commerce, industry, mining, and transport.
W i t h i n each class of employment the system of joint committees was
to be formed on the basis of industries and groups of occupations or

1
Cf. Count de ALTEA : " National Corporative Organisation in
Spanish Industry. " Industrial Labour Review, Vol. XV, pp. 828-S41 :
cf. also Boletín del Instituto de Riformas Sociales, Nos. CCXXI and
C C X X n , pp. 844-847, and No. CCXXXI, pp. 598-616.
2
Legislative Series, 1922, Sp. 2.

SPAIN

5°

trades. Committees m i g h t be local or regional, or m i g h t be formed
by an u n d e r t a k i n g employing more than 500 workers or employees,
according to the organisation and requirements of each occupation.
Each joint committee consisted of equal n u m b e r s of employers and
workers, the n u m b e r varying according to the importance of the
elements represented. T h e chairman, who might n o t belong to the
industry or occupation in question, was appointed b y the u n a n i m o u s
votes of the workers' and employers' representatives. I n default of
unanimity, he was appointed by the Ministry of Labour.
T h e chairman h a d a casting vote only if this was previously
agreed to unanimously by the members of the committee. Otherwise,
he could intervene merely as a conciliator and to encourage agreement
between the parties.
T r a d e associations were called on to take a direct part in electing
the members of the joint committees.
The elections for permanent joint committees shall conform to the
following rules :
(a) Lawfully constituted trade associations of workers and employers
shall be entitled to elect members within the limits of the representation allocated to them.
(b) Associations of employers shall mean trade associations consisting exclusively of employers of a particular employment group
or groups in the district for which the joint committee is
appointed.
(c) Associations of workers shall mean trade associations consisting
exclusively of workers in the occupation or occupations or employment groups in the district for which the joint committee is
appointed.
(d) Any members of associations, whether men or women, may be
elected members of the committees, councils, meetings, or associations.
(e) The members of the associations concerned shall be entitled to
vote at such elections, and the register of members of each association shall serve as the register of electors.
Votes shall be cast at the general meeting of the association held in
accordance with the rules and regulations in the presence of a representative of the authorities
(section 14).
T h e Royal Decree of 25 A u g u s t 1923 \ which, as explained above,
required employers to recognise the legal personality of lawfully
constituted trade unions, also provided for the creation of temporary
joint committees in the case of claims and disputes between employers
and workers in undertakings carrying on public services under an
administrative concession.
1

Ibid., 1923, Sp. 5.

206

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

Among the provisions of this Act reference may be made to those
contained in sections 27 to 30, which establish certain restrictions as
to strikes and lockouts in these undertakings. Notices of lockouts
and strikes within the time limit laid down by the Act of 19 May 190S '
might in no case cause the suspension of the conciliation proceedings.
Every possible effort was to be made to prevent the lockout or strike
taking place before the termination of these proceedings. Even after
the negotiations had broken down and a lockout or strike had been
declared, the competent authority must convene the special joint
committee once a fortnight with a view to arriving at a settlement of
the dispute, and must communicate the result of these negotiations
to the Ministry (sections 27 and 28).
The Minister of Labour might at any time refer to the Institute
of Social Reform the questions at issue in a strike or lockout in order
that the Government might take any steps deemed necessary. It was
required to follow all circumstances likely to give rise to incidents
during the course of strikes or lockouts, and to call upon other
authorities to co-operate if necessary, without prejudice to the special
powers of these authorities (sections 29 and 30)..
These were the various measures taken on the initiative of the
Government with a view to introducing legal proceedings for the
settlement of industrial disputes and organising on a stable foundation
the collective relations between employers and trade unions. In yet
another direction the Government completed the system set up by the
Act of 1887, by organising collaboration between the trade unions
and public authorities.
COLLABORATION OF T R A D E ASSOCIATIONS W I T H

THE

PUBLIC AUTHORITIES*

As early as 1902, Canalejas, chief of the Liberal Party, acted as
champion of the cause of State intervention in social questions. For
this purpose he proposed the creation of a Labour Institute, in whose
work trade associations would take a direct part. His Bill, which
had been approved by the Cortes was held up by the Senate, but the
idea was partially realised in the Royal Decree of 23 April 1903
creating the Institute of Social Reform, which has played a part of
first rate importance in preparing social legislation and developing
trade union law. Its function was to prepare labour legislation,

See p . 201.

SPAIN

207

organise the inspectorate and statistical services, and support social
and Government action for improving the conditions of workers.
The Institute consisted of a corporative council and a secretariat
with several technical sections. The council had thirty members,
eighteen being designated by the Government and six each elected
by employers and workers. It contributed towards the development
of trade union organisation in three ways in particular :
(a)

By the representation of employers' and workers' associations on the council. The application of this principle
aroused a live spirit of emulation among the trade associations, which desired the triumph of their candidates in
the elections for representation either in the Institute itself,
or on the local and provincial Committees of Social Reform,
which had the right to intervene in the administration of
labour legislation and factory inspection.

(b)

By the extension of the principle of collaboration with trade
associations to labour legislation in general. Thanks to
the action of the Institute, many Bills due to the direct
collaboration of workers and employers were prepared and
adopted by the Chambers : the Act on Sunday rest of
3 March 1904, which made use of agreements between thetrade associations as a means of adapting the provisions of
the Act to different circumstances; the Child Protection
Acts of 10 August 1904 ; the Home Colonisation Act of
30 August 1907 ; the Emigration Act of 21 December 1907 ;
the Conciliation and Arbitration Act of 19 May 1908 ; the
Industrial Courts Act of 19 May 1908; the Act on strikes
and combinations of 27 April 1909, etc.

(c)

By the interest always displayed by the Institute in trade
associations, its relations with them in educational work,
and its intervention in social disputes.

After the Institut', of Social Reform was abolished in 1924, its
functions were transferred to the Council of Labour set up by Royal
Decree of 19 June 1924. The occupational representation of the
associations in the new body is provided for on the same principles
and within the same limits.
The principle of the representation of trade associations has sincebeen applied in the most varied fields of national activity.
In the matter of social legislation, a number of committees on-

208

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

which employers' and workers' organisations are represented have
been created ; reference may be made in particular to the General
Commission set up by the Royal Order of 22 February 1924 to
co-ordinate the various labour laws. This Commission drafted the
first part of the Labour Code, which was promulgated on
23 August 1926 in the form of a Legislative Decree and deals with
contracts of work, contracts of apprenticeship, industrial accidents,
and industrial courts.
Among the committees and commissions on which workers and
employers are represented, there are also the labour committees and
administrative commissions in ports (Royal Decree of 11 October
1923) ; the Commission for the study of agricultural credit (Royal
Decree, 29 October 1923) ; the Administrative Council of the Mines
of Almadan and Arrayanes, which includes a worker elected by the
trade unions (Royal Decree, 26 December 1923); the Commission
appointed to organise technical education (Royal Decree, 15 March
1924); the Commission on emigrants' risk of shipwreck (Royal
Decree, 2 November 1924) ; the Commission appointed to draft a
Rural Code (Royal Decree, 12 May 1924) ; the Central Emigration
Committee (Royal Decree, 16 September 1924), whose rules were
codified by the Emigration Act and the regulations for its administration (Royal Decree, 20 December 1924) ; the Committee of protection and improvement for the vocational re-education of persons
disabled in industry (Royal Decree, 23 October 1924) ; the Advisory
Committee of the General Directorate of Shipping (Regulations of
28 October 1924) ; the Committee for studying and preparing
regulations on the status of co-operative societies (Royal Decree,
14 January 1925) ; the Fuel Commission (Royal Decree, 16 January
1925), and the National Fuel Council (Royal Decree, 6 January 1926) ;
the Supervisory Committee for general State accounts (Regulations
organising the Supreme Public Finance Tribunal, 3 March 1925);
the Superior Railway Council (Royal Decree, 19 December 1925) ;
the Royal Decree of 12 January 1926 on public relief societies; the
Regulations on home work of 26 July 1926, etc.
In the political field there are the Municipal Constitution of
8 February 1924 and the Regulations on the work of municipalities
of 9 July 1924, as well as the Provincial Constitution of. 20 March 1925,
all of which provide for the representation of trade associations in the
councils responsible for municipal and provincial representation. It
may be added that under section 71 of the Municipal Constitution,

SPAIN

209

such representation is compulsory, and a refusal to exercise it may
entail for the association the withdrawal of fiscal exemptions,
privileges and franchises and the loss of its rights of trade
representation.
The question has also been raised of reserving half the seats in
the future legislative chamber for representatives of the corporations.
All these measures taken by the Government since 1S87, either for
the settlement of collective disputes or for ensuring that trade
associations may collaborate continuously and effectively with the
bodies responsible for preparing social legislation, have been
incorporated in, and completed by the Decree on the organisation of
industry on a corporate basis.

Freedom of Association

CHAPTER II
THE LEGAL STATUS OF TRADE ASSOCIATIONS
Section 12 of the Decree on corporative organisation in Spanish
industry states that the members of the local joint committees shall
be elected " by employers' and workers' trade associations which are
legally constituted, and will be placed on a social register prepared
by the Minister of Labour, Commerce and Industry ". Thus the
whole corporative organisation rests ultimately on free but legally
constituted trade associations. It is, therefore, of the first interest to
examine in detail the conditions that trade associations must satisfy
under the law.
In the historical survey it has been shown that the right of associations to legal existence is derived from three sources : (i) Article 13 of the Constitution ; (2) the Act of 30 June 1887, supplemented
by the Legislative Decree of 10 March 1923 on associations ; (3) the
Decree of 3 November 1922 on the free trade unions of Barcelona.
The first two of these apply to the whole of Spain, whereas the scope
of the Decree of 3 November 1922 is limited to the province of
Barcelona.
§ 1. — Constitutional Principle
It will be remembered that Article 13 of the Constitution
recognises " the right of all Spanish citizens to meet and associate
with others for all purposes of human life ". Can this constitutional
guarantee — a guarantee essentially intended to protect the rights
of citizens against the encroachments of authority — which is thus
formulated without any kind of limitation, be considered sufficient
foundation for the legal existence of associations? If the reply to
this question were in the affirmative, it would follow that all
associations by the simple fact of their constitution would have a
right to legal existence, and would therefore be entitled to the
privilege of participating in the corporative organisation of industry.

211

SPAIN

But this is not the doctrine on which the Spanish legal system rests.
Section i of the Act of 30 J u n e 1887 o n associations affirms t h a t " the
right of association granted by Article 13 of the Constitution may be
exercised freely, in conformity
with the provisions
laid down by
this
Act".
T h u s the constitutional principle, far from being absolute in
scope, holds only under the conditions laid down in t h e Act on
. associations. I t will therefore be necessary to study the Act of
30 J u n e 1887, completed by the provisions of the Legislative Decree
of 10 March 1923, in order to learn the conditions of legal existence
of associations.
§ 2. — Conditions of Existence
(Act of 30 June 1887 a n d Legislative Decree
of 10 March 1923 on associations)
T h e conditions relating to the constitution,
dissolution of associations will be examined in t u r n .

working

and

CONSTITUTION

Fundamental

Conditions

Subsections (2) and (3) of section 1 of the Act of 30 J u n e 1S87
enumerate the associations to which t h e Act applies :
The provisions of this Act shall apply to associations formed for
religious, political, scientific, artistic, charitable, recreative, or any other
lawful objects, provided that they are not formed solely for purposes of
gain or profit.
This Act shall also apply to trade associations, mutual benefit and
provident societies, charitable foundations, and co-operative societies for
production, credit or distribution.
I t thus appears that the Spanish legislature has dealt in one and
the same Act with the general right of association and the right of
association for trade purposes. I t follows from section 1 that, in
addition to civil and commercial associations, the only associations
excluded from the Act are those which by their objects or the
circumstances surrounding their activities are contrary to public
order or which propose to commit offences punishable under t h e law,
t h a t is to say, associations covered by t h e Penal Code of 1870 \
1

See p. 184.

212

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

As regards State officials and employees, who are not mentioned
in the Act, the following distinction should be made. Persons holding
responsible State positions, such as the chiefs and officers of the
army, have no right of petition under the Constitution, which, in this
respect, implies the absence of the right of association. On the
other hand, it may be recalled that associations of members of the
army have exercised considerable influence in political affairs,
particularly since the war. But the Royal Decree on Civil Dictatorship which, on 5 September 1926, dissolved the Artille^ Corps
— as in other difficult situations the Postal Union has been dissolved
— appears to confirm the tendency of legislation to prohibit the right
of association for this class of officials.
Other officials have the right of association under the Act of
22 July 1918 and the Administrative Regulations of 7 September 1918,
subject to the previous and explicit authorisation of the public
authorities.
According to the Administrative Regulations :
No association of officials belonging to one or more Ministries may
be formed without express ministerial approval, even if its object is to
defend legitimate interests or promote the mutual assistance of members,
and even if it does not constitute an obstacle to the satisfactory working
of State services.
The founders of such an association must accordingly attach
. to the documents required in the Act of 1S87, and supplied in
accordance with the procedure imposed by that Act, a petition to the
Ministry of the Interior accompanied by the report of their chiefs
on the advisability of granting or refusing the petition. The Minister
of the Interior himself decides if the officials are in his own Ministry.
In other cases the decision lies with the Minister under whose orders
the officials making the petition are placed, or with the President of
Council himself if the association comprises employees in different
Ministries. The decision must be taken within one month of the
date of the petition.
The Minister of the Interior informs the Government authorities
of the express approval or refusal of the Ministry. The fact of belonging to an association or other body collectively representing public
officials which is contrary to a negative ministerial decision constitutes
an act of grave disobedience.

SPAIN

Formal

2I3

Conditions

T h e formal conditions prescribed b y the Act must be satisfied,
some before, and others after, the constitution of the association.
Formal

Conditions

Constitution

T h e founders or organisers of an association are bound, a week
before constituting t h e association, to submit to the Governor of t h e
province where the headquarters of the association will be situated,
or, if in t h e province of Madrid, to the General Directorate of Safety *,
two copies of t h e rules, regulations, contracts or decisions b y which
the association is to be governed, stating its name, objects, headquarters, form of administration or m a n a g e m e n t , t h e funds with
which it proposes to cover its expenses and the use to be made of
its funds or capital in the event of dissolution.
Similar formalities must be fulfilled for the foundation of
branches, and for any change in the constitution or headquarters of
t h e principal association or its branches.
One of t h e copies sent in is returned on presentation w i t h t h e
visa of the Governor and t h e stamp of the provincial Government and
a mention of the date.
If the provincial Government refuses to accept the documents the
persons concerned m a y have the refusal recorded before a notary,
attaching the documents, and this record serves the same purpose as
the presentation and acceptance of the documents (section 4 ) .
. Formal

Conditions

after

Constitution

Art the end of eight days t h e association or union may constitute
itself or amend its constitution. A certified copy of the foundation
deed or the a m e n d m e n t m u s t be communicated to the provincial
Governor. If, however, the documents submitted to the civil Governor
b y the association or union d o not satisfy the necessary conditions r
they are returned b y him within a week, and the association may not
be constituted until t h e m a t t e r has been put right.

1
Since the Royal Decree of 27 Nov. 1912 creating a General Directorate of Safety in the Ministry of the Interior, the local services of this
Department in the province of Madrid, which, as in other provinces, were
subordinate to the civil Governor, have been placed under this Directorate,
which thus takes cognisance of all questions relating to assemblies and
associations.

214

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

If it appears from the documents submitted that the association
or union must be considered unlawful under the provisions of the
Penal Code, the Governor immediately transmits a copy to the
competent court and notifies those concerned within a week. If the
suspension ordered by the Governor is not confirmed by the judicial
authorities within the following twenty days, the association or union
may be constituted normally (section 6).
The foundation deed of a trade association must be confirmed
by recording it in a special register kept by each provincial Government, in which all associations with their headquarters in the province
are recorded. For this purpose the Decree of io March 1923 provides
for the institution of a special file by every provincial Government
with a system of enumeration corresponding to the special register
of associations. On presentation, the foundation deeds are incorporated in this file together with the rules, regulations, contracts and
resolutions governing each association, and all other subsequent
proceedings, enforcements of orders and decisions to which the
activities of the association may give rise (section 1).
The legal existence of all associations is attested by means of
certificates, issued on the basis of the register, which the directors,
trustees or representatives of the association are entitled to demand.
In order that each association may retain its separate individuality, section 8 of the Act provides that no association may take a
name identical with that of another association already registered
in the province or so similar that the two associations might easily
be confused.
The association, thus lawfully constituted, must similarly comply
with the regulations laid down by the Act with respect to its internal
organisation and its activities in general.
ACTIVITIES OF T R A D E ASSOCIATIONS

The provisions of the Act of 1887 on the activities of trade
associations have been supplemented in great detail by those of the
Decree of 10 March 1923, which may indeed be said to constitute
regulations for the administration of the basic Act. These two laws
establish supervision by the administrative authorities over all the
activities of trade associations : their meetings, headquarters and
premises, leaders and members, accounts, and organisation of their
work.

SPAIN

Supervision

2I5

of Ordinary Meetings, General
Premises, and
Headquarters

Assemblies,

Section 9 of the Act requires twenty-four h o u r s ' notice to b e
given before the holding of general meetings. T h e founders, directors, presidents, or representatives of any association m u s t give notice
in writing to the civil Governor in the provincial capitals, a n d t h e
local authorities in other towns, of the place and dates on which t h e
association holds its ordinary meetings or general assemblies, within
twenty-four h o u r s of the holding of the first.
General assemblies are subject to the provisions of the Act
concerning public meetings *, if they are held elsewhere t h a n o n
t h e premises of the association, or on days other t h a n those specified
in the rules or resolutions communicated to t h e authority, or if they
deal with matters not relating to the purposes of the association, or
if persons not belonging to the association are permitted to be present.
T h e Government authorities m a y at any time enter the headquarters of an association and the places where its meetings are held,
and order the immediate suspension of any m e e t i n g or assembly at
which a n y of the crimes specified in the Penal Code is committed or
a resolution adopted to that end (section 12).
Supervision

of Members

and

Leaders

I n section 10, t h e 1887 Act made it compulsory to keep a list of
m e m b e r s and one or more account books. T h e s e provisions were
strengthened b y the Decree of 10 March 1923, and it may therefore
be useful to quote the text of the provisions in question of t h e Decree,
as t h e y show how minutely the formalities are defined :
At the same time that the certified copy of the foundation deed of
association is sent to the Governor, the books for the registers of members
and for accounts, which are mentioned in section 10 of the Act and in
subsequent provisions of this Royal Decree, shall be submitted to the
said authority, which shall approve them and stamp all their leaves
(which shall be consecutively numbered) with the seal of the civil
Government. "When the first books are nearing completion, the association shall in due time submit new ones for similar approval ; and when
the former are completed, they shall be closed by the signature of the
president of the association immediately after the last entry, and until
this has been done the new books shall not be available for use.
The proceedings for the approval of the books by the civil Governor
shall be completed within two working days in order that the books may
he returned to the association on the third day from their submission, and

Acts of 2 Jan. 1877

afl

d 15 June 18S0 ; cf. p. 184.

2l6

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

the entry of the proceedings in question shall be made in the file relating
to the association, with a note of the date of their completion and of the
number of pages in each of the approved books (section 2).
The full names, occupations and addresses of the individual members
of the association shall be entered consecutively in the register of members, together with the dates of their entering and leaving the association
and the duties of management, administration, or representation entrusted
to them, and also the dates on which they enter upon and retire from
these duties.
In addition to making the above entries in the register, the association shall notify the provincial Governor in writing of every appointment, entering on duties or retirement therefrom, within five days of
its occurrence, and shall notify the local authority at the same time if
the headquarters of the association are situated in a town which is not
a provincial capital.
The appointment of the collectors of contributions of the association
and that of the caretakers, porters or stewards responsible for the caretaking and watching of offices, their entry upon and retirement from
their duties, and their replacement shall be covered by the provisions
of the preceding paragraphs (section 3).
Finally, every
Governors of their
members who have
the first day of t h e

month the association must send to the civil
respective provinces a list of the names of
joined or left the association as recorded u p to
month.

Supervision

of Accounts

and

Activities

T h e 1887 Act provides, as already indicated, for the keeping of
one or more account books in which, under the control of persons
exercising m a n a g i n g or directive functions, all the receipts and
expenditure of the association must be entered, showing clearly t h e
sources of t h e receipts and the various items of e x p e n d i t u r e .
A
general balance sheet must be communicated annually to the
provincial register (section 10, subsection 2 ) . F u r t h e r , in order
t h a t both the public authorities and the members of t h e association
m a y at any time become acquainted with the m a n a g e m e n t and u s e
made of t h e reserve fund and the nature of t h e e x p e n d i t u r e ,
section 11 provides t h a t :
The associations which collect or distribute moneys for the relief or
assistance of members or for charitable, educational or other similar purposes, shall draw u p every six months an account of their receipts and
expenditure, shall present a statement thereof to the members, and shall
forward one copy thereof to the provincial Governor within five days of
its being drawn up.
But with the growth of the revolutionary trade union m o v e m e n t
— which, being firmly consolidated and having substantial funds at
its disposal o w i n g t o the size of its membership — t h e formalities for

217

SPAIN

collecting contributions and using funds, and for financial supervision
were made much more strict. T h e authorities even went so far as
to treat the collection of contributions as equivalent to fraud \
T h i s measure was considered as an interpretation of the law, and a t
the same time as a n act of Government authority, but it was not
destined to have lasting effect. T h e Royal Decree of 3 N o v e m b e r
1922 for trade associations in Barcelona, followed by t h e Royal Decree
of 10 March 1923 for the whole of Spain, added so m u c h to the
formalities concerning accounts, the collection and use m a d e of
funds, that all the financial activities of trade associations became
subject t o severe and constant supervision by the authorities.
T h e provisions of the Royal Decree of 10 March 1923 r u n a s
follows :
In one of the account books, which must be kept by every association
covered by the Act, entries of the receipts and expenditure of the association shall be made in order of date under the control of the members
exercising managing or directive functions, in accordance with the following rules :
(1) Each entry of receipts or expenditure shall cover a single item.
(2) The entries of receipts shall show clearly the source of the receipts and, in the case of contributions, whether they are ordinary
or special, and the clause in the rules or the decisions of the
general meeting of the association fixing the amount of the said
contributions.
If the receipts are derived from gifts, bequests or grants, an entry
shall be made for each, stating the purpose for which it is intended, and
giving a reference to the document making the grant or the record of
acceptance by the general meeting or its authorised representatives ;
(3) The entries of expenditure shall show clearly the items thereof,
and shall include references to the rules, the decisions of t h e
general meeting, or in default thereof, the decisions of the officials or executive bodies expressly or specially authorising the
items in virtue of their powers with the vouchers for the same.
The entries of expenditure for staff shall show the names of the
employees.
In the case of various payments for relief or compensation to members or their families which are made on the same day, each entry shall
include only the payments which are made for the same reason and are
equal in amount ; and in such case the number of persons granted relief
or compensation shall be entered with a reference to the vouchers for the
same, as in all other cases (section 4).
T h e fixing a n d collecting of contributions are similarly
subject of the strict regulations specified in sections 5 and 6.
1

See p. 192, Circular
6 Aug. 1920.

of the attorney

the Supreme

the

Court,

2l8

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

The founders, directors, presidents, or representatives of the associations already constituted shall be bound to submit to the competent
provincial Governor two signed copies of the resolutions introducing any
amendments of the contract, rules or regulations of the association and
consequently altering the amount of the ordinary contributions or the
period for which they are fixed. They shall likewise be bound to give
account to the said authority within a week of the decisions to levy compulsory special contributions, stating the amount and purpose thereof
(section 5).
A special book approved by the civil Government of the province in
the manner prescribed by section 2 of this Royal Decree shall be kept
for the accounts of the collectors of contributions of each association.
The association shall not entrust a collector with the collection of
contributions, nor shall he begin such collection, until ten days have
elapsed since the authorities were notified of his appointment in accordance with the provisions of section 3.
For the purpose of entrusting the collector with the collection of
contributions, his name, the number of contributions which he is required
to collect, the persons required to pay them, the period covered by the
said contributions, and the total amount thereof shall be entered in the
book mentioned in subsection (1), and he shall be provided with credentials in the form of a copy of the entry in the book numbered to correspond with it and attested by the responsible directors and executive
officials of the association.
Each entry, and consequently each set of credentials shall refer exclusively to a single period for which contributions are collected in the case
of ordinary contributions, or to a single levy in the case of special contributions, and in the latter case the date of the general meeting at which
the contribution was authorised shall be stated in the entry and in the
credentials.
The collectors, when engaged in collecting, shall carry their credentials and shall be bound to show them if so required by any public official (section 6).
F u r t h e r , in order t h a t the authorities m a y supervise the use
made of the funds, section 7 provides t h a t every m o n t h the association must forward to the civil Governor of the respective province
a statement of the position as shown by the general record of
receipts and expenditure of the association, and the amount of the
moneys of the association and t h e names of the bodies or persons
with whom such moneys are deposited.
Section 9, finally, gives the authorities the power to supervise
the financial management of the association on t h e spot. On the
decision of the civil Governor of the province the representatives or
officials of the authority may make visits of inspection to the offices
of t h e association, the legal representatives of which are bound to
show their registers, account books, minutes of proceedings, vouchers
and other records. T h e authority may similarly adopt any methods
of checking which it considers suitable to satisfy itself that the
moneys of the association are utilised as shown in the accounts.
Failure to comply with the formalities laid down for the constitution and working of associations entails a fine of 50 to 150 pesetas

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without prejudice to civil or criminal liabilities incurred under the
law. I n addition to such fine, an association m a y , in the conditions
specified by the Act, incur t h e penalty of suspension or dissolution,
only the judicial authority being competent to impose such penalty.
S U S P E N S I O N AND D I S S O L U T I O N O F T R A D E A S S O C I A T I O N S

Suspension
Suspension as a provisional measure may apply either to meetings
or assemblies or to the operations of. the association itself. A s
already slown, section 12, subscetion (1), of t h e 1887 Act provides
t h a t the representatives of the Government authorities m a y at any
time enter the headquarters of a n association and the places where its
meetings are held, and order the immediate suspension of a n y
meeting or assembly at which any of t h e crimes specified in the
P e n a l Code is committed or a resolution adopted to that end.
Subsection (2) of the same section provides for t h e suspension
of t h e association itself.
The Governor of the province may also order the suspension of the
activities of any association, stating clearly his reasons for doing so, if
it appears from the resolutions adopted by the association or from the
actions of its individual members that there is sufficient ground for considering that its activities must be deemed to be unlawful or that crimes
have been committed which would justify its dissolution.
T h e suspension is without effect, however, until it has been
submitted to and confirmed by the ordinary courts. I n every case
the Government authorities must notify t h e competent examining
c o u r t of first instance, within twenty-four h o u r s of their decision, of
o

the facts which have caused the suspension of t h e association or of
i t s meetings, giving at the same time a statement of t h e preceding
circumstances and the names of the members or persons present w h o
appear t o be responsible. T h e suspension of an association by t h e
Government authorities is without effect if it is not confirmed by t h e
judicial authorities within twenty days of the decision.
Similarly, the judicial authorities m a y order the suspension of
the activities of any association as soon as it is decided that an
action for dissolution shall be instituted in respect of a crime.
T h e effect of suspension is to prevent t h e constitution of a n y
other association with t h e same name or for similar purposes as
t h a t to which the members of the suspended association belonged, a n d

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FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

the members of t h a t association m a y not meet in the place where
its meetings were held or in any other place d u r i n g the period of
suspension.
Dissolution
Neither the 1887 Act nor the Decree of 10 March 1923 mentions
the voluntary dissolution of association's. I t follows that associations
which dissolve voluntarily are subject to the provisions of the general
law contained in section 39 of the Civil Code.
Only the judicial authorities are competent to order the dissolution of the associations set u p in conformity with the 1S87 Act.
Dissolution may be ordered :
(1)

in accordance with t h e general law on unlawful associations ;

(2)

as a penalty for crimes committed in fulfilment of decisions
of the association ;

(3)

as a penalty for crimes committed b y members of the
association, provided that the complicity of t h e association
itself has been proved.

According to section 15, the dissolution of the association shall
be pronounced :
In any sentence in which the judicial authority declares an association unlawful in conformity with the provisions of the Penal Code and
in any sentence issued in respect of crimes committed in fulfilment of
decisions of the association. It may also order the dissolution of the
association concerned in sentences imposed upon members of the association, for crimes committed by means supplied by the association, and
shall take into consideration in every case the nature and circumstances
of the crime, the nature of the means employed, and the extent to which
the association has intervened in the use of the said means and in the
acts committed.
T h e compulsory dissolution of a trade association has the followi n g effects :
If the dissolution of an association has been ordered by an irrevocable
sentence, it shall not be lawful for another association to be formed with
the same name or for similar purposes if those purposes have been declared unlawful. If they have not been declared unlawful and if another
association with similar name or purposes has been formed, it shall not
be lawful for individuals on whom a penalty has been imposed in the
above-mentioned sentence to belong to the new association (section 16,
subsection (1)).

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As regards the property of associations, section iS of the 1887
Act provides that in the event of dissolution associations are subject
to the provisions of the civil law respecting collective property.
Section 1666 of the Civil Code lays down that if the dissolution of an
unlawful society has been pronounced, its property shall be handed
over to charitable institutions at the headquarters of the society or
failing this, in the province.
The guarantee against dissolution by administrative action
contained in the provisions of the 1887 Act for judicial proceedings
does not seem to apply in periods when constitutional guarantees
are suspended. This would appear to be the result of the Circular
of the Attorney of the Supreme Court, dated 10 August 1920, which
states that the Government may dissolve certain associations which
" for purposes of the application of criminal law are not legally
constituted ", and thus treats dissolutions pronounced by Government
authority on the same footing as judicial sentences. The historical
survey has already shown that on various occasions the Government
has had recourse to the suspension of constitutional guarantees, a
suspension which has always-been accompanied by the compulsory
dissolution of trade associations.
Moreover, according to the Act and Regulations of 10,18 concerning public employees, the Government may, on condition of reporting
its decision to the Cortes, decree the dissolution of any association of
officials. As soon as that is done, the fact that a public employee
belongs to the association in question constitutes an act of serious
insubordination.
§ 3. — The Conditions of Existence and Possibilities of Action
of Trade Associations in the Province of Barcelona
(Royal Decree of 3 November 1922)
Reference has already been made in the historical survey to the
part played by Catalonia in the social life of Spain. In no province
have disputes between employers and wage earners or between wage
earners of different tendencies been more acute and impassioned.
This special situation called for separate regulations for quelling
disturbances.
Several measures taken on Government initiative had prepared
the ground for these special regulations on trade associations in
Barcelona. There was first the Royal Decree of n October 1919

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

222

s e t t i n g u p a l a b o u r Commission in Barcelona, t h e n the institution
by the Royal Decree of 24 April 1920 of a Mixed L a b o u r Commission
for Barcelona commerce \ and finally the appointment b y the Royal
Decree of 15 October 1921 of a delegation of t h e Ministry of L a b o u r
in the province of Barcelona to classify and group occupations and
t a k e a census of employers and workers each of the occupational
groups defined. T h e Government considered in fact t h a t it w a s
first of all necessary to classify and group all industries, t r a d e s and
occupations w i t h reference to their respective occupational interests,
those of employers on t h e one hand, of workers on the other. On the
basis of this classification, by which t h e interests at issue could first
of all be defined, the Decree of 3 November 1922 was prepared 2 .
T h e preamble to t h e Decree describes the new regulations in t h e
following terms :
The present Decree does not affect the freedom of Spanish citizens to
associate or not in accordance with the Constitution and the Act of
30 June 1887. Its sole purpose is to give an impetus to the system of
trade organisation and to encourage it by granting it wide powers by
which it may be adjusted to present needs, care being taken, however,
that no rights shall be affected.
The urgency of this measure, which is particularly felt in Barcelona,
and the need of taking a census and classifying industries before constituting the new bodies representing employers and workers, make it impossible to extend the application of this Decree to the whole of Spain.
It will first come into operation in the province of Barcelona as an
indispensable contribution towards the better settlement of the questions
raised in that province. The experience gained from this experiment
will serve to improve the system and if need be to apply it to other
provinces.
T h e main object of the G o v e r n m e n t in issuing this Decree was
to propose t o trade associations a new type of organisation, while
leaving it free to them to make use of it or not. Once a trade union
has been constituted in accordance with t h e conditions prescribed in
the Decree, however, the Government gives it the widest powers with
respect to employers and the State. T h e provisions of t h e new Decree
ought therefore to be briefly analysed from the twofold point of view
of the existence of trade unions and their m e a n s of action.

1
2

See p. 203.
See Legislative

Series, 1Q22, Sp. 3.

223

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CONDITIONS OF E X I S T E N C E

Trade

Unions

Chapter I V of the Royal Decree of 3 November 1922 states that
the general provisions of the 1887 Act on association also apply to
trade unions in the province of Barcelona. As these were analysed
at the beginning of this chapiter ', all t h a t need be done here is to
examine the special conditions to be satisfied by trade unions in t h a t
province.
T h e initiative in constituting a union, and this is one of t h e
characteristic features of the Decree, is taken by the Government.
I t is the Ministry of Labour which convenes t h e constituent meetings
and settles t h e procedure, and it is the delegate of the Ministry of
Labour or his representatives who conducts the proceedings and
ascertains t h a t the unions satisfy the conditions of the law.
. For the purpose of forming a trade union the workers shall be invited
in the manner prescribed by the Ministry of Labour, Commerce and
Industry to attend the special meetings for the industry in question, at
which representatives of the industry shall be appointed, with adequate
authority to negotiate in the name of the trade with the employers and
with public authorities when necessary concerning the collective interests
of the trade group.
Meetings shall in all cases be held on Sunday, and the number of
those which may be held on each date shall be notified, alphabetical order
of trades being observed in convening meetings when several occur
simultaneously. The}' shall be announced a fortnight in advance and
presided over by the representative of the Ministry of Labour, Commerce
and Industry, or a person delegated by him, the president of the divisional or provincial high court, or the magistrate or examining judge
delegated by the president, whose sole duty shall be to preside over the
discussion and put resolutions to the vote.
The chairman shall appoint the secretary, who shall draw up and
sign a report on the meeting, confirmed by the chairman, and shall send
a duplicate copy to the Ministry of Labour, Commerce and Industry.
At the meeting steps shall be taken to appoint persons to form a
provisional committee responsible for drafting rules, which shall be
discussed and approved at a meeting held within the next fortnight, and
of which a duplicate copy shall be sent on adoption to the Ministry of
Labour, Commerce and Industry (sections 3 and 4)
Similar regulations
associations (section 6 ) .

apply

to the constitution

employers'

Before an association can be finally constituted, it must satisfy
t w o conditions. In the first place, the membership must reach t h e

See pp. 211 et seq.

224

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

statutory minimum, and, secondly, it must satisfy the rule as to
occupational and territorial delimitation.
According to section 7, an association must consist of at least
100 workers or 20 employers, failing which the convening of the
association in accordance with the provisions of section 3 is cancelled.
A second convening is then made and in case of failure of the workers
on this occasion to attend the meeting in sufficient numbers or of
the meeting to arrive at an agreement, the result of the meeting is
finally held to be negative (section 5).
But an association has no legal personality, its resolutions are
not valid, and it is not entitled to the privileges specified in the
Decree, unless it comprises the majority of the workers or employers
in the branch of industry or in the occupation in the district or
locality in question (section 7). The reason for this last condition
is that the Decree gives the association the power to represent the
whole occupation or trade in question (including third parties not
belonging to it).
Secondly, associations must observe the rule as to occupational
and territorial delimitation. This follows from section 8, under
which employers or workers in the localities bordering on the
districts defined in the Decree of 5 October 1921 may not be members
of associations in such districts unless there is not a sufficient number
of employers or workers in the locality to form an association.
Furthermore, as each association is responsible for representing and
defending well-defined interests, and in order to prevent the action
of the association from being influenced by elements foreign to the
trade or locality, section 27 provides that no employer or worker
may belong to more than one association in the same locality at the
same time.
The regulation as to occupational delimitation applies also, though
less strictly, to trade associations of wage-earning and salaried
employees of railway, tramway, water, gas and electricity companies,
and other undertakings rendering local services of the nature of
public utilities. All the workers in any one of these undertakings
may form themselves into a single association (section 11).
Employers in the maritime transport industry similarly constitute
a single regional group for purposes of association (section 12).
A statutory minimum membership and the observation of the
rule of occupational and territorial delimitation are the two preliminary conditions to be satisfied by associations as such before their

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constitution. The special conditions laid down by the Barcelona
Decree for persons who wish ito belong to an association relate to
nationality, occupation, age, and marital condition. According to
section 24 a trade union consists of individuals joining it voluntarily,
who must fulfil the following conditions ;
(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

They must be Spanish. It may be recalled that in the
1887 Act Spanish nationality was not a necessary condition
for belonging to an association.
They must belong to the occupation or branch of industry
for which the trade union is formed, and must be included
in the register for that occupation or branch. This is only
a corollary of the rule of occupational delimitation, to
which the unions themselves are subject.
They must have attained the age of eighteen years.
Nevertheless, a youth under eighteen years of age may
join a trade union with the written permission of his parents
or guardians or the director of the institution where he
was brought up, but he will not have the right to speak or
to vote in any meeting of the association. He will pay only
half the contributions due from persons over eighteen years
of age, though he will be entitled to full benefits. Members
of over eighteen years of age but less than twenty-one
years are entitled to speak at meetings but not to vote.
Those who are over eighteen years of age and are married
or widowed, and men of over twenty-one years of age
are entitled to exercise all the rights and are liable to all
the obligations connected with the association.
Women of under eighteen years of age may not be members
of other associations than trade unions for women and
have no right to speak or to vote. Those above that age
may join the proper association on the same terms as men,
and the authority of the parent, husband, or guardian is
not required.

According to section 26, the persons belonging to employers'
associations must: (1) belong to the branch of industry or occupation
in virtue of their enrolment in the appropriate register ; (2) have
acquired the legal qualifications for engaging in commerce — a
woman over age or married who fulfils the conditions required of an
employer and has the requisite legal qualifications may join the
Vrcerlom of Association

226

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

association for her class without being required to procure the
authorisation of her legal representative ; (3) the guardians or legal
representatives of minors or incapable persons engaged in commerce
or industry may be members of associations on behalf of such persons.
In addition to individuals, bodies corporate, i.e. civil or commercial associations acting as employers, may belong to an employers'
association, being represented by the chairman or a member of the
board of directors or governing body (section 28).
The working of associations in Barcelona is also subject to certain
special regulations, from which the rules of the association may not
deviate. These relate to the right of members to join or withdraw,
the supervision of contributions, the headquarters of the association,
and, in general, Government supervision of its administration and
management.
Subject to the fundamental conditions enumerated above, it is
sufficient that the applicant should desire to join for him to be
admitted to the association, and such admission may not be refused
or deferred by the executive committee. A complaint concerning
refusal or delay may be lodged with the local office of the Ministry
of Labour, Commerce and Industry, or, failing that, the civil Governor. The decision taken thereon is enforceable without further appeal
(section 25).
It follows that there is not merely the simple freedom to join
but, in fact, a right of admission to the union. It will be remembered
that in most other countries the conditions of admission are fixed
by the rules of the association, which may introduce any such
conditions or limitations (nationality, occupation, political views, etc.)
as they please; in addition, the authority of the association
responsible for deciding on applications for admission has the right
to reject them without giving any reasons. In the system established
by the Legislative Decree on associations in Barcelona, on the
contrary, the right to join an association is considered a public one
which cannot be affected by particular agreements, such as the rules
of an association.
There are two reasons for this special protection of the right of
admission : (1) the need of including the majority of the persons
in the trade, an indispensable condition for acquiring the privilege
granted under the Act on associations; (2) the need of preventing

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exclusions for political reasons, which were to be feared particularly
in t h e province of Barcelona.
Membership may be lost either for legal reasons, or at the wish
of the persons concerned, or for reasons defined in the rules. A m o n g
the first, the indispensable condition for belonging to an association,
t h a t of carrying on a trade or occupation, is also necessary foi
continuing as a member. T h u s , former members of the occupation
or trade may not, as in F r a n c e , for instance, remain members of t h e
association after having given u p their employment. T h e Decree
further declares that the loss of civil rights also entails loss of
membership. For analogous reasons it is to be supposed that the loss
of nationality will involve the loss of membership.
T h e right to withdraw from the association is merely a consequence of the principle of the right to join. Section 30 of the Decree
protects this right by an express provision :
Every clause or stipulation denying or restricting the right of members to cease to belong to an association shall be void, without prejudice
to the right of the association to claim any sums due from members.
' W i t h i n these limits, t h e contract of association retains all its
legal authority, and the Decree recognises the validity of clauses
providing for the penalty of exclusion for breach of the rules.
T h e Decree fixes a m a x i m u m for t h e entrance fee and in general
reserves a right to supervise t h e rate of contributions. According to
section 3 1 , the entrance fee for a t r a d e union may not exceed three
days' wages or pay at the current rate for the locality.
T h e contributions may be collected m o n t h l y , weekly, or on a
special occasion for a specified purpose. I n any case, the local office
of the Ministry of Labour or the Governor may reduce t h e sum
specified in t h e rules on the occasion of their submission for approval,
and m a y veto any increase considered unjustified. Every special
levy requires the approval of t h e local office of the Ministry of
Labour or the Governor (section 31) \
I n consequence of the rule of occupational and territorial
delimitation, the Decree requires t h a t the rules of the association
shall mention its headquarters. Section 32 provides t h a t the headquarters of the association shall be specified in its rules, and that
if an association, union, ór federation carries on its activities beyond
the boundaries of a single province t h e rules must specify the head1

See also p. 229, on sections 46 and 47.

