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

Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) - Serbia (Ratification: 2000)

The Committee notes the Government’s reports received in 2017 and 2022. The Committee notes the observations of the Serbian Association of Employers (SAE) and the Confederation of Autonomous Trade Unions of Serbia (CATUS), received with the Government’s report.

Article 2 of the Convention. Equality of opportunity and treatment, irrespective of race, colour or national extraction. Members of the Roma community. The Committee welcomes the adoption of the National Employment Strategy 2021-2026 and its Action Plan 2021-2023, but notes that no information is provided on how the Strategy seeks to address the particular situation of Roma in employment and occupation. The Committee also welcomes the adoption of the National strategy for the social inclusion of Roma women and men for the period 2016–2026, which envisages measures aimed at promoting the inclusion of Roma people in the labour market, increasing their employability, employment and economic empowerment, especially of Roma men and women belonging to the category of multiple ‘hard-to-employ’ unemployed persons. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, in an effort to promote equal access of Roma children to education, the Law on the Fundamentals of Education System plans for a “pedagogue assistant”, who speaks the Romani language, to provide additional support to Roma students experiencing difficulties in school. The Committee also notes, from the statistical data provided by the Government, that the unemployment rate of Roma people does not follow the decreasing trend of total unemployment. In 2015, there were 724,096 registered unemployed persons in total, and 22,930 registered unemployed Roma men and women (3.2 per cent of overall registered unemployed). In 2020, the number of registered unemployed persons decreased to 491,347, while the number of registered unemployed Roma men and women increased to 27,175 (5.5 per cent of overall registered unemployed). The Government indicates that 89 per cent of the total registered unemployed Roma are without qualifications or with a low level of qualifications, and that active labour market policy measures contribute to improving knowledge, skills and competences, and levels of qualifications. Roma make up about half of all participants in adult literacy programmes and related vocational training programmes. The Committee also notes, from the report of the Commissioner for the Protection of Equality, that in 2021, 96 complaints were received in relation to discrimination based on national affiliation or ethnic origin, most of them concerning employment and occupation. Out of these complaints, 74 were brought by members of the Roma community. The Commissioner’s report also refers to a recent census which indicates that only a third of all Roma people completed primary school, 11.5 per cent completed high school and only 1 per cent completed higher education. 76 per cent of Roma children are enrolled in the mandatory preparatory pre-school program compared to 97 per cent of children from the general population. Coverage of the mandatory elementary education is also incomplete: 92 per cent of Roma children get enrolled in elementary school, compared to 99 per cent of children from the general population, with 64 per cent of Roma children completing elementary school, which is significantly lower than the rate of completion of elementary school with children from the general population (100 per cent). The Commissioner’s report also confirms that certain schools practice segregation, keeping Roma children in separate groups from other pupils. Finally, the Committee notes, from the Government’s 2022 Country Report to the European network of legal experts on gender equality and non-discrimination of the European Commission (EC) (thereafter the “country report on non-discrimination to the EC”), the acknowledgement that the COVID-19 pandemic has had a major impact on Roma people, in particular on their access to work and sources of income and that there is a need to improve the inclusion of Roma people and in particular their access to adequate housing, health and social services, and to ensure equality in education. The Committee asks the Government to continue to provide specific information on:

• (i)the measures taken to promote equal opportunities of the Roma to access employment and occupation, including the results of vocational training activities; and
• (ii)progress and results achieved through these measures, in particular with respect to the employment of Roma women.

Recalling the importance of education as a determining prerequisite for employment, the Committee asks the Government to:

• (i)pursue its efforts in promoting equal access of Roma children to education and retaining them in school; and
• (ii)provide information on the measures and the results achieved in this regards, including within the framework of the National Employment Strategy 2021-2026, the National strategy for the social inclusion of Roma women and men for the period 2016–2025 and relevant legislation.

Other minorities. The Committee takes note of the number of persons from ethnic minority background who were targeted in 2016 by active employment policy measures and services, such as for example: 8,780 Albanians and 10,359 Bosnians. The Committee notes however that no information is provided on the content of the active employment policy measures or on their results. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on:

• (i)any measures taken to promote equal access to employment and occupation of minorities other than the Roma; and
• (ii)measures taken for preventing and combating stereotypes and prejudice and promoting tolerance among all the components of the population.

