Demande directe (CEACR) - adoptée 1995, publiée 83ème session CIT (1996)

The Committee notes with interest the agreement of 23 July 1993 concluded by the Government and the trade unions on the national income and employment policies, collective bargaining and support for the production system which, inter alia, demonstrates their support for the adoption of positive measures to promote equality of opportunity between men and women by fully applying Acts Nos. 125/91 and 215/92, providing more funding for their application and integrating them with other legislative and contractual means of action.

1. The Committee notes that the issuing of a decree to establish measures (such as tax credits and criteria for obtaining concessions) for the implementation of the Act on Affirmative Action for Women in Entrepreneurial Activity (No. 215 of 1992) was suspended when the Commission of the European Union initiated formal proceedings for breach of the European Union Treaty with regard to the Act's assistance to new companies. As the proceedings were concluded in 1993 essentially in favour of the Act, the Government reports that the regulations are expected to be issued shortly. The Committee asks the Government to provide details on the implementation of the legislation in its next report.

2. The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government regarding initiatives taken by individual companies within or beyond Act No. 125 of 1991 to promote equality between men and women in access to high-level posts, access to vocational training and retraining, terms and conditions of employment and security of employment. Noting that a recent private sector study on problems encountered by women managers found that only 5% of managers are women, the Committee asks the Government to inform it of any new measures introduced to correct the current imbalance between men and women in high-level posts, and the evaluation of the measures taken in this area, including, where available, statistics.

3. The Committee notes that measures to implement the guidelines of the Commission of the European Union entitled "How to combat sexual harassment" are being outlined by the Government in consultation with the social partners. The Committee also notes the submission to the Senate by the Senate Labour Commission of a Bill aimed at preventing sexual harassment in the workplace. The Bill will, inter alia, define sexual harassment as any type of behaviour with sexual connotations which is unequivocally unwanted, provide for recourse in the case of such harassment to the emergency procedure under section 15 of Act No. 903 of 1977 on equality between men and women in the workplace, and, with reference to Act No. 125 of 1991 and the recourse available under that Act, equate sexual harassment with direct or indirect discrimination. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide information in its next report on the adoption of the Bill, as well as supply a copy of the final text in a working language of the ILO, if possible.

4. The Committee notes the Government's comments on the scope of Act No. 223 of 1991 concerning collective dismissals, labour mobility and the rotation of workers in the wage guarantee fund, and its reference to statistics emanating from the General Directorate for Employment. The data show that the proportion of women workers on the mobility lists (compiled for purposes of assisting in dismissals and redeployment) is higher than that of men, despite the lower employment rate for women. A further study carried out by the Institute for Worker's Occupational Training supports the above-mentioned finding and, moreover, points out that fewer women than men are taken off the lists to return to the labour market. Noting that the study ascribes this situation to "concomitant causes, such as the selectivity of demand, the structure of objective opportunities, the discriminatory attitudes and types of behaviour of employers", the Committee asks the Government to indicate the manner in which the principle of non-discrimination based on all the grounds of the Convention is guaranteed in practice in the selection process.

5. As the Government's report contains no information on policies and programmes that have been established with a view to promoting equality of opportunity and treatment in respect of access to employment and particular occupations, access to training and retraining, terms and conditions of employment and security of employment on the basis of race, colour, national extraction and social origin, the Committee is obliged to repeat its earlier request for details on this subject.