228

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

quarters of its local offices, branches, or subordinate organisations.
All the documents and correspondence of the union, federation, or
joint federation must be kept at its central headquarters, which must
be the office of the executive committee or central governing body,
the management, and the general secretariat. Every change of headquarters on the part of the central association or the branches must
be notified to the representatives of the Ministry of Labour, the civil
Governor of the province, and the mayor of the locality, within three
da5'S.
Other restrictions on the independence of associations relate to
their administration through various bodies and the supervision of
their officials.
The general meeting is the most important administrative body
of an association. It meets at least once in six months, on the
decision of the executive committee or at the request of over onetwentieth of the members. It is convened by the chairman, who
must issue notices in due time and sufficiently widely for all members
to take cognisance of the meeting and of the agenda. The convening
of the meeting must be announced to the Government authorities,
and to the representative of the Ministry of Labour in the localities
where such exist, twenty-four hours in advance.
The general meeting cannot be held unless at least half the
members plus one are present or represented.
The votes at general meetings are counted as follows : in meetings
of trade unions, one vote per member; in employers' meetings, one
vote per member of the association employing in his factory or
workshop at least ten workers, with an additional vote for every
fifty workers or fraction of fifty..
Resolutions taken by the meeting are not valid unless two-thirds
of the members present have approved them. Votes are always
taken by secret ballot (section 41-43).
Section 42 defines the powers of the general meeting. It is
responsible for organising institutions for relief, thrift, co-operation,
commerce, etc., deciding on union, federation, or joint federation
with other associations, electing the executive committee and the
governing body, supervising, inspecting and approving the documents
and activities of managing committees and officials, the balance sheets
and accounts, adopting amendments and modifications of the rules,
electing and dissolving organs of the association or the association

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229

itself, deciding on the final termination of membership, and, finally,
establishing branches, offices and groups.
The general meeting also allocates the ordinary and special funds
to meet the expenses and decides as to the use of the sums collected.
For this purpose, the following matters are determined : (i1) the
amount of entrance fees and the method of paying them; (2) the
amount of the periodical contributions, both ordinary and special,
and the method of paying them ; (3) the maximum amount of the
subscriptions for joint purposes due to unions, federations and joint
federations ; (4) the part of the contributions or the special contributions allocated to the provident, co-operative and benefit funds;
(5) the utilisation of gifts' and bequests; (6) the disposal of the
funds in the event of the dissolution of the association and the
method of winding up special funds, the former being allocated to
social institutions within the area in which the association was
established, for which purpose the National Provident Institution
takes charge of the moneys in order to make proper use of them
(section 46).
The amount of the contributions due to the association from
the members must be fixed by a resolution of the general meeting
convened expressly for the purpose, which is not valid unless twothirds of the-members are present, and a proposal of the executive
committee has been submitted and obtains an absolute majority of
the votes cast (section 47).
Trade associations are administered by their executive committees. These are elected biennially by the general meeting of
members expressly convened for the purpose. Two-thirds of the
members must be present, election is by a majority of the votes of
those present, and voting is secret.
If there are more than 500 members, voting may be effected in
separate meetings, but it must always be secret.
The necessary conditions for belonging to the executive committee are. as follows : the member must be Spanish, of full age, in
full enjoyment of his civil rights, a member of the association, and
engaged in the occupation or industry in question or previously
engaged therein during the five years preceding the election.
The rules of the association define the duties of the executive
committee. These include the direction, management, and representation of the association, the supervision of the carrying out of its
rules, the calling of general meetings and presiding at the same, the

2J0

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

representation of the association in the conciliation and arbitration
proceedings prescribed by law, and the responsibility for the proper
management of the moneys of the funds, institutions and undertakings
of the association. On the other hand, the executive committee is
not entitled to adopt on its own account resolutions or decisions
affecting the general interests of the organisation or the private or
trade interests of its members. Any clause to the contrary is void.
The Government exercises permanent supervision over the
executive committee, for which purpose all appointments must be
communicated to the representative of the Ministry of Labour and to
the civil Governor within twenty-four hours of the election or
renewal (sections 33 to 37).
The chairman of the association acts as its legal representative.
He acts in its name and carries out the resolutions adopted by the
general meeting of members or the executive committee (section 38).
The collectors of contributions are appointed by a resolution of
the executive committee adopted by an absolute majority. The
names and addresses of the persons appointed must be communicated
to the representative of the Ministry of Labour and to the civil
Governor of the province, and if an association carries on its activities
in a town other than a capital, to the civil Governor and the mayor
for the district (section 39).
With a view to making the supervision of all the activities of
the association possible, the Decree provides that various books and
registers must be kept. Thus, an association must in the first place
keep a register of members joining and leaving it, showing the names,
titles, ages, occupations, addresses, and the place where each member's
industry or business is established or where he works. These entries
must be made in chronological order and indicate the dates of
admission and leaving and any change in the above particulars. An
alphabetical index of members must also be kept. Further, the
executive committee and governing body must keep minute books,
with the pages numbered, headed and stamped with a seal affixed
free of charge by the representative of the Ministry of Labour or the
civil Governor for the province.
Finally, it is compulsory to keep account books, namely, a
journal, cash book, collectors' books and summary of receipts and
expenditure. The accounting of the co-operative, provident and
insurance institutions must be kept entirely separate, in conformity

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with the Commercial Code and the special laws regulating these
matters (sections 44, 45 and 48).
As regards dissolution, the Barcelona associations are subject
to the provisions of the Act of 30 June 1887 and the Legislative Decree
of '10 March 1923 on associations l .
The analysis of these many and minutely detailed provisi ;ns will
have shown the care taken by the Government to exclude from the
trade union movement all influences unconnected with the trade,
and to place the working of the associations under its own guardianship.
Unions and Federations
The object of the legislature in establishing the rule of occupational and territorial delimitation was to create a special body for
defending the trade interests of each group of persons concerned.
In actual fact, however, trade interests tend to exceed territorial
limits if these are drawn too narrowly. In view of the tendency of
undertakings to concentrate, the Decree accordingly authorises the
formation of federations of trade associations, but on a twofold
condition. It imposes, in the first place, respect for the administrative
autonomy of the primary associations, and secondly, respect for the
principle of occupational delimitation. Section 13 reaffirms this
latter principle in the following terms :
Trade unions for the same occupations in different localities or
districts, and likewise trade unions for related occupations and undertakings, may for lawful purposes form a trade union federation with
legal personality without prejudice to that of each of the federated associations.
It may be seen, however, that the idea of occupational delimitation has been enlarged, and that it applies no longer only to members
in one and the same trade, but also to members of trades and
industries of the same kind.
Associations may also organise permanent or temporary unions
for the advancement of their joint trade interests, on condition that
a resolution has been adopted in each association by an absolute
majority of all the members. The text of- the resolution must
moreover specify the purpose and scope of the arrangement and the
extent of the obligations contracted. The resolution is not binding
until it has been communicated to the Ministry of Labour.
1

S e e p. 220.

2¡2

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

Section 15 protects the autonomy and right of withdrawal of
each of the member associations. In all cases of union, federation
or joint federation of associations, every association shall retain its
autonomy and absolutely distinct identity, and shall not in any case
delegate the rights, duties and obligations reserved by this Decree
or by the rules, to the executive committee and general meetings of
each association; consequently a union shall not cancel, diminish,
or restriot the personal rights of any of the affiliated associations.
Every association shall be at liberty to secede at any time, and
any stipulation to the contrary or penal clause or fine provided to
impede or prevent such action shall be void.
The same rules as apply to the constitution, working, and
administration of primary associations also hold good for their unions
and federations, with this difference however; that the constituent
assemblies are attended, not by the individual members of the
associations, but by the persons who, according to the law and the
rules of the organisations forming the federation, are responsible for
representing them.
POSSIBILITIES OF ACTION

The 18817 Act made no kind of reference to the possibilities of
action of trade associations. Since then, as has been shown, the
legislature has" enlarged their functions in the most varied directions *.
These many measures, scattered in a series of laws, were consolidated
in the Barcelona Decree, which also establishes the social powers of
trade associations from the legal standpoint.
The various powers conferred on trade associations by the Decree
of 3 November 1922 will be examined below under the heads of
trade union activity, civil and economic activity and social activity.
Trade Union

Activity

Trade associations have the right to create institutions for purely
trade purposes; under section 19, subsection (2), they may organise
specialised instruction for the purpose of the vocational training and
improvement of their members, and likewise workshops, exhibitions,
competitions, museums, laboratories, technical schools, conferences,
and publications.

.See p . 197.

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233

They have also the power — and this is an exception to the
special legislation on this subject — to found provident and social
assistance institutions, co-operative credit, producers', and consumers'
societies, savings banks, insurance funds, and employment exchanges.
Civil and Economic

Activities

Primary associations and their federations (but the latter only on
certain conditions) have legal personality and enjoy all the rights
derived therefrom. They have therefore the power to acquire and
own property of all-kinds, to receive subsidies, gifts and bequests,
to contract obligations of all kinds and to exercise the rights granted
to ordinary associations under the laws in force (section 19, subsection (5). In this connection, reference may also be made to the
provisions of section 21, which states that an association may adopt
trade marks, devices, signs or.names to distinguish the products of
its members' work.
It follows from these provisions that in civil law the status of
recognised trade associations is precisely the same as that of ordinary
civil or commercial associations. In other words, they may engage
in undertakings run for profit and in commercial transactions properly
so-called. Thé concession of this privilege is not to be met with in
the legislation of other countries, and the reasons for it may well
be asked. It seems — and the many precautions taken to supervise
the utilisation of the funds of the association would appear to prove
this — that by this means the legislature hoped to interest the
members of the association in the prosperity of their organisations,
and thereby to dissuade them from activities (strikes, lockouts and
boycotts) which might threaten their collapse.
But this unlimited right of possessing, acquiring and contracting
implies in return an unlimited responsibility, which responsibility
entails sanctions not only from the fact of the activities of the
organisation in their legal relations with respect to work (breach of
contract of work, etc.), but also from the fact of their commercial
activities. It must be pointed out that the law does not, like French
law, for instance, ensure the partial or total immunity of the property
of the association.
Among the various forms of economic activity, there was one
in particular in the mind of the legislature, when it authorised the

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

associations to engage in commercial transactions, namely, participation in and execution of public works. According to section 20 :
The State, provincial assemblies, corporations (mancommunidades),
municipalities, and port works committees may assign contracts for public
works to trade associations in conformity with the following rules :
(a) The public works in question shall be subdivided whenever possible in order to enable trade associations to take part in competitions for constructional work.
(t>) The expert management of the works assigned to the trade associations under the conditions laid down in this Decree shall be
entrusted to the technical and expert staff of the State or the
official body giving the contract.
(c) Special regulations shall be issued to explain in detail the provisions contained in these rules.
Unions and federations of associations have legal personality of
the same type as the affiliated associations, subject, however, to
certain restrictions. Thus, they may hold only the real property
necessary for their offices, meetings, libraries, classes, collections and
museums, laboratories, employment exchanges, apprenticeship workshops, rest rooms, guest houses, homes and hospitals. They may not
receive gifts and bequests except for the above-mentioned establishments or for funds and organisations for insurance or social assistance.
Finally, they may not have any political purpose, nor undertake any
commercial activities except those of a co-operative nature, which are
exclusively for the benefit of members (section 16).
Social

Activities

In the social field the Decree opens the widest possibilities to
the activity of associations. The law officially recognises their right
to intervene ex officio in the relations between the parties to contracts
of work and to participate directly in the preparation of social legislation. In all these matters the authority of the association takes the
place of the initiative of members. According to section 19, subsection (8), trade associations have the power to intervene in the
conclusion of collective agreements, agreements regulating Sunday
rest, the commercial working day, the eight-hour day, night work in
bakeries, and in other cases where authorised or required by labour
legislation, provided that they do so only within the occupation or
industry covered by the association. They have also the power according to section 19, subsection (9), to intervene in disputes between
their own members or between associations on questions relating to
general or trade interests.

SPAIN

In consequence of this right of general intervention in relations
between associations and between the parties to the contract of work,
the associations may institute any civil or criminal proceedings before
the courts. They may also appear before an industrial court, or in
default thereof, before a court of first instance, either in their own
name or as representatives of their members if the latter or some of
them should be required to appear as plaintiff or defendant for any
legal purpose connected with labour.
At the same time, the Decree reserves to the parties the right
to renounce representation by the association, or withdraw the charge,
or provide for their own defence by themselves or by an advocate
(section 19, subsection (6), and section 22).
The Decree simplifies judicial procedure in favour of associations.
An association may supply a court of law with information in writing,
stating facts, without any demand from a party or from the court.
Such information is added to the documents in the case and communicated to the parties in order that they may controvert them
during the proceedings if they think fit (section 22).
In their relations with the public authorities, associations have :
(1)

the right to propose the amendment and improvement of
the regulations for the health and safety of workers, housing and apprenticeship;

(2)

the right to appoint representatives to take part in commissions, joint committees and all other organisations
established to take cognisance of disputes arising in the
various industries and occupations between capital and
labour (section 19, paragraphs 7 and 4).

These are, in brief, the privileges conferred on associations in
the province of Barcelona by the Decree of 3 November 1922. Yet
in spite of these advantages, the reform has, in practice, remained
a dead letter. What are the reasons? It seems that in the first place,
owing to the conflict between the various trade union tendencies in
the province, it was very difficult, if not impossible, to combine in
a single association for each trade the majority of the persons
concerned, and this is an indispensable condition for the working
of the system. Secondly, the recognition of the union was made
dependent on so many detailed conditions of all kinds that the
existing association preferred to remain under the ordinary general
law, or even to exist " outside the l a w " , rather than adopt a system

236

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

of organisation which subjected all their activities to the permanent
supervision of the authorities. Finally, this reform, which rested
in essence on the principle of organisation by occupational and
territorial delimitation, was contrary to the increasing tendency
towards centralisation in workers' and employers' associations.
It remains true, however, that the Spanish Decree of 3 November 1922 constitutes one of the most complete attempts at codification
of trade union law. The experiment was not without value for the
future, for on this Decree, and in particular on certain provisions
relating to the trade powers of associations, the Government, a few
years later, based its institution of the national corporative organisation of industry.

CHAPTER III.
N A T I O N A L CORPORATIVE O R G A N I S A T I O N OF I N D U S T R Y

§ 1. — The Spirit and Antecedents oí Corporative Organisation *
W h e n the Military Directorate came into power in 1923 it
addressed manifestos to employers and workers in which it explained
the principles of its social policy 2 .
I n its manifesto to the workers the Directorate declared :
The Military Directorate has been much gratified by the welcome
which it has received from the Spanish people and in particular from the
workers, who represent one of the most important factors in the life of
a country and exert the greatest influence on the transformation and
growth of the nation.
The Directorate desires to make public its conviction that the chief
factor in the increase in the cost of living is to be found in the deficiencies
of vocational training and inadequacy of the labour supply and in the
fact that the output of labour is not proportionate to the length of the
working day.
The working classes, having been wilfully led astray and having
moreover been incensed by the feebleness and injustice of the public
authorities, have been embittered against their employers and have engaged in a struggle with them. What is still more serious is that the
workers have taken their vengeance at the expense of national production
by endeavouring to reduce output. . . .
Addressing itself more particularly to workers' associations, t h e
manifesto added :
The Directorate urges the workers to free themselves from their bonds
and to leave the organisations which, on the pretext of conferring advantages upon them are in reality leading them to ruin and destruction.
Workers' organisations are justifiable if formed for educational purposes.
for mutual protection and mutual relief, and even for rightful political
objects, but not if formed for the purpose of impeding production.

Legislative Decree of 26 Nov. 1926 concerning national corporative
organisation. An English translation will appear in the Legislative
Series of the International Labour Office for 1926.
2
See Industrial and Labour Information, Vol. VIII, No. 2, p. 44.

238

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

T h e manifesto laid particular stress on the need for greater and
better output, making this a condition for the improvement of social
legislation.
Legislation for the protection of the workers against abuses and
cupidity, legislation intended to guarantee them against the risks of old
age, to promote their education, and to secure for them a reasonable amount
of leisure, must be based on honest output on their part as regards both
quantity and quality. This is a factor of first importance in the cost
of living.
T h e following
employers.

day

the

Directorate issued

its manifesto

In the present circumstances the authority which has been entrusted
with the government considers it its duty to address the principal
industrial organisations in order to explain to them the attitude which
the Government intends to adopt with regard to the most important
national problems. The solution of the problem of production is of vital
importance to the nation, and to-day the Directorate addresses the. employers, the representatives of capital, as yesterday it addressed the
workers.
The Directorate has no need to say that in case of industrial disputes
it is firmly resolved to maintain order and to support the employers.
It feels bound, however, to explain its point of view — a point of view
which takes into account both modern conditions and the limitation of
human nature — regarding the relations between employers and workers
and the right of the latter to endeavour to find in lawful and peaceful
organisation the best method of participating in production.
It may be hoped that the avaricious and arbitrary type of employer
will soon disappear. A large number of employers have already introduced in their undertakings on their own initiative conditions more
favourable to the workers than any statutory regulations in force in any
other country. Those who act otherwise hamper progress and block the
way to the recognition of the rights of the workers. Their policy is
irejudicial to society and hinders the normal evolution of the national
ife.
Employers must not oppose ideas of progress which are neither a
danger to the social order nor an infringement of their legitimate rights
to organise and direct their undertakings. The direction of these cannot.
be subjected to supervision except in the case of lawfully constituted cooperative organisations of the type which on various occasions has had
so much success in Spain.
It is the duty of the State to see to it that the relations between
capital and labour and the policy followed in this respect have the best
results from the point of view of production. It is the State which must
prevent employers from arbitrarily influencing wages and hours of work.
Similarly it is the State which must see to it that workers fulfil their
obligations by not lightly altering the standards laid down or organising
revolutionary strikes.

These manifestos show t h a t the Directorate proposed to have
recourse to the collaboration of employers and workers in the work
of economic and social reorganisation it was about to undertake.

SPAIN

239

As soon as it came into power, therefore, is sketched its policy of
State intervention in the relations between capital and labour, a policy
on which the new corporative organisation created in 1926 ultimately
rests.
These manifestos were on the whole favourably received by both
employers and workers. The Spanish Employers' Federation declared
that " in order to ensure by cordial collaboration the realisation of
aspirations common to the various factors of production employers
were prepared to welcome the workers' demands, even of the boldest
kind, on condition that they were lawful, and to examine how far
they might be harmonised with the needs of national production ".
After enumerating a whole series of social reforms which it proposed
to support, the Employers' Federation declared that it was ready
" to sacrifice its interests in order to allow of the establishment of a
regime of peace and social reconciliation ".
On the other side, the executive committees of the Socialist
Party and the General Federation of Spanish Workers, speaking for
the working classes, asserted, in a note communicated to the press r
" their conviction that any kind of attempt to attack the rights
already established by labour legislation, rights which, however
modest, were the results of the action of the proletariat, would entail
fresh complications in the life of the country, whose range it would
be difficult to foretell, and the immediate effect of which would
be to intensify the causes of the national economic crisis ". This
declaration could hardly be described as an unreserved adhesion to
the programme proposed by the Directorate, but it was nevertheless
interpreted as a manifestation of benevolent neutrality.
The
foundations of an agreement, which if not expressed was at least
tacit, and was to decide the future tendencies of trade union legislation, were thus laid.
In the first few years of the military dictatorship the Directorate
made great attempts to win over at least some of the workers' unions
in favour of its policy. Its line of conduct appears to have been to
hamper the action of openly separatist and revolutionary associations,
and on the contrary to promote the development of associations which
were profoundly rooted in the country, even if their tendency was
towards the left, provided that they represented a force making for
peaceful administration. The Directorate accordingly gave the trade
unions representation in the new corporative municipal assemblies

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

240

and provincial councils, and the Council of State, as reorganised on
13 September 1924.
This policy of the Directorate prepared public opinion for the
acceptance of the national corporative organisation of industry set
up by the Decree of 26 November 1926. The support given from the
first by trade organisations to the work of the Government is largely
to be explained by the fact that the new form of organisation is to
some extent based on existing trade associations. It should in fact
be observed, for this is one of the distinctive features of the reform,
that the Spanish legislature, instead of following the Italian
precedent ', did not consider it necessary to revise the status of
associations before allowing them to take part in the new regulation
of conditions of work. The.various laws relating to associations,
whether covering Spain as a whole or only the province of Barcelona,
were maintained in full. Within the limits of this legislation the
legislative Decree respects the status of free trade associations,
" organisations which must always have more life than Government
creations because they enjoy the trust of their members and are the
result of mutual good-will, enthusiasm, faith jn an ideal, and
sacrifice " 2. The associations, without in any way losing their
character of free organisations, enter in the corporative State, as will
be more clearly explained below, by forming the electorate for the
joint committees on which the whole system rests. The new system
is, indeed, the natural outcome of Spanish trade union legislation.
In previous chapters the Acts and Legislative Decrees constituting
the national antecedents of the Legislative Decree on corporative
organisation have been analysed. Among the more characteristic
measures in this respect reference may be made to the Legislative
Decree of 22 April 1920 setting up the first Mixed Labour Commission in Barcelona, the Royal Decree of 5 October 1922 setting
up temporary and permanent joint committees, the Royal Decree of
25 August 1923 entrusting to these committees the work of settlingstrikes affecting public interests, and a whole series of complementary
measures adopted in 1924 and 1925. " In view of the satisfactory
results of this experience ", said the Minister of Labour, " we have
decided to make these committees compulsory, in order to prevent

Cf. Italy, p. 1 of present volume.

- El Sol, Dec. 1926.

SPAIN

241

p a r t y or class interests from destroying recourse to these methods of
conciliation. "
I n addition to these national antecedents, it may be of interest
t o refer to the foreign experience which has in some measure inspired
the l e g i s l a t i v e Decree. Mr. A u n o s , Minister of Labour a n d the
principal author of the reform, himself referred to this point in a
press interview ' :
The idea of co-ordinating the joint committees was gradually developed. On the one hand, I' was influenced by the Italian Act of 3 April
1926 on collective relations in connection with employment, and on the
other, I was much impressed by the Belgian Royal Decree of 5 May 1926
making joint conciliation and arbitration committees compulsory.
Of these two laws the Belgian Act is that best adapted to the realities of Spanish industrial conditions. Admittedly Belgium has no general
national organisation, nor has it any corporative organisation, apart from
the fact that the higher authority of the joint committees is the National
Labour Committee, although even so there is no connection between the
committees for the different trades. In the Spanish Decree use has
been made of the experience gained both at home and abroad. Our Decree
is more democratic than the Belgian, for in Belgium the members of the
committees are appointed by the Minister on the nomination of the associations ; in Spain, on the contrary, the associations themselves freely
designate their representatives.
It is also more democratic than the Italian Act ; the latter reserves
to the Government the right to recognise employers' or workers' organisations or not, according to their views and tendencies, and this approval,
which makes them official associations, gives them the right to act to the
exclusion of all others in regulating conditions of work. Moreover, the
Italian corporative bodies have not the organic. character of those set up
by our Legislative Decree, for ultimately they are nothing but meetings
of national trade associations.
T h e study of the legislative antecedents of the reform and t h e
analysis of the official statements made by its authors now make it
clear w h a t end the Spanish legislature had in view. I n the first
place, and this was the immediate purpose, it proposed to introduce
compulsory and general procedure for the settlement of labour
disputes. Secondly, and this was the ultimate purpose, it proposed
to establish under the supervision, if not the direction, of the State,
b u t with the consent of t h e parties, stable relations between capital
and labour with a view to increasing o u t p u t and State authority.
I t was claimed t h a t this end might be achieved by means of a new
form of organisation, the National Corporative Organisation, whose
most characteristic features will now be examined in t u r n .

Statement published in La Nación, Madrid, n Dec. 1926.

Freedom of Association

242

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

§ 2 . — The Constitution of the National Corporative Organisation.
SCOPE

T h e system of Corporative Organisation is based on the
preliminary classification of industries and trades. According to
section i , t h e elements of which Spanish industry is composed are
organised on the basis of specialised bodies, each of which is given
official representation by the appointment of joint committees with
graduated jurisdiction. T h i s system is based on the classification
and definition of the occupations which together constitute t h e
national industry '.

1
Section 9 classifies industries, employments, trades and occupations
in the following corporative groups :

A. — Primary Production
(i) Mining : mines, quarries and saltpits, exploitation of all classes
of veins or seams, springs and sources of water.
(2)
Fishing.
B. — Secondary Production
(3) Electricity, gas and water : electricity, gas, compressed air,
and similar works ; supply of water and hydraulic power.
(4) Iron and other metal working and allied industries :
(a)

iron working, including first transforming processes ;
various rolling mills ;
(b) all metal working except that of iron ;
(c) metal construction ; engineering ; construction and manufacture of transport material of all kinds ;
(d) production of apparatus and articles made altogether or
principally of metal which do not belong to a special
group owing to the nature of their employment.
(5) Building materials : manufacture and preparation of all stone
and earth materials intended for constructional and hydraulic works,
such as cement, stone, marble, mosaics and artificial stone ; pottery and
china ; glass and crystal ; heating, ventilation, sanitary engineering and
preliminary wood-working.
(6) Building tirades : all building trades, including decoration,
ventilation, heating and hygiene of buildings ; public works and
carpentry.
(7) Furniture industry : furniture, cabinet-making, chair-making,
upholstery ; wood, ivory and bone turners and cutters.
(8) Textile
industries.
(9) Clothing and millinery industries : manufacture and transformation of articles excluding personal services ;
(10) Luxury
industries : goldsmiths' and silversmiths' work,
jewellery, hardware, toys, watches, and clocks.

SPAIN

Section 57 excludes from this system agriculture, home work,
domestic service, and work carried on in private offices or those of
the liberal professions, as also the work of u n d e r t a k i n g s and estates
directly exploited by the Government, and public services carried on
by the State or by a province, municipality, or any other official
body. I n the case of public services carried on under contracts or
concessions, the Government may authorise the formation of joint

( n ) Electrical and scientific instruments : lighting, optical, photographic, topographical, astronomical, meteorological, musical, medical
and surgical instruments ; apparatus, and material ; weights, and
measures ; teaching and laboratory material.
(12) Printing and allied trades : printing trades, including photography and bookbinding.
(13) Chemical industries :
(a)

manufacture of chemicals used in arts and industries,
• pharmacies, agriculture, and for domestic purposes ;
(6) powders and explosives ; matches of wood or wax ;
(c) production and working of paper, cardboard, rubber,
celluloid and similar materials ;
(d) hides and leather.
(14) Milling and baking : milling, baking, biscuits, and Italian
paste ;
(15) Preserved food industry.
(16) Food industries : food products, including milk products :
manufacture of sweets and chocolate.
(17) Sugar and alcohol : sugar factories and distilleries ; preparation
of beer and ice.
'18Ì Press and publishing.
\ 19)
(20)
(21)
included
(22)
(23)

C. — Services, Commerce, and Miscellaneous
Land transport.
Maritime, river, and air transport, including port services.
Communications : various means of communication not
under previous heads.
Public
entertainments.
Hotel industry :
(a) hotels, boarding houses, and restaurants ;
(b) cafés, public-houses, bars and similar establishments ;

(24) Hygienic services : baths, hairdressers, shoe cleaners ; laundries ; various hygienic and toilet services ;
(25) Commerce : wholesale and retail trade.
(26) Offices and banks, including similar commercial
establishments.
(27) Various industries and occupations : all those which cannot
be placed under one of the previous heads.

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FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

committees in such form as appears most suitable to the satisfactory
working of the service in question where there is no special provision
to the contrary. A n y earlier provisions concerning joint committees
in services of this kind remain in force l.
On the basis and within the limits of this classification the Decree
organises the representation of trade interests by means of joint
bodies with graduated jurisdiction, namely :
(i)
(2)
(3)
(4)

local and inter-local joint committees ;
mixed labour commissions;
corporations and corporation councils;
the Delegate Commission of Corporation Councils.

1
The following, according to the Minister of Labour (La Organización corporativa del trabajo, p. 51), are the reasons given for the
exclusion of these occupations from the system :

(a) Home work, because a Legislative Decree of 26 July 1926 had
already introduced a special system of joint boards for this group of
workers, to fix minimum rates of wages.
(b) The liberal professions, because the work of lawyers, doctors,
etc., should be considered on the same footing as that in public appointments.
(c) Undertakings and estates directly exploited by the Government
and public services carried on by the State, provinces, municipalities, etc.,
because the methods of running such undertakings differ widely from
those employed in private undertakings. In the case of public services
carried on under contracts or concessions, the Government proposes to
create a special system of joint organisation appropriate to each of these
services. Thus a national joint committee has already been set up for
the telephone service, and special joint committees for the railways.
Public services property so called, on the other hand, come into the
system of national corporative organisation. The proof is that in
Barcelona, already before the new Act came into force, joint committees
for gas and electricity works had been set up and remain in operation.
As regards agriculture, which was temporarily excluded from the
system for technical reasons, a Legislative Decree of 12 May 1928,
published in the Gaceta de Madrid of 20 Ma}' 1928, created a special
corporative organisation, the characteristic features of which may be
summarised.
The explanatory memorandum to this Decree recalls that the
Legislative Decree of 26 Nov. 1926 creating the National Corporative
Organisation of Industry met the need " of creating a national social
structure which would allow of the peaceful application of social legislation ". The intention of the Government was to extend this measure
to all branches of human activity, but agriculture demanded preliminary
and careful study.
The Decree provides for the constitution of three groups on a corporative basis. The first consists of agricultural employers and workers, its

245

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These institutions together form the National Corporative
Organisation. T h e y may be studied from t h e point of view of the
structure, composition, functions, working, and dissolution of each
of the component bodies.
S T R U C T U R E AND C O M P O S I T I O N

Before examining the composition properly so called of the
various corporative bodies, their legal status and field of activity
should first be defined.
Legal
Joint

Status

of Joint

Bodies

Committees

T h e joint committees are public institutions, and for this reason
the initiative in setting t h e m u p is not left to those actually concerned,
but lies with the Government. According to section 7 :
The joint committees shall be created by a Royal Order of the Ministry
of Labour, beginning with the chief centres of industrial population, and
among these with the occupations and trades where this is called for
owing to the special conditions of work.
t

T h u s , the Ministry of Labour does n o t from the outset appoint
joint committees for the whole of industry, b u t only as and when
special circumstances require. T h e suitable time for their creation
is in fact left entirely to its discretion, b u t once a decision has been

function being to fix the conditions of work by agreement and to settle
any difficulties arising out of the observance of the agreements reached.
The second consists of landowners and tenants of various kinds, its duty
being to establish normal relations between these two sets of persons.
The third includes the producers of agricultural raw materials on the
one hand and those who use and transform such materials on the other.
The first two groups will set up, on the lines of the National Corporative Organisation, joint committees with graduated jurisdiction :
local in the first grade, inter-local in the second, and finally, at the top,
corporation councils. An appeal against the decisions of the local and
inter-local committees may be taken to the corporation council and the
Ministry of Labour. The third group will be constituted on the basis
of arbitration committees, which will vary in character according to circumstances and the special structure of each industry. These bodies will
similarly be grouped in national corporations in which all types of
agricultural manufacture will be represented.

246

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

taken, the parties concerned cannot interfere with the carrying into
effect of the measure. According to section 16:
When a local or inter-local joint committee set up by the Ministry of
í.abour is unable to work owing to the systematic and unjustifiable refusal
of either of the parties concerned to appoint its representatives, the
Minister may appoint them ex officio.
Section 10 defines the field of application and number of joint
committees. Each of the corporative groups specified in section 9
is represented within its respective locality or localities by as many
joint committees as the trades or occupations it comprises. The
number of local joint committees will therefore be that considered
necessary for the proper representation of all the groups distinguished
in the Legislative Decree.
It follows from this section that the institution of joint committees depends on the observance of the rule of occupational and
territorial delimitation. But, as section 10, subsection (2), adds, in
exceptional cases, where the extension of a particular industry, its
special aim and the particular nature of labour relations so demand,
joint committees for several localities may be set up. In every case
the Ministry of Labour reserves the right to define for each group
concerned these special industrial characteristics. In addition, in
provinces which are economically not much developed, either because
the principal industries are of the same kind, or because there is no
corporative organisation, the Ministry of Labour may set up, by
Royal Order, provincial joint committees and a mixed commission
comprising and representing them.
Finally, according to section 1 of the supplementary provisions
of the Decree, the rules concerning the organisation and functions
of the joint committees will apply to existing joint committees, which
will be incorporated with any joint bodies subsequently set up. On
the other hand, there will be no change in the organisation, working
and electoral rules of the joint committees and mixed commissions
for commerce in Barcelona ; only their powers will be brought into
conformity with those conferred on joint organisations by the present
Decree.
Mixed

Commissions

Whereas the joint committees are compulsory institutions, the
mixed commissions, on the contrary, are voluntary groups. According to section 19, they are formed by the voluntary combination of

SPAIN

joint committees which from the labour or economic point of view
are connected : (i) because they represent similar, and therefore
homogeneous, industrial functions; (2) because they co-ordinate
in an economic whole trades and occupations engaged in a series
of inter-related operations within the system of industrial organisation; (3) because there is a direct relation between the trade
activities represented, due to simultaneous and concurrent action in
the work of production.
This definition, while still inspired by the rule of organisation
by trades, yet extends the idea sufficiently for the groups that are
freely formed by the joint committees to be able to adapt themselves
to the always changing necessities created by the movement of
concentration and integration in industry.
As already shown, the initiative in setting up the mixed commissions is taken by the joint committees themselves. This must be
followed, however, by a Royal Decree in order to give them official
standing. Moreover, within a fortnight of entering on their duties
they must draft the rules which they are to observe. These rules
are submitted to the Ministry of Labour for approval, which decides
after consulting the Delegate Commission of Corporation Councils
(section 22).
The Corporations and Corporation Councils
According to section 4 of the Legislative Decree, the corporation
consists of the combination of all the joint committees for the
occupations, trades and services comprised in each of the paragraphs
of section 9. There are therefore twenty-seven corporations. The
schedule contained in section 9 is not unchangeable, however, for
section 4 adds that in the event of the creation of new corporations,
owing to the fact that one of the trades or occupations mentioned
in the section separates from the group, or to the constitution of
new occupational groups, the promulgation of a Legislative Decree
governing their working and functions will be necessary, to be
issued on the report of the Delegate Commission of Corporation
Councils and the Permanent Committee of the Council of Labour.
Each corporation will have a council which acts as the central
body for the occupation. Its headquarters will be fixed by Royal
Order in the locality where the industry or industries covered are
most highly developed (section 29).

248
The Delegate

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION
Commission

of the Corporation

Councils

T h e Delegate Commission of the Corporation
a co-ordinating body between these councils. I t
direct advisory organ in the Ministry of l a b o u r
relating to the corporations which t h e Ministry
t o h e a r (section 3 3 ) .

Councils acts as
also serves as a
for all questions
decides it ought

T h e corporations, corporation councils, a n d Delegate
mission are bound to act in their respective spheres.
Composition

of the Various Joint

Bodies

Com-

According to the new section 11, the local joint
committees
consist of five employers' representatives and five workers' representatives with an equal number of substitutes, all of whom must
belong to the industry or industries, trades or occupations for which
t h e committee is set u p , and be included in the registers for employers
or workers as the case m a y be. T h e chairman and first vice-chairm a n must be unconnected with the occupation, and are freely
appointed by the Ministry of l a b o u r , which also appoints t h e
secretary, w h o has no right to speak or vote at meetings.
The
second vice-chairman, the assistant secretary, the treasurer, and the
accountant are appointed by the committee itself from among its
members in such a way that these functions are equally divided a m o n g
employers and workers. I n special cases the Ministry of Labour m a y
reduce t h e number, b u t the representation of employers and workers
must always be equal. W h e n t h e chairman is present, t h e vicechairman appointed by the Ministry is entitled to speak but not to
vote. T h e Ministry of Labour m a y authorise the joint committees
to increase the number of their employer and worker members if such
a measure is justified b y the importance of the industry or branch
of industry, or for any other admissible reason. I t may similarly
reduce the number of representatives in localities where this measure
is justified because industry is only slightly developed.
According to the new section 13, t h e inter-local joint
committees
consist of seven employers' delegates a n d seven workers' delegates

1
See the Royal Legislative Decree of 18 June 1927 amending sections 11, 13, 15, 20, 30, and 34, and section 2 of the transitional provisions,
of the Royal Decree of 26 Dec. 1926. An English translation will appear
in the Legislative Series for 1927.

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249

with an equal number of substitutes. T h e chairman and vice-chairm e n , w h o must be unconnected with t h e occupation, are designated
by the Ministry of Labour. T h e remaining regulations concerning
the appointment of t h e officials of the local joint committees also
apply to that of the officials of the inter-local committees.
T h e mixed labour commissions consist, u n d e r the new section 20,
of t h r e e representatives of employers and three representatives of
workers from each of the joint committees constituting them. These
representatives must belong as employers or workers to the trades
or industries composing the mixed commission, but it is not necessary
t h a t they should belong to the joint committees combined in t h e
commission.
E a c h mixed commission has a chairman, first and second vicechairmen, secretary, assistant secretary, treasurer, and accountant.
T h e chairman and first vice-chairman, w h o must be unconnected
w i t h the trades covered by the commission, are appointed by the
Ministry of Labour. If a judge is appointed, there will be no
incompatibility with his judicial functions. T h e Ministry of Labour
also appoints the secretary, on the proposal of the mixed commission
concerned. T h e other officials are appointed by the commission
itself from among its own members, the appointments being divided
equally between employers and workers
E a c h corporation
council, according to the new section 30,
consists of a chairman, vice-chairman, eight employers' representatives, eight workers' representatives, and a n equal number of
substitutes. All must belong to the industry or industries comprised
in the corporation, and are elected by the joint committees for t h e
industry, trade or occupation concerned.
W h e n the corporation is subdivided into secondary groups as
shown in section g 1, each of the latter elects four employers' and
four workers' representatives with an equal n u m b e r of substitutes,
and these trade committees together constitute t h e corporation council.
T h e employer and worker members of the council are elected
by the representatives of employers and workers respectively on the
local and inter-local committees. If when the votes of t h e various
committees are counted it is found that one of the minority candidates
has obtained at least 20 per cent, of the votes of the employers and
workers in the occupation concerned, this minority may be repre-

See p. 242, note 1.

250

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

sented, in which case each group of the council will consist of six
members of the majority and two of the minority. If the corporation
has five sub-groups and the minorities obtain at least 20 per cent.
of the votes, the latter elects for each class, one of the four members
of the sub-group.
The Delegate Commission of Corporation Councils similarly has
a chairman and vice-chairman appointed by Royal Decree of the
Ministry of Labour, and a secretary-general designated by the Ministry (end of section 33 ).
As soon as the corporation councils enter on their duties, the
new section 34 adds that the trade representatives in each council,
having been convened by the Ministry of Labour, appoint an employers' representative and a workers' representative who, meeting
at Madrid, will freely elect the members of the Delegate Commission.
This body consists of seven employers' representatives, seven
workers' representatives, and an equal number of substitutes. Whenever the nature or importance of the subject under discussion requires,
or on the proposal of the Delegate Commission, the Minister of Labour
may convene the corporation councils or their authorised representatives, together or separately, for which purpose the agenda of the
questions to be examined must be submitted to each of the corporations in sufficient time for the representatives to be able to acquire
full credentials. In such a case the function of chairman of corporations is assumed by the Minister of Labour, who acts &x officio a?
chairman of all the corporations, and that of first vice-chairman by
the chairman of the Delegate Commission.
The chairman prepares the meetings of the Delegate Commission.
presides over the discussion, having the right to vote, has its
decisions carried out, and keeps the Commission, corporations, and
Ministry of Labour in constant touch with each other.
The treasurer, accountant, assistant secretary, and second vicechairman are elected freely by the members, as in the mixed labour
commissions, on condition that the system of rotation as between
employers and workers is observed.
The Director-General of Labour and Social Action and the Factory Inspector-General, or the Deputy Director and Assistant Inspector-General acting on their behalf, are ex-officio members of the Delegate Commission of Corporation Councils. On the proposal of the
Commission, the Ministry of Labour appoints the necessary staff for
organising the services of its general secretariat.

