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Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) - Tajikistan (RATIFICATION: 1993)

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Article 1 of the Convention. Protection against discrimination. Legislative developments. The Committee recalls the conclusions of the Committee on the Application of Standards (CAS) of the International Labour Conference at its 108th Session (June 2019), calling upon the Government to report on the concrete measures taken to ensure that direct and indirect discrimination on all grounds is prohibited in law and in practice. The Committee notes the adoption of the Act No. 1890 of 19 July 2022 on Equality and the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination. It notes with interest that, pursuant to this Act: (1) the definition of discrimination in section 1.1 includes (by way of article 5) both direct and indirect discrimination, the latter being defined as “rules and principles and (or) practices that are apparently harmless, but have serious disproportionate consequences, which put a person in a disadvantageous situation compared to other persons in similar conditions due to any of the factors provided for” in section 1.1 of this Act; (2) “skin colour” and “origin” are now included in the list of prohibited grounds of discrimination (section 1.1); and (3) all State structures, self-governing bodies of towns and villages, officials, natural and legal persons, regardless of their organizational and legal form and direction of activity are covered (section 3). It further notes the Government’s indication that: (1) work is underway to harmonize the national legislation with Act No. 1890 of 19 July 2022 through the creation of an interdepartmental working group consisting of representatives of the Executive Office of the President, the Ministry of Justice, the Prosecutor General’s Office, the Committee for Women and Family Affairs (CWFA) and the Commissioner for Human Rights; and (2) a working group for the implementation of the Act was also created under the Commissioner for Human Rights. With respect to the civil service, the Committee recalls that the notion of “social status” in the Civil Service Act is narrower than the notion of “social origin” set out by the Convention. The Committee asks the Government to: (i) take measures to raise awareness of the provisions of Act No. 1890 of 19 July 2022 among public and private employers, workers and enforcement officials, including through the above working group; and (2) provide information on its implementation in practice, including examples of complaints or cases dealt with by the Courts, the CWFA or the Commissioner for Human Rights concerning indirect discrimination and their outcome (ground(s) invoked, sanctions applied and compensation granted). It also asks the Government to clarify whether the term “origin” in section 1.1 of Act No. 1890 of 19 July 2022 encompasses the concept of “social origin” as set out in Article 1(1)(a) of the Convention. It also asks the Government to take the opportunity of the planned legislative harmonization of national legislation to: (i) take steps to amend section 7 of the Labour Code and the Civil Service Act to ensure that the grounds of “colour” and “social origin” are expressly included as prohibited grounds of discrimination; and (ii) more generally, consider harmonizing the anti-discrimination provisions of the Civil Service Act with the provisions of Act No. 1890 of 2022. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the progress achieved to this end.

Article 2. National equality policy. The Committee notes with interest that, under section 12 of Act No. 1890 of 19 July 2022, in order to ensure equality and eliminate all forms of discrimination, the Government has the power to ensure the development and promotion of a unified state anti-discrimination policy. In this regard, the Committee recalls that, in previous comments, the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) emphasized the need not only to draft laws but also to implement specific policies to eliminate all forms of discrimination and take proactive measures to identify and address the underlying causes of discrimination and gender inequalities deeply entrenched in traditional and societal values. The Committee asks the Government to take steps to adopt and pursue a national policy on equality of opportunity and treatment in employment and occupation addressing all the grounds protected by the Convention, namely sex, race, colour, national extraction, religion, political opinion and social origin, as required by Article 2 of the Convention and envisioned under Act No. 1890 of 19 July 2022 (section 12).

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