Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2022, published 111st ILC session (2023)

Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) - Lebanon (Ratification: 1977)

The Committee notes with deep concern that the Government’s report, which has been due since 2019, has not been received. In view of the urgent appeal made to the Government in 2021, the Committee is proceeding with the examination of the application of the Convention on the basis of the information at its disposal.

Articles 1(1)(a) and 5 of the Convention. Discrimination based on sex. Restrictions on women’s employment. In the absence of information on this subject, the Committee is bound to reiterate its previous comment:

The Committee recalls that, in its previous comments, it emphasized that the Labour Code contains restrictions on women’s employment (section 27) which are not limited to the protection of maternity and it requested that the Government take the necessary steps, in the context of labour legislation reform, to ensure that these restrictions do not go beyond the protection of maternity. The Committee notes that the Government’s report does not contain any information in this regard and is bound to repeat its requests. The Committee once again asks the Government to take the necessary steps to ensure that any restriction on women’s employment laid down in the future Labour Code is strictly limited to the protection of maternity and is not based on stereotypes regarding women’s professional abilities and role in society without account being taken of their real capacity to perform the job in question. The Committee also asks the Government to consider other steps, such as better safety and health protection for men and women, adequate transport or social services, that might be necessary to allow women the same opportunities as men regarding access to all types of employment and to provide information on any measures taken for that purpose.

Article 2. Equality of opportunity and treatment for men and women. Private sector. The Committee notes that, according to the statistics available in ILOSTAT, the total labour force participation of women was 29.3 per cent in 2019. The Committee notes that, during the examination by the CEDAW of the report submitted by Lebanon in February 2022, the Government representative indicated that, following the explosion on 4 August 2020 in the port of Beirut and the economic collapse of the country, Lebanon was experiencing a real collapse of its political and socio-economic structures, with half of the population now living below the poverty level. She also referred to the preparation of a report containing an analysis of the laws and regulations which were hindering the economic participation of women (press release, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, 18 February 2022). The Committee notes, from the concluding observations of the CEDAW: (1) the adoption in January 2019 of a national plan for the economic empowerment of women; (2) the adoption in 2018 of the action plan of the National Commission for Lebanese Women (2018-22); and (3) the adoption in 2017 of a national gender equality strategy (2017-30), based on the previous national strategy for women in Lebanon (2011-21). The Committee notes that, among other action, the CEDAW recommends the country to: (1) adopt and implement policies to eliminate horizontal and vertical occupational segregation, including by encouraging women and girls to select non-traditional career paths, and by eliminating gender bias and breaking the glass ceiling that prevents women from attaining senior management positions; and (2) promote the equal sharing of family and domestic responsibilities between women and men, increase the availability of childcare facilities and introduce flexible working arrangements to enable both women and men to reconcile family and professional life (CEDAW/C/LBN/CO/6, 1 March 2022, paragraphs 5 and 40). The Committee requests the Government to provide detailed information on:

• (i)all the measures taken to eliminate discrimination against women and to promote gender equality in employment and occupation, particularly within the context of the implementation of the National Strategy for the Economic Empowerment of Women adopted in 2019 and the National Gender Equality Strategy (2017-30);
• (ii)the results achieved in terms of the revision of discriminatory laws and the promotion of women’s employment in the private sector, particularly in occupations traditionally carried out by men and in jobs offering career prospects; and
• (iii)all measures adopted or envisaged to promote the equitable sharing of family responsibilities between parents and to enable them to reconcile work and family responsibilities, and to increase the availability of childcare services and structures.

Non-nationals. Refugees. The Committee recalls that for many years the country has been hosting on its territory an ever-increasing number of refugees. It also recalls that, while the Convention does not cover discrimination on the ground of nationality, it protects non-nationals on an equal footing with nationals against discrimination on the grounds of sex, race, colour, religion, political opinion, national extraction and social origin, in accordance with Article 1(1)(a). In the absence of a report from the Government, the Committee notes that, when the CEDAW examined the report submitted by Lebanon, the Government representative of Lebanon regretted that the national education system could not cope with the influx of child refugees, even though it was endeavouring to do everything possible to ensure a minimum of access to school, and that the country was not able to provide all essential services to the whole refugee community (press release of 18 February). In this respect, the Committee notes the concluding observations of the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) in which, while commending the commitment of Lebanon to refugee issues, CERD indicates that: (1) the country is hosting a large number of refugees, including over 200,000 Palestinian refugees, around 1.5 million Syrian refugees and about 16,500 refugees of other nationalities; (2) it is “very concerned about reports of the increasing use of racist hate speech against migrants and refugees, including on the Internet and social media, as well as by public figures and politicians, a phenomenon that has intensified during the economic crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic”; (3) it recommends conducting “public awareness campaigns aimed at tackling prejudice and misinformation concerning migrants, asylum seekers and refugees and promoting respect for diversity and the elimination of racial discrimination”; (4) since December 2014, “legal employment for Syrian nationals has been restricted to the construction, agriculture and sanitation sectors; and (5) it recommends lifting “the restriction imposed on Syrian nationals with regard to the sectors in which they may work” (CERD/C/LBN/CO/23-24, 1 September 2021, paragraphs 4, 14, 15(c), 22(d) and 23(d)). With reference more particularly to the right of Palestinian nationals to exercise professions from which they were excluded, and some of which require membership of a trade union, such as the liberal professions, the public administration and others, the Committee notes that a Decree was adopted in this respect in November 2021, but that its implementation was rescinded on 3 February 2022 by the State Shura Council. While recognizing the difficult situation experienced by the country, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the measures adopted or envisaged to ensure effective protection for refugees against any discriminatory practice on the basis of race, colour, national extraction and social origin, including sexual harassment, in relation not only to access to employment, but also in respect of working conditions (hours of work, remuneration, etc.). The Committee also requests the Government to:

• (i)provide further information on the suspension of the Decree of 2021 on the occupations reserved for Lebanese nationals and the adoption of any further decree on the subject;
• (ii)indicate precisely the occupations reserved for Lebanese nationals; and
• (iii)provide the available data, where possible disaggregated by sex, on the labour force participation rates of Palestinian and Syrian workers, with an indication of the type of work that they carry out.

Enforcement. In the absence of recent information on this subject, the Committee once again requests the Government to:

• (i)adopt the necessary training and awareness-raising measures to enable labour inspectors to better identify discriminatory practices against workers, including migrant workers, particularly with regard to recruitment (for example by examining vacancies and the selection procedures used);
• (ii)ensure that complaints procedures are established that are accessible to workers and based on the principles of confidentiality and protection against reprisals; and
• (iii)provide information on any cases of discrimination detected by the labour inspection services or brought to the attention of the Ministry of Labour or referred to the courts.