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25I

Finally, both in the joint committees and in the central corporative bodies, technical experts may act as assessors, although without
t h e right to vote, being designated either by the parties if they so
decide, or at the request of the parties by the Ministry of Labour.
T h e term of office of the joint organisations is five years without
limit to the right of re-election (section 38-40).
I t follows from these various provisions that the corporative
organisations consist of four separate elements :
( 1 ) T h e representatives in equal numbers of employers a n d workers in the industry, trade or occupation concerned ;
(2) T h e officers, some of whom a r e designated by the bodies
themselves and some by the Government ; but only the
chairman has the right to vote, acting as a conciliator or
arbitrator directly representing t h e authorities ;
(3) T h e secretariat, which will probably form the permanent
technical organisation of the institution l ;
(4) T h e technical assessors, w h o , like the secretaries, act in an
advisory capacity and have no right to vote.
Participation
Composition

of Trade

Associations

of the Joint

in the

Organisations

T h e account of the regulations concerning the composition of
t h e joint organisations will have shown that, subject t o t h e intervention of the representative of the Ministry of Labour, the working
of t h e corporative system rests on t h e direct representation of t h e
parties concerned. T h e questions how the representatives on the prim a r y joint committees are designated, whether t h e associations intervene in such designation, and if so, how far, are therefore of capital
importance. Now, according to t h e Decree, the appointment of t h e
members of the joint committees is the result of direct election by
recognised associations. I t is t h e n t h e trade associations with electoral capacity that ultimately decide on the policy of their delegates
in the corporative organisations. T h e r e is therefore occasion to examine in some detail what conditions are imposed on the associations
for obtaining electoral capacity, the conditions of eligibility, and the
m e t h o d s of election.

Cf. Mariano GONSALEZ-ROTHNOSS : " La misión de las secretarias
en los comités paritarios ". Revista Social, Vol. III.

252

FREEDOM OP ASSOCIATION

Electoral Capacity of Associations
According to section 12, the employers' and workers' representatives on the joint committees are elected by the workers' and employers' trade organisations respectively, in the industry, trade, occupation or group in question, if these are lawfully constituted and
included in the electoral register prepared by the Ministry of Labour.
I t is explained in section 3 that in order to ensure the representation
of each occupational group in the joint corporative organisations, a
register of employers' and workers' organisations will be kept at the
General Directorate of Labour and Social Action, which will be
revised once a year in accordance with the Royal Decree of
5 March 1926.
For the purpose of applying the joint system, section 12, subsection (2), adds that an association will be deemed to be a workers'
association if it consists exclusively of intellectual or manual workers
who combine for the defence or promotion of the interests of the
trade, occupation, or group for which the joint committee is set up.
The members of the inter-local joint committees are elected by
the associations in the industry concerned, under similar conditions
to those indicated for the local committees.
The first condition for participation in the elections is therefore
" that the associations shall be lawfully constituted "; in other words,
they must conform to the legislation in force, i.e. the Acts of 1887
and 1923 and the Barcelona Decree of 1922. Existing associations
which have not obtained legal recognition, therefore, cannot obtain
the right of electing to the joint committees.
In the second place, the associations must be entered on the electoral register. Inclusion in this register may in some respects be
considered a proof of corporative capacity. Section 5 of the transitional provisions states, however, that pending the full coming into
operation of the Decree and the approval of the electoral register, and
before the constitution of each joint committee, a brief time limit will
be allowed for associations which believe they have the right to be
represented on the joint committee, to satisfy the necessary conditions, provided that the Permanent Commission of the Labour Council
has first approved.
Finally, there is the third condition that the associations must
satisfy the rule as to occupational and territorial delimitation in
their organisation.

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253

As regards the employers' electorate, the term employers' trade
associations is taken to cover not only employers'.associations set up
in accordance with the Associations Act, but also civil and commercial associations which normally employ over a hundred workers.
The members of the associations or societies which have electoral
capacity have the right to vote when each representative body is
elected. The register of the members of each association serves as
an electoral list. In associations including several industries, trades
or classes of workers, only those members belonging to the occupation
or group with which the committee is concerned are entitled to vote.
It is only when there are no associations satisfying the statutory
conditions that the employers and workers interested in setting up a
committee may designate their respective representatives, in separate
meetings convened by the regional authorities, the mayor, or the
chairman of the local office of the Labour Council, and held in accordance with the provisions of the Act of 15 June 1880 on the exercise
of the right of assembly.
Conditions of Eligibility
Section 15 provides that membership of the local and inter-local
joint committees is open to Spaniards of full age who have not been
declared incapable of fulfilling their public duties. Women have the
right to vote and are eligible.
In the inter-local joint committees the majority of the members
representing employers and workers respectively must reside in the
locality where the committee is to be set up.
Methods of Election
The election of the workers' representatives on the joint committees takes place within each workers' association in accordance
with its rules and regulations, but in the presence of a representative
of the authorities. The election of the employers' representatives
takes place within each employers' association, which has one vote if
the members employ less than a hundred workers, and an additional
vote for every additional hundred or fraction of a hundred employed.
Civil and commercial associations have two votes if they employ over
a hundred workers and less than two hundred, with an additional
vote for every additional hundred or fraction of a hundred.
The counting of the votes and the declaration of the results are
entrusted to the regional authorities, or failing these, the local labour

254

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

office, for which purpose these bodies receive the partial records
giving the results of the voting in the associations or organisations.
These results must be published. An appeal against the legality or
accuracy of the records or acts nullifying the vote may be taken to
the Ministry of Labour, which decides without appeal after having
heard the Delegate Commission of Corporation Councils; but the
necessary formalities connected with the appeal may not suspend the
constitution of the joint committee.
Voting is secret and taken by ballot. The results are recorded
before a notary (section 12, subsections (s)-(8)).
T H E POWERS OF THE JOINT ORGANISATIONS

The system of ascending gradation in the corporative institutions
is accompanied by a similar gradation in their powers. Thus the
working of the primary bodies, the local and inter-local joint
committees, is under the control and jurisdiction of the higher
organisations — the mixed commission, the Delegate Commission
of Corporation Councils, and the Ministry of Labour.
The powers of the joint organisations are held by virtue of their
twofold function : on the one hand, that of regulation, by which they
are responsible for governing conditions of work, and, on the other,
their advisory function, by which they must advise the Government
on all questions of social and economic policy.
The Function of Regulation
In performing their duties in this field, the joint committees are
responsible for :
(1)

determining for the respective trade or occupation, or
groups of trades and occupations, the conditions for the
regulation of work (remuneration, hours of work, rest
periods) and generally the conditions which may serve as
a basis for contracts of employment, and imposing suitable
penalties on persons contravening their decisions;

(2)

preventing industrial disputes and trying to settle them if
they arise ;

(3)

adjusting individual or collective differences between
employers and workers, submitted to them by the parties ;
organising labour exchanges with a view to finding work
for the unemployed at any time. For this purpose they

(4)

SPAIN

(5)

255

are to keep an occupational register of employers and
workers in their particular branch of industry living in the
locality, and they may issue certificates proving the
inclusion of such employers and workers in the register ;
carrying out any other social function which may be
beneficial to the occupation concerned (section 17).

The mixed commissions are competent in their respective spheres
to consider, for the purpose of approving and giving effect to the
same, all decisions of the joint committees of their group relating
to the regulation of work, hours of work, rest periods, termination of
employment, and other conditions serving as a basis for contracts of
employment.
They also deal with infringements of these decisions and cases
of non-observance, and impose suitable penalties, which may only be
economic, on proof of infringement, even without the application
of one of the parties concerned, and see to it that the penalties are
carried out.
They must further endeavour to secure the amicable settlement
of disputes and differences between employers and workers, and give
effect to conciliation awards which the parties have agreed to accept.
Finally, it is the duty of the mixed commissions to establish or
support institutions for technical and vocational education, and for
the protection or welfare of the workers, to carry out investigations
of a social character contributing to this work of education and
social progress, and to publish the results. When the mixed committees engage in this work of education and propaganda, section 23
provides that, with a view to co-ordinating the action taken in
different fields, and for the purpose of the inspection which must
always lie with the Government, the Ministry of Labour will define
the supervisory powers to be conferred in each case on the regional
authorities, so that these may direct the activity of the commissions
in agreement with the latter (sections 21 and 23).
It is the function of the corporation councils :
(1)

as a higher joint authority to hear all claims that may
arise in regard to decisions of a general character, and as
such affecting the whole industry or an important branch
of the industry ;

(2)

to determine the conditions for the regulation of work in
the case of rules or contracts that may be binding upon

256

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

(3)

(4)

occupational groups of more than one locality or district,
subject in such cases to appeal to the Ministry of labour,
which decides after hearing the Delegate Commission;
to hear and decide appeals from decisions of local or interlocal joint committees, and to endeavour to settle disputes
which are within their competence, or which the local or
inter-local committees have failed to settle;
to adjust disputes between joint committees of different
localities in the same trade, and to lay down general
principles for the settlement of disputes which may be
occasioned by unemployment within the branches of
industry subject to their jurisdiction, for which purpose
the employment exchanges and the committees must furnish
the Council with the necessary information (section 32,
subsections (1), (2), (3), and (8)).
Advisory

Function

By virtue of this second function the joint organisations have
the following powers.
The inter-local joint committees may propose to the Government
the adoption of the technical and occupational measures they consider
necessary for the life and growth of their industry (section 18).
The mixed commissions, besides watching over the observance
of general regulations concerning the organisation of work in their
respective trades and occupations, also recommend to the public
authorities the reforms and measures they consider expedient (section 2i, subsection (3)).
The corporation councils are responsible :
(1)

subject to the approval of the Ministry of Labour after
hearing the Delegate Commission of Corporation Councils,
for holding congresses with a view to promoting the
progress of the industry or branch of industry concerned ;

(2)

for providing the Government with information on
questions relating to technical and vocational education,
and to all social measures capable of being carried out in
each industry by direct collaboration between employers
and workers ;
for working for the intensification of corporative activity
and of the joint action of the various interests represented,

(3)

SPAIN

(4)

(5)

257

by encouraging social welfare institutions among their
members ;
for making an official collection, subject to the previous
approval of a Royal Order of the Ministry of Labour, of
the provisions in force in the branches of industry within
their jurisdiction in virtue of decisions of joint committees,
mixed commissions and the council itself ;
for bringing to the knowledge of the Government all such
social facts as may contribute to the formation of a body
of experience likely to be of service for the development
and guidance of legislation (section 32, subsections (4),
(5), (6), (7), and (9)).

The Government's principal advisory body is the Delegate
Commission of Corporation Councils, which acts as a direct advisory
organ in the Ministry of Labour in all questions relating to the
corporations and affecting both workers and employers, in which
the Ministry decides it shall be heard. The Ministry is bound to
consult it whenever there is a question of amending the Decrees on
corporative organisation, and it may itself propose to the Ministry
the changes it considers expedient, in view of the experience gained
in the administration of the Decree.
All that has been possible here is to enumerate the powers
conferred on the joint organisations by the Legislative Decree. At
the present time, when the corporative structure is still in process
of being formed, all comment on the probable effect of its provisions
would be premature. It seems, moreover, that the object of the
legislature has been to draw up a simple general programme of work
for the organisations, rather than provide a, so to speak, anticipated
solution of problems which will not appear with sufficient distinctness
until the new system is actually in operation. However this may be,
the Decree has already defined the procedure by which the joint
organisations exercise their powers of regulation and jurisdiction.
T H E WORKING OF THE CORPORATIVE SYSTEM

The joint committees, in the first instance, and the mixed
commissions, in the second, are genuine institutions for the
regulation of conditions of work. The higher joint bodies, for the
matter of that, like the Government, intervene only for the purpose
of supervising and, if need be, revising the decisions taken by the
Freedom of Association

258

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

joint committees and the mixed commissions. In order to obtain
some idea of the working of the corporative system, it will therefore
be necessary to study the procedure followed, first by the joint
committees, and then by the mixed commissions in taking their
decisions, how these decisions may be revised or annulled, and finally
how they are carried out.
The Decisions of the Joint

Committees

According to section 41, the decisions of the local and inter-local
joint committees are taken by an absolute majority of the votes of
employers and workers at the meetings held on a first convocation,
and by an absolute majority of the members present at the meetings
held on a second convocation.
When a question is put to the vote at an ordinary meeting the
vote is not valid unless the number of employers and workers is
equal. In the meetings held on a second convocation and in
extraordinary meetings, only the questions mentioned in the convocation may be discussed.
The chairman has not a casting vote except in case of equality
on a second vote, his functions being in other cases limited to
conciliation and endeavours to secure agreement.
These provisions show that the Decree in some measure respects
the trade autonomy of the two panties. It is only in exceptional
cases and on the second vote that the chairman may use his vote to
influence the decision to be taken.
Before the decisions of the joint committees are valid, they must
undergo a twofold supervision. They are first submitted to the next
grade of authority, the competent mixed commissions, without which
section 42 lays down that they cannot be carried into effect.
Secondly, they are submitted to the general supervision of the State
authorities, in this case the regional labour delegation, the labour
inspectorate, and the Delegate Commission of Corporation Councils,
which examine them from the point of view of legality and social
and economic expediency.
As regards this first point, the check on legality, section 43
provides that if the decision is contrary to regulations in force, or
outside the powers of the committee, the regional delegate, if there
is one, or the provincial labour inspectorate, must notify the
civil Governor and the Ministry of Labour. The Governor has the
right to suspend the enforcement of the decision within six days of

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259

receiving the communication from the regional delegate or the
inspector. The joint committee may appeal to the Ministry of Labour
through the prescribed channels within ten days, its appeal being
transmitted first to the regional delegation or labour inspectorate,
which hands it on to the civil Governor, who, within the same period,
must transmit it accompanied by a report to the Ministry. If within
twenty days the Ministry, having consulted the Delegate Commission.
confirms the suspension, the latter is considered final. If not
'confirmed within this period, the decision is held to be valid and
final.
This check on the legality of the decisions of the joint committees
is supplemented by a check of a social and economic nature.
Section 43 adds that in the case of decisions which, without infringing
legal regulations, yet may, in the opinion of the regional delegate
or provincial inspector, prove injurious to the interests of the
industry or a branch of the industry, such decision must be brought
to the knowledge of the Ministry of Labour, which, after consulting
the competent corporative council, takes the decision which it
considers best. In urgent cases the Ministry may merely consult
the Delegate Commission. The Delegate Commission of Corporation
Councils may propose the revision of all decisions of joint committees the enforcement of which might injure the interests of the
occupation and industry concerned, owing to new circumstances and
subsequent changes in economic conditions. In such cases, before
the decision is taken, the local or inter-local joint committee whose
decision is at issue must be heard. These provisions show that the
State always reserves to itself the power to turn the social and
economic policy of the joint committees in the direction it considers
best.
The decisions of the joint committees are not only subject to
the normal check by the authorities. They may also be attacked by
way of an appeal lodged by the third parties concerned with the
corporation council and, if need be, the Ministry of Labour.
According to section 45, an appeal against the decisions of the
local and inter-local joint committees may be taken to the competent
corporation council, whose awards, if of a general nature or likely
to affect a whole industry or branch of industry, may similarly be
taken to the Ministry of Labour. Any member of the committee,
or any person who can prove his direct interest in the matter, has the
right to appeal. Before deciding, the Minister of Labour must consult

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FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

the Delegate Commission and the Permanent Committee of the
Labour Council.
If the decisions of the joint committee have become final, that
is to say, if they have not been amended, suspended or revised, either
owing to the supervision of the higher corporative authorities and
the Ministry of Labour, or in consequence of appeal, they are binding
on all concerned. This follows from section 44 which imposes the
following penalties for infringement.
A joint committee which has to consider an infringement of one
of its decisions must summon the offender to appear before it
within three days. It decides on the. case, and may impose the
penalties established by the Act of 4 July 191S, which may be
increased in the case of a repeated offence, subject to a maximun?
fine of a thousand pesetas. There are, however, two ways of appealing against these sentences. In the first place the economic penalty
pronounced in the manner defined by the Legislative Decree may be
attacked before a full meeting of the local or inter-local committee
imposing the penalty, provided that the sum does not exceed
100 pesetas; in all cases the person concerned must be heard. If the
sum exceeds this figure and is under the maximum allowed
(i,ooo pesetas), the appeal must be made within ten days to the
Delegate Commission of the Corporation Councils, whose decision
is final.
If all forms of remedy have been exhausted and the offender
refuses to pay within a week, the committee may request the
competent judge of first instance to enforce payment.
The Decisions of the Mixed

Commissions

The mixed commissions follow the same procedure as the joint
committees in taking their decisions, but the Government has power
beforehand to check the manner in which they are taken. For this
purpose, section 46 provides that when the rules for each of the
mixed commissions are approved, details must be given as to the
nature of the decisions and resolutions taken in connection with the
component elements ; the transmission of the separate matters to the
joint committees and mixed commissions ; the necessary powers for
carrying out specific duties ; the rules for their work of conciliation ;
and everything connected with their organisation and working within
the limits of the powers assigned to them by the Legislative Decree.
Within the limits of their territorial scope, already defined, the

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261

decisions of the commissions are' binding on all the elements they
represent, and if not carried out, the commissions may impose the
same penalties as the joint committees.
The decisions of the mixed commissions, like those of the joint
committees, are open to appeal by those concerned. According to
section 50, an appeal for revision against decisions of a general nature
affecting one or more branches of industry may be taken within five
days to the mixed commission which pronounced them, and a further
appeal within a fortnight, through the medium of the regional
delegate, to the Ministry of Labour, whose decision is final, after
having consulted the Delegate Commission of Corporation Councils
and the Permanent Committee of the Labour Council.
Their decisions are also subject to supervision by the higher
corporative institutions and the public authorities. According to
section 51, the mixed commissions must communicate their decisions ~
to the regional labour delegation, the inspectorate and the Delegate
Commission of Corporation Councils. The carrying into effect of
the decisions may be suspended under similar conditions to those
provided in the case of the joint committees.
Finally, a twofold remedy is provided against the penalties imposed by the mixed commissions. An appeal against decisions concerning
fines imposed by the mixed commissions may,be taken within ten
days to a full meeting of the competent commission if the fine does not
exceed 100 pesetas, in which case the commission decides after
having heard the person concerned, should it consider this necessary.
If the fine is over 100 pesetas, an appeal may be taken within the
same period to the Delegate Commission, whose decision, taken
within the same period, is final.
If the decision has become final and all other remedies have
been exhausted, the mixed commission may apply under the same
conditions as joint committees to the judge of first instance in order
to have the sentence enforced.
The proceeds of fines collected for infringement of the decisions
of the joint committees and mixed commissions are retained by
these bodies \
1
The following additional particulars may be given on the revenue
of the joint committees and the rights of their members :
According to section 53, in exceptional cases the Government may
grant the necessary subsidies for the maintenance of the central corporative
organisations if the contributions of the joint committees and mixed

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FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

S U S P E N S I O N AND D I S S O L U T I O N O F J O I N T C O M M I T T E E S
AND M I X E D C O M M I S S I O N S

A n y joint organisation which exceeds its powers under the
Decree or endangers the public safety, or in a general way fails to
give satisfaction to t h e supervisory authorities may be suspended or
dissolved.
According to section 55, w h e n a joint .committee or a mixed
commission takes decisions which, besides being outside its competence, interfere with public safety a n d lead to disturbance and
conflict, suggesting that the attitude of the body is unlawful and
disorderly, the Governor of t h e province in which it has its headquarters m a y temporarily suspend t h e committee or commission, his
decision with his reasons being transmitted to the Ministry of
Labour, which after consulting t h e Delegate Commission of Corporation Councils, either raises t h e suspension or pronounces the
dissolution of t h e committee or commission.
Administrative penalties m a y be imposed on joint committees :
(i) if t h e y commit actions affecting their prestige owing to notorious
immorality in t h e exercise of their functions; (ii) when, owing to
their negligence and unsatisfactory w o r k i n g , they do not constantly
carry o u t their duties, and t h u s seriously injure t h e trade interests
entrusted to their care. I n both cases, as soon as the Ministry of
L a b o u r or one of its subordinate institutions has been informed of
t h e facts, these must be verified as soon as possible, and if the
Ministry considers it e x p e d i e n t a n d so orders, t h e services of t h e
committee m a y be inspected with a view to t h e final decision to be
taken. T h e Ministry of Labour, h a v i n g made the investigations it
considers necessary and consulted the Delegate Commission, takes
a final decision, and, if it considers it just, orders the dissolution of
the committee, leaving it to t h e ordinary courts to fix any penalties.
T h e Ministry of Labour has also power to inspect all the central
corporative organisations.

commissions are inadequate These contributions are fixed in each case
when the bodies in question are being set up or their annual budgets
are being prepared. The latter must be approved by the Ministry of
Labour. Section 54 adds that normally the joint committees will meet
outside statutory working hours ; but in any case, a worker who is
elected a member of a joint committee has the right to attend any
meetings it holds, even during hours of work, in which case he is given
a certificate so that he may receive his wages in full.

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263

These provisions do not define specific offences, and therefore
leave the Government and the administrative authorities the widest
powers of intervention. It will further be observed that, unlike the
Act on associations, the Decree Uiakes no provision for appeal by the
joint committees against decision» of the executive authorities to
the ordinary courts.
If the suppression pure and simple of joint committees, which
are public institutions set up compulsorily, were to be final, the
result would be to paralyse the working of the system as a whole.
The legislature has therefore taken care to provide for the reconstitution of dissolved organisations. According to section 56, whenever
a joint committee or mixed commission is dissolved, it must be
reconstituted by the holding of fresh elections within a period of
ten days.
§ 3. — The Application and Influence oí the Corporative System
F I R S T MEASURES FOR T H E PRACTICAL APPLICATION
OF THE LEGISLATIVE DECREE

Before the system of Corporative Organisation, whose structure
and working have been analysed above, can finally take effect, much
preliminary work is needed. With a view to speeding up this part of
the work, section 6 of the transitional provisions of the Decree
provides for the creation of a Commission consisting of persons of
authority in social matters. The advisory powers and the taking of
decisions in other than executive matters or questions of joint
organisation reserved to the Delegate Commission of Corporation
Councils are temporarily assumed by this interim Commission, so
that with the technical and administrative assistance of the Ministry
of Labour it may carry out the preparatory work of organising the
constitution of all the bodies provided for in the Legislative Decree
at the earliest possible date.
This Commission was set up by the Royal Decree of 4 December 1926, Mr. Angel Diaz Benito being appointed chairman, and
Count de Altea, vice-chairman. Its, first meeting was held on
21 December 1926, being presided over by the Minister of Labour,
Mr. Aunos, who on this occasion outlined the programme of the
Commission in the following terms :
The Commission has three objects. * It must undertake active propaganda with a view to making employers' and workers' associations un-

264

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

derstand the advantages of the Legislative Decree. It must collaborate
in the work of organisation, in agreement with the Ministry of Labour,
the local labour offices and the inspectorate ; and finally, in its advisory
capacity it must define thè legislative objects of the Decree.
I n accordance with this programme the Commission set u p three
sections, a propaganda section, a n organisation section, a n d an
advisory section.
T h e Minister n e x t indicated the rules that m i g h t be followed in
setting u p the various bodies. H e said :
This work may be carried out successfully either by setting up
corporative organisations in accordance with the requests made by the
parties concerned, leaving them to take the initiative in some measure,
or by taking the different productive areas into account.
H e suggested that the two methods m i g h t be combined, " f o r
while t h u s giving satisfaction to t h e claims of employers and workers,
the organisation will at the same time satisfy the needs of production
from the point of view of technique a n d system ". H e added that
subject to observance of t h e fundamental principles of t h e Decree,
the Government was prepared to carry out a n y alterations suggested
b y practice and the actual facts.
Mr. L a r g o Caballero, o n behalf of the General Federation of
Spanish W o r k e r s , Mr. Junoy, on behalf of the employers' representatives in the Council of State, and Mr. Corrocher, on behalf of t h e
Spanish E m p l o y e r s ' Federation, stated their readiness to co-operate
in carrying out the programme sketched above by the Minister of
Labour.
Count de Altea, in- his article on corporative organisation in
Spanish industry published in the International
Labour Review 1,
was able to state t h a t from 1 J a n u a r y to 10 F e b r u a r y 1927, 259 petitions for the constitution of joint committees had already been
received from the most diverse industries. Since then t h e n u m b e r of
petitions h a s steadily grown. All these facts appear to show, according to Count de Altea, that the reform satisfies a general demand
and that all the parties concerned are ready to collaborate in p u t t i n g
it into effect 2 .

Vol. XV, No. 6, June 1927.
See also an account of the regime by Mr. Práxedes ZANCADA, Chief'
of the Labour and Social Organisation Section in the Ministry of Labour,
in Revista social, Vol. II, No. 4 : " Commentaries al real decreto-ley de
organisación corporativa nacional. "
2

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265

INFLUENCE OF T H E C O R P O R A T I V E S Y S T E M

I t is n o doubt too early to formulate a reasoned judgment on the
influence of the system of corporative organisation on the future
of Spain. All that can be done here is to note some of the.advantages
that the promoters of the reform expect it to yield. I n the first
place, they say, t h e new institution will stimulate the spirit of
association :
The preponderant part assigned to employers' and workers' associations in the election of the members of the joint committees will give these
..institutions an organic and representative character which so far they
have lacked. It will also give a vigorous impulse to the spirit of association that is still so insecure in Spain *.
Secondly, the corporative system will contribute to the stability
of economic a n d social conditions. A s Mr. A u n o s says :
Being invested with irrefutable authority, the joint organisations
will prove the firm foundation on which the relations between capital
and labour will rest. The period of instability and disorder will come
to an end. The employer will be able to forecast the future development
of his industry without having to make allowance for sudden rises in
wages, imposed in periods of agitation and founded only on violence ;
through the joint organisations he will be able to adjust wages to labour
output and provide for severe discipline in his factories and workshops.
The worker will enjoy the certainty that the agreements entered into
with his employer through the medium of the joint committee will always
be strictly carried out ; his wages will be fixed in accordance with technical criteria, and will have a stability that only industrial depression
can disturb, since they will be placed under the protection and guarantee
of a public institution and no longer be subject to the arbitrary decisions
of an individual.
Thirdly, in the question of the regulation of conditions of work
t h e new institution will substitute t h e g u a r a n t e e of trade regulation
under State supervision for the principle of free individual determination.
The compulsory character of the resolutions taken by the joint organisations and guaranteed by the legal control of the State will also be
an excellent means of breaking the anti-social idea, so current among us
to-day, of free individual determination in the question of the regulation
of work 2.

Dr. D. A. GALLART : " Los aspectos morales de la solución
paritaria. " Revista social, 1927, Vol. II, No. 4.
2
Ibid.

266

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

T h e corporative system will also promote the revival of the craft
spirit a n d help to form a body of skilled workers a t the head of
each occupation. A s the Minister of Labour, Mr. Aunos, says :
Their work will affect a selection of values in each corporation. The
sympathy between men in the same occupation, both employers and
workers, will lead them to feel united in their higher efforts, and the
social life of Spain will no longer consist solely of an aggregation of
persons without mutual relations, or an amorphous mass of unco-ordinated
forces, but of a body of disciplined efforts which will promote steady
progress in the realisation of the great destiny of the country.
The joint committees will bring together the elite of each occupation,
the different trades will no longer be unco-ordinated and separated by
ideas and geographical limitations as hitherto. The contact between
employers and workers will produce a comprehension of the common end
in view and love of the trade. The new organisation will result in that
social and economic peace which is necessary for the development of
nations.
Finally, the upholders of the reform believe that it will awaken
the sense of solidarity and social responsibility. Dr. D. A. Gallart
maintains that :
Those who participate in the work of the joint organisations will rise
above the class spirit, and become imbued with the spirit which has led
to the formation of these bodies. The workers' representative who discusses a suggestion cannot evade the duty assigned to him of acting as
a referee or labour legislator. He will be compelled to take into consideration the effects of this suggestion on production and the advisability of
realising it in specific economic conditions. And the employers' representative, when a question of wages is raised, will be bound conscientiously to estimate the cost of living among workers before adopting an
opinion on the subject. The objective manner in which questions will be
raised, freed from the factors of passion that accompany social conflict,
faces each of the members of the organisation with a living problem,
towards the solution of which they must contribute so far as they are
able. In such circumstances the sentiment for justice dominates all
others. Where arbitration is constantly dictating compromises between
opposed conceptions in practice, those responsible for such practice find
the moral distance between these conceptions becoming shorter. They
realise that it is only men they have before them, and nothing human
can be foreign to them.
Thus, in these minorities of employers and workers, a more comprehensive and cordial spirit will gradually spring up, and they will realise
their responsibilities. Without being too optimistic, any impartial observer of social realities must conclude that the policy of joint organisations
is an effective means of pacification, and whatever the effects of the new
reform, there will be a happy change in the moral atmosphere of Spanish
social conditions.
T o sum u p , the a u t h o r s of the reform regard it as the starting
point of a renaissance not only from the economic and social point
of view, but also, and above all, from the moral and political point
of view

CONCLUSION

The Spanish Coiporative Organisation of Industry, like the
Italian corporative system, is founded on the principle of State
intervention in social relations. As Mr. Aunos, Spanish Minister of
Labour, has said, " the State should intervene in all spheres of
human activity where questions of collective interest are at issue ".
" The State ", he adds, " which by weakness or indolence neglects its
function of regulating collective relations and being the supreme
judge in social conflicts, by that very fact abdicates its title of
Sovereign State. " *
This principle, which
of corporative legislation,
new social, structure. A
already been given. It
chief characteristics.

dominates and explains the whole system
must be turned into fact by means of a
detailed description of this structure has
will therefore be sufficient to recall its

The National Corporative Organisation rests on the classification
of occupations into twenty-seven corporative groups, the whole of
which constitute the national economic activity.
On the basis and within the limits of this classification, the Decree
organises the representation of trade interests through joint institutions
with graduated jurisdiction, as follows : local and inter-local joint
committees in the first instance, mixed labour commissions in the
second, corporations and corporation councils in the third, and
finally, at the head of the structure, the Delegate Commission of
Corporation Councils.
The joint committees are the " nuclei " of the corporative
organisation of industry. Their function is to defend local interests,
account being taken of geographical and trade requirements. Each
corporative group is represented in each locality or region by as
many joint committees as it comprises trades and occupations.
1

Eduardo AUNOS PEREZ : La Organización Corporativa del Trabajo,
pp. 55 et seq.

268

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

The mixed commissions, whose scope is not limited territorially,
are formed by the voluntary association of the joint committees
" which from the labour or economic point of view are connected
by the homogeneity of their functions ".
The corporation councils comprise all the joint committees
throughout the country set up for a given branch of industry or
commercial activity.
The Delegate Commisgion of Corporation Councils acts, on the
one hand, as a link between the different corporation councils and,
on the other, connects up the corporative organisation with the
administrative services of the State.
Faced with the alternative of founding this system on the existing
trade associations or of creating an altogether new organisation, the
legislature chose the middle path. It combined the system of free
and independent organisation with that of organisation by authority.
The free associations of employers and workers are called on to elect
their respective representatives in the joint committees, which in
turn elect their delegates to the higher corporative institutions.
Thus, instead of following the Italian precedent, the Spanish
legislature, by associating the trade associations with the new corporative system, does not make their participation depend on previous
revision of their legal status ; but once the corporative bodies have
been formed they are no longer considered as trade organisations of
a higher grade, but definitely as public institutions with official
functions. In the process of creating the corporative organisation
two stages may be distinguished, a trade union stage which is governed
by private law, and a corporative stage which is entirely subject
to public law.
In examining the trade union stage, a first question arises, that
of the conditions for obtaining electoral capacity.
The answer to this question in the Decree is that the trade
associations must in the first place be included in the trade register.
Secondly, when the various committees are elected they must comply
with the rule as to occupational and territorial delimitation ; in other
words, only the members of an association belonging to a given
occupation and living in a given locality may take part in electing
the committees which are to represent them officially. This statutory
condition will certainly affect the very structure of the trade
organisations. These, being naturally anxious to direct the elections,
will find it to their interest to divide up their membership into as

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269

many occupations and territorial sections as there are joint committees. Similarly, the higher grade of trade associations will no
doubt adapt their strucfure to the field of activity of the higher grade
of corporative institutions. Thus, side by side with the official
system, there will be a free system reproducing its structure feature
by feature.
Finally, a third and fundamental condition is that if a trade
association is to have electoral capacity, it must be lawfully constituted. This means that all existing associations do not necessarily enjoy
such capacity, even if they satisfy the two previous conditions. Full
importance is thus attached to the legal status of associations as
described in Chapter II. This rests in the first place on the proclamation of the principle of freedom of association contained in
Article 13 of the Constitution ; but this principle, far from being
absolute, applies only in accordance with the regulations contained in
the Associations Act of 30 June 1887, completed by the Legislative
Decree of 10 March 1923. The Barcelona trade associations have
a right to choose between the status conferred under the general law
on associations, and that conferred under the Decree of 3 November 1922, applying only to the province of Barcelona.
Both the Associations Act and the Barcelona Decree make the
functions and working of trade associations subject to severe and
permanent supervision by the public authorities. Moreover, associations which do not comply with these laws and engage in activitiesconsidered unlawful by the courts incur the penalty of suspension and
dissolution. In this way the General Confederation of Labour, which
at one time comprised a majority of the organised workers in Spain,
has had many of its unions judged unlawful and dissolved. At
present the following trade organisations constitute the corporative
electorate : the General Confederation of Spanish Workers, the
Federation of Free Trade Unions, and the National Federation of
Catholic Trade Unions.
As the Decree fixed a period of grace within which associations
may satisfy the conditions of the Act, the number of these lawfully
constituted organisations will no doubt be increased in future by the
organisations of " non-unionists ", i.e. of all persons who on grounds
of principle refuse to belong to one of the existing bodies (this
applies, for instance, to the former members of the General Confederation of Labour), but who do not wish to be excluded from
the corporative system.

270

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

Another question is whether the breaking up of the electorate
into several groups of different views may not compromise unity in
the protection of the interests of the workers, in particular in the
corporative institutions. It is no doubt to prevent this risk that the
legislature preferred the system of majority vote to that of election
by proportional representation. For, supposing the different trade
union groups failed to agree, the most powerful organisation would,
by its numerical preponderance, in fact exert a decisive influence on
the composition of the corporative institutions, and thus ensure a
united front for the defence of the trade interests of wage earners.
The function of the trade associations ceases with the election of
their members to the joint committees. Once constituted, the corporation re-absorbs, judicially speaking, the trade association. It
will be remembered that under the Decree on corporative organisation
the corporative bodies are public institutions whose essential but not
sole purpose is to regulate the activities of the occupation or group
of occupations for which they are competent. In his commentary
on the Legislative Decree, the Minister of Labour also describes them
as " public administrative bodies ", differing only in origin from
other administrative services. The joint committees, he adds, are
part of the graduated administrative system, and through the mixed
commissions and corporation councils are connected, by the Delegate
Commission of Corporation Councils with the Ministry of Labour,
which is the supreme authority in the corporative system. It is this
idea of " State administrative bodies " and " public institutions "
which, according to its authors, explains the fundamental part played
by the State in the constitution, composition and working of the
corporative institutions, and the very wide trade powers conferred
by the Decree on these institutions.
The initiative in constituting the joint committees is in fact not
taken by those concerned, but by the Ministry of Labour. Secondly,
and this is a corollary of the foregoing principle, the corporative
bodies are not voluntary institutions set up to meet temporary requirements, but compulsory and permanent institutions. No doubt the
Legislative Decree requires the trade associations to collaborate in
their constitution by electing their respective representatives to the
various corporative bodies ; but it does not go so far as to subordinate
the creation of the committees to such collaboration. Section 16
provides that when a local or inter-local joint committee, created by
the Ministry of Labour, is unable to work owing to the systematic

SPAIN

27I

and unjustified refusal of one of the parties concerned to appoint its
representatives, the Ministry may appoint them ex officio.
The Decree contains no regulations as to the organisation of the
internal affairs of the corporative institutions. It intervenes on one
point, however, for like the Italian Act it provides for the fixing,
by special regulations to be adopted when the joint committees are
formed, of a compulsory contribution for all members of the occupation represented by the committee. It is similarly compulsory to
employ the sums thus obtained for the social measures it is the duty
of the committee to undertake.
The State similarly intervenes in the composition of the corporative bodies. Leaving technical elements, the secretariat, experts,
etc., out of account, who can act only in an advisory capacity, its
composition admittedly rests on the joint representation of those
concerned, employers and workers. But the chairman is not a
third party chosen by common agreement between the parties, but
a direct representative of the central authorities. It is the Ministry
of Labour which, by Royal Decree, designates the chairman and first
vice-chairman of the joint, committees, the mixed commissions, the
corporation councils, and the Delegate Commission of Corporation
Councils. Moreover, two other direct representatives of the authorities belong ex officio to ' the Delegate Commission, namely, the
Director-General of Labour and the Factory Inspector-General. In
this connection, the Minister of Labour describes the Delegate
Commission of Corporation Councils as the synthesis of all organised
occupations. In its capacity .as a direct advisory body in the
Ministry, it is solely official in character, for which reason the
principle of joint representation is in some measure sacrificed, so
that the State may be more fully represented \In the working of the corporative institutions the State intervenes
even more directly than in their constitution and composition. It
may be said that their whole activity is exercised under the direct
supervision of the State. This is the object of the intervention of the
representative of authority, i.e. the chairman, in the discussions.
The presence of the chairman in the various bodies of the corporative
system, says the Minister of Labour, reminds the parties that above

Cf. AUNOS, op. cit.

p . 57.

272

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

the class aspirations of employers and workers there are the necessities
imposed by collective interests and national expediency *.
The chairman intervenes in the discussion not merely as a
conciliator but also in the capacity of arbitrator and judge. When
a question, submitted to a corporative body for decision, is discussed
for the first time, he acts merely as conciliator and intervenes to
secure agreement ; but if the parties fail to agree, it is he who
settles the matter by his casting vote. And even if the parties
agree on decisions, which in his opinion are likely to injure collective
interests, he may ask for their suspension, revision or cancellation
through the medium of the regional labour delegate. The chairman,
too, is responsible for seeing to it that the decisions taken are carried
out, interpreting them, and presiding over the corporative body when
it sits as a tribunal to judge infringements. In brief, the State,
through the medium of the chairman, compels the parties to agree,
for it is only when they are in agreement that they can. actually
exercise the power of decision. If, on the contrary, they refuse to
compromise, the joint committees are reduced to acting merely as
bodies to be consulted by the representative of the Ministry of
Labour, who alone decides.
If understood on these lines, the corporative system, in the
opinion of its authors, offers sufficient guarantee of stability for the
State to be able to use it as a foundation for its work of reorganising
the social and economic life of the national community. The aim of
the State is twofold : the first, which can at once be achieved, is
the regulation of conditions of work ; the second, which depends on
the achievement of the first and is therefore more remote, is the
economic and social reform of the State. For the first of these the
Legislative Decree has already laid down rules ; for the second it
merely organises the permanent system of consulting the corporative
institutions. The result is that these have two sets of functions, an
advisory function and a function ot regulation.
In exercising their advisory function, the joint committees, the
mixed commissions, the corporation councils, and, above all, the
Delegate Commission of Corporation Councils, all within the field
of their respective competences, must notify the Government of all
social facts which may help to direct its social and economic policy.
Among the functions of regulation, a distinction may be made

Ibid., pp. 63 et seq.

