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Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) - Cyprus (RATIFICATION: 1968)

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Observation

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Articles 2 and 3 of the Convention. Equality of opportunity and treatment for men and women. The Committee notes from the Government’s report the various initiatives undertaken since 2020 to enhance women’s economic empowerment and access to decision-making positions, such as: (1) the development by the Ministry of Energy, Trade and Industry of a 2022 “Scheme for the Enhancement of Women’s Entrepreneurship”; and (2) the organization, within the framework of the National Mechanism for Women’s Rights Council (NMWR), of a series of training seminars to strengthen the participation of women in politics. It also notes the measures mentioned by the Government to address gender stereotypes in education, as well as vertical and horizontal gender segregation in employment and occupation, mainly through: (1) the development by the Ministry of Education, Sport and Youth of an Action Plan, revised every three years, promoting gender equality; and (2) the operation, within the framework of the Human Resource Development Authority of Cyprus (HRDA), of several specific schemes providing the employees and the unemployed, including women, with the opportunity of acquiring new skills. The Committee observes, however, that the HRDA schemes mentioned by the Government do not target specifically women. It also observes from the statistical data provided by the Government that, while the proportion of women participating in HRDA training activities remained relatively stable from 2018 to 2021 (43.3 per cent in 2021), it was still significantly lower than that of men (56.7 per cent in 2021). More generally, the Committee notes that, according to Eurostat data for 2022, the employment rate of women (72.1 per cent) was still substantially lower than that of men (84.2 per cent), with Cyprus being one of the nine Member States of the European Union (EU) with a greater gender employment gap than the employment gap for the EU as a whole. It further observes from the data available on the Statistical Service of Cyprus (CYSTAT) website that, in 2022, women were still under-represented in senior and decision-making positions (3,946 women were employed as legislators and managers compared to 13,153 men), and remained mainly concentrated in specific sectors, such as education (23,095 women compared to 7,293 men), and human health and social work activities (18,202 women compared to 6,757 men). In light of the persistent employment gap between men and women and gender segregation of the labour market, the Committee asks the Government to assess the measures taken and implemented with a view to tackling more effectively the gender employment gap and occupational segregation. It also asks the Government to continue providing information on: (i) the specific measures taken to enhance women’s economic empowerment and access to decision-making positions, including through the 2022 Scheme for the Enhancement of Women’s Entrepreneurship developed by the Ministry of Energy, Trade and Industry, and the impact of such measures; (ii) the concrete initiatives undertaken to address gender stereotypes in education, including through the Action Plans on gender equality developed by the Ministry of Education, Sport and Youth, and the impact of such initiatives; (iii) the specific measures taken or envisaged to effectively tackle vertical and horizontal occupational gender segregation, by promoting women’s access to a wider range of jobs with career prospects and higher pay; and (iv) statistical data on the participation of men and women in education and training, as well as in employment and occupation, disaggregated by occupational categories and positions.

The Committee is raising other matters in a request addressed directly to the Government.