Equality of opportunity for persons with disabilities. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the legislative framework for employment of persons with disabilities is made up of the Law on Employment and Unemployment Insurance and the Law on Professional Rehabilitation and Employment of Persons with Disabilities and their accompanying bylaws. The Government adds that persons with disabilities who are registered as unemployed are included, with priority, in active labour market policy measures implemented by the National Employment Service, such as education, training and direct job creation measures. The Committee notes that, in 2020, there were 12,897 persons with disabilities registered as unemployed and able/willing to work (5,574 of them women), which represented 2.6 per cent of all registered unemployed. The Government also indicates that, in 2020, there were 5,213 persons with disabilities who were newly employed from the National Employment Services Register. The Committee notes the Government’s statement that, according to the annual reports of the Commissioner for Protection of Equality, the main challenges faced by persons with disabilities include access to various public facilities, services and information; access to employment and opportunities for reasonable adjustment of working conditions; and access to education and vocational training. The Committee notes, from the concluding observations of the CEDAW, that girls with disabilities are less involved in inclusive education than boys with disabilities (CEDAW/C/SRB/CO/4, 14 March 2019, para. 33). The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on:

• (i)the measures taken to promote equality of opportunity in employment and occupation, as well as in access to education and vocational training, for persons with disabilities, especially women and girls; and
• (ii)the results achieved in this regard.

Article 3(a). Cooperation with workers’ and employers’ organizations. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that social partners are included in the process of preparing and defining objectives and priorities of employment policy at all levels of Government, and that they are consulted on an annual basis when the Ministry of Labour, Employment, Veteran and Social Issues develops national action plans for employment. However, the Committee notes the observations of the SAE according to which it was not consulted in the drafting of the Law on Gender Equality nor of the Act to supplement the Act on the Prohibition of Discrimination. The Committee further notes the Government’s indication that social partners are informed about activities conducted by relevant government entities, and that the process of social dialogue has been strengthened through the formation of local employment councils consisting of representatives of trade unions and employers, and through the implementation of capacity-building projects. The Committee refers to its previous comment and requests the Government to provide specific information on measures taken by the Government to seek the cooperation of the social partners with regard to promoting equality of opportunity and treatment in employment and occupation, including details of how social partners are involved in:

• (i)the process of preparing and defining the objectives of employment policies and national action plans for employment; and
• (ii)efforts to promote the legislation on non-discrimination.

Article 3(d). Civil service. The Committee recalls that the State not only possesses direct means for applying the principles of the Convention in public sector employment but can also play a role in setting an example for other employers and in promoting the observance of the policy in other sectors (see the 2012 General Survey, paras. 741 and 843). The Committee therefore asks the Government to provide information on the representation of men and women, as well as members of the different minorities in the civil service. Please indicate any measures taken to actively promote a balanced representation of men and women, as well as of ethnic minorities in the civil service.

Enforcement and application in practice. The Committee takes note of the observations of the CATUS according to which it is difficult to prove discrimination in court proceedings and that the shift of the burden of proof is not applied in practice. The CATUS also declares that there is no guarantee, once a judgment establishing the existence of discrimination has been rendered, that it will lead to a satisfactory decision for the plaintiff (such as the return to work). The Committee notes the CATUS’s allegations that there is a need for judges to be trained in anti-discrimination legislation for a better application and interpretation of the law. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, in 2020, labour inspectors did not issue decisions relating to the prohibition of discrimination, nor did they do so in 2019, while they issued only 16 decisions in 2018, and 19 decisions in 2017. In 2020, labour inspectors performed 631 inspections to control the implementation of the Law on the Equality of the Sexes, and they determined that all 631 employers kept records on the gender structure of employees. The Government further indicates that, in 2020, there were no reported cases of discrimination based on sex, harassment, sexual harassment and sexual blackmail at work or in connection with work. The Committee notes, from the 2020 Labour Inspection Report provided by the Government, that although various cases of discriminatory treatment occur almost every day, in practice employees are discouraged from turning to the labour inspectorate to exercise their rights, because the powers of labour inspectors are insufficient, and because proving the violations of their rights can be difficult. The report goes on to explain that it often happens that an employee who requires legal protection from discrimination suffers additional pressure from the employer and may be exposed to harmful consequences (loss of employment, demotion, transfer to an inappropriate job or other workplace, etc.). Finally, the Committee notes, from the Government’s Country Report on non-discrimination to the EC, that training on anti-discrimination law has been provided to different public officials, but that it is important to pursue the training, which must be comprehensive and on-going, and must include workshops on breaking down stereotypes and prejudices towards members of certain groups. The Committee asks the Government to pursue its efforts in raising awareness of the Law on Gender Equality 2021 and Act to supplement the Act on the Prohibition of Discrimination 2021, including through training and awareness-raising measures addressed to workers and employers and their organizations, labour inspectors and judges, as well as the public at large. The Committee also asks the Government to continue providing information on the number, nature and outcome of employment discrimination cases addressed by the labour inspectorate, the Commissioner for the Protection of Equality and the courts, as well as remedies provided and sanctions imposed.