SPAIN

between those which are independent, those of limited independence,
and those which are official.
The independent functions of the corporative institutions, in
thç. exercise of which the joint committees are not subject to special
supervision by the public authorities, relate to the organisation of
social work, measures for social assistance, thrift, mutual aid, cooperation, and in fact all the activities that may be summed up
under the head of social solidarity.
In this connection it may well be asked — and the same question
arises in respect of all the functions of the joint committees —
whether the free trade unions will still have the right to develop any
similar institution they have themselves set up in the past. Considering that the activities in question are free and altogether unofficial,
the corporative organisations could hardly claim a monopoly of trade
union activities of this kind. In actual fact, however, developments
may be different. It is to be expected that once the corporative
system has been definitely set up and provided with substantial funds,
it will be better equipped than the trade associations for the satisfactory
organisation of such work.
The function of limited independence exercised by the corporative
bodies under State supervision relate principally to the preparation
of the occupational register, the organisation of employment
exchanges, and corporative propaganda. The Decree, rather than
entrust to the trade associations the duty of preparing the occupational
register, requires the joint committees themselves to draw up
" registers of trades and occupations ". This they do, under
Government supervision and subject to its subsequent approval. It
was thought that it would be dangerous to leave such delicate
questions as those of inclusion in or exclusion from the census to the
sole decision of the corporative authorities. Excluded persons are
therefore given the right to appeal to the Ministry, which decides
in the last instance.
The compilation of the occupational register, which will make it
possible to determine exactly the requirements of the labour market,
will also, it is hoped, make it possible to organise the employment
exchange system on a rational and also national basis. The question
of finding employment for wage-earners, says Mr. Aunos, will no
longer be left to the arbitrary decision of employers, but will be
considered as a public function to be assumed by the joint committees representing all members of the trade.
Freedom of Association

274

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

In their activities the employment exchanges, attached to the
corporative institutions and responsible in particular for placing
workers in employment, must use only definitely trade criteria. They
must, for instance, take into consideration length of service, so that
workers of long standing may be occupied in the trade of which they
have become masters ; quality of output, so that by degrees a
progressive selection of a body of highly skilled workers in each
trade may take place ; and finally, family responsibilities \ Thus,
in the important question of finding employment for labour, the
Spanish Decree is guided solely by trade and social considerations,
irrespective of the trade union and political position of the
unemployed. On the other hand, the Decree displays the obvious
desire — a constant preoccupation in the corporative system — of
creating a solid nucleus m each trade, and even in each particular
occupation.
Finally, the corporative bodies are responsible for organising
propaganda so as to make the principles of the new legislation known.
In order that the efforts made in this field may be co-ordinated, the
Minister of Labour advocates setting up special committees in each
regional labour delegation, to form what may be described as craft
universities, grouping all the specialists in the joint committees and
mixed commissions of the region concerned.
In exercising the official functions the State, which acts through
the chairman and other representatives of authority whose duties
have already been described, has an absolutely preponderating
influence. The principal duty of the corporative bodies under this
head is that of establishing collective labour agreements. The
Decree merely affirms the competence of the corporative institutions
either to conclude agreements or to settle collective differences,
without in any way defining the methods to be used. According to
section 17, it is the duty of the local and inter-local joint committees—
to determine for each trade or occupation, or group of trades and
occupations, the conditions for the regulation of work : remuneration,
hours
of work, rest periods, and generally the conditions which may
ser~ve as a basis for contracts of employment, and to impose suitable
penalties on persons contravening their decisions.
This principle serves, however, to throw light on the mam
features of the Spanish theory of the collective agreement, at least

Ibid., pp. 58 et seq.

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275

so far as the fundamental problems of the capacity to conclude
agreements, their field of application, their interpretation, and
penalties are concerned
Who may conclude agreements ? Or, more exactly, may the
trade associations be contracting parties ? The Decree does not deal
with this question expressly, but it follows from it implicitly that
this privilege is reserved for the corporative institutions alone, to the
exclusion of all other persons or groups, in particular trade associations. Similarly, the corporative institution is alone responsible
for seeing to it that the agreement is carried out, through the special
staff of inspectors appointed for this purpose.
To whom do collective agreements apply ? The necessary
corollary to the exclusive power given to the corporative institutions
to conclude agreements is that collective agreements apply to all
third parties represented by these bodies. Thus an agreement will
apply to a given undertaking or group of undertakings if effected by
a local or inter-local joint committee, to an occupation or branch of
industry if established by a mixed commission, and to all the
members of an occupation throughout the country if concluded by a
corporation council.
Which authority has the duty of settling collective disputes ?
The reply of the Decree is in substance that all disputes arising out
of the application of agreements, whether judicial differences as to
0 the interpretation of the terms of the agreement, or economic disputes
for the modification of collective agreements or the establishment of
new agreements, are within the competence of the corporative
institutions responsible for their conclusion.
Corporative bodies may ex officio consider all disputes and, if
conciliation fails, institute judicial proceedings and impose penalties,
which, subject to appeal to and revision by the higher corporative
authorities, are directly enforceable in the same way as those imposed
by the ordinary courts. In this connection it should be emphasised
that the judicial power in the Spanish system is not in the hands of
an authority outside the organisation, a conciliation board or the
ordinary courts, as, for instance, in the Italian system, but by the
corporative body which actually concluded the agreement.
As this power of general jurisdiction applying to all individual
or collective disputes is thus conferred on the corporative institutions,
does it imply the abolition of the right to strike established by the
Act of 27 April 1909 ? Here again the Decree contains no explicit

276

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

provisions. For the present, therefore, strikers will no doubt incur
only the economic penalties that the corporative institutions may
impose for the infringement of their decisions.
As a matter of fact, in the field of the regulation of conditions
of work, the corporative institutions have both legislative
and judicial powers ; legislative powers, because, within the limits
of their competence, they impose regulations binding on all the
members of an occupation (it is wrong to describe an agreement
established by a joint committee as a contract, for it has all the
characteristics of a trade regulation or rather of a trade act) ; judicial,
because they have the same right as the ordinary courts to impose
penalties for infringement of the agreement. It was no doubt with
this twofold function in mind that the Minister of labour compared
the corporative organisation with a new power in the State, " the
power of work ", responsible for creating a new law, " corporative
law ".
It is hoped that this collective and compulsory regulation of
conditions of work will first of all lead to the establishment of
minimum conditions for each occupation and region, minimum wages,
minimum hours of work, holidays, etc. These minimum conditions,
established by the joint committees and mixed commissions, will
serve as the basis for national collective agreements concluded by the
corporation councils. The body of such agreements and the decisions
taken by the corporative organisations in their capacity as labour,
courts will, adds the Minister of Labour, constitute a genuine National
Code for each trade, and these codes will together form a new
Labour Code.
Such, in outline, is the progress made towards the new system
of corporative organisation. For the present the organisation is still
in the state of anticipation, for, although active progress is being
made with the formation of the joint committees, the higher authorities, the mixed commissions, corporation councils, and the Delegate
Commission of Corporation Councils, whose intervention is indispensable for the working of the system, still remain to be formed.
Experience alone will reveal if the future will bring practical
results to show for this important theoretical work of construction.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

í. — PRINCIPAL LEGISLATIVE T E X T S MENTIONED

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27"

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

in certain industries or branches of production, according to the immediate circumstances or on a permanent basis. {Legislative Series, 1922,
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Co-operative

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National Corporative

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National Economic

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SPAIN

279

Social College
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Royal Decree of 10 August 1916 requiring companies or industrial
undertakings which perform public services under a concession from the
State to recognise the associations or trade unions legally formed by their
employees and workers. (Bulletin of the International Labour Office
(Basle),
Vol. X I I , p. 67, and Administrative Regulations of
23 March 1917.)
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III.

—

MISCELLANEOUS

Comisión para el estudio de las cuestiones que interesan a la mejora
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afectan a las relaciones entre el trabajo y el capital. Madrid, 1890.
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SPAIN

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CANDAN, CANOVAS,
NOCEDAL,andRÍotOhSersY, toROSAS,
GARRI
DeO,
PI
Y
MARGALL,
get
h
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t
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t
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de
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Madri
d
,
19
Novísima
recopilación.
For
m
e
r
col
l
e
ct
i
o
n
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a
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theisterExercise
ofriorthe Righ
ofon Association,
bmi
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e
d
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t
h
e
Mi
n
of
t
h
e
I
n
t
e
25 October 1906. Madrid, 1906.
IV. — GENERAL SOURCES
Report
s
of
t
h
e
si
t
i
n
gs
of
t
h
e
Cort
e
s
.
Publona,icatiinonpartof ictulhaer MithexedAnales
LabouruntCommi
sionandfortheComme
rce irSodai
Barcel
i
l
1925
Revista
sincePubl1926.ications of the Institute of Social Reform.
Publications of the Ministry of Labour, Commerce and Industry.

PORTUGAL
CHAPTER I
HISTORY OF THE TRADE UNION MOVEMENT
AND OF TRADE UNION LEGISLATION

§ 1. — The Trade Union Movement
The promulgation of the Decree of 7 May 1834, abolishing trade
corporations and proclaiming freedom of labour and industry, marked
the end of a social system based on compulsion, and introduced
an era of free industrial organisation.
True, a few of the former craft fraternities, although deprived
of their privileges, continued to exist for some time and maintained
the traditional forms of composition and structure. But efforts
were soon made to bring these societies into line with new requirements. The first real trade association, the Artistes' Society of
Lfisbon, dates back to 1839. Some ten years later, in 1850, the
Workers' Association was formed under the influence of the Socialist
ideas of 1848, this body being transformed some years later into
the Society for the Protection of the Working Classes. This movement, which was the harbinger of new ideas, did not meet with the
support necessary for its development. At that period, the national
economic system, dominated as it was by small-scale industry, did not
exactly lend itself to a trade union movement of wide expansion. In
most cases, the trade associations continued to adopt the traditional
structure of joint societies and kept strictly from politics. It
was only in 1872 that a group of Socialist leaders laid the foundations
of the workers' trade union movement in its modern form. That year
saw the foundation of the Workers' Brotherhood, which was replaced

286

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

during the following year by an organisation of national character,
the Workers' Association of Portugal.
The existing mutual-aid societies, which had gradually transformed themselves into workers' associations by excluding the employers' element, also came under the influences of the Socialist Party,
and subsequently shared its vicissitudes. Thus it was that the split
which took place in 1890 in the Socialist political movement, resulted
in dividing the trade union movement into two factions, namely,
the Workers' Association, and the National Confederation of Class
Associations, replaced some little time afterwards by the Workers'
Federation.
The situation changed when the Anarchist elements began to
take an active part in the trade union movement. At a workers'
congress, held on 4 July 1909, which was convened by the Workers'
Federations of Iyisbon and Oporto, and attended by four Socialist organisations and about thirty occupational and co-operative associations,
the Anarchists brought up the question of the independence of the
trade union movement from the Socialist Political Party . The congress decided against a separation of the two tendencies. The supporters of independence for the trade union movement did not, however, accept this rebuff, and convened a new congress on 5 September
1909, to which only the workers' trade associations and co-operative
societies were summoned. The invitation was accepted by thirty-one
workers' associations and several co-operative societies. This time,
the motion advocating autonomy for the trade union movement was
adopted by twenty-one votes to one, with two abstentions. This
decision, while being a victory for the supporters of autonomy,
also denoted the triumph of the revolutionary Anarchist elements
over the social reformist party. An executive committee was
appointed by the congress to co-ordinate and direct the work of
the independent trade unions.
The new organisations rapidly gained ground, both in industrial
and agricultural circles, and the second congress, held in 1911, was
attended by ninety-one unions having a total membership of 35,000
persons.
The year. 1913 witnessed the reconciliation of the revolutionary
and reformist parties, which had separated at the 1909 congress. The
two factions compromised on the following formula : "Tactical reasons
are not sufficient to cause a split in the trade union movement,
as it is clear that all such questions must be decided by the unions

PORTUGAL

287

themselves, and that class co-operation is unavoidable in certain
cases. "
T h e trade union congress held in Tomar in March 1914, a n d
attended by both parties, sealed this agreement a n d restored t r a d e
union unity. T h i s congress brought together representatives from
103 unions, three trade federations a n d four joint federations, with
a total membership of 90,000. A s a result of t h e agreement arrived
at, it was decided to set u p a central trade union organisation,
which took the significant n a m e of the National W o r k e r s ' Union
(Uniäo Operaría Nacional).
T h e new organisation, strengthened in
1917 by the affiliation of the Oporto W o r k e r s ' Federation, soon
acquired sufficient strength to treat with the Government on an equal
footing. I t s career came to an end, however, in 1919, when it w a s
transformed, doubtless out of s y m p a t h y with the Spanish revolutionary movement, into a General Confederation of Labour (Confederaçao General do Trabalho).
According to its statutory rules, t h e
General Confederation of Labour, as sole representative of the working class forces of Portugal, has the following objects :
(1) To unite on a federal and autonomous basis all the wage earners
of the country, with the object of protecting their economic, social and
occupational interests ;
(2) To develop, irrespective of all political and religious doctrines,
the means of action of the organised workers, with the object of promoting
measures for the abolition of the capitalist system and taking possession
of the means of production ;
(3) To maintain the closest relations with the central trade union
organisations in other countries.
T h e General Confederation of Labour joined the International
W o r k e r s ' Association of Berlin. I n 1920 it included 17 local unions,
19 industrial federations, 3 national trade unions, 3 regional t r a d e
unions, and 365 trade associations, representing a total of 100,000 to
120,000 members. F r o m that time, however, its strength declined as a
result of party quarrels. T h e movement broke u p into four groups
including the Anarchists, the most numerous, the Communists, a
n e u t r a l group, and the reformists. T h e membership fell to roughly
20,000.
T h e General Confederation of L a b o u r was recently dissolved by
the military dictatorship. I t should be added t h a t during t h e
last twenty years, Catholic circles have been promoting a ChristianSocialist trade union movement, which, however, does not appear tohave played an important part in the trade union life of Portugal.

288

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

T h e associations formed by t h e employers for the protection of
their interests are grouped, like the workers' organisations, under
a central body called the Portuguese E m p l o y e r s ' Confederation
(Confederaçâo patronal
Portuguesa).

§ 2. — T r a d e Union Legislation
T H E R I G H T O F C O M B I N A T I O N AND S T R I K E

T h e proclamation of freedom of labour by the Decree of 7 May
1834 included in Portugal, as in all other countries, the prohibition
of t h e right of combination a n d strike. T h i s prohibition was definitely sanctioned b y section 277 of t h e Portuguese P e n a l Code of
10 December 1852, in t h e following terms :
Imprisonment of from one to six months, or a fine of from 5,000
to 200,000 reis shall be imposed on :
(1) all combinations of employers of labour which attempt to force
down wages abusively, and
(2) all combinations of wage earners intended to suspend, prevent
or raise the cost of labour in any manner whatever.
Section 277 was temporarily suspended by a Decree issued by the
Revolutionary Government on 6 December 1910.
By section 1 of this Decree, both workers and employers were
granted the right t o combine with a view to a simultaneous stoppage
of work. Peaceful picketing a n d all orderly action taken on behalf
of combinations and strikes were similarly sanctioned.
The manifestations of legally constituted associations (says section 8)
which do not infringe the provisions of the laws governing public
assemblies, and which are intended solely to promote, maintain, or end
a combination are quite legal.
Subject to the observance of the provisions of the present Decree
(adds section 9), all propaganda work undertaken by the workers'
and employers' trade associations, in order to prepare, maintain or end a
combination or strike, are similarly sanctioned.
On the other h a n d , the Decree prohibited the use of illegal
measures of persuasion a n d all disturbance of the public peace. T h u s
section 2 punishes with imprisonment up to six months all persons
w h o employ violence, threats or improper pressure in order to set u p ,
maintain or prevent a combination. Section 3 provides for imprisonment up to three m o n t h s for all persons who, in the case of
a combination or strike, trouble public order or contravene police
regulations.

289

PORTUGAL

The Decree forbade State officials and employees to strike, and
required the public utility services to give notice of any proposed
strike.
Officials employed by the State or by the State Departments (states
section 11) are forbidden to combine for the purposes of a strike, under
penalty of dismissal or suspension.
As regards strikes and lock-outs in services of interest to the
public, section 4 obliged the promoters of such movements to notify
the authorities twelve days in advance when the electricity, gas and
water services, or other services of first necessity, hospitals and
asylums were concerned, and eight days in advance when maritime, land or inland navigation transport undertakings were affected.
In the above-mentioned cases, the strike leaders were required
to show, by a statement submitted to the authorities, the reasons
underlying the dispute and the objects of the strikers. A similar statement had to be submitted by the party calling the strike to the party
affected by it. All cases of non-observance of these regulations were
liable to be prosecuted, on the ground of the offence of " refusal of
obedience " provided for under section 188 of the Penal Code.
The penalties imposed in cases of " refusal of obedience " were
likewise applicable to employers and workers who, having once
accepted arbitration, declined to carry out the obligations which they
had voluntarily undertaken r .
This Decree, which had to be submitted for approval to the
National Assembly, never received force of law. Section 277 of the
Penal Code, whereby combinations and strikes are formally prohibited, still remains in force at the present day.
FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

During the first half of the nineteenth century the right to associate was entirely dependent on administrative practice, and as a
general rule it. was prohibited.
When, however, the influence of the associations which had
nevertheless sprung up began to be felt in social and political circles,
the question of the regulation of freedom of association arose, first
from the standpoint of the right to associate in general, and subsequently from that of the right to associate for trade purposes. The
1

Cf. text of the Legislative Decree in Diario da Governo, 1910, No. 53,
p. 685.
Freedom of Association

2Ç0

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

general right of association was first recognised by the Civil Code
in 1857, which included among the fundamental prerogatives of the
citizen, the right to " combine their means and efforts for all purposes which do not prejudice the rights of others or those of
society as a whole ".
This formula appears to have been meant to apply only to industrial and commercial societies with economic objects, and not to
associations working without profit.
The Decree issued by the Dictatorship on 15 July 1870 was
more precise, and extended freedom of association to all citizens
without making it dependent on preliminary authorisation. This
Decree, however, never became law and remained a dead letter.
The right to associate without let or hindrance was definitely
established only by the Act of 14 February 1907, which allows all
citizens in full possession of their civil rights to form associations
without previous notice and without having to have their statutory
rules approved by the authorities, except when this is required by
special laws, and provided that the aims of the associations are not in
contradiction to the law.
Two reservations are thus seen to limit freedom of association :
one relating to special legislation on associations, the other to associations formed for illegal purposes.
Trade associations come under the first reserve. As far back
as 2 July 1867, a Decree relating to co-operative and mutual-aid
societies, which was completed by the Legislative Decree of 28 February 1891, made the constitution of these societies dependent on
the previous approval of their rules and regulations. And even
nowadays a number of conditions and restrictions are imposed on
the constitution, administration and activities of class associations, in
virtue of the Decree of 9 May 1891 relating to trade associations l .
All associations, industrial or political, come under the second
restriction introduced by the Act of 14 February 1907, that is to say,
the provisions of the Penal Code respecting illegal associations and
secret societies.
The Penal Code, section 282, defines as an illegal association,
any association of more than twenty persons, even when such

1
Cf. Chapter II : " The Present Legal Status of Trade Associations ", pp. 292 et seq.

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29I

association is divided into sections each having less than twenty
members, which meets without obtaining the prior authorisation of
the Government or against Government regulations, for the purpose of considering questions of a religious, political, literary or
other nature.
T h e promoters or officials of such associations are liable to
imprisonment of from one to six m o n t h s , and ordinary members.
to one m o n t h ' s imprisonment. F u r t h e r m o r e , the Penal Code, s e c tion 283, defines as a secret society, a n y society of which t h e
members bind themselves by oath or otherwise, to conceal from
t h e public authorities the objects of its meetings and its activities.
T h e promoters and organisers of such societies are liable to imprisonment of from two m o n t h s to two years, and ordinary m e m bers to half of this penalty.
Section 283 adds that any member of a secret society w h o voluntarily divulges to the authorities the aims and plans of the association will be exempted from these penalties, even when he does
n o t give t h e names of t h e other members.
Lastly, the principle of freedom of association has been definitely sanctioned in Article 3, paragraph 4, of the Constitution of
7 July 1921, in the following terms : " F r e e d o m of assembly and
association is legal. Special laws will define the manner and the
conditions in which this liberty may be exercised. "
Since, however, the special laws mentioned have not so far
been introduced, the regime described above remains in force in all
its vigour '.

* The right of assembly had been defined by the Act of 26 June 1893,
the Decree of 9 December 1897, and the Decree of 24 December 1901'.
Although no preliminary authorisation was necessary to hold the assembly, the promoters were required to give the administrative authorities
twenty-four hours' written notification of the day, time, place, and objects
of the meeting.
At present all assemblies, even the general meetings of commercial
societies, must be authorised beforehand by the military authorities.

CHAPTER 11
THE PRESENT LEGAL STATUS OF TRADE ASSOCIATIONS

Subject to the general provisions embodied in Article 3, paragraph 14, of the Constitution, to those of the Act of 14 February 1907
relating to associations, to section 277 of the Penal Code on the
offence of combinations and strikes, to sections 282-283 of the
Penal Code on illegal associations and secret societies (cf. Chapter I, § 2), the legal status of trade associations is based mainly
on the Legislative Decree of 9 May 1891 relating to trade associations,
and that of 27 December 1924, relating to trade unions and their
federations.
At the same time, it should be noted that these two legislative
enactments were recently suspended by order of the executive authorities. Since, however, their place has been taken by no fresh legislation, it would seem desirable to include an analysis of them in
these pages, as, after all, they portray the most recent tendencies of
the special legislation on trade associations enacted in Portugal.
These two texts, which are obviously inspired by the French trade
union legislation of 1884-1920 * and the Spanish Act on associations
of 1872 a define the status of the trade unions from the triple standpoint of their constitution, administration and dissolution.
§ 1. — Constitution of Trade Associations
Trade associations, states section 1 of the Decree of 1891, are
associations formed by more than twenty persons exercising the same
trade or similar trades, and whose object is the study and protection of their economic, industrial, commercial or agricultural
interests.
1
2

Cf. Vol. II of this work : " France ".
See above, " Spain ".

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BASIC CONDITIONS

A legal minimum membership, the observance of the rule of
occupational delimitation, the declaration of trade and economic
objects, are the three general conditions which must be satisfied by
associations in order to come within the scope of the regulations
laid down by this Decree.
All persons who have attained their majority, whether workers,
salaried employees or apprentices, may be members of a trade
association, provided they conform, in the choice of an association,
to the rules referring to occupational delimitation.
Membership of the trade unions is voluntary, and no one
may be compelled to join or prevented from withdrawing. This is
explicitly laid down in section 6 :
Any person is free (states this section) to refrain from membership of
a trade association or to cease to be a member. In the latter case,
however, or in the case of expulsion in accordance with the statutory
rules, such person has no right to the repayment of paid-up contributions.
Nevertheless, a person who ceases to' be a member of a trade union,
does not thereby forfeit his right to belong to any mutual-aid society,
savings tank or co-operative society dependent on such trade union.
These regulations are supplemented by a number of special
rules referring to membership.
In order to join a trade union, minors of sixteen years of age
must first of all obtain the permission of their parents or guardians,
in accordance with the regulations of common law on this matter.
No special restrictions are imposed on foreigners. But, like
minors, foreigners may not occupy an administrative position in
the union, all such functions being reserved exclusively for Portuguese nationals in full possession of their civil rights.
The trade union law referring to civil servants is, however, more
controversial. As no legal regulations exist on this subject, the
whole matter depends entirely on the practice of the administrative
authorities. It should be noted in this connection that in January
1925 the Minister of Labour declared, in reply to a request for
recognition submitted to him by the Association of State Employees,
that he was prepared to grant official recognition to civil servants*
societies, subject to full guarantees being given concerning the
right to strike.

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FRBBDOM OF ASSOCIATION

FORMALITIES

T h e Decree of 1891 requires trade associations to obtain the
approval of their statutory rules as a preliminary condition to their
constitution. T r a d e associations, says section 3, may not be formed
before their statutory rules have been approved by the Government. Similarly, all a m e n d m e n t s to such rules m u s t be approved
beforehand by the Government.
T h e Decree defines t h e information which must be contained in
the rules, and lays down the procedure to be followed for their
approval.
T h e statutory rules must contain the following information :
(a) The name of the association, its seat and objects. [In order,
doubtless, to facilitate the general system of control which the Government exercises on the activities of the trade associations, the Legislative
Decree requires each trade union to have a definite civil status. No two
associations may have the same name. Again, all documents of the
association must bear the seal of the association, as well as the words
" workers' association ".]
(6) The procedure and conditions of admission for its members, their
rights and obligations, the payments which they must meet, and the
advantages ensured them.
(c) The organisation of the governing board and its powers.
(d) The powers of the general assembly, the organisation ana
functions of the office bearers of the general assembly, the conditions
governing the constitution and working of the assembly and the right
to vote, the procedure for amending the statutory rules.
(e) The procedure for winding up the association in case of dissolution (section 7).
I t follows from what has been
life of the trade unions is placed
the State \
T h e procedure to be followed
of the rules is described as follows

said that the whole of the internal
under the preliminary control of
in connection with the approval
in section 8 :

A petition for the approval of the rules of a new trade association
must be signed by at least three foundation members. This petition must
be accompanied by two copies of the rules, of which one must bear the
1

As the grant of recognition depends primarily on the drawing up
of the statutory rules submitted for the approval of the Government, the
Ministry of Labour has drawn up model rules which define the rights
and obligations of the members of a union, the administrative organs
of the general assembly, the office bearers of the assembly, etc.
(Cf. Legislaçâo relativa a associacöes de classe, modèìo para estatutos-^
Lisbon, Imprensa nacional, 1917)

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295

signature of all the foundation members. The petition and the copies
of the rules must be sent to the Ministry of Labour or, against receipt,
to the Civil Governor of the district in which the association has its seat.
In the latter case the Civil Governor sends the documents in question to
the General Labour Directorate.
A petition for the approval of amendments to the rules, which
must first have been adopted by a general meeting specially convened
for the purpose, must bear the signature of the management committee and be accompanied by two copies of the amended rules and
a duly certified copy of the minutes of the meeting which adopted
them. A list of the persons who voted the amendments and a
complete list of the members must also be attached to these documents (section 9).
All such applications are submitted to the Ministry of Labour,
together with a report from the competent services, which must
state : (1) whether the rules contain any provisions contradictory
to the Decree and the laws in general, and (2) whether the rules
are in order or whether certain amendments must be made in them.
Once these formalities have been completed the Government
gives its decision. The Decree ratifying the rules is published in the
Official Gazette when the association concerned is considered to be
legally constituted.
§ 2. — Activity and Dissolution
Even when officially recognised, trade associations remain subject to supervision by the administrative authorities.
If an association turns aside from the objects for which it was
constituted, says section 12, or does not faithfully observe its rules,
or infringes the provisions of the Decree, or does not fulfil the obligations imposed on it by the Government, recognition may be
withdrawn. Withdrawal of legal recognition is tantamount to an
order of dissolution. It is to be noted, however, that, contrary to
the system in force in most countries, the question of the dissolution of a trade association does not come under the jurisdiction
of the legal authorities, but of the executive powers.
When an association is dissolved, states section 13, the liquidation of its property is compulsory. Liquidation is carried "out on the
following lines : when all accounts have been settled, any credit
balance remaining is distributed in accordance with the provisions
embodied in the rules of the association. When the rules are

206

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

silent on this matter, the credit balance is divided among the mutualaid societies of the district in proportion to their membership.
To sum up, it may be said that the whole existence of the
trade associations from the moment of their constitution, which
requires prior authorisation, to that of their dissolution, which may
be ordered by the administrative authorities, is dependent on the
executive authorities.
It was this fact that led the first trade union congress held in
1909 to make a categorical demand for the repeal of the Legislative Decree of 1891, and to claim the application to trade associations of the provisions introduced by the Act of 14 February 1907
relating to associations \
Nor have proposals for the reform of the system been wanting,
as, for example, the two Bills put forward since 1914 by Deputy
Machado Santos and the Minister Aquilas Gonsalves respectively.
The object of these Bills was to simplify formalities connected with
the foundation of trade associations, to reduce Government supervision, and to authorise the foundation of alliances and trade union
federations. But no legislative force was ever conferred on either
Bill.
The same fate was reserved for a Bill submitted on 12 October
1923 by the Minister of Labour, which proposed to introduce in trade
union legislation " a number of new principles intended to safeguard trade associations against arbitrary executive action, because
society as a whole has all to gain by allowing the workers full
liberty to organise themselves ".
According to this Bill, the recognition of trade associations was.
not to depend on Government acceptance of their rules ; recognition could be obtained by submitting two copies of the rules to the
municipal or district administrative authorities. In short, the Bill
recommended the adoption of the French system, which requires
that the rules shall be publicly filed but does not make the constitution and the working of an association dependent on previous
authorisation.
The only new legal measure referring to trade associations has
been the Decree of 27 December 1924, which empowers legally constituted associations to form trade union federations and alliances

Cf. C h a p t e r i , § 2, p . 290.

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297

and invests them and their federations and alliances with corporate
status.
To quote the main provisions of this Decree, all legally constituted trade unions are entitled to group themselves in federations
or alliances subject, not to the approval of the Government, but
simply to the despatch of duplicate copies of their rules to the Ministry of Labour. One of these copies must be returned within ten
days to the senders, with notification of registration. Federations
and alliances may not begin activities before receiving this copy.
Where any omission has been made in the rules or where the
rules are in any way contradictory to the law, the Ministry returns
them to the parties concerned, requesting them to make the necessary changes.
Once registered, trade union federations and alliances, as well
as the primary trade unions, acquire legal status and may, for example, conclude collective agreements.
Nevertheless, the Decree of 27 December 1924, although very
liberal as regards the constitution of trade union federations and
alliances, introduces no changes in the provisions respecting trade
associations of the first degree, as laid down by the Decree of 1891.

CHAPTER III
POSSIBILITIES AND LIMITS OF TRADE UNION ACTION

Legally recognised trade associations enjoy a certain number of
rights and prerogatives in connection with : (i) the organisation,
with or without Government co-operation, of trade union institutions
and welfare work, and (2) their functions as legal representatives of
their members in the field of civil and industrial law.
§ 1. — Trade Union Institutions
INDEPENDENT INSTITUTIONS

According to section 4, subsection 5, of the Legislative Decree
of 1891, the trade unions are entitled to promote among their
members the organisation of mutual-aid societies and funds and
co-operative societies. But although the Decree gave trade associations a free hand to canvass their members with a view to setting up
social institutions, it forbade them to form such institutions within
their own framework. This prohibition was raised by the Act
of 1 August 1899, which authorises the trade associations to create
such institutions on condition that they have been in existence for
at least one year and that their membership is over 200 in Lisbon
and Oporto and 120 in the other provinces of Portugal. At the same
time mutual-benefit societies and funds and co-operative societies
formed in accordance with the provisions of the Legislative Decree
must be completely separate and independent from the workers' union
as regards their administration and management.
Section 4, subsection 4, of the same Decree further authorises
trade unions to organise employment offices for salaried employees,
workers and apprentices, subject, however, to thé previous approval
of their rules by the Government.

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CO-OPERATION W I T H T H E PUBLIC AUTHORITIES

Section 4, subsection 6, of the Decree requires trade unions,
under the penalty of dissolution, to give their opinion, when requested
by the Government, on : (1) the position, conditions and requirements of industry and commerce and the methods most likely to help
their development, and (2) the health and safety of the workers.
In addition to these advisory powers, the trade unions appoint
their representatives to the probiviral courts, industrial accident
tribunals and the public labour exchanges.
§ 2. — Functions under Civil and Industrial Law
CIVIL L A W

In view of their activities in the field of civil law, trade unions
and their federations and alliances are invested with legal personality.
They may therefore, in accordance with the provisions of common
law on corporate bodies (Civil Code, Book I, Title 3, sections 32-39),
exercise all civil rights connected with their legitimate interests.
They may, for example, sue or be sued ; they have unlimited right
to conclude contracts and to hold and acquire personal property.
On the other hand, they may acquire real estate .— subject always
to the previous authorisation of the State — only so far as such is
necessary for the working of their offices and administrative services.
The regulations governing contracts concluded by societies (Civil
Code, Book II, Title 2, sections 1250-1280) apply to the. activities
of all incorporated associations.
INDUSTRIAL LAW

1. Collective agreements. — The Decree of 27 December 1924
categorically authorises trade unions and their federations to conclude
collective agreements, but does not define the conditions which
such agreements must fulfil. Up to the present no legislation regulating collective agreements has been adopted, although a Bill on
this subject was prepared by the Ministry of Labour in 1923.
This Bill defined a collective agreement as " an agreement
whereby a trade association regulates with an employer or an association of employers the general conditions of labour to which the
individual contracts of employment must- conform ".
Collective agreements were to cover : (1) employers and workers
who had individually given written authorisation to the negotia-

300

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

tors to treat in their name ; (2) employers and workers inscribed
as members of the contracting trade association at the time of the
conclusion of the agreement, unless such persons tendered their resignation within eight days from that date; and (3) all persons who
became members of a trade association bound by an agreement after
the conclusion of the same.
Collective agreements were to be executed in writing and to have
a maximum duration of three years.
Associations parties to agreements were required to ensure the
loyal observance of the provisions and to apply the disciplinary
measures provided for in their rules against defaulting members.
As this Bill was not adopted, collective labour relations are
still regulated solely by the provisions of common law on the individual contract of employment (Civil Code, sections 1391 et seq.
and 2393, defining civil responsibility in the case of breach of contract) .
2. The settlement of industrial disputes. — It has been seen
(Chapter I, § 2) that according to the terms of section 277 of the
Penal Code, combinations and strikes are forbidden \ Nevertheless,
this has not prevented strikes from increasing to such an extent that
the Government has been moved to set up a system for the conciliation of disputes.
In this connection, the Decree of 17 August 1912 provides for the
formation of conciliation committees in the more important industrial
centres, on the proposal of the Minister of Labour. These bodies are
required to adjust individual and collective disputes arising during
work, to prevent the outbreak of disputes, and to settle those which
arise.
Conciliation committees comprise two to five full members and
one or two substitute members elected by the employers' association,
and an equal number of members and substitute members appointed
by the workers' trade unions. Each committee elects a president and
a secretary from among its members.
The body entitled to elect the workers' and employers' delegates is usually appointed by the workers' and employers' associations
affected. Only in the absence of legally constituted trade unions,
or if the large majority of the workers do not belong to a union,
1
This prohibition was removed during the short period while the
Legislative Decree of 6 December 1910 was in operation.

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may the workers and employers concerned choose the members of
the conciliation committee.
Appeal to a conciliation committee is optional.
The penalties, which are exclusively of a moral character, include
the publication in the press of the minutes of the meetings and the
resolutions adopted.
It is to be noted, however, that according to common law, the
instigators of strikes and lock-outs are hable to the penal sanctions
laid down in section 277 of the Penal Code, and are also responsible before civil law for breaches of contract as defined by section
2393 of the Civil Code.

CONCLUSION

To sum up, trade unionism in Portugal may be described as
the outcome of the co-operative and mutual-aid movements. The
movement, which was consolidated only at the beginning of the
twentieth century, was influenced by Socialist policy until 1909,
and from then until 1914 by Anarchist doctrines. Reconstructed on
a basis of political neutrality in 1914 by the foundation of the
National Workers' Union, the movement reached the height of its
power in the years 1919 and 1920, when the General Confederation
of Labour was formed. This body was, however, subsequently
undermined by party quarrels, and was finally dissolved some
little time ago by order of the administrative authorities.
The legal status of trade unionism is defined by Article 3, paragraph 14, of the Constitution, which authorises freedom of association
and assembly, and by the Act of 14 February 1907, which defines the
conditions attached to this privilege. In virtue of this Act, associations may be freely constituted, provided that the provisions of
any special laws referring to them are observed.
Now, the right to associate for trade purposes is regulated in a
special manner for primary trade unions by the Legislative Decree
of 9 May 1891 and for trade union federations by the Act of
24 December 1924.
In virtue of these two Acts, the constitution of trade unions is
subordinated to previous Government authorisation, which is granted
only when it has been shown that the rules of the new associations are
in agreement with the provisions laid down by the Legislative Decree
of 9 May 1891 and the general legislation of the country. Recognition
may be withdrawn by a simple order of the authorities if the rules
of association or the general laws of the country are not observed.
On the other hand, trade union federations may be formed
simply in virtue of the filing of their rules with the Ministry of
Labour.

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Trades unions and trade union federations are corporate bodies,
and as such may conclude collective agreements, organise co-operative
societies and employment offices, and take part through their nominees, in the work of conciliation committees, probiviral courts, industrial accident tribunals, and public labour exchanges
Trade union action is limited in a general manner by section
277 of the Penal Code relating to combinations and strikes, and
sections 282 and 283 relating to legal associations and secret societies.
As, however, the Legislative Decrees of g May 1891 and 27
December 1924 have recently been suspended ', the right of association and assembly is at present wholly dependent on special
authorisation from the public authorities.

See p. 292.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

I. — O F F I C I A L DOCUMENTS

Constituicäo politica da República Portuguesa.
Lisboa, 1924.

Imprensa Nacional de »

Código civil Portugués.
(Art. 32 à 39 das pessoas moráis. — Art. 1240
à 1280, Do Contrato de Sociedade. •— Art. 2393, Da responsabilidade proveniente da näo execuçâo de obrigaçôes.)
Código penal. (Art. 277, Colligaçâo, grève. — Art. 282 à 283 Associaçôes illicitas e secretas.)
Legislacäo relativa a Associaçôes
Lisboa.
Imprensa Nacional, 1917.

de classe.

Decreto de 27 de Dec. — Diaro do'Governo,
IL

Modélo para

27 Dec. 1924, No. 287.

— G E N E R A L SOURCES

ULRICH, Dr. Ruy.

Legislacäo Operaría

LIMA, Dr. Adolfo.

O contracto de

estatutos.

Partugueza.

Trabalho.

GREECE
§ 1. — Development and Present Position of Trade Associations
Since Greece is one of those countries in which industrial
development did not begin until the present century, it is only in
recent times that the formation of trade associations in the modern
sense began.
There were, indeed, from the time when Greece won its independence in 1829, earlier attempts at occupational union on the part of
Greek workers employed in commercial navigation, agriculture, and
small-scale industry. The freedom of association granted in the
Constitution of 1864 gave the legal basis for this.
The people of modern Greece had also inherited the tradition of
the Classical and Byzantine associations of artisans, which had
remained unbroken during Venetian and Turkish domination. These
associations, however, represented their occupations chiefly by taking
part in public and religious ceremonies. The presidents of these
corporations were usually persons who did not belong to the working
class 1.
The first decade of this century, up to about the outbreak of
war, gave Greece the beginnings of its social legislation. A succession of Acts, aiming chiefly at the protection of the worker, were
followed, on the eve of the war, by Act No. 281 of 21 June4 July 1014 2, by which the right of association in Greece was for
the first time subjected to detailed legal regulations. Chapter I I I
of this Act dealt with the question of trade associations in particular,
and gave the legal basis on which the Greek trade unions, and also
the associations of employers, have developed.

Cf. E. ANDREADES : Labour Legislation in Greece. " Internatwnul
Labour Review, Vol. VI, No. 5, Nov. 1922, p. 718.
2
Bull&tin of the International Labour Office (Basle), Vol. XIV, p. 18.
Freedom of Association

306

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

The Act of 1914 was supplemented and amended in details at
various times during the war period (Acts No. 585 of 1914, No. 977
of 1917, Nos. 1205 and 1207 of 1918), and then, in 1920, by the
Decree of 15 May, it was consolidated along with all previous legislation.
In the same year a new special Act, No. 2151 of 21 March3 April 1920, appeared, dealing with trade associations. In this
Act the details of the rights of such associations were developed in
various directions. At the same time there appeared the important
Act No. 2111 of 11 March 1920, regulating the protection of the
liberty to work \
The war hindered the development of the occupational association movement stimulated by the Act of 1914. Nevertheless, in
1918 there were already some 366 organisations of workers, with
approximately 79,000 members (out of a total of approximately
150,000 workers). In the same year the Greek Confédération Générale du Travail was founded, including 214 associations, with
65,000 members. With regard to the regional distribution, these
associations were to be found chiefly only in the larger towns. In
1919 there were 37 unions (with 12,000 to 13,000 members) in
Athens ; 51 (with 16,000 to 17,000 members) in the Piraeus ;
19 (with 6,000 members) in Volo ; 22 (with 22,000 members) in
Salonika; 14 (with 2,500 members) in Larissa; and smaller numbers in Patras, Calamata, Corfu, Syra, Heraclion and Mitylene 2 .
By 1919 the total number of trade unions had risen to 389, with
86,298 members. At that period, 18.7 per cent, of the membership
was made up of tobacco workers, and 18.5 per cent, of transport
workers.
Political events, particularly the consequences of the GrecoTurkish war, did not fail to leave their traces on the trade union
movement. During the disturbed period in 1923 and the extensive
strike movement which appeared at the same time, the very existence
of the trade associations was in danger. The Revolutionary
Resolution No. 20444 of 20 August 1923 3 gave the Government the

INTERNATIONAL LABOUR OFFICE

: Legislative Series, 1920, Gr. 1

and 2.

