After the ILO training, Albanian judges use International Labour Standards in their decisions

On 13-16 April 2021, the ILO Office for Central and Eastern Europe and the International Training Center of the ILO (ITCILO) organized two training courses for judges, together with the Albanian School of Magistrates (ASoM). The training courses on International Labour Standards, the first part of the series of courses planned, are supported by the ILO’s Access to Justice in Labour Disputes through Mediation and Conciliation project, funded by the Government of Sweden.

The course was developed jointly by international and national experts and aims to equip judges and candidate magistrates with sound knowledge of international labour law and international labour standards in selected areas.

The training programme examines international labour standards as a legal source for filling legislative gaps, interpreting ambiguous legal provisions and strengthening domestic case law on labour issues. The training provides useful resources and a methodology for the continuous education of judges by the School of Magistrate.

"We do hope that the series of trainings organized in Albania will be very beneficial to judges and ultimately for the people, for workers and employers of Albania, who are looking for a quick and fair resolution of their disputes." - says Cristina Mihes, expert on Social Dialogue and Labour Law, ILO Office for Central and Eastern Europe

It covers fundamental principles and rights at work, such as: freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining, equality and non-discrimination in employment and occupation, elimination of violence and harassment in the world of work, protection against unfair termination of employment and determination of the existence of the employment relationship, occupational safety and health. Global legal and case law databases for judges and other law practitioners, such as NORMLEX and ITCILO compendium of selected judicial decisions are also made available to national judges.

In total, 50 judges and candidate magistrates attended the first training courses with a majority of 62% women.

Mr. Sokol Berberi, Head of the Continuous Training Programme of the School of Magistrates highlighted the special value of the course:  ‘These training courses are provided by distinguished international experts in labour law, with depth knowledge in this area, accompanied by exposure to international jurisprudence. In addition, these courses have a special importance thanks to the cooperation between international and national experts, which   allows us to compare our own practice with the international. This training will provide an opportunity to Albanian judges and magistrates candidates to examine and identify methods on how to use and apply international labour standards in their daily practice.’

“The course topics constitute the most frequent cases of labour disputes at courts, but also more sensitive issues” said Ms. Borana Mustafaraj, the Academic Advisor of the School of Magistrates. “I am referring here to certain rights of fundamental importance, such as the right to equal opportunities and treatment at work and profession, or the freedom to organize collectively at work. Improving the response and attitude towards violations of these rights remains a challenging issue for Albania, and here the role of the judge is fundamental.”

Ms Cristina Mihes, ILO Labour Law and Social Dialogue Senior Specialist said “We do hope that the series of trainings we organize will be very beneficial to judges in Albania and ultimately for the people, for workers and employers of Albania, who are looking for a quick and fair resolution of their disputes.”

The participants joined the on-line Community of Practice (CoP) which enables access to information, such as judgments relying on international labour law sources; publications; training curricula; events delivered in the field of international labour law. The CoP can trigger discussions on subjects of common interest related to international labour law through an on-line forum.

After the ILS training, one of the trainees, Ms Maela Alicanaj, judge in the District Court of Fieri, reiterated the importance of this training for her professional work, highlighting the value of the training platform in two recent cases: “For my work as a judge, the knowledge I gained during the training and through the training materials, and also the opportunity to access the numerous sources of information through the training platform turned out to be very useful and effective. In two cases, I dealt with immediately after the training, I rendered two decisions, in which I used the advanced knowledge acquired during the training and online resources on ILO Conventions on Protection of Wages and Termination of Employment respectively”.

The series of ILS training courses is part of the continuous training programme of the Albanian School of Magistrates.