Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2023, published 112nd ILC session (2024)

Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) - Nepal (Ratification: 1974)

Previous comments

Article 1 of the Convention. Protection against discrimination. Legislation. The Committee recalls its previous observation in which it referred to the adoption of several legislative provisions on non-discrimination but noted that they do not expressly cover the grounds of political opinion and national extraction set out in Article 1(1)(a) of the Convention. The Committee notes that, in its report, the Government states that article 18(3) of the Constitution as well as section 6 of the Right to Employment Act of 2018 cover the ground of “political opinion” in that they prohibit discrimination on the basis of “ideology”. The Government also clarifies that the protections against discrimination enshrined in the labour legislation apply to both national and non-national workers. The Committee encourages the Government to consider including an explicit prohibition of both direct and indirect discrimination in its legislative provisions on non-discrimination at the earliest opportunity and reiterates it request for information on the practical application of these provisions, namely section 180 of the Labour Act of 2017, section 6 of the Labour Regulations of 2018, section 18 of the National Civil Code of 2017, and section 6 of the Right to Employment Act of 2018, including information on any relevant decisions by courts and tribunals which would allow the Committee to assess if and to what extent: (i) the ground of “national extraction” is covered under the legislative prohibition of discrimination on the basis of “origin”; and (ii) workers in the informal economy are also protected against discrimination in employment and occupation under the abovementioned legislation.

Articles 1 and 5. Restrictions on women’s access to employment and on women’s employment abroad. The Committee refers to its previous comments on existing restrictions imposed on women with regard to access to employment abroad. It notes that the ban introduced by the parliamentary International Relations and Labour Committee on women’s emigration to the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council for domestic work was removed in 2020, subject to the following conditions: (1) that there exists a bilateral agreement between Nepal and the destination country; (2) that destination countries have separate specific labour laws ensuring protection and rights of workers; (3) that a mandatory training course is followed before departure; and (4) that the concerned migrants have an understanding of local culture, language and job requirements. Welcoming the partial lifting of the restrictions on women’s access to employment abroad, the Committee requests the Government:

• to provide information on the number of requests rejected annually due to the unfulfillment of the conditions set out by the International Relations and Labour Committee and the measures adopted to enable women to meet such conditions and have an opportunity to emigrate, if they so wish, on an equal footing with men, including the number of bilateral migration agreements signed so far; and
• indicate whether other restrictions on women’s employment abroad, such as those included in the guidelines regarding Nepalese migrant domestic workers, are still in force and if consideration is being given to their removal with a view to eliminating any discrimination between men and women with respect to access to employment and occupation.

The Committee requests the Government to provide information on any measure adopted to ensure better protection for both men and women wishing to work abroad, including equipping embassies to respond quickly to complaints of abuse.

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