* E. TSOUDEROS : Le relèvement économique de la Grèce.
by Charles GIDE.) Paris, 1919.
3
Legislative Series, 1923, Gr. 4

(Preface

GREECE

307

power, " in deviation from the provisions of Article n of the Constitution ", at its discretion to dissolve recognised trade unions through
the public prosecution authorities. This possibility of dissolution,
which covered trade associations in general, was made absolute,
compulsory, and legal for associations of workers, by section 2 of
the Resolution.
In the course of political evolution, these strict measures were
already repealed by Resolution No. 32308 of 20 November 1923, and
the dissolved associations of workers were brought back to life and
elected fresh executive committees.
Since then the trade union movement has continued to develop,
so that the total number of-unions existing at present is estimated
approximately at 500, united in eight occupational federations and a
single central organisation.
§ 2. — Freedom to Combine for Trade Purposes
In the Constitution of 29 September 1925, which is at present in
force, Article 13 grants freedom of assembly and Article 14 freedom
of association to all Greeks : " All Greeks have the right, subject to
observing the laws, to form an association. This right must in no
case be made subject to preliminary permission from the Government.
An association can be dissolved on account of failure to observe the
law only after a decision by the courts ".
The laws which have to be observed in exercising the freedom of
association granted by the Constitution are the Associations Act of
1914 already referred to and the Trade Associations Act and liberty
to Work Act of 1920. In the following outline of the law concerning
trade associations, it is the contents of these Acts which will chiefly
be referred to.
T H E INDIVIDUAL R I G H T TO COMBINE

This right is expressly granted by the Constitution, as is shown
in Article 13 quoted above. This constitutional declaration is
however supplemented by relevant Acts.
Thus, section 23 of the Act of 1914 protects workers and salaried
employees against any attempt on the part of the employer, director,
etc., to restrict their liberty to join a trade union. It is forbidden for
the latter :
(a) by dismissal or threat of dismissal or by any other unlawful

3o8

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

means to prevent workers, salaried employees or other paid
workers from founding trade unions, becoming members of
the same, or belonging to political parties ;
(b) to use the same means in order to force workers to form
trade associations or to become members of given
associations ;
(c) to demand for the purpose of obtaining their services or of
maintaining the existing contract of employment, that workers should refrain from becoming members of such associations or should resign from them.
These regulations are supplemented by Act No. 21 n of
11 March ig20, already referred to, concerning liberty to work.
Here the offence of " constraint ", well known in other legislations, is defined and is made subject to punishment by fines or
imprisonment. This offence, according to Greek law, is committed
by any person :
(a) who in order to compel an employer to change the conditions
of employment, or in order to hinder in any way the free
performance of work, brings about a stoppage of work by
threats, force, or acts of violence directed against a person
who is willing to work ;
(6) who for the same purpose and by the same methods causes
a continuance of a stoppage of work ;
(c) who in order to compel workers to change their conditions
of employment or to forego a strike, brings about a stoppage
of work on the part of au employer (lock-out) by the same
methods, or causes a continuance of the stoppage ;
(d) who by the aforesaid methods compels workers to forego a
strike.
The punishments for this " offence against the liberty to work "
•are made considerably severer for any person who " removes,
conceals, destroys, or in any way renders useless a machine or a
component part of a machine or mechanical appliance, and who
thereby causes a stoppage or an unusual disturbance in the working
of an industrial or manufacturing undertaking, or makes it dangerous
to continue work ".

GREECE

309

Any person guilty oï these offences is punished whether he has
committed the acts in his o wn_ interests or not.
None of these provisions for the protection of the liberty to work,
however, affect the principle of the liberty to employ trade union
weapons. This principle was introduced by the new Greek legislation in place of section 167 of the former criminal law, which had
regarded the strike as a punishable act, but which was repealed by the
Act of 11 March 1920 (section 4).
T H E L A W ON T R A D E ASSOCIATIONS

This is contained chiefly in Act No. 281 of 1914. Along with this
are certain provisions of Act No. 2151 of 1920.
Preliminary

Material

Conditions

An association can be freely formed in Greece provided its
aims are not contrary to the law or contra bonos mores (section 1
of the Act of 1914). Trade associations, which are specially dealt
with in Chapter III of this Act, are distinguished from the great
majority of other associations chiefly by their aim. While in the
case of associations in general (Chapter I, section 1), the aim of the
association is referred to only negatively (exclusion of motives of
gain), for trade associations, a more definite positive demand is made
(Chapter III, section 19) that it should follow the sole purpose of
" studying, protecting and furthering the economic or occupational
interests of its members ".
The essence of an association according to the definition - in
Greek law is that several persons should " permanently combine
their knowledge or their activity ". It is therefore a case of
" permanent association of physical persons ". In Greek legislation
there are no regulations for mere temporary unions such as the
combinations (agreements) known to central European law.
Moreover, it is impossible for bodies corporate to be members of an
association, since Greek law expressly mentions individuals only.
The minimum number of members is fixed at " seven individuals
at least ".
Although it is true that bodies corporate cannot be members
of associations in the strict sense of the term, yet section 43 of the
Act of 1914 provides for associations, as such, joining together to
form federations. These federations, in which the member associa-

3 io

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

tions (trade associations and associations with other aims) keep
their economic and administrative independence, have the same
rights and duties as are laid upon the simple associations by the
provisions of the Associations Act.
Besides the limitation of the right of association to individuals,
it is also provided as a strict rule that " the participation of
employers and employees in one and the same association is forbidden " (section 19). Thus, the formation of so-called mixed trade
unions is legally forbidden in Greece. At the same time, the Act
of 1920 permits an exception in the case of agricultural occupational
associations (section 20), although in this case, indeed, reference
is made merely to landowners and tenants ; but section 19 of the
Act of 1914 considers employers and employees to be in the same
position as these persons.
With reference to the occupations of members of an association,
it is legally provided that persons " of the same or of allied occupations " shall unite in one trade association. Since the Act speaks
here not only of " industrial, commercial and agricultural
occupations " but also of trade associations of persons " who exercise any other occupation ", it would seem that the right of association
is ensured both for public officials and for members of the liberal
professions. At the same time, occupational organisations of civil
servants and municipal officials must not combine with any associations of another type (section 21 of the Act of 1920).
There are special provisions for certain classes of occupations, but only for railway workers, workers and employees
in shipping and associations " whose members, as a result of the
nature of their occupation, are continually travelling or otherwise
occupied, or are obliged to stay away from the headquarters of the
association ". Such associations are granted special privileges with
reference to the right of the general meeting to arrive at decisions.
Minors over sixteen years of age and women may become members
of associations only after the father, guardian, or husband sends
written permission to the executive of the association. Only persons
who are of age and have complete freedom of action and legal rights
(but without distinction of sex) may be elected to the executive
committee. Foreigners are excluded only from political associations.
They may, however, not be elected to the committee even of nonpolitical associations, except in the case of associations consisting of
foreigners who have settled in Greece.

GRBBCK

Existence

and Dissolution

The further details concerning the existence and internal
activities of trade associations are contained in a number of detailed
provisions of the Associations Act of 1920, which form a kind of
general constitution for associations which the single associations
have to follow in exercising their activities. Besides regulations for
the election of the executive, there are detailed provisions concerning
the summoning of the general meeting, the voting therein, and the
power of the meeting to pass resolutions, thus ensuring that
resolutions freely taken and based on the general will of the members
shall be adopted.
Decisions of a more delicate nature, such as elections, votes of
confidence in the committee, passing of accounts, personal questions, etc., must be taken by secret ballot. Members under eighteen
years of age are not permitted to vote in a secret ballot. The same
effort to ensure that no undue influence will be used in the voting is
to be found in further legal provisions concerning the resolution to
strike. In case of a strike (from any cause whatsoever) the executive
must, within forty-eight hours, call a general meeting which shall
pass a resolution with regard to the strike. Should this meeting not
be large enough to take decisions according to the legal provisions
(presence of at least a third, or for railway workers, etc., a quarter
of the members), then the executive may, during the course of the
strike, call a further meeting and continue to remain in touch with
official bodies, but has no longer any legal right to undertake other
action on behalf of the association and in particular to guide the
strike.
This regulation requiring that a meeting which is capable of
arriving at decisions should be called at once in order to approve a
strike of the trade association concerned, goes far to avoid so-called
" wild " strikes, and to preserve industrial peace. .
It should be noted that the law expressly requires that the same
care should be exercised before employers make use of their
weapons : in the case of a lock-out, the association of employers
concerned must summon a general meeting within forty-eight hours.
As, moreover, the Greek legislation concerning associations
speaks always of " trade associations " in general, its provisions
apply to employers' and employees' associations equally.
The two Acts which have been discussed and which are.
important for the right of association for trade purposes in Greece

312

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

also contain provisions concerning membership and resignation, the
content of the rules, the right to organise public collections and
festivities, the actionable nature of claims brought by members
against the association and of those brought by the association
against its members, etc.
With reference to this last point, it is interesting to note one
regulation according to which a member may bring an action
against the association in the competent court. In the proceedings,
which are modelled on the provisions of Act No. 3974 of
31 December 1911-13 January 1912, concerning the settlement of
disputes between employers and employees regarding the payment
of salaries and day wages, the association takes the place of the
employer (section 7 of the Act of 1914). Similarly, a member of
an association who is summoned for arrears of contributions is
considered in the same light as an employee in a similar case
(section 6).
With reference to the organisation of collections, it is necessary
to have a preliminary resolution by the general meeting unless
for the purpose of supporting members of the association who are
on strike.
. A trade association can be dissolved only by the courts, and
in the cases enumerated in the law :
(a) if the association fails to observe the general regulations
concerning the formation of associations discussed above
(sections 1, 2 and 3 of the Act of 1914) ;
(b) if the funds of the association are employed for some purpose other than that mentioned in the rules ;
(c) if the association departs from the aims for which it was
legally recognised ;
(d) if the association has been inactive for so long that in the
opinion of the court it may be considered to have abandoned
its aims.
The Act expressly states that " a strike is no motive for dissolution ".
From these and the other provisions referred to above it is
clear that the right of association for trade purposes in Greece does
not restrict the freedom to make use of trade union weapons.

GREECE

Sphere of Activity

3'3

of Trade Associations

There are important legislative provisions concerning the legal
powers of trade associations and circumscribing their activities.
As far back as the Associations Act of 1014, limits were laid
down within which trade associations could take part in public
duties. According to section 22, recognised trade associations are
entitled to send representatives to the Superior Labour Council (in
conformity with Act No. 3932 of 12 and 25 November 1911). They
are also called upon to co-operate in enforcing laws for the
protection of the workers by reporting infringements against such
laws to the competent authorities through their legal representatives.
For the maintenance of the labour market, industrial peace and
a steady development of production without friction, the Act
empowers them to set up employment exchanges and workers'
employment offices, and offices for free legal assistance and medical
advice.
The trade associations are legally prohibited from exercising any
occupation or industrial activity. They may, however, undertake
certain legal transactions for furthering the economic welfare of their
members. They are thus entitled in particular :
(a) to conclude buying and other contracts for the organisation
of schools and occupational training centres ;
(6) to purchase raw materials, seeds, manure, stock, machines,
and other implements and materials, and to sell, hire or lend
the same to their members ;
(c) to purchase and resell the products of the industry of their
members, for which purpose special co-operative societies are
to be formed according to section 15 of the Act of 1920 ;
(d) with the permission of the Ministry for National Economy
to purchase land required for achieving the aims of the
association, erecting offices, halls, libraries, industrial
schools, etc.
Collective

Agreements

The most important power of the trade associations, however,
is that of concluding collective labour agreements. In this connection, section 20, (e), of the Act of 1914 states :
Trade associations may conclude collective labour agreements with
individuáis and bodies corporate or with representatives of groups, for

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

the purpose of fixing the conditions of employment of the other party,
that is, the engagement, dismissal or departure of workers, payment
of wages, hours of work, etc.
Representatives of the association with the right of signature
must be specially empowered by the general meeting before signing
collective agreements.
Besides the influence which the trade associations may exercise
on conditions of work in terms of the above provision, there is a
further regulation which tends to strengthen the position of trade
associations in Greece : such associations, whether of employers or
employees, are entitled to register industrial and commercial
trade marks (labels) for the personal use of their members in terms
of Act No. 2156 of 16 February-i March 1893. These trade marks
are the property of the associations, which may resign them in
favour of their members (but without profit).
As is clear from all these provisions, Greek legislation concerning
trade associations deals with considerable thoroughness with the
details of such associations, and does not leave very much freedom
for regulation by the rules.
Supervision of the Working of the

Associations

This extensive system of legislative regulation is supplemented
by rather extensive supervision of the associations by the authorities.
Chapter V of the Act of 1914 dealing with " recognition, supervision
and dissolution " does indeed limit the control of associations to
supervising the application of the Associations Act, the rules of the
association, and the administration of the funds. But the regulations
make possible a considerable amount of State supervision. This
supervision is carried out for the workers' associations (trade associations and also mutual-aid societies) by the competent factory inspectors; for other associations (particularly trade associations of
employers) it is carried out by the competent prefects.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

F. Moupíxr,.

'EX).7|V.y.ò; 'Epya-'.zò; Kw8'.;. ' A ^ v a i , 1913.

N. rwvv.o'j.

' 0 UOT'.aX'.Tp.ò; TOÜ Kpá-ou;.

A. SßwXou.

'OSTIVOÇ TWV Swp.aTíiü)v.

©. KouToum).

'A8í¡vai.

0 SoffixX'.Tfxôç ¿v 'EXXáS'..

F. FeupY'.áoou.
A. Ka/.i/wouvaxv).

'H itá).7| TWV rálJEwy.
IIoX'.T'.xïi

'Aör^m, 1914.
ASïjvxi, 1919.

'AOìjvai, 1921.

'Eit'.TTï|{JiYi.

'AQíjvat, 1926.

'EiîETTipiç 'EpyaT'.xwv S u p T s í w v .

'Aö/jva'., 1024.

Annuaire des Syndicats

Atifens, 1924.

ouvriers.

SERB-CROAT-SLOVENE KINGDOM
INTRODUCTION
The Serb-Croat-Slovene Kingdom was founded on i December 1918 and comprises the following territories : in the first place,
the former Kingdoms of Serbia and Montenegro ; next, the former
Austrian territories of Slovenia (the greater part of the Crown land
of Carniola, parts of Styria and Carinthia, together with the former
Hungarian territory of Medjumurje) and Dalmatia ; further, Croatia
and Slavonia, which were part of Hungary; Bosnia and Herzegovina,
which although they had their own legislation, modelled it in the
main on Austrian law ; and finally Voivodina, composed of the
former Hungarian territories of Baranja, Baëka, and the Banat.
The difference in legal origin of the various parts of the country
has also meant that the historical development of the law on association for trade purposes and of trade associations until 1 December 1918
differed according as it took place in the area covered by Austrian,
Hungarian, or Serbo-Montenegrin law. In addition, the composition
of the State is of no less decisive importance for the present, state of
the law, for, as will be shown in more detail later, although the new
State has already enacted certain fundamental laws for the whole
territory of the State precisely in the field of labour law, yet it has
also very largely maintained the existing laws brought to the new
State by the individual areas, and. it is only the lesser part of the law
in force in the Kingdom that is common to the whole country.
This variety in form must also be taken into account in the
present study, which will, however, deal primarily with the conditions of fact and law apflying to the whole Kingdom, and, in
accordance with the scheme of the publication as a whole, discuss
the details in the separate areas of the Kingdom only so far as they

3>8

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

have not been described elsewhere or an account of the legal
conditions peculiar to the Kingdom is necessary \
i

§ 1. — Development of Trade Associations and the Law on Such
Associations
The principal conditions of the country affecting the development
of trade associations will first be briefly surveyed, together with the
existing associations. This will be followed by an historical sketch
showing the development of the law, with special reference to Serbia.
DEVELOPMENT AND PRESENT POSITION OF TRADE ASSOCIATIONS

The Serb-Croat-Slovene Kingdom is largely an agricultural State,
and 85 per cent, of the population of about 12,600,000 are dependent
on agriculture. The importance of commerce and industry is
comparatively slight. For a long time industrial trades were carried
on only on a small scale and with antiquated methods, and it was
not until the beginning of this century that industry in the modern
sense began to develop. Moreover, this development has not always
been the same in the different parts of the State. Whereas areas
such as Bosnia, Herzegovina, Dalmatia, Montenegro, and South
Serbia had until quite recently a feudal or patriarchal system, in
Slovenia and parts of Croatia, on the contrary, commerce and
industry have long flourished. In view of these circumstances, the
number of wage earners taken as a whole is small compared with the
total population, and the trade union movement is therefore still
comparatively young and not very strong. The oldest Serbian trade
unions date back only to 1903. National unity led also to the
amalgamation of the unions in the separate areas, and at the .same
time, to a marked increase in the strength of the movement 2 .
Employers' organisations properly so called have been formed only
during the last few years.

For further particulars see the monographs on the Former Dual
Monarchy of Austria-Hungary, Austria, and Hungary, in Vol. Ill,
p p . 103-186.

* According to the statistics of the Belgrade Chamber of Labour, the
membership of the Serbian unions was as follows :
1903
Ï9°4
1910

.
•
.

. 1,761
• 5,35o
. 7,418

T912
1913
1920

.
•
.

8,141
14.707
25,437

SERB-CROAT-SLOVENE KINGDOM

3*9

The promising growth of the movement after the foundation of
the Kingdom soon came to a stop, however, at least among the
workers. The spread of Communism after the war led to disintegration among the trade unions, and the accompanying acts of violence
inspired legislation for the protection of the State, which, although
directed in the main against the interference of the Communists, could
in practice also be employed against trade unions. In addition to
this, the administration of legislation on associations taken over with
former Austrian and Hungarian territory gave the administrative
authorities wide powers of intervention in the activities of trade
unions. This meant that where the trade unions were not dissolved,
they lost many members, and even to-day they have not yet regained
their membership of 1919.
According to the 1926 report of the Central Secretariat for the
Yugoslav Trade Unions, there are at present five main trade union
groups, distinguished principally by their political programmes.
The free trade unions are Socialistic. Their general federation,
the Federation of United Trade Unions of Yugoslavia (Ujedinjeni
Radnicki Sindikalni Savez Jugoslavije), is affiliated to the International Federation of Trade Unions of Amsterdam. Its affiliated
unions are grouped according to district as follow : Belgrade, for
Serbia, with ten unions; Zagreb (Agram), for Croatia and Slavonia,
with four unions ; Ljubljana (Laibach), for Slovenia, with six
unions; Bosnia-Herzegovina, with eight unions; and Voivodina^
with one. The total membership is estimated at 26,656.
The Moscow tendency is followed by the independent unions
combined in the Central Committee of Yugoslav Trade Unions
(alleged membership 15,000 to 20,000).
Two unions describe themselves as neutral, namely, the Yugoslav
Printers' Union, which is affiliated to the International Federation
of Trade Unions, and the Bank Clerks' Union, which declines tojoin an international organisation.
Whereas all these groups support the principle of the class war,
the two remaining ones aim at co-operation between capital and
labour. These are, on the one hand, the national unions, the Croat
Workers' Association, and the National Union of Yugoslav Railwaymen and Seamen, which have no connection with each other,
and, on the other, the Christian unions, whose activities are confined
in the main to Slovenia, and which have combined to form the

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

Slovenian Federation of Christian Trade Unions (Seznam Krscanskosocialisticrich organizacy v sloveniji) (membership about 10,000).
The total number of workers organised in trade unions, according to the above report, is therefore about 80,000, which, compared
with the 1,000,000 workers employed in industry, handicrafts,
agriculture, and domestic service, forms only 8 per cent.
In addition to the trade unions there are various officials'
associations. These may not pursue militant aims, but work for the
protection and promotion of the intellectual and economic interests
of their members, such as certain teachers' organisations and a general
civil servants' union '.
The employers' organisation, which covers the whole country,
is the Federation of Industrial Corporations (Centrala
Industrìjs\ih
korporacija). In addition, there are various territorial associations
for separate parts of the country, and trade associations for specific
industries or branches of industry a.
HISTORY OF T H E L A W ON TRADE ASSOCIATIONS

Before the existing law on association for trade purposes is
discussed, a brief -account may be given of the legal conditions
previously prevailing in Serbia.
Until the beginning of the nineteenth century Serbia was under
Turkish domination, and during that time the whole economic life
of the country was paralysed. Agriculture was carried on on the
Zadruga " system, the well-known form of iamily co-operation
which satisfied all economic needs. With the liberation of Serbia in
1815, urban trades began to revive, and in order that the new handicrafts might be ablento compete with foreign rivals, they sought
protection in combination, i.e. in the " Esnaf " or guilds, of which
there were 18 in 1830. There was no written law on the organisation
and activities of these bodies, and indeed they lacked all legal protection. In these circumstances it is clear that the apprentices and
journeymen in the Esnaf had a very insecure position, nor had they
any right to combine, though it is hardly likely that they suffered
seriously from this lack.

There are several associations of members of the liberal prolessions,
but these are not trade associations in the sense of the present study.
2
For further particulars, cf. International Labour Directory, 1925,
Part II, pp. 186-188 (Geneva, 1925).

32I

SERB-CROAT-SLOVENE KINGDOM

- With the growth of handicrafts and the increase in the number
of guilds, the feeling of insecurity became stronger and the demand
for legal regulations on the guild system more pronounced. After
several years' discussion and numerous appeals and petitions, the
Guilds Act of 1847 was passed, which also contained several provisions on journeymen and apprentices.
There was nevertheless no consequent improvement in the
position of the workers, for the Act placed them wholly at the mercy
of the masters combined in the " Esnaf ", the authorities exercising
no supervision over the guilds, and the workers themselves being
given no means of self-defence. They did not belong to the guild,
had no representatives on it, besides which they had no right to
combine. Any secret agreement among journeymen to cease work in
common was punished by the Act with imprisonment of one to six
months. A journeyman could stop work without giving due notice
only if he was physically or intellectually incapable of continuing to
work, if the employer " obviously " treated him too strictly, or
compelled him to act against the law or morals, or withheld his
wages without lawful reason, or failed to provide him regularly with
his maintenance. If, in the absence óf such a reason, the journeyman
stopped work, he could be compelled to continue working by the
" Esnaf " or the police. But the decision whether a lawful reason
for immediately stopping work existed lay with the " Esnaf " itself,
that is to say, with the masters, who could hardly be regarded as
impartial judges.
It would go too far to describe the other defects of this Act.
Although it fulfilled its purpose of ordering and promoting industry
only very imperfectly, and in practice was largely not applied or else
circumvented, it yet remained in force for over sixty years. The
edict of 1859, which proclaimed the freedom of industry, could not
overthrow its legal force. It was not until modern industry had arisen
and created a body of industrial workers that this obsolete Act was
repealed.
Even before the disappearance of the Act, the freedom of association and assembly had been declared in the general political field.
The Serbian Constitution of 22 December 1888 (old style) and the
subsequent Constitution of 5-18 June 1903 ' laid down that Serbian
1

The Constitutions of 1869 and 1901 contained no provisions of this

kind.
Freedom of Association

322

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

citizens had the right to associate for all purposes not contrary to the
law, and that the exercise of this right could not be made subject to
any kind of preliminary measure. The Act on Associations and
Assemblies of 1891 repeated the provision of the Constitution, and
added in section 32 that employers' and workers' associations might
be formed freely without any need for a permit from the authorities.
On the other hand, secret combinations, whose aims were contrary
to the law, were forbidden, and membership was made subject to
punishment. According to this same Act, assemblies in closed
premises were free, and previous notice was all that was required for
holding an assembly in the open air.
This meant that although workers' and employers' associations
could be formed, any mutual agreement to stop work, however, was
forbidden. At this point the Industries Act of 29 June-12 July 1910,
which came into force on 1-14 July 1911, intervenes. Section 98 of this
Act recognises the right of association for trade purposes, and
section 56 the right to strike and lock out. The detailed provisions
of these sections, as also those of the Act reorganising the guild
system, in so far as they come into consideration here, will be
discussed later in view of the fact that they affect the present state of
the law in Serbia. Therefore the right of combination in the widest
sense was granted by law to both employers and workers already
before the world war. This act of legislation was facilitated by the
fact that there was practically no capitalist class, at least so far as
large-scale industry was not organised, and the legislature therefore
met with hardly any opposition. There were only two classes to be
satisfied — artisans and workers \
§ 2. — Conditions of Formation and Existence of Trade Associations
The fundamental legislative provisions are either general for the
whole country or based on the particular law of the different territories, and may be discussed in turn.
GENERAL L A W S

1. The principal general legal provisions now in force are those
contained in the State Constitution of 28 June 1921. On the model
of other modern Constitutions, it guarantees a number of basic social
1
Stevan S. POPOVITCH : Les corporations de métiers et les chambres
consultatives en Yougoslavie, p. 80. Paris, 1923.

SERB-CROAT-SLOVENE KINGDOM

323

rights, including, in Article 33, the right of workers to organise with
a view to improving their conditions of work.
The constitutional regulation contained in Article 33 guarantees
the right of association of the workers alone. That of employers is
not specially protected, but is covered by the general law
on association ; for the right of association of the workers
is obviously considered to need more protection, and is
therefore to be specially secured. But the general right of association, too, is protected by the Constitution. This is affirmed in
Article 14, under which citizens have the right to associate and to
enter into agreements, and associations may be formed for purposes
that are not punishable. Detailed regulations are left for special
legislation \
Article 33 grants the workers the right of association with
reference to the improvement of their conditions of work. It merely
states that this aim, being fundamental, must not be lacking, but not
that it must be the only aim. According to this provision, which is
not to be interpreted narrowly, other aims are therefore also allowed.
On the other hand, a limitation of the workers' right of association
might result from the provision of Article 14, by which the aims of
an association may not be contrary to the Penal Code. In actual fact,
the present practice is to apply both provisions of the Constitution at
once to the workers' trade associations, namely, the particular
provision concerning the right of association of the workers for trade
purposes, and the general provision of the law on association, although
the question whether the simultaneous application of the two legal
principles is legally justifiable or not cannot be casually dismissed.
In this connection it may be asked in particular whether, since the
more detailed regulation of the general law of association is reserved
for special legislation, such legislation may go so far as to make the
formation of associations dependent on the previous approval or
similar measures of the administrative authorities. As such legislation on associations has not yet been enacted for the whole State,
and as, moreover, the former Austrian and Hungarian laws on
associations taken over by the State also intervene, it is further open
to question whether their provisions making it a condition for the
formation of an association that it should be previously approved or
at least not disallowed, are compatible with Article 33 of the Constitu-

The same Article correspondingly grants the right of assembly.

324

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

tion, which unconditionally grants the workers the right of association ; it may even be doubtful whether such provisions are in
harmony with Article 14.
This question is of great practical importance also in connection
with Article 127 of the Constitution, which provides that in the event
of a war, general mobilisation, or riot, part of the Constitution,
including the general law on associations, assemblies and agreements
(Article 14), may be temporarily suspended. If, however, as is the
present practice, the special right of association for trade purposes
granted to the workers by Article 33 is regarded as part of the general
law on associations, then this too becomes subject to Article 127.
After what has been said above, however, it may be considered
doubtful whether this view correctly interprets Article 33.
The simultaneous application of other provisions, in particular
those of legislation on associations, may involve all the more risk to
the security of the workers' right of association, as a law can be made
binding in spite of its offending against constitutional principles.
The provisions on the workers' right of association and the right of
association in general, by being included in the Constitution, are
established as constitutional principles. Their amendment or repeal
entails an amendment of the Constitution and cannot be the effect
of a simple Act, but must necessarily be the result of the procedure
provided in the Constitution for its amendment. But this special
constitutional safeguard is not unconditional, for, as is generally
accepted, the courts may not examine the material constitutionality
of an Act, and any formally enacted law remains a law that must be
followed and applied, even if it is contrary to the Constitution.
2. Apart from the Constitution, the right of association .of certain
groups of workers is secured by an ordinary Act, namely, section 35
of the Labour Protection Act of 28 February 1922, according to which
the workers employed in the undertakings covered by the Act may
unite in special associations to defend their economic, social, and
moral interests. Such associations may be formed according to the
occupations to which the workers belong or irrespective thereof.
They may be united in local or provincial federations.
According to section 1, the Act applies to all private and public
undertakings carrying on handicrafts, industry, commerce, transport,
mining and similar activities. The workers employed in such undertakings are defined in section 3 of the Act as all persons working in

SERB-CROAT-SLOVENE KINGDOM

325

such undertakings for remuneration or for the purpose of learning a
trade, who are not responsible for services of a relatively high grade.
By section 35, subsection 3, only such persons may belong to trade
associations within the meaning of the Act, irrespective of their sex
or age.
This Act, as little as the rest, provides detailed regulations
concerning the formation of an association and the conditions for its
existence. On this point the Associations Acts of the individual parts
of the country, whose relation to Articles 14 and 33 of the Constitution has already been discussed, intervene. The details of these Acts
will be examined later.
3. As already explained in the Introduction, the acts of violence
of the Communists led to the passing of the Act of 2 August 1921 on
the maintenance of public safety and order in the State, the so-called
Defence of the State Act. Its provisions may lead in certain connections to a substantial restriction of the liberal principles contained
in the above laws. According to the Defence of the State Act, it is
a crime to found, support, or join an association which aims at
spreading Communism, Anarchism, or terrorism. The same applies
to an organisation which tries to seize power in an unlawful or antiparliamentary manner, or aims at the commission of the following
acts defined as crimes under the Act : the composition, publication,
printing, and distribution of books, newspapers, posters, and notices
with a view to inciting to acts of violence against the constitutional
authorities of the State, or in general to molesting public peace or
endangering public order ; the propagation of Communism and
anarchy by word of mouth or in writing, or the persuading of other
persons to overthrow the political order of the State by crime,
violence, or any other form of terrorism.
In this way any Communist or Anarchist association is prohibited,
even if it confines itself merely to the explanation and propagation
of these doctrines without engaging in acts of violence. The penalty
incurred by acts of this kind is death or twenty years'
penal servitude. Anyone who is aware of an instance of this crime
without giving due notice to the authorities is also punished by
twenty years' penal servitude. Further, according to section 15 of
this Act, the administrative authorities may dissolve a trade association or other association if they ascertain that it has changed its

326

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

lawfully admitted aims, a n d secretly or publicly begun to engage in
foreign propaganda or to deal with unlawful or disallowed matters.
I n the event of dissolution, the members of the committee of the
association are punished by imprisonment of not less than one year
a n d a fine of 5,000 dinars, unless they have been guilty of even more
serious offences. A trade union, therefore, that fails to observe this
provision in its meetings a n d sessions, and goes over to Communism,
r u n s the risk of being dissolved. A s the decision whether a trade
union is still engaged in t r a d e union propaganda or has alread5 r
embarked on Communist propaganda is left to the discretion of the
administrative authorities, it is clear that the Socialist unions may
feel the security of their position affected.
A dissolved association has the right to make an appeal within
three days to the competent ordinary court of first instance against
the order to dissolve. A similar period is allowed for appealing
against the decision of the court to t h e Court of Cassation.
Certain other provisions of the Defence of the State Act, although
not referring directly t o trade associations, m a y in practice indirectly
affect their practical management. T h i s applies, for instance, to
section 12 of the Act, which imposes a penalty of imprisonment or
fine, or both, for persons who introduce or distribute in public
meetings, whether held in the open air or in closed premises, tokens,
flags, or placards with a view to u r g i n g or inciting public opinion to
exchange the existing order of law for another b y means of a coup
d'état, the destruction of private property, or the disturbance of the
public peace. Even the mere fact of participating in such a proclamation is punishable. If the participants in a proclamation directed
against the State authorities or the interests of the State fail to
disperse at the order of the authorities, they are similarly liable to
imprisonment, and the ringleaders, in addition, to a fine \
SPECIAL

LAWS

I t has already been pointed out that the general law on association in the K i n g d o m is completed, in the absence of comprehensive
codification, by t h e special laws of the ' individual territories which

1
It may be mentioned that the judges in the criminal courts must
deal with cases under this Act, as against the Serbian Penal Code, by
summary procedure before all others, and enjoy full discretion in
delivering judgment.

SERB-CROAT-SLOVENE KINGDOM

327

were united in the Kingdom in 1918, so far as they are not cancelled
by the general law \
In former Serbian territory the Act on associations and assemblies of 31 March 1891 is still in force. According to this Act, Serbian
citizens have the right to associate for all purposes not contrary to
the Act. The exercise of this right may not be made dependent on
any previous measures. Both workers'.and employers' trade associations may be freely formed without any need of official approval.
All secret associations whose aims and purpose are contrary to the
law are forbidden, and participation in them renders liable to
punishment.
The formalities to be satisfied by the association are intended
merely to make it public. According to section 37 of the Act, all
associations and societies must, when founded, publish their rules
and the names of their legal representatives in the press. This applies
also to any subsequent changes. To satisfy this regulation it is not
even necessary to issue a notice in a newspaper ; it is enough if the
rules are printed and distributed, together with a list of the names
of the legal representatives of the association. The contravention of
this regulation does not render liable to penalty ; for, as will appear
from the above, the fact of keeping an association secret is not by
itself a punishable act, but its aims must also be contrary to the law.
At the same time, it is probable in actual fact that if an association
is not made public, the reason is precisely that its aims are illegal, and
it should be remembered that in such a case section 15 of the Defence
of the State Act referred to above will then apply.
The above provisions also hold good for federations of associations.
It is obvious that any action of an association or its members
contrary to an Act in force, whether taken in accordance with the
rules or not, renders liable to punishment (section 38). The ordinary
courts are competent to judge such actions. The trade associations
formed according to this Act do not possess legal personality, which
under Serbian law is acquired only by virtue of legislation. As the
Serbian Act on associations and assemblies does not deal with this
point, however, the trade associations established on its basis have
1
Thus, in particular, the Defence of the State Act provides that any
provision in penal law, the law on association, etc., contrary to it is
cancelled.

328

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

no legal personality. They cannot therefore own or acquire
property, etc. As a rule any real estate they need is acquired for
them by one of their officers — a method, however, which experience
has shown to lead to complications, particularly when there is a
split in the association.
In addition to the legal principles contained in the Act on
associations and assemblies, there is also the provision of the
Industries Act referred to in the historical survey, concerning the
free formation of trade associations of employers and workers and
mixed associations (section 98).
In Croatia and Slavonia the Austrian provisions concerning
associations contained in the Imperial Decree of 26 November 1852,
which applied to the whole Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary, are
in force so far as trade associations are concerned. It follows that
here the system of compulsory application for permits (concessions),
dating from the period of absolutism, still prevails. According to
section 1, special authority is necessary for the foundation of an
association \
The political authorities are competent to grant
2
permits . An application for a permit to found an association must
indicate the scheme of the undertaking and be accompanied by the
rules. The rules must state the aims of the association, the means
for achieving these aims and collecting the necessary funds, the
manner of forming and renewing the association, the system of
management, the rights and obligations of members, the representation of the association with respect to third parties, the manner of
taking decisions and of settling disputes arising out of internal
matters of the association, and the provisions as to the dissolution of
the association. A permit can be granted only if the aims of the
association are permitted under the law. All amendments of the rules
must also be approved.
The association is subject to supervision by the State administrative authorities. It may be dissolved if it is formed without the
necessary permit, if in spite of the withdrawal of the permit it
continues its activities, or if it offends against its rules and similar
regulations. The political authorities are competent to dissolve the
1
This provision was confirmed by order of the " Ban " of CroatiaSlavonia-Dalmatia of 9 April 1897 (No. 170), which also referred to the
prohibition against forming political associations.
2
Now the Ministry of the Interior at Belgrade, on the recommendation of the political authorities.

3*9

SERB-CROAT-SLOVENE KINGDOM

association, but an appeal against their decision may be taken to t h e
Minister òf the Interior. Such an appeal cannot, however, prevent
t h e decision from taking effect, and the association must immediately
cease its activities.
Associations
personality.

formed

the

I n Voivodina
Hungarian
Minister of the Interior of 1873
are accordingly valid \ I n this
necessary for the formation of an
engage " provisionally " on its
given within forty days.

basis

permit

have

legal

law applies. T h e Order of the
a n d the Ministerial Decree of 1875
territory too, therefore, a permit is
association, b u t the association may
activities if a refusal has not been

I n Slovenia and Dalmatici t h e Austrian Associations Act of
15 November 1867 2 is in force. A l t h o u g h a permit for forming an
association is not necessary, the State authorities may prohibit its
foundation if it is contrary to the law.
I n Bosnia and Herzegovina
trade associations are subject to the
Associations Act of 17 F e b r u a r y LQIO. These regulations resemble
the Austrian provisions of 1867. T h e y require the founders of an
association to notify the competent administrative authorities, at t h e
same time submitting the rules. T h e Government may prohibit t h e
association if its aims or rules are contrary to the law or dangerous
to the State. If, however, n o prohibition is pronounced within six
weeks of the submission of the rules, the association may engage
on its activities. An appeal against the prohibition may be taken to
the competent Ministry. Similar provisions apply to amendments of
the rules and the formation of branches and federations.
W h e n the general meeting is held, three days' notice must be
given ; otherwise it may be forbidden by the authorities. An appeal
against such prohibition is also possible. T h e authorities have t h e
right to send a representative to the meeting, with powers to dissolve
it. T h e execution of the decisions of t h e committee of an association
may be suspended, and in certain conditions the association may be
compulsonly dissolved, for instance, if its activities are contrary t o
public order. I n all these cases an appeal to the competent Ministry
is allowed.

Cf. monograph on the Former Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary,
in Vol. I l l , pp. 126-127.
2
Cf. ibid., p. io8, and also Austria, same volume, p. 139.

33»

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

Political associations are subject to greater restrictions.
Trade associations which satisfy the conditions of the law have
legal personality.
In Montenegro, where no special legislation is in force, the
general law contained in the Labour Protection Act applies to trade
associations.
This brief survey will have shown that in certain parts of the
country provisions are in force concerning which it is at least doubtful whether they are compatible with the provisions of the Constitution and the Labour Protection Act. Arguments are accordingly
produced to the effect that in these circumstances they are no longer
valid. On the other hand, they have not been expressly repealed and
are still enforced by the Yugoslav authorities. But it is not only the
question of their applicability that may give rise to doubt, there is
also that of the manner of applying them. In view of the events
described in the Introduction many trade unions founded by
Communists are in general not regarded as trade associations but
treated as organisations of the Communist Party," which is prohibited
under the Defence of the State Act, and are therefore forbidden or
not allowed as political associations.
§ 3. — Activities of Trade Associations
A distinction will have to be made below between the relations
of trade associations with State activities on the one hand, and the
relations between associations of workers with employers and
employers' associations on the other.
T H E RELATIONS BETWEEN TRADE ASSOCIATIONS AND
STATE SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS

In connection with this study it is of interest to examine what
the relations are between trade associations and public organisations,
i.e. the trade corporations, and public institutions, i.e. the trade
councils.
As already explained, until quite recently small industry predominated in Serbia, and even in the other territories now incorporated
in the Serb-Croat-Slovene Kingdom the part it plays must not be
under-estimated. It has been one of the principal preoccupations
of the legislature to maintain and organise the guilds taken over.

SERB-CROAT-SLOVENE KINGDOM

331

Thus, in most parts of the Kingdom provisions on compulsory trade
corporations have been taken over from former Austrian, Hungarian,
or Serbian law. As their aims cover, not only the economic, but also
the social interests of their members they must be mentioned here,
for to that extent they exercise some of the functions of trade associations, or at least have the power to exercise them and therefore to
take the place of such associations.
On the other hand, there are trade councils for the purpose of
representing the interests of commerce, industry, and labour in the
State. Some of the institutions have been taken over from the past,
some are newly created and have powers of their own, and the
question arises whether they stand in any legal relation to the trade
associations.
TRADE CORPORATIONS,

" ESNAF ", ETC.

In Serbia the Industries Act of 1910 already mentioned, which
took the place of the 1847 Act, is in force. It provides for the
formation of compulsory corporations or guilds (" Esnaf ") for
certain privileged handicrafts, namely one " Esnaf " for all the
artisans in a given district, the various guilds being in turn combined
in a larger corporation for a greater area. Their principal aim is to
defend the interests of the trade and promote beneficial relations
between masters and journeymen. An important innovation in the
1910 Act was the organisation of journeymen and their admission to
the corporation, in which they have the right to discuss their
conditions of work and share in making decisions. They may elect a
committee of five members to represent their interests and in
particular to take part in settling conditions of work, electing
members of the committee for mastership tests, electing the industrial
courts, and organising institutions for the benefit of journeymen,
such as employment exchanges, homes, etc., to which the journeymen
contribute.
Too much importance, however, must not be attached to the
actual value of these institutions. They disappear where industry
springs up, and are therefore to be found mainly in the southern
provinces.
In Croatia-Slavonia and Voivodina the Hungarian Act of 1884 '

* Cf. monograph on Hungary, Vol. Ill, p. 165.

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

332

applies, in Slovenia-Dalmatia the Austrian Act of 1883 ', and in
Bosnia a n d Herzegovina
t h e A c t of 2 J a n u a r y 1909, which on t h e
whole follows Austrian law. B u t everywhere free associations h a v e
s p r u n g u p , and are still springing u p , side by side with the compulsory organisations, even in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where industry
h a s hardly gained a footing as yet.
T R A D E COUNCILS

I n Serbia labour councils were set up already under the Industries
A c t of 1910, section 117 of which provided that associations of
manufacturers, artisans, traders, and workers should each form a
council with headquarters at Belgrade 2 .
T h e electorate for the council consisted of the members of t h e
association, and only organised persons were eligible. T h e principal
duties of the councils were of a n advisory nature. All draft legislation within their competence was to be submitted to them for
consideration, and they had to be consulted on all other matters
affecting the interests of t h e workers. But they had also the function
of supervising the trade associations for which they were set up ;
they were competent to settle relations between employers and workers, to confirm the working rules prepared by the employers or guilds,
a n d to set u p a n d manage employment exchanges a n d similar
institutions. T h e basis of these councils was t h e trade associations,
and they m i g h t therefore be regarded as the culminating point of
trade union structure.
Division I I I of the Labour Protection A c t of 1922 contains
provisions on workers' councils t h a t are now uniform for the whole
State ; section 36 of the Act r u n s :
Workers' councils shall he established to represent the interests of
wage-earning and salaried employees within the territory of the SerbCroat-Slovene Kingdom.
Provision was made for eight such councils.
T h e members are elected from a m o n g the workers and salaried
employees in the various trades, from a m o n g those who have attained
1

Cf. monograph on the Former Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary,

V o l . I l l , p . 103.
a

The present study will consider only the labour councils. In
addition handicraft, industrial and commercial councils were set up on
the same pattern with corresponding duties.

