Trade Unionism in the Ethiopian Industrial Zones

Bahir Dar Industrial Zone in Focus

Abstract

Freedom of association of workers is expressly recognized as a human
right in national, regional, and international human rights instruments.
International Labour Organization (ILO) instruments, most notably
Convention 87 on Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to
Organize and Convention 98 on the Right to Organize and Collective
Bargaining, expressly recognize workers' freedom of association.
Though Ethiopia recognizes freedom of association of workers, the
country's trade unionism movement is quite restricted in practice. This
study explored the trend of workers unionization in Bahir Dar Industrial
Zone. To attain the goals of the study, normative and empirical data
were generated through evaluation of legal documents, relevant
literature review, and sustained conversations with workers, union
leaders, and management of undertakings operating in the study area.
The data were analyzed using descriptive and thematic data analysis
techniques. The findings of the study reveal that the majority of workers
in Bahir Dar Industrial Zone are not unionized due to the resistance of
employers to allow workers to organize. Even the established unions fail
to sufficiently protect the interests of their members due to
inaccessibility of facilities, absence of cooperation on the part of
employers, undue influence by employers against leaders of employees, limited collaboration among member workers, and low commitment on
the part of union leaders. Based on such findings, the authors provide
possible recommendations.