Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2013, published 103rd ILC session (2014)

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

Article 1(1)(a) of the Convention. Sexual harassment. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, where a case of sexual harassment is dealt with by labour inspectors, the victim is generally directed towards the competent court. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the action taken as a result of the cases of sexual harassment reported by labour inspectors or brought to their attention during the reference period, specifying the penalties imposed by the courts and the remedies provided to victims. It also requests the Government to take measures for the prevention of sexual harassment, particularly by organizing awareness campaigns for workers and employers and their organizations and for the general public, and encouraging employers to prohibit and explicitly penalize this discriminatory practice in the workplace.

Article 1(1)(b). Other grounds of discrimination. Real or perceived HIV status. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the measures taken to combat stigmatization and discrimination based on real or perceived HIV status in employment and occupation, particularly at the time of recruitment, and to supply information on the activities of the National Committee against HIV/AIDS in the workplace.

Articles 2 and 3. National equality policy. The Committee again requests the Government to provide information on the measures adopted or envisaged, particularly in the context of the national employment policy and the national programme to support employment, to promote equality of opportunity and treatment in employment and training in particular, without any distinction as to race, colour, sex, religion, political opinion, national extraction or social origin, in order to address inequalities in vocational training, employment and occupation, with an indication of the results achieved.

Equality of opportunity and treatment for men and women. The Committee notes that, according to the Government, gender equality is not an issue since access to employment is based on the competence and capacity of the person concerned. However, the Committee recalls that the fact that women are over-represented in the informal economy and atypical jobs, including part-time work, the fact that they face more obstacles than men in gaining access to education, training and employment, particularly executive posts, and the fact that they continue to assume a disproportionate share of family responsibilities, all obstruct progress towards genuine equality of opportunity and treatment for men and women in employment and occupation in practice. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken to promote equality between men and women, facilitate women’s access to managerial posts, combat stereotypical attitudes concerning the occupational aspirations and capacities of women and enable women to have access to productive resources, particularly land and credit, on an equal footing with men. The Government is also requested to provide information on the activities of the gender focal points in the ministries in the area of employment and occupation.

Article 5. Special measures of protection. The Committee recalls that section 93 of the Labour Code stipulates that decrees adopted further to the opinion of the National Labour Council determine the nature of work that is prohibited for women and specifically pregnant women. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the National Labour Council is not operating normally due to of the social and political context of the country. The Committee recalls that, as regards employment for women, protection measures based on stereotypes concerning their occupational skills and role in society are contrary to the principle of equality of opportunity and treatment for men and women in employment and occupation. The Committee requests the Government to take the necessary steps to amend section 93 of the Labour Code so that restrictions on employment aimed at protecting women are strictly limited to maternity protection and proportional to the nature and extent of the protection sought, are not based on gender stereotypes, and do not have the effect of limiting women’s access to employment in practice. The Government is also requested to provide information on any implementing regulations adopted in this regard.

Statistics. The Government is requested to provide statistics on the situation of men and women in the different sectors of activity, stating the proportion of men and women in management posts, once such statistics are available.