SERB-CROAT-SLOVEXE KINGDOM

333

the age of eighteen years and are liable to compulsory sickness and
accident insurance.
The functions of the councils are principally advisory, it being
their duty to furnish reports and opinions and make proposals to the
authorities concerning all social questions, and to compile statistics
and collect other information for the purpose. Conversely, the State
authorities must submit for the consideration of the workers' councils
all Bills, Orders, and instructions directly or indirectly affecting the
interests of workers and salaried employees.
The councils have also administrative duties, for they are
required to watch over the proper administration of Acts and Orders
affecting the interests of workers and salaried employees.
In
appropriate cases they must make the necessary representations, and
in general effect direct negotiation and intervention with all State
offices, institutions, and employers whenever this may be desirable
in the interests of workers and salaried employees. On their own
initiative they found and organise institutions to improve the economic, social, and intellectual situation of workers and salaried
employees. Finally, they can intervene directly to regulate relations
between employers and workers, for which purpose they must on the
one hand keep an up-to-date register of workers' associations and trade
unions, keep in touch with such unions, and exercise a directive
influence over their activities, and, on the other, participate in the
conclusion of collective agreements and in the settlement of disputes
between employers and workers at the request of the parties
concerned or the authorities.
These workers' councils are independent autonomous bodies
in public law, subordinate to the Ministry of Social Affairs, and have
legal personality. They act through two bodies, the general meeting
and the executive committee. The general meeting elects the committees and may appoint sub-committees. The executive committee
is responsible for dealing with all the more important matters. It
also chooses the members of the council who are to participate in
settling disputes between employers and workers, in the conclusion
of collective agreements, and in making various enquiries.
The funds required by the councils are contributed by the
workers themselves.
The Act shows that the trade associations of the workers no
longer have a statutory influence on the councils as under the earlier
Serbian Act. Only the members of the provisional councils, to be

334

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

set up at first under section 66, were to be appointed by the Minister
of Social Affairs on the recommendation of the associations of
workers and salaried employees. The members of the permanent
councils are freely elected. It is therefore clearly open to the
organisations to set up candidates, and to this extent they can in fact
acquire more or less influence over the appointment of the councils
and their activities. On the other hand, it is of great importance
that the councils are not only in constant touch with the trade unions,
but must also exercise a certain amount of supervision over them. In
general, it may be said that to some extent they supplement the work
of the trade associations, but that to some extent also they take their
place. Their most important duty of a supplementary kind may be
said to be their participation in concluding collective agreements and
settling labour disputes. The representation of the workers as
against the State, on the contrary, is a duty they have practically
taken over from the trade associations in accordance with the Act '.
So far as participation in the employment exchanges set up by the
Labour Protection Act is concerned- this applies only in part. Thus,
the members of the executive committee of the Central Employment
Exchange, namely, six representatives of employers and six of
workers, are elected by the employers and workers concerned
through the competent councils (section 78 of the Act). The
members • of the executive committees of the local employment
exchanges, on the contrary, are elected directly by the local
employers' and workers' associations concerned (section 90). For
these committees there is also the special provision that they must
keep in constant touch both with all industrial undertakings in the
district and with employers' and workers' associations, and must
encourage them to maintain closer relations with the local employment exchange.
DÉTERMINATION AND ENFORCEMENT OF CONDITIONS OF WORK

Apart from isolated provisions some of which have already been
mentioned 2, there is no legislation on the system of collective
agreements and conciliation. Information on the actual extension of

1
This may be said to hold good correspondingly for the other trade
councils as well.
* These may also be taken to include the provisions on industrial
courts contained in the Serbian Industries Act of 1910.

SERB-CROAT-SLOVENE KINGDOM

335

collective agreements and the actual activities of conciliation offices
is not available, but it is probable that they are of slight importance.
On the other hand, Division V of the Labour Protection Act contains
provisions on workers' representatives in undertakings. This subject
should be mentioned here, although it may be questioned whether
the system is actually employed to any noteworthy extent.
The workers' representatives are elected by the workers in an
undertaking on the basis of lists of candidates. Here, too, it is
obviously open to the trade unions to set up candidates, but the
representatives elected cannot be considered as representatives of the
trade union in the undertaking. According to the Labour Protection
Act, their duties relate only to questions of fact. They must be
employed in the undertaking, and are to be regarded as the elected
representatives of the workers in the undertaking.
This appears also from their duties. They are responsible in the
first place for trying to protect the trade, social, and intellectual
interests of the workers employed in the undertaking. In addition,
however, they must endeavour to maintain good relations between
employers and workers and to preserve order and decency in the
undertaking. It is their duty to watch over the observance of labour
protection legislation and of collective and individual contracts of
work. When workers are dismissed they may assist them with
advice, but they have no right to protest. It is, further, the duty
of the workers' representatives to intervene in the fixing of piece
rates and average and minimum wages, except in so far as these are
regulated by collective agreement with the co-operation of the trade
associations of employers and workers. They must also mediate
between workers and employers in the event of a dispute, and if they
fail to settle the dispute and a strike is threatened, they may appeal
for the intervention of the State authorities. Finally, provision is
made for their co-operation in negotiating and drafting collective
agreements between employers and workers.
As these last provisions show, their functions trench on those
of trade associations. It is hardly likely, however, that they have
acquired any practical importance.
MILITANT ACTION (STRIKES AND

LOCK-OUTS)

Already the Serbian Industries Act of 1910 had recognised the
right of the workers to strike and the right of employers to lock out.
At the same time, the contract of work can be cancelled only on the

336

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

grounds specified by law. On the conclusion of the employment
relation both parties are free (sections 49-55). According to
section 56, however, the right to strike and lock out exists irrespective
of the contract of work. The only restriction is that for butchers and
bakers, who must notify the local police authorities four weeks
before stopping work or closing the business.
Since then the Constitution of the new Kingdom has specifically
recognised the right of the workers to organise with a view to
improving their conditions of work. That this also entails the
granting of the right to strike is maintained by some *, though many
dispute it, partly with reference to the similar legal situation arising
out of the German Constitution 2 .
Indirectly the right to strike is recognised by the I/abour Protection Act, as various of its provisions already mentioned show 3. For
completeness it may be added here that during a labour dispute an
employment exchange may not direct workers to the undertakings
affected (section 73). The officials of the exchange, when trying
to place a worker in employment, must first of all find out if a strike
or lock-out is in progress in the undertaking. An official who
offends against this provision becomes personalty responsible towards
the Ministry of Social Affairs. On the other hand, an employef who
in the course of a strike or lock-out procures the necessary workers
through an employment exchange by means of false statements,
against the provisions of the above-mentioned section 73 of the Act,
is liable to punishment (section 124, (3) ) .
The principle of the right to strike was however substantially
affected by the Defence of the State Act of 1921. According to
section 10 of this Act, officials, State employees, workers employed
by military departments, and employees in independent administrative
offices are punished if a considerable number or all of them go on
strike. The participants are liable to imprisonment ; the promoters
and ringleaders also to a fine. The same penalties are imposed on
persons who by sabotage or passive resistance try to interfere with
1
PERIC : " Die sozialen und wirtschaftlichen Bestimmungen in der
jugoslawischen Verfassung ". Schweizerische Zeitschrift für Volkswirtschaft und Sozialpolitik, 1925, Part II, p. 266.
2
KREK : " Grundzüge des Verfassungsrechtes des Königreichs der
Serben, Kroaten und Slowenen ". Zeitschrift für osteuropäisches Recht,
1925, P- 356.
3
.See pp. 324 et seq.

SERB-CROAT-SLOVENE KINGDOM

337

the regular progress of the service or work entrusted to them. These
provisions of the Defence of the State Act show that although
officials and State employees and workers have the right to associate
for the protection of their material, social, and intellectual interests,
they are deprived of the right to strike.
The workers in private undertakings, on the contrary, still enjoy
the right to strike under the Defence of the State Act. Reference
should however be made to the provisions of this Act already
mentioned which clearly tend, in particular section 12, to make the
organisation of strikes impossible. In particular it should be
remembered that under section 11 persons who try to prevent others
from working are punished by six months' imprisonment, unless their
action is such as to entail an even heavier penalty. If these persons
do not immediately obey the orders of the authorities to leave the
place in which they have unlawfully assembled, they are punished by
imprisonment up to one year and a fine of up to 3,000 dinars. It is
obvious that this provision may be easily used to prohibit strike
picketing.
Strikes are altogether forbidden, however, for workers in railways
and mines, under the Orders of 15 and 24 December 1920, which
provide for special measures in the event of a disturbance of order, a
strike, or riot, in the undertakings in question.
Compared with these restrictions, the regulations for limiting the
use of militant action derived from Austro-Hungarian legislation
hardly play any part 1 .

' Cf. the monographs to which reference has already been made.
Freedom of Association

CONCLUSION

When the law on trade associations at present in force in the
Serb-Croat-Slovene Kingdom is surveyed as a whole, it will be seen
to show two directly opposite tendencies, which determine the whole
body of this law and its administration.
It is unquestionable that, as the Serbian Industries Act of 1910
already shows, an attempt was made to effect social reform by way
of legislation. In pursuance of this effort the new Kingdom has
established a number of fundamental rights and social principles in
its Constitution, and tried to complete the work of reform by the
Labour Protection Act and other laws (Workers' Insurance Act,
ratification of twelve International Labour Conventions). The trade
associations participate in no small measure in the social institutions
thus created, whether by virtue of the various rights granted them or
because they have in fact the possibility of exerting influence.
On the other hand, the Communist movement after the war
led the State to pass the Defence of the State Act, which aims at
suppressing, and therefore punishes, not only revolutionary activities,
acts of terrorism and the like, but even the very idea of Communism.
In addition, this Act extends the prohibition of strikes already
contained in orders for the workers in certain State undertakings to
all officials as well as- to other workers employed in State administrative undertakings, and at the same time makes strike picketing
practically impossible.
Another restrictive influence is that of the prevailing heterogeneity of the law, a phenomenon with which many other States
consisting of several States or territories welded together are
acquainted. The general law of the Kingdom (Constitution, Labour
Protection Act) establishes principles in the main ; their application,
on the other hand, is determined by the old laws taken over with the
individual territories. Apart from the consequent inequalities and
differences — in one part of the country there will be a number of

SERB-CROAT-SI<OVENE KINGDOM

339

legislative principles, in others there are gaps — it is particularly
unfortunate from the point of view of the law on trade associations
that several of the special laws are derived from other systems and
other days, and are therefore partly incompatible with the principles
of the general law. Not infrequently, therefore, doubts arise as to
if and how far they remain valid, and the result is general uncertainty
as to the state of the law. In spite of this, these particular laws are
still applied in practice, and in several parts of the country it is in
fact the application of the old legislation on associations that has
given the subordinate administrative authorities a means both of
preventing the formation of trade unions and of dissolving existing
unions if they are under Communist leadership.
Measures of this kind, like the Defence of the State Act itself,
are to be explained by the justifiable endeavours of the young State
to maintain itself. But so far as they interfere with the freedom to
associate for trade purposes and the freedom and rights of trade associations, it must be admitted that they contradict the principles of
law established in the Constitution and other social legislation.
It is easier to understand this opposition if the actual circumstances on which the law is based are also remembered. The principal
occupation of the country is agriculture. Particularly in the newlyacquired territories large estates predominate, and these have not yet
been broken up by a conclusive agrarian reform. Industry is on a
comparatively small scale and often only in the first stages of development. Finally, in many districts a patriarchal handicraft system
prevails. In these circumstances there is still a considerable lack of
strong, well-established trade organisations which are able and willing
to give life to the principles of law established theoretically, and to
help in giving them effect by persistent hard work. This is only a
question of growth, however, and there can be no doubt that the
closer the national economy is interwoven with that of the rest of
Europe, the more will conditions be created in which the existing
principles will obtain greater practical application and their enforcement will be secured by uniform legislation. With the greater
security of the State and stability in industry, the last obstacles will
disappear that still hamper a freer organisation of trades, and in
particular of labour.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

CENTRATIMI SEKRETARIAT RADNIÍKIU KOMORA.

Radnicki Sìndìkaìi.

Belgrade, 1926.
JOVANOVITCH, Slobodan. Svetozar Markovitch. Beigrade, 1920.
Ustavno pravo Kraljevine Srba, Hrvata i Slovenaca. Beigrade,
1924.
KREK, Professor G. " Grundzüge des Verfassungsrechtes des
Königreichs der Serbien, Kroaten und Slowenen ". Zeitschrift für
osteuropäisches Recht, 1925, pp. 323 et seq.; 1926, pp. 86 et seq., and
249 et seq.
KREKITCH,

I,. Srpska radnicka Udruzenja. Belgrade, 1921.

LAPSCHEVITCH, Dragischa.
Sindikalno jedinstvo ili komunistesocialiste-social-demokrate-sindikati. Beigrade, 1927.
Polozaj radnicke hlase i sindikalni pokret u Srbiji. Beigrade,
1928.
MARCOVITCH, Dr. Lazare. Le problème constitutionnel serbo-croateslovène. Geneva, 1924.
MOUSSET,

Albert. Le Royaume des Serbes, Croates et Slovènes.

Paris, 1921.
NEDEIVKOVITCH, Milorad. EAat économique et financier du Royaume
des Serbes, Croates et Slovènes au commencement de 1924. Paris, 1924.
PERIC, Professor Z. " Die sozialen und wirtschaftlichen Bestimmungen in der jugoslawischen Verfassung ". Schweizerische Zeitschrift für
Volkswirtschaft und Sozialpolitik. Vol. XXXI (1925), Part II, pp. 263
et seq.

PoPOViTCH, Stevan S. Les corporations de métiers et les chamares
consultatives en Yougoslavie. Paris, 1923.

BULGARIA
CHAPTER I
HISTORY AND PRESENT SITUATION OF THE
TRADE UNION MOVEMENT

T h e Bulgarian trade union movement did not acquire any strength
until t h e beginning of t h e twentieth century. T h i s backwardness is
to be explained by t h e economic conditions peculiar to Bulgaria.
During t h e whole of t h e nineteenth century, t h e basis of t h e national
life was agriculture — a n d this is still very largely t h e case '. I t
was t h e handicrafts rather t h a n modern undertakings properly so
called — large-scale industry still employs little more than n per
cent, of t h e total population — t h a t formed t h e industrial complement
to this essentially rural economy. T h e result was that t h e first trade
organisations were formed within t h e crafts.
Until quite recently these craft associations, which were mixed
organisations comprising both employers and workers, retained not
only their external characteristics, b u t also, and above all, certain
privileges of t h e guilds under t h e old regime. A m o n g these privileges t h e associations tried t o keep a t least one, which they considered
the most important, namely, the monopoly of labour. T h i s atti' The most recent occupational statistics for Bulgaria show that 75
to 80 per cent, of the active population are employed in cultivating the
land. Estates, whether built on or not, are highly subdivided. It is
estimated that 97 per cent, of the rural population live on their own land.
Of the total 933,367 estates, covering an area of 4,625,787 hectares, 424,898,
or 45-5 P e r cent., are smalholdings of less than 2 hectares, covering
only 321,568 hectares, or 6.9 per cent, of the total area. The large and
very large estates, on the contrary, cover rather more than half of
the total area and are owned by only 10 per cent, of the total number
of

landowners.

(Cf.

INTERNATIONAL

Labour Service in Bulgaria.
Series B. No. 12, p. 13.)

LABOUR

By Max LAZARD.

OFFICE :

Compulsory

Studies and Reports,

342

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

tude is clearly illustrated by a resolution adopted by the Guilds
Congress in 1906 : " The Congress asks the Government to abolish
the workers' right to strike and demonstrate, land to make it
compulsory for the workers' unions to join the guilds. "
But the days were past in which such an attempt could meet
with success. With the development of large-scale industry and the
growing separation of the classes, independent workers' unions had
been formed, which aimed at defending the independence of their
movement against all outside interference.
§ 1. — The Workers' Trade Union Movement *
The first workers' trade unions were formed under the influence
of the Socialist Party. As the child, so to speak, of the political party,
the trade union movement was subsequently to share its fate. It
first suffered from the effects of the split in the Socialist Party in
Í902. The right trade union wing supported the reformist fraction,
and thé left wing rallied to the revolutionary fraction. This collaboration continued until the Communist Party and the trade union
movement were prohibited.
In spite of this interdependence between the political and trade
union movements, and the consequent conflicts of views, the trade
associations developed rapidly, not only among wage earners in
industry, but also, and above all, among State officials and workers.
A first setback in this process of growth was suffered during the war
period 1912 to 1918. The Armistice, however, inaugurated an active
revival. It was of capital importance to the future fate of the trade
union movement that the revolutionary unions in particular profited
by the revival, and this to such an extent that they succeeded for a
time in absorbing the reformist unions.
The disastrous issue of the war, the failure to balance the budget,
currency difficulties, the weight of the reparations debt, economic
instability, the general impoverishment of the population, as well as
the profound repercussion of the Russian revolution on Bulgaria,
were some of the principal factors explaining the new tendency of
the greater part of the trade union movement in favour of Com1
For further details, cf. Dim. NIKOLOFF : " The Trade Union Movement iu Bulgaria ". International Labour Review, Vol. XVI, No. 5,
pp. 670-692.

BULGARIA

343

munist ideas and acting as a prelude to the events which were for a
certain time to put a stop to all trade union activity.
In December 1919 the Government prohibited a public demonstration organised by the trade unions. This incident was enough to
let loose a strike of all the workers' organisations. The workers'
unions, whatever their views, were not alone in going on strike ;
many grades of employees in public services also took part, and
it was two months before the movement could .be repressed. This
defeat left the trade union movement weakened and disorganised.
But the setback became a starting point for trade union reorganisation, from the point of view of methods as well as of programme.
In the light of recent events, the leaders of the revolutionary trade
union movement considered that unless the activities of the increasingly centralised movement were subordinated to the political party,
it could not be successful. They accordingly gave up altogether
the system of independent unions, and adopted instead a strongly
centralised structure, subordinate to the Communist Party. It was
precisely this strict subordination that, by hampering trade union
unity, was later to endanger the very life of the whole trade union
movement in Bulgaria. Thus, when the Agrarian-Communist revolt
of 1923 was suppressed, the General Federation of Communist Trade
Unions, in spite of proclaiming its independence of all political parties in October 1923, was included in the judicial proceedings, and dissolved at the same time as the Communist Party.
Since then the dissolved unions have been reconstituted only with
the greatest difficulty and under cover of a new form of organisation.
A few statistics will give some idea of the strength of the different tendencies in the Bulgarian trade union movement.
(1) The General Federation of Trade Unions comprised, before
it was dissolved in 1923, the large majority of organised workers.
The membership of the nineteen unions belonging to this organisation
was as follows in 1923 :
Trade union

Actors, musicians and theatrical workers
Bank clerks and commercial employees
Hairdressers
Public administrative employees
Woodworkers .
Food workers and chemical workers
Workers in the printing industry and allied trades . .
Hotel and restaurant workers
Leather workers

Membership

340
1,220
200
2>390
I1O50
2,250
560
900
1,000

344

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION
Trade union

Membership

Nurses
Metal workers
Miners
Clothing workers
Workers in agriculture, forestry and horticulture . . .
Building workers
Textile workers
Tobacco workers
Transport, railway, postal and telegraph workers . . .
Teachers . . . .

550
1,630
2,400
2.390
1,030
1,380
ii57o
3,720
4,360
2,520

T h e General Federation could also count on the support of a wellestablished network of mutual-aid a n d co-operative societies. T h e
Osvobojdenie
W o r k e r s ' Co-operative Union, with its membership of
70,000, was dissolved at the same time as the General Federation of
T r a d e Unions.
(2) T h e Bulgarian General Trade" Union Federation, consisting
cf t h e reformist unions, had in 1923 only 3,000 members divided
a m o n g forty-seven unions. T h i s federation is now on t h e point of
replenishing its membership and is winning over for its affiliated
unions, which have retained the right to existence, former members
of the dissolved unions. According to the information supplied by
the Secretariat of the International Federation of T r a d e Unions of
Amsterdam, t h e F r e e General Federation had about 15,000 members
in 1926.
(3) I n spite of certain attempts made on various occasions, a n d
particularly in 1919, to found a n agricultural workers' union, the agricultural workers have not succeeded in founding a well-established
organisation. Owing to the difficulties of organisation d u e to the
wide dispersion of the agricultural proletariat, a n d above all to the
general lack of education and trade consciousness, the few agricultural
unions formed since the war have h a d to decide on their own dissolution \ Instead of the unions, it m a y be said that t h e agricultural
co-operative societies, worked on trade lines for the different branches
of cultivation, embody and defend t h e common interests of poor
farmers a n d agricultural workers. I n 1925 there were 1,603 agricultural co-operative societies, with a total membership of 186,413.
(4) D u r i n g the last few years attempts have been made both
by the authorities and by the heads of industry, to counteract t h e
revolutionary trade unions by neutral unions advocating co-operation
1

Cf.

Dim.

N I K O L O F F , op.

cii.,

672.

BULGARIA

34?

between capital and labour. So far, a few neutral unions with very
small memberships have been formed under the auspices of the p a r t y
in power since 1923.
(5) T h e trade unions of State employees and workers in public
services, on the contrary, are many a n d well organised. A t the
moment, apart from a few unions which still share the views
of the reformist unions, a n d others which used to belong to
the Communist trade union movement, practically all these unions
have joined to form a central body k n o w n as t h e Federation of
Nineteen Unions, which m u s t be regarded rather as a temporary ad
hoc arrangement t h a n as a permanent organisation. I t s membership
in 1925 was about 30,000.
(6) Finally reference should be made to the unions of the liberal
professions, which, t h r o u g h their executive committee, belong t o the
International Confederation of Intellectual W o r k e r s .
§ 2. — The Employers' Movement
A t t h e outset, the chambers of commerce and industry, which
were given a privileged legal status a n d benefited b y a t a x levied in
their favour on the whole population, undertook the defence of the
interests of employers. On their initiative meetings were held periodically, at which the interests of a given branch of industry or commerce, or of all u n d e r t a k i n g s as a whole, were discussed, and t h e
necessary measures taken for their protection.
I t was only comparatively late, and then under the direct pressure of the workers' combinations, that employers' associations were
founded and solidly organised. T h e following particulars on t h e
origin and programme of the employers' associations are taken from
a report published in 1923 by t h e Union of Bulgarian Manufacturers.
Tt was in 1003 that Bulgarian employers began to organise themselves
by creating the Union of Manufacturers, the object of which was to defend
the moral and material interests of Bulgarian industry. Twenty vears
afterwards 405 undertakings covering fourteen industries were affiliated
to the Union. The development of the Union of Bulgarian Manufacturers
is a faithful reflection of the progress of the industrial movement in
Bulgaria. In 1905 the membership of the undertakings benefiting by the
Act on the protection of national industry was only io5 ; in 1911 the
number was 400. Ten years afterwards, when the Statistical Department
was conducting its enquiry into the economic situation, it was able to
note 1,641 undertakings employing more than twenty persons each, and
employing in all more than 55,000 workers.
Since its creation the union has worked in close collaboration with
the various official committees set up to consider problems affecting

346

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

national economy. By means of its proposals and protests, it has made
an effective contribution to the protection of Bulgarian industry in
general.
From 1905 onwards the Union took an active interest in labour
legislation. It was about this time that the earliest Acts for the
protection of women and children in industry, the weekly rest, and social
insurance were discussed. In this connection the Union has always taken
the view that since Bulgaria is essentially an agricultural country, she
should not hastily found her legislation on that of countries which are
more advanced from the industrial point of view. This was the main
reason for the Union's hostility to the Royal Decree of 1919 establishing
the eight-hour day in Bulgaria. When the proposal for ratifying the
Washington Convention came up for discussion in Parliament in April
1921, the Union showed itself frankly opposed to the measure. In the
explanatory remarks on the subject forwarded at the time to the Ministry
of Commerce, Industry, and Labour, the Union emphasised the fact that
Bulgaria could not make up for the time lost as the result of the limitation of hours of work. by introducing better equipment, and that the
Bulgarian worker had not the same capacity of output as the workers in
more industrially advanced countries *.
I n addition to the Central Organisation of Bulgarian Employers,
t h e r e are also t h e following employers' associations : t h e Commercial
Union, with thirty independent associations, the P r i n t i n g Union, the
Millers' Association, the Dispensing Chemists' Association, the Librar i a n s ' Association, and the Association of Joint Stock Companies,
which has 153 members.
A t present practically all employers, w h e t h e r physical persons or
bodies corporate, belong to an association.

" Report on the Activity of the Union of Bulgarian Manufacturers
from 1903 to 1923. " Industrial and Labour Information, Vol. XIII',
Nos. 6-7, pp. 243-244-

CHAPTER I I
CONDITIONS OF EXISTENCE OF TRADE ASSOCIATIONS

§ 1. — Legal Status
T H E CONSTITUTIONAL PRINCIPLE

The Bulgarian Constitution of 16 April 1879 in Chapter IX,
Articles 82 and 83, establishes the rights of assembly and association.
The inhabitants of the Kingdom of Bulgaria shall have the right to
assemble peacefully and unarmed for purposes of free discussion, without
being bound to ask for previous authorisation.
Only*open-air meetings shall be subject to police law (Article 82).
Bulgarian citizens shall have the right to constitute associations
without any previous authorisation, provided that there is nothing in
their aims and methods contrary to public order, religion and morals
(Article 83).
Both adversaries and partisans of the trade union movement are
agreed that the reservation contained in this last Article, by which
the right to found associations is subordinated to the condition that
they shall not be contrary to public order, religion or morals, does
not apply to trade associations whose only object is to protect class
interests.
Yet, at the outset, the trade unions properly so called were not
covered by the liberal provisions of the Constitution. It seems, in
fact, that the principal preoccupation of the Constituent Assembly was
to safeguard the political rights that had recently been acquired, and
that it paid no attention to trade associations, which at that time
were still unborn and were only to be called to life in the course
of subsequent economic developments. This was why, contrary to the
constitutional principle which guaranteed the right of association in
every field, judicial proceedings were taken against the first independent workers' unions. It was not until later, when the trade
union movement had established itself as a new social fact, that

348

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

the benefit of Articles 82 and 83 of the Constitution was extended
to all associations indifferently, including trade associations.
If only the Constitution is taken into account, the legal position
of trade associations in Bulgaria to-day may be summed up as
follows : there is no limitation on the right to found trade associations,
no restriction as to the persons who may claim trade union rights, and
no reservation as to the aims a trade association may lawfully pursue.
Moreover, associations are exempt from all previous authorisation and
subsequent supervision. Finally, the Constitution leaves them
entirely free to regulate the conditions of admission and exclusion of
members, the methods of internal discipline — in brief, all questions
relating to the constitution, working, and dissolution of the
association.
But owing to the adoption of several Acts, increasingly severe
restrictions have been applied to the status of trade unions so defined,
which seemed all the more certainly safeguarded because based on
the fundamental law itself. Some of these Acts limit the right of
association for trade purposes of certain social classes only, such
as officials and State employees; others, on the contrary, modify
the legal status of trade associations in general.
T H E A C T ON COMBINATIONS OF OFFICIALS

(1907)

Under the liberal provisions of the Constitution, the trade associations h"ad recruited many members among officials and employees in
public services. In consequence of the first general railway strike
in 1906, however, the Government introduced an Act on the combination of officials, which entailed a first limitation on the general
principle established by the Constitution.
By this Act, officials and employees of the State and public
departmental or communal institutions, while having the right to
found associations for purposes of thrift, co-operation, mutual aid and
recreation, and to create benevolent and economic institutions, were
prohibited from taking part in any other associations described as trade
unions (sections 1-3).
If the associations founded by State employees take the form of
a co-operative or provident society, their rules must be submitted
for ratification to the departmental court, and, if they take some other
form, to the competent Minister (section 2). The departmental court
orders the dissolution of any society that does not comply with the
îaw. Whenever an authorised society departs from the limited ends

349

BULGARIA

defined in its rules and pursues other objects, such as participation
in a strike, incitement to a strike, resistance to thé provisions of
the Acts or regulations of the authorities, wage demands, or revolts
against the constitutional system, it is dissolved and its property
liquidated by the departmental court concerned. Proceedings for
dissolution may be taken either by one or more members of the
society, or by the public authorities or the Public Prosecutor's Office
(section 6).
These provisions meant that officials were not merely deprived
of the right to strike, but also of the right of peaceful combination, for
they were prohibited from using their associations to bring even
peaceful pressure to bear on the authorities with a view to improving
their economic situation.
The result was that, in spite of the 1907 Act, State employees
joined the workers' organisations and, for instance, took an active part
in the generaf strike of 1920. The Government seized this opportunity again to control the right of association of public employees
by devoting a Chapter of the Act of 28 January 1922 on State employees to this subject.
STATE EMPLOYEES' A C T (28 JANUARY

1922)

In one respect this Act meant a certain relaxation compared with
the provisions of the 1907 Act, because it authorised peaceful combination, but, on the other hand, it strengthened the supervisory
measures and increased the penalties.
By section 85, State employees — except those belonging to the
police, the gendarmerie, and the army — have the right of free association for purposes of mutual aid and the protection of their trade
interests, on condition that they belong to one and the same service
or to various services in one and the same department. In other
words, employees in the army, the gendarmerie, and the police
may not organise for trade purposes, and other employees have
the right of association provided that they observe the rule of
occupational delimitation.
Like the 1907 Act, the 1922 Act forbids the trade organisations of State employees to join any kind of labour federation or
confederation, and limits their freedom of action. Section 81 prohibits State employees from taking part in political demonstrations
or any other kind of political action. Section 82 forbids them to

35°

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

strike or incite to a strike, to engage in anti-constitutional propaganda, or to take part in demonstrations against the authorities.
Severe penalties are imposed for contravention, the offenders
being liable to a fine of 2,000 to 5,000 leva or one year's imprisonment.
Persons who, after the dissolution of the society or union, continue
to act in its name are liable to the same penalty (section 82, last
paragraph).
The Act also organises strict supervision over the constitution and working of officials' associations. Section 86 makes it
compulsory for the founders of any such association to submit the
rules and list of members of the managing committee to the departmental court for ratification. Once the rules and the list
have been approved, they are then submitted to the competent
Minister. A similar procedure must be followed for any subsequent alterations.
Under this Act, ¡officials' associations have a certain measure of legal personality. According to section 87, they may receive donations and legacies, own property, collect contributions,
and sue and be sued in court.
T H E SCHOOLS AND SOCIETIES A C T

(3 JULY

1922)

The Acts of 1907 and 1922 had limited the right of association only for State officials and employees. The Act on schools
and societies, passed in the same year, applies, on the other
hand, to all trade associations.
This Act was adopted on the initiative of the Inter-Allied Military Commission " to allow of the introduction of a general supervision over all societies and schools, in order to prevent the carrying
on of military propaganda under the cover of associations ".
Under section 2 of this Act, every society and association,
regardless of name and aims, must submit its rules and regulations
for ratification to the Ministry of the Interior before it is in a
position " to act ". The failure to carry out this formality is
. deemed to be an offence under section 3, which does not however
state the penalties to which the offenders render themselves liable.
It should be added that section 2 appears to be directed only
against the freedom of action of associations, and that the freedom to found associations, as guaranteed by Article 83 of the
Constitution, remains unaffected \
1

See below, p p . 354 et seq.

BULGARIA

35»

A C T S FOR THE DEFENCE OF THE STATE

All the Acts so far analysed were carried under the pressure
of special political and social circumstances. The disturbances provoked during 1923 by the Agrarian-Communist revolt also gave rise
to a new Act, the Defence of the State Act of 21 January 1924.
Section 1 of this Act prohibits all organisations and political or
economic bodies, as well as their branches, which, in order to achieve
their ends, have recourse to criminal acts, violence or terror, or
advocate the use of these means. The founders and organisers of
such associations are punished by imprisonment of up to fifteen years
and a fine of up to 500,000 leva. The ordinary members of such
associations are liable to imprisonment for five years with a fine of
50,000 leva.

These penal sanctions are coupled with heavy civil sanctions.
Section 14 states that members of these societies and the societies
themselves are jointly and severally liable to the extent of their property, and even of that held in the name of third parties, for all the
damage and civil losses due to their criminal action. Section 15
excludes from public employment any person who, even if he does
not belong to such an association, supports it in any way.
Section 16 defines the methods of enforcing the Act. The Minister of Justice requests the Criminal Section of the Court of Cassation to make an enquiry. After a thorough examination, the Court
proceeds, if need be, to dissolve any existing or newly created organisations covered by section 1, and their groups or branches, under
whatever name they may be concealed. The property of the dissolved organisations, their branches and financial bodies, is confiscated for the benefit of the State.
The Act of 21 January 1924 was amended and made even stricter
by the Act of 10 March 1925. According to section 1 of this new
Act, any organisation or body that tries by force to alter the social
and political system established by the Constitution is prohibited. The
founders and organisers of such an association are punished by ten
years' hard labour at least, and a fine of from 50,000 to 500,000 leva.
Section 7 prohibits all revolutionary propaganda by word of mouth or
in the press : " Any person who, by word of mouth or in the press,
engages in propaganda for the change of the political or economic
system, by inciting to the commission of crimes, violence or attacks,
shall be punished by not less than five years' hard labour and a fine
of 50,000 to 500,000 leva ".

35*

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

T h e publications referred to in this section are confiscated on the
order of t h e Public Prosecutor. Even before t h e Prosecutor intervenes, the police m a y take a n y useful action for their suppression.
provided, however, that the Prosecutor's Office is immediately notified (section i o ) .
Section 13 imposes the death penalty on any member of an armed
band w h o proposes to commit crimes against the security of the
State.
Finally, section 20 excludes all persons guilty of contravening
these provisions from all political and social posts :
No person belonging to an organisation or group prohibited by this
Act, or indirectly collaborating with it, and no person who supports
violent methods in political and social conflicts, may hold public office
in the State, a department or a commune, or be a member of the National
Assembly or any independent elected body. If any such person holds
office in the State, a department or commune, he shall automatically
lose his position. It shall be the business of Parliament to take a decision
as regards deputies. On the other hand, it shall be the business of the
Court to decide as regards general and municipal councils.
§ 2. — T h e System in Practice
Such, in brief, is the legal status of trade associations. But in
practice, the provisions of the Constitution on which their legal
existence is based are applied t o them less t h a n the special and
exceptional laws analysed above. I t was thus in virtue of the Defence
of the State Act that t h e Court of Cassation, in its decision of 2 A p r i l
1924, ordered the dissolution not only of the Communist P a r t y , but
also of the Osvobojdenie W o r k e r s ' Co-operative Union and t h e General
Federation of T r a d e Unions. As this decision was of t h e greatest
importance to the subsequent development of trade unionism in
Bulgaria, we reproduce below, without comment, the principal
g r o u n d s on which the Court based its order to dissolve the General
Federation of T r a d e Unions.
The Minister of Justice, by his request for an enquiry of 7 March 1924,
asked for the dissolution of the General Federation of Trade Unions.
In order to ascertain the character and aims of the Federation, its
relations with the Communist Party, the nature of its organisation and
the means it employs, the appended files and documents must be
examined. According to Article 1 of its rules, the Federation consists
of trade unions, all of which pursue the following end:
By means of the class war and the establishment of the workers'
dictatorship, to achieve the conquest of public authority, the socialisation òf private property, and the socialist organisation of the production and distribution of goods.

BULGARIA

353

Among the means to be used for arriving at this end, the rules
provide for the co-operation of the General Federation with the Communist Party, for the purpose of their joint protection of the general
interests of labour, whether in certain special localities or throughout
the whole country. According to these same rules, the General Federation of Trade Unions will take, in concert with the Communist Party,
the initiative for all measures likely to promote the trade and general
interests of the workers. The General Federation enters into the international Communist organisation, regularly fulfils all its obligations
towards this body, and sends delegates to its congresses.
It follows from all this that this Federation is not merely a trade
organisation; it is also political, in the same sense as the Communist
Party. It pursues the general aims of this Party, makes use of the same
revolutionary methods, and is therefore merely an organ of the Communist Party. The resolution of the Fourth Congress of the Communist
Party, dated 7 July 1922, a resolution which was binding in character, says
among other things :
In face of the difficulty of enforcing the workers' minimum
demands (more bread and a better standard of life), and in view,
above all, of the economic disorganisation and financial bankruptcy
of the State and the fundamental crisis of the present regime, the
trade unions must press for the victory of the general revolutionary
programme, i.e. the suppression of the capitalist system by the
dictatorship of the proletariat.
The Communist Party supports the trade unions because it considers
them schools of training in Communism. The end of this resolution says,
word for word :
In this way the trade unions are prepared to play their part in
the field of social and economic reconstruction in the future, at the
same time as they fortify the structure of the workers' party, and
ensure victory in the struggle for the material emancipation of the
masses and the complete triumph of the Bulgarian revolution.
The Communist Party considers the trade unions to be an active,
organised force, a sort of institution for propaganda and agitation in
favour of the victory of revolution in Bulgaria by the institution of the
workers' dictatorship.
Valuable information is to be found in the circular of 30 July 1923,
published by the General Federation of Trade Unions and signed by its
secretary. In anticipation of an act of violence then being prepared (the
disturbances of September 1923), this circular contains instructions on theorganisation of the workers' trade unions with a view to the new
conditions of conflict and risk. The Federation therefore assumes the
aspect of a conspiratorial organisation. All this constitutes sufficient
reason for admitting that the General Federation of Trade Unions Í9
entirely dominated by the Communist Party, and proposes to assist
it actively in its revolutionary doings. The Rabotnichesk
Vestnik, a
workers' daily,' served as an organ at once for the Communist Party
and the General Federation. A strong organisation, comprising eighteen
trade unions with over 30,000 organised members, would certainly have
had its own organ if it did not wish to further the designs of this Party
and prepare for the revolution as a means of attaining its end, this being
contrary to Article 83 of the Constitution.
The declaration of the General Federation of Trade Unions of 1 December 1923, proclaiming the political neutrality of the trade union movement and affirming that this is in future to be confined to the defence
of the workers' trade interests by lawful methods, is belated and worthless, in view of the formal provisions of its rules and the decisions of
Freedom of Association

354

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

previous congresses. The proposals for an alliance submitted to the free
trade unions, for the purpose of creating a single trade union organisation
comprising the whole working class on trade grounds alone, can only be
described as an act of hypocrisy. It follows from all the facts already
cited that the General Federation is merely a branch of the Communist
Party and ought to share its fate. In virtue of sections i and io of the
Defence of the State Act and in conformity with Article 83 of the
Constitution, the General Federation and all the affiliated societies are
dissolved and their property confiscated for the benefit of the State.
T h e s e were the g r o u n d s on which the Court of Cassation based
its decision. It will be remembered, as the decision itself recalls, t h a t
already in October 1923 the trade unions had proclaimed their
complete independence of all political parties, and asserted their intention of in future confining their activities to trade matters alone.
I n spite of this declaration, the trade unions do not yet seem
to have recovered their civil r i g h t s . Accordingly, on 3 November
1924, the dissolved organisations decided to protest to the Government, the political parties and the Court of Cassation, against the
refusal of justice from which they claimed they had suffered. T h i s
protest *, which disputes the validity of the refusal to recognise t h e
unions, and depicts the consequent situation of t h e trade union movem e n t , r u n s as follows :
Alarm reigns among the workers. The right of combination
established by the Constitution is in danger, for the Minister of the
Interior has not approved the rules of trade unions submitted to him
during the last month and a half. He has even given to understand that
he will never approve them.
Now, the only defenders of the material and intellectual interests of
the workers are the trade unions. This may be proved by a few figures
for 1919 to 1922. The workers' organisations assisted 109,644 strikers at
a cost of 2,778,208 leva. In addition, 8,220 sick members, victims of
accidents, unemployed members and others, were relieved at a cost of
772.753 leva.
Moreover, it is solely by the work of the trade unions that labour
legislation can be applied in practice. Most visits of labour inspection
are made under the pressure of these unions. Now, the Constitution and
other national laws guarantee the right of the workers' organisations to
free existence, and make no kind of provision for measures to supervise
and restrict their activities. In complete contradiction with the Constitution, the Minister of the Interior has issued a new Ordinance, by which
all organisations, societies, etc., must submit their rules for his approval
The Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Labour has approved only
the rules of the Union of Leather Workers and the Printers' Union. The

The protest was signed by the following organisations : the unions
of metal workers, tobacco workers, wood workers, tailors, leather workers,
bank and commercial employees, food workers, miners, building workers,
agricultural, forestry and horticultural workers, hairdressers.

