Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2005, published 95th ILC session (2006)

Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) - Switzerland (Ratification: 1961)

1. The Committee notes the Government’s report and the extensive documentation attached, as well as the comments made by the Union of Swiss Employers.

Equality of opportunity and treatment of men and women

2. Article 1 of the Convention. Discrimination on the grounds of sex. Sexual harassment. The Committee thanks the Government for providing detailed information in reply to its 2002 general observation on the issue of sexual harassment. It notes that sexual harassment is prohibited under sections 3 and 4 of the Equality Act. While not explicitly referring to quid pro quo and hostile working environment harassment, both notions of sexual harassment are covered by these provisions. Under the Act, the employer is responsible for acts of sexual harassment by superiors and co-workers, clients or other persons within the employment context. The courts can order employers to compensate victims, while the harasser is responsible under civil and penal law. The Committee trusts that the ongoing review of the Equality Act will also examine the operation of its sexual harassment provisions, in particular whether the existing procedures and remedies provide effective protection in practice, and asks the Government to provide information on further developments on this matter.

3. Articles 2 and 3. Measures to ensure and promote equality of men and women in employment and occupation. The Committee notes from the Government’s report that in January 2004, the proportion of women in the federal public service reached 28.7 per cent, as compared to 17 per cent in 1991. Only 8.1 per cent of senior officials were women, while the female rate among middle management was 20.2 per cent. The Committee notes that on 22 January 2003 the Government had issued Instructions for the Realization of Equality of Men and Women in the Federal Public Service. The Committee notes that the Instruction requires the various parts of the public service to adopt programmes or agreements to promote equality, including the setting and achievement of objectives for the realization of equal representation of both sexes. The Instruction identifies a number of areas in which action is to be taken, such as recruitment and selection, work arrangements, performance appraisal, and training, and establishes an evaluation mechanism. Noting that significant gender imbalances continue to exist in the public sector, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken by the federal public service to implement the Instruction of 22 January 2003 and the detailed information, including statistical data, on the results achieved. Please also provide information on the progress made concerning the introduction of "equality controlling" in the public service.

4. The Committee notes that studies published by the Federal Office for Equality of Women and Men regarding the division of remunerated and non-remunerated work within families and the participation of men and women in part-time and full-time work have revealed considerable gender inequalities in these areas. The Committee also notes the various promotional initiatives and publications undertaken by the Union of Swiss Employers to promote equal access of women to career opportunities, particularly the report "Women and career". The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the measures taken by the cantonal and federal equality offices and other competent authorities, as well as workers’ and employers’ organizations to promote and ensure equality of opportunity and treatment of men and women in the private sector. In this regard, please also provide information on the measures taken to address sex-based occupational segregation (horizontal and vertical), to promote effective equality of workers’ with family responsibilities and a more equal sharing between men and women of non-remunerated work. The Government is also asked to provide updated statistical information on the position of men and women in the private sector, including their participation in management jobs, and its analysis thereof.

5. Article 3(e). Vocational training. The Committee notes that the realization of effective equality between men and women is an explicit objective of the Federal Act on Vocational Education of 13 December 2002 (section 3(c)). The Committee asks the Government to continue to provide information on the measures taken to ensure the realization of effective equality between the sexes in vocational guidance and training, including the promotion of women’s participation in non-traditional occupations.

6. Article 3(f). Impact of measures to promote and ensure equality. Recalling the importance of assessing the results of the measures taken to implement a national equality policy in accordance with Articles 2 and 3 of the Convention, the Committee notes the Governments’ indication that a review of the operation of the Equality Act is ongoing. The Government is asked to provide information on the outcome of the review of the Equality Act, which is due to be completed in 2006.

Equality of opportunity and treatment on the grounds of race,
colour, national extraction or religion

7. Articles 2 and 3. Legal protection and promotional measures. The Committee notes the various activities carried out by the Anti-Racism Service which is a unit attached to the Federal Ministry of the Interior with a mandate to coordinate and promote efforts to combat racism at the federal, cantonal and municipal levels. It notes in particular the publication A world of work without discrimination: measures to combat discrimination at work, issued in 2003, which sets out concrete and practical guidelines and measures to address racial and ethnic discrimination at work. The Committee also notes that the Government has allocated 15 million francs to support anti-racism projects during the period running from 2001 to 2005.

8. Further, the Committee notes that the Federal Commission against Racism recommended that the legal protection from racial discrimination be strengthened by introducing an explicit prohibition of discrimination in employment and housing, appropriate procedures that favour conflict resolution, the right of associations to bring complaints and effective rules concerning burden of proof. Recalling that effective legal protection from discrimination in employment and occupation and accessible mechanisms and procedures to address cases of discrimination are crucial elements of a national policy as envisaged in Articles 2 and 3 of the Convention, the Committee welcomes these recommendations and hopes that due consideration will be given to them. It stresses that where provisions are adopted in order to apply the principle of the Convention, efforts should be made to legislate all the grounds listed in the Convention (General Survey 1988, paragraph 58). In the given context, the Committee particularly underlines the need to take into consideration the existence and compounded effects of discrimination on multiple grounds, such as sex, race, colour, national extraction, or religion. The Committee requests the Government to indicate in its next report any follow-up to the recommendations of the Federal Commission against Racism. In this regard, the Committee would consider it useful to undertake an assessment of how the existing legislation, particularly sections 328 and 336 of the Code of Obligations, has provided protection for victims of racial discrimination in practice. The Government is also asked to continue to provide information on the work of the Federal Commission Against Racism, the Anti-Racism Service and the implementation and results of projects and programmes to combat racism at work financed from the federal budget.

9. Equality of opportunity and treatment of travellers. Recalling its previous comments, the Committee notes with interest that the new Federal Act concerning itinerant trade, which entered into force on 1 January 2003, facilitates the exercise by the Jenish of their occupations by guaranteeing the possibility to engage in itinerant professions throughout the Swiss territory on the basis of simplified administrative procedures. The Committee further notes that the Government is preparing a report concerning the elimination of discrimination against the travellers in Switzerland for submission to Parliament. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the measures taken to promote equality of opportunity and treatment in employment and occupation of the Jenish. Please provide a copy of the abovementioned report concerning the elimination of discrimination against the Jenish, as well as information on the results of the parliamentary debate and further action taken by the Government as a result.