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Workers with Family Responsibilities Convention, 1981 (No. 156) - Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of) (RATIFICATION: 1984)

1. Article 3 of the Convention. The Committee notes from the report that Decree No. 4447 of 25 April 2006 to amend in part the Regulations of the Organic Labour Law, includes a focus on gender and aims to put an end to the tendency towards more flexible and precarious labour relations, extend and strengthen the human rights of men and women workers and step up action by the State, particularly the Ministry of Labour, to ensure more effective protection of the human rights of men and women workers. It furthermore lays the foundations for the future amendment of the Organic Labour Law. According to the Government, the most significant changes include maternity protection in respect of the children of men and women workers, and the authority conferred on the Ministries of Labour and Health to extend the period for breastfeeding for more than six months. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would continue to provide information on its national policy for workers with family responsibilities and to state whether, in addition to dependent children, it includes other members of the immediate family who clearly need their care or support. Please provide studies or other documents illustrating the national policy in this area.

2. Article 4(b). The Committee again asks the Government to send information on measures that have been taken to accommodate the needs of workers with family responsibilities regarding conditions of employment and social security (paragraphs 17 to 22 and 27 to 30 of the Workers with Family Responsibilities Recommendation, 1981 (No. 165)).

3. Article 5. The Committee notes that Decree No. 4447 establishes (second section “Comprehensive care for the children of men and women workers”) that an employer with more than 20 workers (men or women) must provide crèche or preschool facilities for their children during the working day (section 101) and that this obligation may be met through: (a) the establishment and maintenance, by one or more employers, of crèche or preschool facilities; (b) the payment of a registration and a monthly fee to the crèche or preschool facility duly registered with the competent authorities; and (c) any other arrangements that may be established by a joint decision of the Ministries of Labour and Education (section 102). Please provide information on the practical measures taken for giving effect to this Article and on the percentage of workers benefiting from each of the abovementioned options, indicating progress made and any difficulties encountered. Noting also that section 109 of Decree No. 4447 provides that employers must send the labour inspectorate an annual report on compliance with this obligation, the Committee would be grateful if the Government would send the inspectorate’s findings as to such compliance based on these annual reports. The Committee requests information on the childcare services available for workers with family responsibilities whose children are over 5 years of age, since the services mentioned previously apply to children of up to 5 years of age.

4. Article 6. The Government states that the National Institute for Women (INAMUJER), established under the Equal Opportunities for Women Act, aims to achieve full equality in law and in fact between men and women and to this end has taken initiatives regarding legislation, projects, programmes and awareness raising. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would send information on the activities conducted by INAMUJER, to promote, through information and education, greater understanding by the public at large of the principle of equality of opportunity and treatment between men and women workers and of the problems faced by workers with family responsibilities, as well as a climate of opinion conducive to overcoming these problems.

5. Article 11. Please indicate the manner in which the participation of employers’ and workers’ organizations is ensured in devising and applying measures to give effect to the provisions of the Convention.