BULGARIA

355

rules of other unions, on the contrary, have been referred to the Ministry
of the Interior, but for the present they will not be approved because
the unions in question formerly belonged to the General Federation of
Trade Unions, now dissolved under the Defence of the State Act.
It is true that the trade unions belonged to the General Federation
as collective members, but the Court of Cassation dissolved only the
Federation and not the workers' organisations taken individually. These
latter are entirely independent. Thus the Union of Hotel and Restaurant
Employees, for instance, has been in existence for twenty years, and it
was not until 1919 that it joined the General Federation of Trade Unions.
The Union of Workers in Transport and Communications, on the other
hand, seceded from the General Federation in 1920. The Union of Public
Administrative Employees and the Teachers' Union, which joined the
Federation in 1919, left it at the beginning of 1920. Further, all the
trade unions stated that they had broken with the General Federation,
and this they did on 10 October 1923, before the Defence of the State Act
was promulgated and before there had even been any idea of dissolving
the Communist Party and affiliated bodies. These organisations stated
at the time that they proposed to exist independently, and they proceeded
to make the necessary changes in their rules. It may be added that since
February 1924, the Union of Workers in the Book Trades has amalgamated
with the printers' group affiliated to the Democratic Coalition Party *.
It is evident that the trade unions are neither subdivisions nor organic
parts of the dissolved General Federation of Trade Unions, but merely
collective members. Moreover, the decision of the Court of Cassation
specifies only the Communist Party and its subdivisions : the C o m munist Youth, the Osvobojdenie Co-operative Society, and the General
Federation of Trade Unions, no mention being made of any of the workers'
trade unions. The best proof is that the latter continued to exist for
eight months after the dissolution of the General Federation. At Sofia
and elsewhere the public authorities have even allowed them to hold
public meetings. The unions have directed, and still direct strikes, edit
papers, and have their offices. They are therefore not affected by the
decision of the Court of Cassation. There is yet another argument. If
the organisations were prohibited, why has the Ministry of Labour
approved the rules of the Union of Leather Workers ? And why then
should the Ministry of the Interior decline to come to a similar decision
as regards the other unions which have been waiting for the approval
of their rules for weeks and months ?
Formerly 7 to 8 per cent, of the membership of the unions belonged
to the Communist Party. At present they are completely neutral. Their
members may hold the most diverse political opinions, and as a matter
of fact, they belong to the most various parties: Democratic, Radical,
National-Liberal or Democratic Coalition, etc. For instance, the president
of the Hotel and Restaurant Employees' Union is a National-Liberal, and
the president of the Printers' Union belongs to the Democratic Coalition.
This fact proves that the unions cannot serve as spokesmen for the
Communist Party. Organisations which are open to all wage earners
and are therefore neutral, cannot, however, be responsible for the opinions
of their members outside the organisation.
The attitude of the Ministry of the Interior towards trade organisations
should be considered in relation to the general attitude of the present
Government towards the organised working class.
Since 9 June 1923 the unions have been deprived of the right of
assembly, except in Sofia, where, however, meetings are held in the
presence of the police. The archives and property of the unions have

The Government Party.

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FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

been confiscated, their leaders have been arrested, prosecuted and
imprisoned, as for instance, the secretary of the Textile Workers' Union,
Mr. N. Dantcheff, who was imprisoned for two months, then set free on
bail of 10,000 leva, but was soon after rearrested. The trade union press
is also confiscated and prosecuted by the authorities. The police favour
employers in labour disputes, as recently happened at Varna, Gorna,
Orehovitza, Plovdiv, Slivno, etc. Strikers, for instance those at Haskovo,
have been threatened with prosecution as bandits.
What is the effect of the present Government's policy on the working
class ? In 90 per cent, of all factories and workshops the eight-hour day
has been suppressed. The cost of-living has increased by forty times
since the war, whereas wages have only risen by fifteen to twenty times.
The employers take advantage of unemployment as a means of reducing
wages. Conditions of work have been aggravated, and the employment
of women and children is a matter of shameless exploitation, etc.
It is absurd to claim that by prosecuting and suppressing trade
organisations, the conflict between capital and labour will be abolished.
On the contrary, the struggle will be carried on by the workers in their
own way and with whatever means they have. Without trade organisations there is a risk that labour disputes will degenerate into riots.
Yet again we emphasise the fact that the allegations made in certain
official and Government quarters, that the Communist Party hides behind
the workers' trade unions, are absolutely false. The rules and archives of
these unions are in the hands of the authorities. We challenge them to
produce at least one fact or one document proving that the unions have
had any part in the insurrection of last September or in any other illegal
acts since that date.
Thirty-five thousand organised workers in trade unions and hundreds
of thousands of other workers protest against the fact that their rights of
combination, publication, assembly, strike, etc., have been suppressed.
We know in advance that those responsible will protest against the
accusation that they are opposed to the trade union movement, and will
cite the complete freedom and eveu assistance granted by the Government
to the Socialist-Reformist unions. Nevertheless, we affirm that the
workers keep away from these unions, and that both organised and
unorganised workers will never enter the Socialist unions, which are
party organisations.
The workers' unions, in submitting the above memorandum to the
institutions and bodies concerned, together with the whole working class,
expect that the authorities will adopt an unequivocal attitude on the
great social question of the right of combination of workers and salaried
employees, a right held by the trade associations for twenty-five years.
I t should be observed, however, t h a t only the General Federation of T r a d e Unions and the various bodies affiliated to it were,
and still are, prohibited. On the other h a n d , there has been n o
limitation of the trade union rights of other trade organisations. I t
should also be added t h a t the rules of several unions formerly belongi n g to the prohibited Federation, which have been reconstituted as
independent unions, have since been legally recognised.

CHAPTER III
POSSIBILITIES AND LIMITS OF TRADE UNION ACTION

§ 1. — Collaboration of Trade Associations with the State
in Social Affairs
Trade associations in Bulgaria are without legal personality.
But this absence of legal recognition under a special Act has not
prevented the State from giving some measure of recognition to such
unions as have not been dissolved, as the qualified representatives of
trade interests, and from calling on them to take part in the preparation, administration and supervision of social legislation.
In the first place, the trade associations share in the work of
preparing social legislation, because they are represented on the Superior Labour Council. This body was set up by the 1917 Act respecting
the health and safety of workers. It was modified in 1924 in consequence of the Social Insurance Act, precisely for the purpose of
giving the class associations their own representatives on the Council.
Since this last reform, eight workers' and eight employers' delegates,
appointed by the Minister of Commerce and Industry on the recommendation of the workers' and employers' organisations, take part in
the work of the Council as representatives of industry and commerce,
handicrafts, mining, transport, and State services. The Superior Labour
Council plays a most important part in the preparation and administration of social legislation in Bulgaria. All Bills relating directly
or indirectly to labour are first submitted to it for approval. The
Labour Section, which was set up in the Ministry of Labour, and
is itself an institution of the Superior Council, submits an annual
report on the working of the social insurance system. Within the
Superior Council itself, a permanent committee is elected, which must
be consulted on all questions relating to insurance, and the administration of labour laws in general.
The administration of the more important social laws is to some

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FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

extent entrusted to the trade associations. Thus, by the Act of 6
March 1924 ', on social insurance, fairly generous provision is made
for the collaboration of these associations. They belong to the
committees responsible for assessing the degree of disablement in
cases of accident, take part in the work of the local insurance offices,
and finally, are represented on the central committee whose duty
it is to fix and revise pensions.
The Act of 12 April 1925 respecting employment exchanges and
unemployment insurance 2 also provides for the representation of
trade associations on the various executive bodies. The employment
offices set up by this Act in large towns and localities with a population of over 3,000, and the local employment offices all comprise
an employment exchange and unemployment section, a social insurance section and a vocational training section. Section 11 of the
Act provides for the appointment, in connection with every local
employment exchange, of an arbitration court consisting of one justice of the peace as chairman, and two members, one representing
workers and one employers. These representatives are proposed by
their respective local organisations, and their appointment is confirmed by the Minister of Commerce, Industry and Labour. The
arbitration court decides in all matters relating to employment exchange work, the dismissal and engagement of workers, the payment
of wages and the carrying out of the rules of employment in an
undertaking — all questions of the first interest to the security and
stability of employment of the workers. Provision is further made
for trade representation in the labour councils attached to each
employment exchange, whose principal work is to take all useful measures for preventing or reducing unemployment. These councils consist of the labour inspector as chairman, the manager of the employment exchange, a member of the departmental council, the mayor or
his deputy, the chief local officer of the technical authorities, the
senior communal medical officer, a representative of the chamber
of commerce and industry in the district of which the exchange is
situated, and three employers' and three workers' representatives
nominated by their respective local organisations.
Finally, the law allows the trade associations to exercise a
certain supervision as regards the administration of social legislation

INTERNATIONAL LABOUR OFFICE

' Ibid., 1925, Bulg. 2.

: Legislative Series, 1924, Bulg. 1.

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359

by means of the institution (under the 1917 Act on health and safety).
of assistant labour inspectors elected directly by the workers concerned. I t should be added, however, that this provision has not yet
been carried out in practice \
§ 2. — Legal Limitations on the Activities of Trade Associations
(Collective Disputes)
I t is principally in connection with collective disputes that the
law fixes certain limitations on trade union activity. These m a y
be examined from t h e points of view of penal law, civil law, and
administrative law i n t u r n .
LIMITATIONS UNDER P E N A L L A W

Strikes (lock-outs), whatever t h e form they take, economic
strikes or sympathetic strikes, or even political strikes, are no longer
a n offence. But, although the principle of the right of strike or
lock-out is established in law, it is, in fact, strictly limited by regulations guaranteeing t h e r i g h t to work. Section 298 of t h e P e n a l
Code, which punishes the offence of interference with the r i g h t to
work, r u n s :
Any person who is guilty of threats or violence for the purpose of
hampering the freedom of commerce, industry, trade, or work shall be
liable to imprisonment of not less than six months. Acts of simple
intimidation shall be treated as threats. If the threat consists in a simple.
order, invitation or proposal, without reference to a concrefe interest,
but the circumstances or motives may produce a legitimate fear in the
threatened person, the penalty of imprisonment shall not be less thani
three months. If a physical injury is caused by violence, the imprisonment shall not be less than one year. If the act of violence or threat is
performed by a collective body, the instigators and leaders shall be
punished by imprisonment of three years, and the rest one year. If the
body or the persons belonging to it are armed, the penalty for the
instigators and leaders shall be five years, and for the rest three years.;
In accordance with the above provisions, the same penalties shall be
imposed on persons who, in pursuit of their aims, or, with a view to'
enforcing the demands of others by violence or threats, interfere with the
free circulation of public transport or goods. In all these cases the guilty
persons shall be jointly liable for the damages caused, even if the
instigators have not directly taken part in the commission of the offence.
Section 300 of the Penal Code deals in particular with workers'
strikes.
1

Cf. Ilia YANOULOFF : " Labour Legislation in Bulgaria. "
national Labour Review, Vol. X, No. 3, Sept. 1924.

Inter-

36o

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

Any person who, by violence or threats, compels the workers in a
workshop or factory to stop work, or not to resume it, shall be liable to
imprisonment of not less than one year.
The punishment of interference with the right to work is therefore particularly severe when this is the act of a collective body. This
strictness is enhanced by the fact that acts of simple intimidation are
punished. On the other hand, the law makes no mention of other
means of pressure used by associations, such as boycotting, blacklisting, and peaceful picketing. It follows that these acts must be
considered lawful unless circumstances arise therefrom constituting
an offence of intimidation, violence, or threats, as directly specified
in section 298.
LIMITATIONS UNDER ADMINISTRATIVE L A W

When the Bulgarian Constitution (Article 82) established the
right of assembly, it distinguished between open-air meetings and
meetings in closed premises: Only the former are subject to police
regulations. By virtue of this limitation, and in accordance with the
police regulations in force, trade associations, like all others, must
give twenty-four hours' notice to the administrative authorities of all
open-air meetings, demonstrations, processions, etc. But even the
meetings in closed premises, on which the constitution placed no limitation, must, under certain police regulations, be notified to the competent authorities several hours in advance. Finally, it may be
recalled that State officials and workers are prohibited from taking part
in political demonstrations.
LIMITATIONS UNDER CIVIL L A W

Except for the associations of officials *, free trade associations
have no legal personality. Consequently they do not and cannot own
property, and have no power to enter into contracts or go to law. it
also follows that they incur no liabilities in respect of strikes. This
does not hold for the individual liability of strikers. In accordance
with Bulgarian general law, strikers may be held responsible for
all proven damage, direct or indirect; but, owing to the insolvency of
those accused, suits of this kind are usually of no practical interest.
It would seem as if the special sanction provided in the Act on

Cf. above, p. 350.

BUWJAÄIA

361

employment exchanges and unemployment insurance in the event
of failure to give notice is more effective than liability under the
general law. Section 24 of the said Act states that a worker or employee who gives up his employment without giving a fortnight's
notice will be deprived of his privileges under the Act for a period
of twelve weeks. If he is engaged during this period by another
employer, both he and the employer are punished by a fine corresponding to a fortnight's wages, which is divided equally between
the new employer and the worker, and paid into the Social Insurance Fund.
But the obligation to pay damages is not the only sanction to
which the striker is liable. Under the.general law, the employer
may dismiss a worker who is guilty of breach of the contract of
work, and can thus exercise indirect, but no less effective, pressure
on the right to strike itself.

CONCLUSION

The legal foundation of the right of association for trade purposes
in Bulgaria is to be found in the Constitution. It has been shown
that Article 83 of this fundamental charter not merely establishes the
principle of the freedom of association, but, in addition, exempts the
founders of associations from obtaining previous authorisation. The
purpose of this exemption was to safeguard the free existence and
working of associations against arbitrary interference by the public
authorities.
Owing, however, to social and political disturbances, the constitutional principle has been interpreted more and more restrictively.
The Act of 1907 on the combination of officials, and that of 1922
on the status of State employees, do not merely forbid officials to
strike ; they also forbid them to join trade unions. The Schools and
Societies Act of 1922 makes the working of any society or association
conditional on the previous approval of its rules and regulations.
Finally, the Defence of the State Act of 21 January 1924 prohibits
anti-constitutional organisations. Under this Act the General Federation of Trade Unions was dissolved. The trade union movement
as a whole was paralysed, at least for a time, by the suppression
of the General Federation, which was the most representative trade
organisation in Bulgaria.
Most of these Acts, which in fact limit the constitutional principle, were passed under the pressure of special, but essentially
transitory political circumstances. It is to be presumed that, with
the gradual return to normal political conditions, the legislature will
go back on certain restrictive measures of earlier date. Several
recent facts support this presumption. In the first place, reformist
and neutral unions may act unhampered. Secondly, the rules of
several independent trade unions, which formerly belonged to the
dissolved General Federation, have been approved by the Minister

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363

of the Interior. Further, an amnesty has recently alleviated the
effects of the sentences pronounced in consequence of the disturbances of ig23- All these facts suggest that it will not be long
before the principle of the freedom of association guaranteed by the
Constitution is re-established in full.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

INTERNATONAL

Bulgaria. By Max
Geneva, 1922.
ILIEFF, IV.

LABOUR OFFICE.
LAZARD. Studies

Compulsory Labour Service in
and Reports. Series B, No. 12.

M. Rabotnichesko sindikalno dvijenie v Balgaria. Sofia,

1927.
NIKOLOFF, Dimitri.
"The Trade Union Movement in Bulgaria."
International Labour Review, Vol. XVI, No. 5, November 1927.
YANOULOFF, Ilia. " Labour Legislation in Bulgaria."
Labour Review, Vol. X, No. 3, September 1924.

International

Sotsialna politika v tjpujbina i v Balgaria. Sofia, 1924.

RUMANIA
CHAPTER

HISTORY OF THE GUILDS AND THE TRADE UNION
MOVEMENT

The trade union movement is of recent origin in Rumania, where
the economic system is still predominantly agricultural, and industrialism was not introduced until comparatively late. The history of
trade organisation was for long intertwined with that of the guilds of
craftsmen, and for this reason it is impossible to consider the former
apart from the latter.
§ 1. — History of the Guilds
From the beginning of the fifteenth century various groups of
craftsmen were attached to the monasteries, to which they were
bound by economic and legal ties. These were the brotherhoods,
which continued in this form until the end of the seventeenth century,
when many artisans succeeded in freeing themselves from all fiscal dues and all legal subordination to the ecclesiastical authorities.
It was at this time that the old brotherhoods became guilds. Thenceforward craftsmen were free to establish themselves in the towns
then springing up. The ruling princes encouraged them to settle by
granting them a monopoly of manufacture and sale. Thanks to this
monopoly of economic transactions, the guilds rapidly developed and
arrived at a flourishing economic condition, particularly towards the
end of the eighteenth century. Monopoly of trade was at that time
considered as a means of social equilibrium and labour protection.
It made of the guild not merely a trade association, but also an institution for social conciliation. It was true that consumers were com-

366

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

pelled to buy only from specified producers, belonging to the particular guild concerned, but in return they were protected against all
exploitation by the strict and careful control exercised by the starosta, the head of the guild, who determined the obligations of the
holders of the monopoly. Prices were fixed by administrative orders
(narturi).
All these measures aimed at securing for everyone a minimum
subsistence, while abolishing economic antagonism. This was a
normal conception in a society founded on tradition and the patriarchal principle, but could not hold good in a more advanced economic
society. Owing to the internal dissensions that undermined the
former discipline of the guilds, the ruling princes were induced to
facilitate the admission of foreign artisans, who, armed with greater
technical knowledge, ultimately succeeded in limiting in fact the
monopoly of the old guilds.
The legal monopoly of trade was not abolished until the Organic Regulations issued in 1831, which, in Chapter V, established
the principle of the freedom of commerce and industry. The guilds
themselves were provisionally suppressed by a Ministerial decision >
of 22 June 1873.
In 1875 Rumania inaugurated, in consequence of a commercial
treaty with Austria-Hungary, a new customs policy, that is to say,
a policy of free trade, which was followed until 1887 and threatened
the guilds with complete ruin. What has subsequently been described as the decay of the Rumanian crafts was, properly speaking,
as much the consequence of free trade policy as of the natural economic evolution of the country. In 1887 the Government was compelled
to return to a policy of protecting the newborn national industry
and the craftsmen, who still formed the industrial backbone of the
country. The legislature of that day considered, in fact, that it was
only by protecting national industry that it could hope to reconquer
the independence of the national market.
It was from that time that, side by side with the development of
large-scale industry, a class of industrial workers was formed, and
that the social question arose. It is a remarkable fact, however,
that the problems of wage earners and craftsmen were still confused
for some time, which may be explained on the one hand by the
relics of a still recent past, and on the other by the progressive
prolétarisation of the artisans. At the same time, a steadily growing
number of artisans demanded the return to the guild system. These

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367

demands led to the introduction of several Bills between 1880 and
1900, all of which proposed the reorganisation of the guilds.
There was first the Bill of Peter Carp (1884), leader of the Conservative Party, which provided for the creation of compulsory guilds
in eleven towns for twenty-five crafts. It also proposed the compulsory creation of workshop schools, in which foreign heads of
industry would be invited to teach their trades to Rumanian apprentices as a means of increasing the number of skilled workers.
Two years later another member of the Conservative
Party, Nicolas Filipesco, introduced a Bill on the same subject, which
was based on Austrian and Hungarian legislation on corporations \
The fundamental principle of this Bill was that artisans and industrial
workers must compulsorily belong to a specific guild.
The two Bills thus had this feature in common : the obligation
for the artisan to join his trade group, no exceptions or freedom of
choice being allowed. Neither Bill was approved in Parliament, and
the question remained unsettled until 1902. The reason was that the
Rumanian Government wished to solve the artisan question on
liberal lines, in accordance with economic evolution, and not by resuscitating obsolete institutions. This was the object of the Guilds Act
of 5 March 1902, known by the name of its author, the Minister
B.Missir. The author of the 1902 Act considered that it was above
all essential that the Rumanian worker should be thoroughly prepared
for carrying on his trade, so that he might withstand foreign competition. In his view, the surest means of arriving at this result lay
in association, for by this means, he held, the Rumanian worker
might enjoy State protection without renouncing his freedom.
Under the Missir Act of 1902, guilds were formed without intervention by the State authorities. It was sufficient that there were
at least fifty artisans belonging to a particular trade in the commune,
and that the majority of them were in favour of creating a guild, for
it to exist ipso jure. Once a decision had been taken to create it, all
members of the craft were bound to belong to it, without exception.
In this way the author of the Act tried to reconcile the independence
of individual free will with the submission of this same free will
to that of the majority.
The artisans' guild was given legal personality, but with certain
1
Cf. Vol. Ill of this work : " Former Dual Monarchy of AustriaHungary. "

368

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

restrictions as to the acquisition of property, loans, and mortgages.
As the guilds in isolation could not always fulfil the ends for which
they were constituted, the Act gave them the right to federate. The
Government reserved to itself a right of supervision, exercised by
a Commissioner appointed for the purpose, the guild being considered
a public body.
The 1902 Act dealt with the crafts in particular, and only by
implication with industrial workers, of whom there were still very
few at that date. While leaving the worker completely free to
choose his trade, the Act required him to prove his technical or trade
qualifications by obtaining a certificate of mastership.. The desire
to promote technical training led the legislature of 1902 to require
even the simple worker to obtain an " efficiency card " after
examination before a jury designated by the guild. In introducing
tests of technical or trade capacity as an essential condition for
carrying on any trade whatever, the legislature of 1902 satisfied the
unanimous demand of artisans for the limitation of competition by
this legal means.
The 1902 Act did not however fulfil the expectations of those
concerned, and was unable to arrest the process of decay among the
crafts. In the following year the craftsmen themselves asked for
the amendment of the Act and the creation of free trade unions. But
it was not until 1912 (Act of 27 January 1912 on the organisation
of crafts, credit and workers' insurance, amended by the Acts of
14 February and 28 April 1913) that the legislature made any attempt
to overcome the drawbacks which had been brought out by ten
years' experience of the Missir Act.
Like the previous Act, the 1912 Act aimed at the complete reorganisation of crafts in Rumania. It was based on the distinction
between the " social interests " and the " trade interests " of craftsmen. For the protection of the trade interests the Act created the
brotherhood (breasla), membership of which was compulsory for all
craftsmen and factory workers in the trade. To safeguard the
workers' social interests it created the guild, an association of several
brotherhoods in the same town, membership being compulsory not only
for artisans but for all factory workers. The formation of a brotherhood is compulsory if there are twenty-five craftsmen of the same
trade in the district. Its principal purpose is to protect the trade
interests of its members, to promote apprenticeship and hygienic
conditions of work, and to give assistance in cases of unemployment
or during the slack season. The guild is an association of the second

RUMANIA

369

degree, in which artisans and factory workers are combined in one
and the same body, which is managed by a council and is responsible
for the social interests of the workers. It acts also as the unit for
insurance purposes.
The brotherhoods and guilds have the right to form federations. Their activities are placed under the control of the Central
Office for Crafts, Credit, and Social Insurance (Cassa Centrala a
Meseriilor).
Under the pressure of the craftsmen-employers, a great force
in elections since they possessed the property qualification to vote,
the legislature in 1912 had enforced the inclusion in one and the
same organisation of all persons taking any kind of part in the work
of production, from the industrial worker and apprentice up to the
master, regardless of the fact that their trade interests, instead of
always being the same, were often antagonistic to each other. The
practical results of the Act were accordingly meagre, and it might
even be said that the reaction to this legislation was a strengthening
and development of the spirit of association in the Rumanian working
class.
§ 2. — History of the Trade Union Movement
T H E LABOUR MOVEMENT

In Rumania, as in other countries, the trade union idea made
headway among the workers in the wake of the Socialist idea. At
the beginning, however, the Socialist leaders paid, very little attention to the workers in the towns, owing to the small number of
industrial undertakings, and therefore of workers. They preferred
to concentrate their attention on the peasant class, where the field
seemed more favourable for political agitation. It was not until later
that the Socialist movement, which had formed a party in 1892,
extended its propaganda to industrial workers. The first labour
associations organised by the Socialist Party (Printers' Union of
Bucharest, 1886) were less trade unions properly so called than
mutual-aid societies. The progress made, modest though it was,
was sufficient to disturb the public authorities, and the Socialist
Party was dissolved in 1920. This had its effect on the trade union
movement, which suffered a temporary setback.
Wage earners in industry, being deprived of organisations of their
own, then joined the ranks of the artisans and supported their
Freedom of Association

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FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

demands. The result was that the artisans, whose plight steadily
became worse, were gradually won over to Socialism, and thus the
first trade unions properly so called were formed, not among industrial workers but among craftsmen, for instance, the Carpenters'
Union and the Tailors' Union founded in 1905.
The first trade union congress was held on 26-28 August 1906,
at which thirty unions, with an aggregate membership of 4,466, were
represented. This congress was of decisive importance to the Rumanian trade union movement, for it set up both a General Committee
of Rumanian Trade Unions as the central body of the movement, and
local trade union committees linking up the various unions in the
same town. It also decided to found a Socialist publishing society,
which issued propagandist works. Finally, it framed model rules
for adoption by all trade unions, and laid down the following general
principles :
The workers should promote trade unionism and destroy the guilds,
in which they should not accept office, but use their influence as members
to work in favour of trade unionism and to support the strikes of organised
workers. They should urge the enactment of labour legislation guaranteeing a weekly rest in all agricultural and industrial undertakings, the
regulation of the employment of women and children, the abolition of
night-work and piece-work, the institution of accident, sickness and oldage insurance, the recognition of trade unions and the removal of all
legal obstacles to their activities.
The trade union movement made steady progress after the
congress. Propaganda was extended to State officials and workers.
A number of strikes broke out in State factories and in public services, such as the strikes of postmen, workers employed in the
State tobacco monopoly, railwaymen, and others. The Government
seized the opportunity to submit to Parliament an Act on associations,
which was passed on 20 December 1909, and prohibited strikes and
associations of officials and all employees of the State, departments
and communes, and workers in Government establishments of an
industrial, economic or commercial character. The result was that,
in order to avoid prosecution, the Trade Union Congress of February 1910 had to try to reorganise the trade unions on a basis
independent of all political tendencies. These efforts proved fruitless,
however, and the movement remained under the influence of the
Socialist Party \ Hampered in their work by the 1909 Act and
1

"It seems to us absurd ", said the Socialist leader of that day,
Mr. Rakovski, " that there should be no Socialist activity in genuinely
proletarian organisations like the trade unions. The Socialist movement

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S?!

continually exposed to the persecution of the authorities, the trade
unions could make only slow, t h o u g h steady progress. I n 1914 the
central organisation had barely 15,000 members, and h a d not yet
reached the masses of the workers.
Paralysed during the war, the movement revived at the end of
hostilities. I n 1920 t h e n u m b e r of unionists affiliated to the General
Committee of Rumanian T r a d e Unions was close on 250,000. Unfortunately, as Mr. Mirescu points out, the leaders of the movement,
who found it impossible to amalgamate the masses of new recruits
with their disciplined members, gradually lost authority, until it
was no longer possible to direct these masses, who were driven on the
one h a n d by need, on the other by agents provocateurs 1.
Emboldened by certain successes, t h e t r a d e unions organised the
general strike of 21 October 1920, which proved a complete failure.
T h e Government retorted in the most rigorous fashion. T h e leaders
were arrested, the offices of the unions closed, their press suspended,
and the unions themselves dissolved.
T h e unions in the restored provinces, however, and especially in
Transylvania, where trade union organisation was older, more experienced and more firmly established, had survived the storm, and
it was around this nucleus that t h e R u m a n i a n labour organisations
were reconstructed.
I n spite of t h e military occupation t h a t h a d followed t h e reunion
of Transylvania with Rumania in 1918, a n d prevented all trade union
activity, the movement had sufficient strength and opportunity to
revive during the following year. I t was the miners, w h o formed the
bulk of the working population of t h e Transylvanian territory, w h o
convened the first post-war trade union congress at Sibiu on 23 March
1919, at which delegates from twelve local groups were present. A t
this congress the foundations were laid of t h e great Miners' Union,
which then had a membership of 21,500. T h e example of the
miners was followed. All the old organisations revived and got into
touch with the trade union executive council at Sibiu. A general

is the most finished form of the trade union movement properly so called.
Only as a Socialist body can a union fulfil its historic task. Deprived
of the Socialist spirit, the trade unions lose their vital element ; the
Socialist idea is to the unions what oxygen is to the blood. "
(C. RAKOVSKI : Sindicatele muncitoresti, third edition, p. 38. Bucharest,
1926.)
1
J. MIRESCU : Sindicatele tmcncitoresU si legislatia -mundi, pp. 5
et seq. Published by the journal Socialismul, Bucharest, 1926.

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congress was held on i o and n May 1919, attended by delegates from
sixty organisations in thirty-three districts. T h e congress decided on
the unification and centralisation of the trade union movement in
Transylvania. A provisional General T r a d e Union Committee was
formed. T h e report of the General Committee of Transylvanian
T r a d e Unions on the trade union movement gives the n u m b e r of
organised workers on 30 J u n e 1920 as 80,309.
T h e repression of the general strike of 21 October 1920, in which
the Transylvanian unions had also taken part, prevented all activity
for one year. I n consequence of the general strike, a new A c t on
trade associations was passed in 1921 (see Chapter I I , § 2 ) , which, in
r e t u r n for strict supervision over the constitution and w o r k i n g of
such associations, gave t h e m legal personality. T h e Transylvanian
unions at once submitted to the severe requirements of this Act, and
were thus able to resume their activities. On 31 December 1921
the eight principal federations (miners,- building, food trades, woodworking, printing, bookbinding, metal working and chemicals) comprised 168 unions with 31,739 members.
Under the impulse given by the Transylvanian unions, the revival
of the trade union movement spread throughout R u m a n i a .
At
the Congress of Sibiu (June 1922) a membership of 45,000 was recorded, and at the end of t h a t year one of over 65,000. A s a means
of protecting the movement against political persecution the Sibiu
Congress established the principle of trade union independence in
the following terms :
Considering that the split in the Socialist Party of Rumania is an
accomplished fact and that a reconciliation of the two groups is impossible
at present, and considering on the other hand that the law prohibits
political action by trade unions, the Trade Union Congress declares that :
The trade unions of Rumania, founded on the principle of the class
war, are independent organisations. They will repulse any attempt on
the part of political parties to break them up or annex them. The
present resolution does not in any way forbid individual members to
belong to a political party or to take part in political activities as they
please :
0
(1) All party activity within t h t unions is strictly forbidden and
will be a reason for ejection ;
(2) Trade union activities must strictly conform to the law ;
(3) They are directed only by the national congresses (general or
trade congresses).
This resolution forms an integral part of the rules
At the Congress held during the following year at Cluj on 23 and
24 J a n u a r y 1923, the Central T r a d e Union Council decided to affiliate
to the International Federation of T r a d e Unions of Amsterdam.

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The revolutionary unionists also formed independent unions,
the so-called unitary trade unions. By the end of 1926, the structure
of the unitary trade union movement appears to have become complete. It consists of local and regional committees and a general unitary Trade Union Council, and at that date it comprised over
200 organisations with a membership of about 12,000. But these
unions had not developed in this way without a struggle. During
1926, on the occasion of a demonstration organised by students at the
North Station of Bucharest, some twenty workers belonging to unitary trade unions were arrested, and sixteen of them were sentenced
by court-martial. The unitary trade union committee of Bucharest
protested against this sentence, with the result that the twelve members of the committee were in turn arrested and sentenced by courtmartial on 18 March 1927 to penalties ranging from three months'
to one year's imprisonment. Those unitary trade unions which have
submitted to the regulations of trade union law, however, have been
able to continue their activities as well as the publication of their
journal, Viata Muncitoresca (Labour Life).
Thus, in spite of obstacles of all kinds, the trade union movement had regained at least part of the ground lost in 1921.
In 1926 the General Confederation of Labour, combining all the
reformist unions of the Old Kingdom and the restored territories in
a single national organisation, was set up, and at the Bucharest
Congress held on 29-31 August of the same year, its programme,
to which it still holds, was drawn up in the following terms :
In view of the diversity of existing labour legislation throughout
Rumania, the Congress requests the Government :
(1) To take the necessary measures for the standardisation of existing labour legislation, which at present is responsible for inequalities
in the situation of the workers even as between the various provinces of
the country.
(2) To standardise and at the same time reform this legislation on as
progressive principles as those of other modern legislation and international labour conventions.
(3) To ensure the representation of the trade unions, by delegates
elected by the workers themselves, on the committees which are, or may
be, set up for the amendment or initiation of labour legislation.
(4) The Congress similarly requests the Council of the General Confederation of Labour to draw up, and as soon as possible submit to the
authorities concerned, memoranda dealing with all the amendments which
are required to existing legislation. These memoranda should demand,
for instance,
(a) the immediate standardisation of labour legislation on the basis
of international conventions ;

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FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION
(b) the repeal of the Act concerning legal personality, or if preferred,
the withdrawal of the trade unions from the sphere of operation
of this Act ;
(c) the repeal of the Handicrafts and Guilds Act throughout the
country ;
(d) the suppression of the excessive advantages granted by the Act
for the encouragement of national industry, which weigh as
heavily upon consumers as they do upon the working classes ;
(e) the complete revision of the Collective Labour Disputes Act and
of the Trade Associations Acf ;
(/) the amendment of the Weekly Rest Act with a view to the payment of the workers at double rates for work on holidays,
whether they are employed by the hour, the week, or the month ;
(g) the immediate passing of an Act ensuring to foreign workers
equality of treatment with national workers on a basis of reciprocity ;
(h) abolition of the restrictive provision of the Immigration Act
with regard to foreign workers ;
(i) the introduction of legislation on collective agreements ;
(;') the introduction of an Act on hours of work in accordance with
the principles of the Washington Convention (this Act was passed
in April 1928) ;
(fe) the creation of chambers of workers and officials on an equality
with the chambers of commerce and industry ;
(I) the introduction of an Act on minimum wages and a sliding
scale ;
(m) the introduction of an Act on works councils ;
\n) immediate legislation for State unemployment insurance.
T H E EMPLOYERS'

MOVEMENT

T h e movement for the association of employers in industry
a n d commerce dates only from after t h e war. T h e reason is t h a t t h e
interests of the heads of undertakings seemed sufficiently safeguarded
b y t h e chambers of commerce a n d industry. T h e s e official bodies,
which were first set u p b y t h e A c t of 1864, are a t present governed
b y t h e A c t of 7 M a y 1925, which has similarly established a central
body — the Union of Chambers of Commerce a n d I n d u s t r y — whose
d u t y it is to promote, direct a n d co-ordinate the work of the thirtyfour chambers in the country.
Immediately after the war, however, employers, surprised by the
progress made by t h e workers' unions, also formed trade associations
properly so called and federations, following the example set b y
manufacturers in Transylvania and Bukovina. T h e s e bodies were
affiliated to the General Federation of Manufacturers in Rumania.
I n addition to these employers' organisations in industry, reference should be made t o t h e groups of artisans combined in the Union
of Small Manufacturers, whose activity is steadily growing.
According to t h e most recent publication of the Directorate of
Research a n d Statistics in the Ministry of Labour dealing with trade

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375

organisations, there were at. t h e beginning of 1926 six employers'
associations with forty-five affiliated organisations, representing
3,352 individual members. These associations all have legal personality. T h e r e are in addition 152 independent employers' organisations with 20,065 members. T h e regional distribution of t h e organisations is as follows :
Former Kingdom :
Three associations with nine affiliated organisations and 1,286
members.
Twenty-two independent organisations with 2,829 members.
Transylvania :
Two associations with twenty-eight affiliated organisations and 876
members.
Ninety-six independent organisations with 13,244 members.
Bukovina :
One association with four affiliated organisations and 650 members.
Sixteen independent organisations with 2,924 members.
Bessarabia :
Four organisations affiliated to employers' associations in the old
Kingdom.
Eight independent organisations with 1,062 members.

CHAPTER II
THE PRESENT LEGAL STATUS OF TRADE ASSOCIATIONS

The progress made by the trade union movement, particularly
since the war, led to the enactment of legislation on trade associations. It is true that in 1866 the first Constitution of the Kingdom
had in Article .27 expressly proclaimed the principle of the freedom
of association, but it subordinated the exercise of this right to the
previous adoption of special legislation on the matter. Such legislation
was never passed subsequently, and thus the constitutional principle
remained a dead-letter.
Apart from the special legislation on the guilds *, the Act of
26 May 1921 on trade associations 2 was the first to establish positive
regulations on the constitution and working of trade associations.
This Act was completed by another of a general nature, namely,
the Act of 6 February 1924, amended by that of 22 April 1927, respecting legal personality, which implicity cancels certain provisions
of the special Act on trade associations. In the meantime the new
Constitution of 22 March 1923 had reaffirmed in Articles 5 and 29
the principle of freedom of association.
To sum up, the law on association for trade purposes is derived
from three sources : the Constitution, the Act of 26 May 1921 on
trade associations, and the Act of 6 February 1924 on legal personality. Under Rumanian law trade associations have the right to choose
between being governed by the general law pure and simple, arising
out of the constitutional principle, and by the special regulations
contained in the Acts on trade associations and legal personality.

* See above, Chapter 1, § 1, " History of the Guilds ".
INTERNATIONAL LABOUR OFFICE : Legislative Series, 1921, Rou. 1.

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§ 1. — Trade Associations under the General Law
According to Article 5 of the Constitution of 22 March 1923, the
right of association is safeguarded in the same way as other fundamental civil rights, such as the freedom of thought, freedom of education,
right of assembly, etc. Article 29 develops the principle affirmed in
Article 5 in the following terms :
All Rumanians (the term being taken in the widest sense of inhabitants of Rumania) without distinction of racial origin, language or
religion, shall have the right to associate, provided that they comply
with the laws governing the exercise of this right.
The right of free association shall not imply the right to create bodies
corporate.
The conditions under which legal personality is granted shall be laid
down in a special Act.
To judge from this text, due allowance being made for the
reservation in the second paragraph of Article 29, the right of
association understood in the widest sense, and therefore also the
right of association for trade purposes, have been given sufficient legal
foundation in the Constitution. This was indeed the theory that
prevailed even before the constitutional reform of 1923, and that
has since been confirmed by judicial practice. Thus the Act of
26 May 1921 on trade associations already made provision for the
existence of associations in fact side by side with the recognised
associations. Section 2 of this Act, which is quite general in scope,
recognises the right of all persons and bodies corporate exercising the same occupation or a similar or allied occupation, to form
themselves freely into trade associations without being obliged to
obtain previous authorisation for the purpose.
In other words, section 2 establishes the complete freedom to
create associations, but this freedom entails no occupational privileges
and is, moreover, subject to strict supervision. There are no privileges attaching to it, for associations which have not obtained legal
personality enjoy none of the rights granted to recognised associations ; further, section 40 makes the executive or management of
unrecognised associations jointly and severally responsible without
limitation towards third parties. There is strict supervision of this
freedom, for by section 44, unrecognised trade associations established
on a basis or in furtherance of a purpose which is contrary to the
law, morals or public order, are deemed unlawful. The civil court
of the place where the association has its head office, establishes this
unlawfulness by a substantiated decision issued, after hearing the

37*

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

de facto management of the industrial association, at the request of
the Public Prosecutor, the Ministry of Labour, or the interested parties. The decision may be appealed against within the periods prescribed in sections 9 and io of the Act. If a trade association is
dissolved for these reasons, its management may be punished by a
fine of 300 to 2,000 lei.
All these provisions go to prove that the existence of de facto
associations, although legal, is precarious, and that they are more
or less driven to seek the status of recognised associations.
§ 2. — The Status of Recognised Associations
(Acts of 26 May 1921 and 6 February 1924)
The Act of 26 May 1921 was promulgated some months after
the abortive general strike of 1920, which, as already shown ', was
followed by the dissolution of the workers' organisations. In the
explanatory memorandum to the Act, the Minister of Labour
stated that :
The first object of this Act was to create in the place of the suppressed organisations new workers' associations imbued with the spirit
of order and inimical to the disruptive tendencies introduced from outside.
The trade solidarity of wage earners (he added) should become a
factor in social evolution and consolidation, and their associations should
become the fundamental elements in this future work of national pacification and reconstruction. The fact that there were a large number of
associations deprived of all legal recognition, whose activities most
seriously hampered normal development, made the problem one urgently
demanding solution.
These statements, approved by the legislature in 1921, show that
in determining the status of recognised trade associations its object
was to confer on them a strictly occupational character.
The Act of 6 February 1924 on legal personality, passed in pursuance of Article 29 of the Constitution, is much more general in
scope. As, however, it cancels, if not expressly, at least tacitly, certain important provisions of the Act on trade associations, both these
texts must be consulted for a determination of the conditions of
existence of recognised associations.
CONSTITUTION AND WORKING OF ASSOCIATIONS

Among the condifions relating to the constitution of a trade association, a distinction is made between material and formal conditions ;
1
See above, Chapter 1, § 2 : " History of the Trade Union Movement. "

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t h e material conditions refer to t h e persons w h o may belong to the
association a n d the objects it m a y pursue, the formal conditions to its
actual constitution and the supervision of its working.
Conditions

as to

Members

Freedom of adherence and withdrawal. — By the Act of 26 May
IÇ2I trade associations are in essence voluntary organisations. A n y
person has the right to belong to a trade association if he satisfies
t h e conditions laid down by law and in the rules. Conversely, n o
person can be compelled to belong to an association or prevented
from withdrawing when he chooses. T h i s follows clearly from section 36.
Members shall at all times have the right to withdraw from a trade
association without stating their reasons, even if the rules contain a
stipulation to the contrary. A member who withdraws may retain all
rights which he has acquired in undertakings of an economic or social
character established by the association. On the other hand, he must
pay the sums due for contributions or on other grounds.
T h u s , this safeguarding of the freedom of admission and withdrawal, considered in R u m a n i a n law as a public right, limits in
this respect the contractual freedom of t h e members.
Protection of the freedom of association. — Section 53 supplem e n t s the guarantee of freedom of admission and withdrawal by imposing penalties for unlawful m e t h o d s of pressure :
Any person who by violence, threats, refusal to take into employment,
or promises, hinders the exercise of the right of free association for trade
purposes, prevents one or more persons from joining or leaving a trade
association, or compels them to do so, shall be liable to a fine of 100 to
1,000 lei and to imprisonment from fifteen days to three months, or to one
of these penalties, without prejudice to any claim to damages that the
injured person may be entitled to make.
Age, marital condition, nationality.
— A n y person of eighteen
years of age or over can belong to an association, and from that
age minors need no special authorisation by their legal representative.
Similarly, a married woman may belong to a n association without
obtaining the authorisation of her husband. W o m e n have the same
right as men to share in the administration and management of the
association.
T h e Act does not make R u m a n i a n nationality a condition for
belonging to a trade association. Foreigners m a y therefore belong,
like R u m a n i a n s — for the silence of the Act on this point should

38o

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

be interpreted as granting a facility to the individual in the matter of
association. Rumanian nationality is necessary, on the other hand,
for those who administer or manage the association.
Occupation, — The right to form trade associations is reserved
to persons who are engaged in the same or similar occupations
(section 2).
Section 3 of the Act extends this right to the liberal professions
and to all workers employed by the State, the departments, the
communes, and other public organisations.
Trade union rights of officials. — As regards officials, the 1921
Act merely states that the conditions on which they may exercise
their right of association for trade purposes shall be determined by
the future regulations for officials. The.Regulations concerning the
status of officials, which were promulgated by the Act of 19 June 1923,
in fact recognise, in section 24, the right to form associations provided
that they are composed solely of officials. But every association of
officials must obtain the special previous authorisation of the Superior
Administrative Council before it is given legal personality.
Although officials are thus entitled to the freedom of association
in a limited form, they are formally deprived of the right to strike.
Under sections 30, 31 and 32 of the Regulations, public off icials who by
previous agreement stop working, whether partially or completely, or
who send in their resignations collectively or individually, but at the
same time, are deemed guilty of an act of desertion, endangering
the general interests and punishable by dismissal. The official who
can be shown to have inspired, provoked, or prepared the organisation of a strike or stoppage of work in a public service is liable,
not only to dismissal, but to a penalty of imprisonment of three
months to two years and a fine of 1,000 to 10,000 lei.
If the stoppage of work or strike in a public service is decided
on by an association of officials, the association is dissolved under
section 32, and the leaders are liable to the above fine and imprisonment. The funds of the association are confiscated and accrue
to the charitable societies at the place where it has its head office.
An association which has legal personality is dissolved by Royal
Decree, one without such personality, by a simple decision of the
Council of Ministers, in both cases after consultation with the Superior
Council.

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Conditions as to Aims
Section 1 of the Act on trade associations defines the aims of
such associations in the following terms :
Trade associations shall have as their purpose the study, defence and
development of trade interests. Trade interests shall be confined to
interests of an industrial, commercial, agricultural, technical, economic
or educational nature.
Thus the field of activity of trade associations is clearly limited
to aims of a trade nature. In no way and under no pretext may
such associations pursue political or religious ends, and still less may
they pursue illicit ends, contrary to the law of the country, public
order or morals.
Formal Conditions Previous to Constitution
Trade associations do not acquire legal recognition until they
have been entered in a special register kept for the purpose by the
district judge. The application for registration must be accompanied
by:
(a) The original and two copies of the record of the proceedings
when constitution was decided on ;
(b) The original and two copies of the rules;
(c) A list of the executive or managing officials of the association, showing the nationality, residence and occupation of
each;
(d) A list of the original members of the association with their
addresses and occupations.
The persons making the application for registration are responsible for the accuracy of the contents of the documents sent in, which
must first have been duly certified.
The rules must contain provisions respecting the following
matters :
(a) The aims of the trade association.
(b) Its name and head office ; the name of the association must
be different from that of other associations in the same
locality.
(c) The conditions of admission, resignation and expulsion of
members. (The expulsion of a member must be the result
of a substantiated decision of the general meeting after the
member concerned has been heard. He has the right to

382

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

appeal to the law court of the place where the association
has its head office, within five days from the date of his being
notified of his expulsion. It is worthy of note that it is
a valid reason for expulsion if the member agrees to work
in conditions inferior to those stipulated in the collective
agreement. A member expelled on any grounds can no
longer take part in any economic undertaking established by
the association. If, however, he has concluded a long-term
contract for insurance, he may claim compensation in a
lump sum provided that this is equitable from the actuarial
point of view.)
(d) The rights and duties of members. (Their political and
religious liberty may in no case be interfered with by the
provisions of the rules.)
(e) The fixing of contributions and the method of collecting
them.
(/) The procedure for electing the executive or managing officials of the association, in conformity with sections 20 and 21;
the term of office of these officials may in no case exceed
four years.
Section 20, referred to under (/), states that every trade association must be placed under the management of a committee composed
of three or more persons who are members of the association. This
committee represents it in courts of law and in its relations with
the authorities and third parties.
Section 21 adds that the members of the committee responsible
for managing the association must be Rumanian citizens of full age,
possessed of full civil rights, and at the date of their election must
have been actually engaged in their occupation for not less than
one year, and must not have undergone a criminal penalty for any
of the following acts : breach of trust, waste of public moneys,
fraud, forgery, theft, receiving stolen goods, acceptance of bribes,
counterfeiting of money or seals, or embezzlement of trust funds.
A married woman may be elected to the executive or management
of a trade association without having to obtain preliminary authorisation from her husband.
(g) Regulations for the constitution, convocation and deliberations of the general meeting.
According to section 36 of the Act on legal personality, the general
meeting must be convened by the president of the association on the
written and substantiated request of at least one-fifth of the members.

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383

In the absence of the president, the chairman of the district court
where the association is situated may authorise the members who
have submitted a request to him to that effect to convene the meeting,
and he then appoints as president the senior member or the representative of the Ministry under whose authority and supervision the
association is placed. Failing such a representative, he may appoint
a representative of the public prosecutor (section 37 of the 1924 Act).
(h) Regulations for the constitution and deliberations of the
executive or managing officials of the association.
(t) The conditions and regulations for deliberations respecting
the amendment of the rules, the liquidation of the association, and, in the latter case, respecting the disposal of its
property.
Trade associations may in no way depart from these provisions,
which are declared by the law to be of a public nature.
A similar procedure is prescribed for any amendment of the
rules or the deeds constituting the association. Section 19 provides
that amendments of the rules may be adopted only by a majority of
at least two-thirds of the members entitled to vote. If this majority
is not attained at a first meeting, the amendment of the rule may
be adopted by a majority of three-quarters of the members present
at a subsequent meeting. The association is bound to notify the
district judge, through its legal representatives, of any amendment
of the rules and any changes in its management.
Trade associations have the right to form unions and federations,
which may obtain legal personality in accordance with the regulations
for the trade associations themselves, provided that they state i.i their
application for registration the names and head offices of the associations or groups of associations of which they are composed.
The rules of unions or federations of trade associations must
include regulations for the representation of the affiliated associations
on the executive committee and at the general meetings of the
union or federation. They must also include the conditions of
affiliation to the group.
These are the preliminary conditions to be fulfilled by the rules
when submitted to the courts of first instance for approval. The procedure to be observed in obtaining ratification is as follows :
The district judge ascertains within not more than eight days
from the receipt of the application for registration : (1) whether the
documents sent in satisfy the requirements laid down in the Act;
(2) whether the trade association has not been constituted from an

384

•

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

unlawful motive or for any purpose which is unlawful or contrary to
morality ; (3) whether the executive or managing officials fulfil
the conditions laid down in the Act.
The judge gives a substantiated decision for the admission or
rejection of the application, after previous notification of the Ministry
of Labour. The decision may be delayed for not more than eight
days if the parties concerned ask for this in order to introduce into the
specified documents any conditions or amendments desired by the
judge. The decision is communicated to the trade association through
its representatives designated in the application for registration within
not more than five days.
The association may appeal against the decision in the event of
rejection of the application. Such appeal must be made within twenty
days of the date of the announcement of the decision. The
court decides summarily in secret session, without the right of
objection, if need be after hearing the views of the Public Prosecutor.
i t may also hear the representative of the Ministry of Labour. The
sentence of the court may be appealed against by the parties to the
case, or by the Public Prosecutor. The Ministry of Labour may
associate itself with the appeal. The time limit for this appeal is
twenty days, reckoned from the pronouncement of the sentence.
If the court admits the registration, the documents in the case are
sent forthwith to the competent district judge, who effects the registration in a special register, in which he records the name and head
office of the association, the date of registration, and the names and
addresses of the managing officials. The trade association is deemed
to be legally recognised as from the date of its registration.
All these provisions show that even before a trade association is
finally constituted, it is subject to the preliminary supervision of
the judicial authorities. Similarly, once it has been legally constituted, it continues to be placed under the supervision of the administrative and judicial authorities.
Supervision of the Working of Trade Associations
Both by the Act on trade associations and by that on legal personality, the State has made sure of its power to supervise and
control the working of trade associations. Section 15 of the latter
Act provides that the State has the right to supervise and control
all bodies corporate in private law. This supervision and control

385

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is exercised in the first place by the officials of the Ministry or Ministries under whose authority the association is placed, and in a general
way by the Superior Committee on Legal Personality. Section 21,
paragraph 3, of the Act adds that where the aims of a body corporate are not sufficiently defined from the point of view of the
competence of the supervisory authority, it comes under the supervision of trie Ministry of the Interior.
With a view to facilitating, supervision, the managers of trade
associations are bound, under section 23 of the Act on such associations, to keep the registers up to date as regards the number of members and the receipts and expenses of all kinds. They must also
keep a register containing records of all resolutions and decisions
taken. They are further bound to submit to the Ministry of Labour
at the end of each financial year a detailed statement as to the
members and the funds of the association. The registers of the
association must be kept at the disposal of the officials of the Ministry
of Labour \
DISSOLUTION OF TRADE ASSOCIATIONS

PENALTIES

A trade association may dissolve itself voluntarily of right or
may be compulsorily dissolved by law.
Voluntary Dissolution and Dissolution of Right
Section 41 of the Act on trade associations states that a trade
association may be dissolved by the decision of a general meeting of

The Act of 20 April 1927, amending certain provisions of the Act on
legal personality so far as trade associations are concerned, simplifies
the formalities of registration and publication. According to section 1,
trade associations may have the documents prescribed by the Acts on trade
associations and legal personality certified before thé mayor, assisted by
the notary, if in the communes where they are situated there is no court
of first instance. According to section 2, a trade association formed under
the Act on trade associations is exempt from the publication prescribed
in section 92 of the Act on legal personality, but it must send a copy
of the documents to which the formalities specified in the said section
refer to the Ministry of Labour, which publishes them free of charge in
its bulletin. According to section 3, the civil court before granting legal
personality to trade associations need merely consult the Ministry of
Labour, Co-operation and Social Insurance. This Act while introducing
certain relaxations in the procedure established by the Act on legal
personality, in no way invalidates the procedure provided for the legal
recognition of trade associations described above.
Freedom of Association

3 86

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

its members taken by a majority of two-thirds of the members with
the right to vote.
The association is dissolved of right : (a) if the period fixed in
its rules has expired or its social aims have been realised; (b) if it is
impossible to fulfil the ends for which the association was formed ;
(c) if its proven insolvency prevents it from continuing its activities ;
(d) if the administrative bodies can no longer be constituted in
accordance with the rules ; (e) finally, whenever the membership falls
below the minimum fixed by the rules or the law (section 53 of
the Act on legal personality).
Compulsory

Dissolution

Compulsory dissolution may be pronounced by the judicial authorities or by a decision of the executive authorities. According to the
Act on trade associations and that on legal personality, the civil court
of the place where the association is situated may pronounce the
dissolution of a legally recognised association : (a) if its aims or
activities have become unlawful or contrary to morality or public
order ; (b) if its aims are pursued by unlawful means contrary to
morality or public order ; (c) if the association, without having
obtained the legal authorisation specified in section 39 concerning
the amendment of the aims of associations, pursues other aims than
those for which it was constituted and which it has declared ; (d) if
the decisions of the general meeting are taken in violation of the
provisions of the rules, the deeds constituting the association or the
law (section 53 of the Act on legal personality, section 45 of the
Act on trade associations).
The dissolution is ordered by the civil court for the place where
the association is situated, at the request of the Public Prosecutor,
the Ministry of Labour, or the parties concerned. The decision is
given in public session, after the Public Prosecutor and the trade
association have been heard.
The execution of the sentence of the court is suspended for one
month from its notification, if the trade association concerned declares
its intention of amending its rules and conforming to the law. If
the offence is repeated, the original sentence of dissolution is executed forthwith.
The dissolution decided upon by the court is communicated to
the competent district judge when the verdict has become enforceable,

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387

in order that he may note it in the register on the page and at the
place where the registration was entered.
The dissolution of a trade association entails the liquidation of
its property. If dissolution is voluntary, the liquidation is effected
by the executive and managing officials or by the persons specially
designated for the purpose by the general meeting. In cases of judicial dissolution, the civil court for the place where the association
is situated, to which the matter is referred by the Public Prosecutor
or any person concerned, has the right to appoint liquidators. Similarly, if the provisions of the rules as to liquidation have not been
observed, the court may, at the request of the parties concerned,
or the Public Prosecutor, or the Ministry of Labour, annul the illegal
decision of the association and proceed to dispose of the property.
The same provision applies if the rules or the general meeting fail"
to make any provision in the matter. The court to which the
Public Prosecutor or the Ministry of Labour has referred the matter
proceeds to dispose of the property, which it may assign either to the
federation to which the association belongs, or to a similar association, or failing these, to the Directorate for Vocational Education in
the Ministry of Labour.
Penalties.
In addition to the penalty of dissolution, the managing officials
render themselves liable to the following penalties in the event of
contravention of the law.
According to section 48 of the Act on trade associations, the
members of the executive or management of a trade association who
have contravened any of the prohibitions laid down in the Act, or who
have made false returns in connection with the application for
registration and in particular in respect of the contents of the rules
or the deeds constituting the association, and the names and qualifications of the persons responsible for the administration or management of the association, are liable to a fine of 50 to 500 lei.
The same penalty is imposed on the members of the executive
or management of an association who fail to conform to the provisions
of section 16, concerning amendment of the rules, and section 29,
making it compulsory for thè legal representatives of the association to
participate, at the request of the Ministry of Labour, in the work
of advisory or executive committees on which trade interests must
be represented.

388

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

Members of the executive or management of a trade association
who fail to conform to the provisions of section 23, concerning the
keeping of the registers of the association, are liable to a fine of 100
to 500 lei.
In the event of failure to comply with the formalities prescribed
in section 43, concerning application for removal from the register in
the event of dissolution, the guilty parties are liable to a fine of
25 to 500 lei.
The original members, executive or management of a trade association which has continued its activities or which has reconstituted
itself on the same basis after a decision of dissolution has been
pronounced by the judicial authorities, are liable to a fine of 300 to
2,000 lei and to imprisonment from fifteen days to one year, or to one
of these penalties.
Section 55 of the Act on trade associations states that the fines
under the Act are of a penal character and may be commuted into
imprisonment.
Contraventions are established by the judicial police, and likewise by the officials of the Ministry of Labour specially appointed
for the purpose, who may bring cases directly before the court.
The enforcement of penalties may be suspended by the judge, in
the case of persons condemned for the first time, for one year from the
date when the verdict becomes enforceable. Persons guilty of a
second or subsequent offence are not entitled to this supension. If
the offence is repeated within the year, the guilty person undergoes
both the penalties imposed upon him.

CHAPTER

THE POSSIBILITIES AND LIMITS OF TRADE UNION
ACTION

In return for these severe regulations, the legally recognised
associations, unlike de facto associations, have certain powers, in
particular with respect to :
(i) the organisation of institutions and co-operation with the
State in matters of social welfare ;
(2) their capacity in civil law and their influence on conditions
of work, especially the contract of employment.
§ 1. — Trade Union Institutions and Co-operation with the State
INSTITUTIONS

The Act on trade associations authorises an association which
has obtained legal personality to take all action necessary for :
(1) the organisation, establishment and working of subsidiary
undertakings of an industrial character, such as laboratories,
technical schools, workshops for apprentices;
(2) the organisation and management, in the interests of its
members, of institutions of an economic nature, for which
separate accounts must however be kept ;
(3) the allocation of part of its receipts to the erection of cheap
dwellings ;
(4) the establishment among its members of funds for mutual
assistance and pensions, provided that these conform to the
laws in force ;
(5) the printing and issue of publications for the educational and
technical advancement of members and the defence of their
trade interests (section 28).

3Q0

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

In 1922, the first year in which the Act on trade associations
was in operation, 19 trade institutions (technical schools, libraries,
workshops for apprentices) were set up. Further progress was
made in the following year. The number of employment exchanges
opened reached 76, that of industrial institutions 115. Since then
the associations have confined themselves to supporting the work of
the State in this field.
CO-OPERATION WITH THE STATE

The co-operation of the trade associations with the public authorities in the preparation and administration of social legislation was
allowed on a generous scale, first by the Act on trade associations
and subsequently by a whole series of special Acts.
According to section 29, the legal representatives of the trade
association must, at the request of the Ministry of Labour, appoint
one or more delegates chosen from among its members, to sit on
advisory and executive committees which deal with the protection
of trade interests. Similarly, the Minister of Labour is bound to
consult the principal trade associations on such questions. The
refusal of an association to assist the Government in this respect is
punishable by a fine of 50 to 500 lei.
Recognised trade associations are further authorised :
(1) to participate through their delegates nominated by the association from among its members, jointly with the employer
concerned or his representative and the officials of the
Ministry of Labour, in the work of labour inspection, so
far as the administration of the laws and regulations for
the protection or organisation of labour, collective agreements
and rules of employment are concerned. The refusal of
the employer to participate in person or through his representative in the inspection is no obstacle to its being carried
out by the workers' delegates ;
(2) together with the officials of the State and the delegates of
the employers' organisations, to watch over the administration of the laws and regulations relating to the technical schools and technical continuation schools set up by
the Ministry of Labour ;
(3) to participate with the officials of the State, the departments
or the communes, and with the delegates of the employers'

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391

associations, in carrying on a public and. gratuitous
employment exchange service.
In pursuance of the International Convention of Washington
(1920) an Act. was passed on 30 September 1921 concerning the organisation of employment exchanges, which abolished fee-charging
agencies and substituted for them public employment exchanges.
These are subsidised by the State, the departments and communes,
and placed under the direction of State authorities supported by joint
committees of employers and workers in equal numbers. A central
joint committee set up on the same principle of equal representation, centralises and co-ordinates the work of the various local
exchanges.
(4) to supervise the administration of social insurance through
their delegates, approved for this purpose by the Ministry
of Labour.
These powers, enumerated in the Act on trade associations,
were subsequently confirmed and systematised by the Act of 13
April 1927 on chambers of labour and the Superior Labour Council.
By section 1 of this Act the chambers of labour have legal
personality and are placed under the supervision of the Ministry of
Labour. They are bodies for representing and protecting industrial
and commercial labour.
The chambers are set up by Royal Decree, after consultation of
the Superior Council of Labour, either on the request of the
employers' and workers' trade organisations, or, ex officio, by the
Government. Their number must at least be equal to that of the
chambers of industry and commerce in the district and locality.
The area for which each is competent, its head office, and the
number of its members and sections are to.be defined in the Royal
Decree instituting it (section 2).
The necessary funds for the chambers of labour are obtained
from a levy on the workers' wages.
Each chamber consists of five ex officio members and a
number of elected members varying between thirty and sixty, according to the industrial and commercial importance of the district.
These members are elected in equal numbers by the employers and
workers in all industrial and commercial, public or private undertakings in the area covered by the chamber, excluding workers
employed by the State, departments and communes. To take part
in the elections both workers and employers must be Rumanian
citizens of at least twenty-one years of age, and have been engaged

392

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

for not less than one year in their occupation in the area for
which they vote. Candidates for election must be at least twenty-five
years of age, be entered on the electoral list, have carried on their
occupation^ for at least three years, and have lived at least one year
in the area for which the chamber is competent.
Each chamber of labour is divided into two sections, one industrial and one commercial. These may be divided in turn into subsections if the situation and needs of the district so require.
As regards the administration of the chambers of labour, the
Act provides that if the president is chosen from among the employers' representatives, the two vice-presidents must be chosen from
among the workers. If, on the other hand, the president is a worker,
at least one of the vice-presidents must be an employer.
The functions of the chambers of labour are carefully defined in
section 3. The Act prescribes in the first place that the chambers
must give their opinion on Bills and draft regulations, and in general
on all questions affecting industrial and commercial labour. Secondly,
the chambers must co-operate with the Ministry of Labour
in the administration of labour legislation, through bodies expressly
appointed for the purpose. Thirdly, they must co-operate with the
departmental and communal councils and other trade chambers in
all matters relating to labour organisation and development.
In addition to these wide powers of consultation and supervision
in the field of social legislation, the Act gives them definitely political powers. Under the Act on the standardisation of administration,
they have the right to send delegates to the district and communal
councils of the area for which they are competent. Finally, they
have the right to elect six members of the Senate.
The same Act of 13 April 1927 provides for the creation of a
superior Labour Council as a technical and advisory institution in the
Ministry of Labour. Workers are represented by twenty-six members
of the Council, elected by the chambers of labour, together with six
representatives of the various State undertakings.
The trade unions have subjected this Act to vigorous criticism, concerning both the composition and the competence of the
chambers of labour and the Superior Labour Council, because in their
view the workers are given only a minority representation in the
chambers, while in other trade chambers, i.e. those of industry,
commerce and agriculture, the employers have practically all the
seats. To remedy this state of affairs the trade unions advocate
the formation of chambers of workers, i.e. trade chambers consisting

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393

solely of wage earners, on the model of the councils of workers
and salaried employees created in Austria and various other coun
tries \ In the second place, they object to the competence of the
chambers of labour because they maintain that, if not in law, yet undoubtedly in fact, the trade associations would be deprived of their
powers under the Trade Associations Act in this field, to the profit
of the new official bodies \
§ 2. — Civil Capacity and Influence of Trade Associations
on the Contract of Employment
EFFECTS OF LBGAI, PERSONALITY

Legally recognised trade associations enjoy legal personality,
But this privilege is granted to them only to the extent they need it
for the realisation of their ends. Section 9 of the Act on legal personality defines the principle in the following terms : " Bodies which
have legal personality in private law shall be entitled only to the
rights necessary to them for the realisation of their aims. " Within
these limits the privilege of legal personality entails the right lo
acquire and own property, to enter into contracts and to sue and
be sued.
The Act on trade associations lays down in section 26 that
an association which has obtained legal personality may, without
previous authorisation, acquire real or personal property of any kind,
either as a free gift or in return for a consideration. But the Act
on legal personality in section 10 limits this right as regards free
gifts. Bodies corporate may not accept free gifts unless these are
authorised by Royal Decree. In this way the Government has
sought to keep a check on the financial resources of trade union and
other associations.
The right of a trade association to enter into contracts of a
civil nature is similarly limited according to the nature of the contract. Thus, an association may contract obligations only for the purposes mentioned in its rules 3.
1

Cf. Vol. Ill of this work : " Austria ", pp. 149 et seq., and Vol. II :
" Luxemburg ", pp. 274 et seq.
2

See J. MIRESCU, op. cit., p. 33.

Cf. below, pp. 394 et seq., " Collective Agreements ".

394

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

The last effect of legal personality is the right to sue and be
sued. Section 25 of the Act on trade associations establishes this
right in the following terms :
A trade association which has obtained legal personality shall be
entitled to appear in a court of law either as plaintiff or as defendant,
not only on account of interference with its personal rights or property,
but also on account of all interference with the individual rights of its
members, to the extent such interference is connected with the exercise
of the trade and the collective interests of the trade group, which it is
the business of the association to defend.
In return for these civil rights, the trade association assumes
liability for unlawful contracts or acts.
Section 12 of the Act on legal personality provides that the will
of bodies corporate is expressed solely by their officials. The legal
acts of these officials performed in accordance with the rules, within the
limits of the powers conceded to them, are deemed to be performed
by the body corporate itself, and are binding on it. The acts of
its officials that are contrary to the aims defined in the rules can have
no effect on the association. The association is liable for all contracts constituting an intentional or unintentional offence which are
entered into by these officials during their term of office.
The members of the executive and management of the association are jointly and severally liable for all damage caused by them,
both to third parties and to the association itself. In order, however,
to protect trade associations against proceedings that may threaten
their very existence, the Rumanian Act copies the French legislation
of 1884-1920 concerning trade associations, and provides in section 27
that " the real and personal property acquired by a trade association under the conditions laid down by law, shall not be liable
to distraint on any grounds except for pre-existing privileged debts
and mortgages and fiscal dues, provided that the said real and personal property is necessary for the meetings of members of the
associations, their library or courses of technical instruction ".
CONCLUSION AND ENFORCEMENT OF CONTRACTS OF EMPLOYMENT

Collective

Agreements

Section 32 of the Act on trade associations states that associations
which have legal personality also enjoy the right to conclude collective
agreements either with individual employers or with employers' asso-

395

RUMANIA

ciations. But the Act merely propounds this principle, without
defining the legal nature of such agreements. So far there has been
no legislation on collective agreements, but this lack of regulation has
not hampered the growth of the system of collective bargaining in
fact, as will appear from the table below.
Number of
collective
agreements

1920
1921
1922

1923
1924
1925
1926

71
161

167
329
255
261
266

N u m k r of workers
covered

27.498
32,964
63.704
90,5"
85.128
94.821
82,634

Thus, the number of collective agreements increased side by
side with the growth in the trade union movement.
Labour Disputes — Limits of Trade Union Action
The Act on the settlement of labour disputes was passed on
4 September 1920 \ Its purpose was to put an end to the violent
labour agitation and numerous strikes that immediately followed the
conclusion of peace.
The explanatory memorandum defined the scope of the Act as
follows : " The right to strike, which is recognised in principle, may
not exceed certain limits imposed out of consideration for the safety
and preservation of the State, for a strike is not so much an Act
of rebellion against capital as one against the consumer, the public,
and the community ". The author of the explanatory memorandum
also pointed out that " in the short period of the three months from
i April to 1 July 1920, there were no less than 195 collective disputes,
a number which had risen to 753 by the end of the year ".
The principles on which the Act on collective labour disputes
is based may be summed up as follows : (a) the State has the right to
intervene in collective disputes between capital and labour ; (b) conciliation is compulsory, but arbitration voluntary, for all industrial
1

See Legislative Series, 1920, Rou. 4.

396

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

and commercial undertakings employing not less than io persons ;
(c) arbitration is compulsory for disputes in State undertakings,
public services and public utility services.
The proceedings for which the Act of 4 September 1920 provides
are divided into two stages : the conciliation proceedings and the
arbitration proceedings.
Conciliation

Proceedings

According to the Act of 4 September 1920, no collective stoppage
of work, whether in the form of a strike or lock-out, may take place
before conciliation proceedings have been exhausted. The parties
themselves are free to designate their delegates, who open the conciliation proceedings in the presence and under the direction of a
representative of the Ministry of Labour. The number of delegates
of each party is limited as a rule to 2 to 5 persons. All the delegates, both of employers and of workers, must hold written credentials
from their respective associations. As a condition of election the
Act requires at least six months' employment in the undertaking.
Persons not belonging to the undertaking cannot be elected as delegates. By section 34 of the Trade Associations Act, however, an
exception is allowed in favour of legally recognised associations.
I t states that these may appoint as delegates to conciliation or arbitration boards even members not working in the undertaking affected
by the dispute. For an association to enjoy this right, however, it
is necessary that : (1) not less than one-third of the workers concerned in the dispute shall be members of the trade association in
question, and (2) that a majority of the workers concerned in the
dispute shall accept the delegate or delegates of the trade association \
The representative of the Ministry of Labour takes the initiative
in convening all the representatives of employers and workers so that
1
By section 40 of the Labour Disputes Act the representatives of the
workers either on the conciliation board or on the arbitration commission
are entitled to be absent from work as long as may be necessary for the
fulfilment of their duties as representatives, and this absence cannot
constitute a lawful reason for the termination of the contract of employment by the employer or head of the establishment. The employer is
also required to pay to the workers' representative a daily wage equal
to the average wage, including any extra payments which may have been
agreed upon.

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397

they may nominate the persons authorised to take part in the conciliation proceedings, and in fixing the date and place of meeting.
On the date fixed he verifies the credentials of all the representatives
and tries to effect a reconciliation between the parties. The result
of the proceedings is recorded in minutes.
If an agreement is reached, it becomes binding on all the
employers and workers represented in the dispute, even if they
do not belong to the trade association concerned. If the parties
fail to fix a period of currency for the agreement, the Act takes their
place and itself fixes this period at six months from the date of the
conclusion of the minutes.
Arbitration

Proceedings

Arbitration is compulsory and all stoppages of work are prohibited
under section 16 in all State, departmental and communal undertakings and institutions, irrespective of their nature, and also in
the following undertakings which serve public interests and the
closing down of which would endanger the health of the people or
the economic and social life of the country :
(a) undertakings for transport by land, water or air, including
the persons employed in loading and unloading;
(6) petroleum wells and distilleries, coal mines and undertakings
for the utilisation of natural gas ;
(c) gas and electricity works ;
(d) water and power distribution works ;
(e) mills, bakeries, and slaughter-houses ;
(/) hotels ;
(g) sewage and street cleaning undertakings ;
(h) public health services.
In the event of a collective stoppage of work in any of the undertakings referred to above, the premises and materials, the managing
and administrative staff, and all things necessary to secure the
working of the undertaking may be requisitioned (section 41).
In return for the deprivation of the right to strike, section 42
provides for the drawing up of rules governing the conditions of
work and remuneration of the persons employed in these undertakings. These rules, which the managements or employers concerned had to draw up within six months of the date the Act
came into operation, had to be submitted to the Minister of Labour,
who could approve them either as they stood, or subject to the

3Ç8

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

amendments he considered desirable after having consulted the employers' and workers' organisations concerned.
Apart from these exceptions, arbitration is in principle voluntary. The Act gives the parties themselves the power to determine
the nature of the proceedings. Only if the parties, in spite of being
agreed on the actual principle of arbitration, are unable to agree on
the procedure, have certain rules been provided, which then become
compulsory.
The arbitration commission is a temporary body. It consists of
four active members and two substitutes elected in equal numbers
by each of the parties concerned, together with a president, who
is appointed by common agreement between the elected members. If
these do not agree on the appointment of the president, he is designated ex officio by the president of the civil court if the dispute
affects one or more undertakings within one and the same department. He is designated by the first president of the court of appeal
if the dispute affects undertakings in the territory of several departments, and by the first president of the Court of Cassation when
the dispute affects undertakings within the areas of several courts
of appeal. The president of the arbitration commission must be
chosen from among the most competent persons in the matter.
The award of the arbitration commission is given by a majority of votes ; in default of a majority, or in the event of both
or either of the parties refusing to send representatives to the
commission, the award is issued by the president alone.
A whole system of sanctions ensures respect for the provisions
of the Act. Under section 27 any employer or worker who incites
to a collective stoppage of work prohibited under the Act by an
unlawful method, is liable to a fine of 50 to 10,000 lei even if the
incitement remains ineffective.
If the incitement takes place in one of the undertakings in
which collective stoppages of work are prohibited, an additional
penalty of imprisonment varying from one month to one year is
imposed.
In the event of a collective stoppage of work prohibited by the
Act, the person or persons who organised it are liable to a fine of 50 to
20,000 lei. If it takes place in an undertaking in which strikes are
prohibited a penalty of imprisonment for three months to one year
is added to the fine. According to section 9 the employer or head
of the undertaking is bound to notify the district inspector of the

RUMANIA

399

Ministry of Labour of the outbreak of a dispute in his u n d e r t a k i n g .
If he fails to do so, he is liable to a fine of 500 to 10,000 lei.
Similarly a n y employer w h o in any way whatever prevents a
representative from fulfilling his duties is liable to a fine of 100 to
5,000 lei, w i t h o u t prejudice to any damages which he m a y be sentenced to pay in case of illegal termination of a contract of
employment.
A penalty is also imposed on persons who, having been summoned according to law as witnesses by the president of the arbitration commission, fail to present a valid excuse for non-appearance.
Finally, failure to carry out the provisions laid down in the
minutes of the conciliation proceedings or in the award of the arbitration committee constitutes sufficient reason for the termination of
the contract of employment, and gives the injured party t h e right
to claim damages.
T h e Act on collective labour disputes also punishes a t t e m p t s to
interfere w i t h t h e r i g h t to work a n d sabotage. T h e offence of interfering with t h e right to work is defined as follows in sections 2 and 3
of the Act :
Any person who by serious, immediate and positive threats or by
violent action, prevents or enforces or attempts to prevent or enforce
the doing of work by another during or on account of a collective stoppage
of work shall be subject to the penalty of a fine of 10 to ¿00 lei and
imprisonment for fifteen days to six months, except in cases where the
Penal Code provides for a heavier penalty.
Sections 33-35 define the offence of sabotage :
The destruction, spoiling, removal, adulteration, faulty manufacture
with intentional errors, or fraudulent manipulation of machines, plant,
appliance, materials, goods and producís, jointly or severally, shall be
deemed to be criminal acts of sabotage if the person guilty of them is
bound by a contract of employment to the person to whom the objects
specified belong.
Passive resistance which puts a stop to production by preventing
the normal working of the undertaking shall also be deemed to be acriminal act of sabotage if the person concerned stands in the same legal
relation to the person affected as is defined in the preceding paragraph
(section 33).
If the criminal acts enumerated in the foregoing section, which are
dealt with in the Penal Code, include also at the same time the special
elements constituting the crime of sabotage, they shall be liable to the
maximum penalty provided for in the sections of the said Code which
refer to them.
The criminal acts enumerated in the foregoing section which are not
dealt with in the Penal Code shall be punishable by imprisonment for
not less than three months and not more than two years, according to
their gravity (section 34).
The carrying out of acts of sabotage during and on account of a

400

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

collective stoppage of work prohibited by this Act shall constitute an
aggravating circumstance (section 35).
All the criminal acts referred to in this Act shall be dealt with by
the court of the place where they are committed, except those which,
owing to the nature of the penalty to be imposed on the guilty person,
must be referred to the court of assizes.
The local court shall deal with the case summarily in precedence of
other cases, without the right of objection but with the right of appeal,
in accordance with penal procedure (section 36).
Proceedings may be taken at the request either of the parties
concerned or of the Ministry of Labour or by the Public Prosecutor on
his otficial initiative.
In addition to the officials entrusted with investigations under the
general law, the contraventions referred to in this Act may also
be investigated by officials under the Ministry of Labour on the basis
of a general or special delegation of powers given in writing by the
said Ministry.
The court of justice may take direct cognisance of official reports on
investigations prepared by the aforesaid officials. These reports shall
be accepted as proof in the absence of proof to the contrary (section 37).
All fines imposed under this Act shall be collected for payment into
the fund assigned for the organisation of technical instruction under the
Ministry of Labour and Social Insurance. If the author of the contravention is insolvent, section 28 of the Penal Code shall apply, i.e. the
fine may be commuted into imprisonment (section 38).
To sum up, the Labour Disputes Act first of all absolutely prohibits all collective stoppages of work in public services and public
utility undertakings. Secondly, it prohibits such stoppages during
conciliation proceedings. In every case it punishes all attempts to
interfere with the right of work by unlawful means, as well as acts
of sabotage, whatever the form they take.
To these limitations on the action of trade associations arising
out of the labour Disputes Act are added the general limitations
of public law. In this connection reference should be made in particular to the restrictions contained in the Act on the standardisation of administration. This Act makes the mayors of the communes
responsible for the maintenance of public order and the observance
of measures for the public safety, while the prefects are made responsible for the general supervision of the institutions and all bodies
corporate in the department. It also gives the mayors and prefects
in their respective areas the right to prevent and repress all criminal acts interfering with public order and the general safety of the
State.
It will be recalled that the powers of the administrative police
are always expressed in the form of authoritative acts binding on
the individual. All acts of violence and demonstrations likely to
interfere with public order, whether performed by an individual or
an association, are punished by the administrative police in

4OI

RUMANIA

virtue of their powers under administrative law, without prejudice to any penal sanctions in the case. The characteristic feature
of the action taken by the police in this connection is usually that
they have full discretion. In other words, the Rumanian legislature
gives the police authorities complete freedom of choice as to the
time and means of action necessary to ensure public order. Moreover, such discretionary action, taken in pursuance of an Act or
regulation, is outside the jurisdiction of the courts. On the other
hand, it must immediately be notified to the higher administrative
authorities.

Freedom of Association

CONCLUSION

In Rumania the problem of organising and protecting the guilds
until quite recently took precedence of that of organising and protecting the wage earners. It is a significant fact in this connection
that the 1912 Act on brotherhoods and guilds, which is still in
force, makes these bodies not only the defenders of the specific
interests of craftsmen, but also the institutions responsible for
social insurance.
The trade union movement, which may be said to some extent
to have grown out of the guilds at the beginning of this century,
threw off their influence under the direction of the Socialist Party.
From comparative insignificance before the war (barely 15,000 members) it reached a more influential position soon after the war
(250,000 members). The rise was rapid but of short duration. The
failure of the general strike of 1920 and subsequent Government
repression meant first a stoppage, and then actual retrogression.
To prevent the renewal of disturbances of this kind, the Government took the severest action both in fact and in law ; in fact, by
suppressing existing trade union organisations which were held to be
dangerous to public order ; in law, by defining the legal status of
the new associations, which must stand solely on the ground of
the protection of trade interests, as regards both their freedom of
association and action and their right to stop work.
The law on trade associations is derived from three sources :
the Constitution of 1923, which in Articles 5 and 29 guarantees
the principle of freedom of association ; the Act of 25 May 1921,
which defines the status of recognised trade associations ; the Act of
6 February 1924 amended by that of 20 April 1927, which organises the conditions of legal personality in general.
Trade associations may choose between the legal status conferred
on them in the general law by the Constitution, and the special status
established by the Acts of 1921 and 1924. In actual fact the choice is
a matter of pure theory, for associations w"hich accept the status

RUMANIA

403

ander the constitutional principle are strictly supervised, and moreover, have no legal personality. They are therefore driven to accept
the special status.
The Act of 1921 grants the right of association not only to
wage earners and employees, but also to the liberal professions and
all persons employed in public services. Similarly, officials are
authorised by section 25 of the regulations governing their status
(Act of 19 June 1923) to form associations, on condition that these
consist solely of officials.
While very liberal as to the persons entitled to belong to associations, the Act of 1921 is very severe as to the conditions to be
fulfilled to acquire and retain legal recognition. These conditions may
be summed up as follows : registration in the register of recognised trade
associations, without which they cannot exist legally, such registration
being conditional on previous authorisation given by the courts of
first instance after ascertaining that the rules of the association
comply with the very detailed provisions of the law concerning their
internal organisation and the working of their administrative bodies.
The Act of 1924 on legal personality, in spite of the relaxations
introduced by the Act of 20 April 1927, renders the supervision of
trade associations with legal personality even more stringent.
In return for these severe regulations, the associations are given
wide powers as regards the organisation of their institutions, their
collaboration with the public authorities, and their work of protecting
trade interests in the civil and social field. I t may be added that
the 1927 Act on chambers of labour and the Superior Labour Council makes systematic provision for the joint participation of employers
and workers in all legislative or administrative action dealing with
economic and trade matters.
The right to strike was defined by the Act of 4 September 1920.
This Act, which introduced a procedure for conciliation and arbitration, makes the right to strike subject to certain limitations, although
it continues to be recognised in principle. In the first place, all
collective stoppages of work, whether strikes or lock-outs, are prohibited during the compulsory conciliation proceedings. Secondly,
arbitration is compulsory, and therefore stoppages of work are prohibited, in public services and public utility undertakings, this term
being understood in the widest sense. The arbitration award is
final and binding on the parties. Respect for legislation on trade
associations is ensured by penalties of fine or imprisonment..

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