ILO: Workplace discrimination, a picture of hope and concern
A new ILO report on discrimination at work - the most comprehensive to date - says workplace discrimination remains a persistent global problem, with new, more subtle forms emerging. While significant progress in combatting inequalities at the workplace is cause for hope, the report says new forms of discrimination are cause for growing concern.
GENEVA - The ILO's newest global report on discrimination - prepared under the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work - is aptly entitled " Time for Equality at Work" 1. And it shows decisively that unless action is taken, that time is still a long way off.
"This may be the most challenging task of contemporary society, and it is essential for social peace and democracy," the report says. Adds Director-General Juan Somavia: "Every day, around the world, discrimination at work is an unfortunate reality for hundreds of millions of people."
The ILO report lays the blame for continuing discrimination on prejudices, stereotypes and biased institutions that have resisted decades of legal efforts and policy measures undertaken by governments, workers and employers against unequal treatment at work.
The report shows that many who suffer from discrimination - especially on the basis of their sex or colour - face a persistent "equality gap" that divides them from dominant groups who enjoy a better life, or even from their own peers who have benefited from anti-discrimination laws and policies.
But Mr. Somavia said the news is not all bad. "We have made progress", he said. "Today, formal condemnation of discrimination is virtually universal and action to stop discrimination at work has been taken in many places. Still, discrimination remains a constantly evolving 'moving target' and we have a long way to go on the road to equality.".
What is discrimination at work?
Discrimination is defined under ILO
Convention No. 111 as any
distinction, exclusion or preference made on the
basis of race, colour, sex, religion, political
opinion, national extraction or social origin (among
other characteristics), "which has the effect of
nullifying or impairing equality of opportunity and
treatment in employment or occupation".
Discrimination can perpetuate poverty, stifle
development, productivity and competitiveness, and
ignite political instability, says the report which
was prepared under the ILO's 1998 Declaration on
Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work.
(See Discrimination (Employment and
Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) and its
accompanying Recommendation (
No. 111), Article 1(1a)). As
of May 2003, ratified by 158 of the ILO's 176
member States.
The Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (
No. 100) has been ratified by
160 member States.)
Discrimination is still a common problem in
the workplace. While some of the more blatant forms
of discrimination may have faded, many remain, and
others have taken on new or less visible forms, the
report says.
Global migration combined with the
redefinition of national boundaries and growing
economic problems and inequalities have worsened
xenophobia and racial and religious discrimination.
More recently, new forms of discrimination
based on disability, HIV/AIDS, age or sexual
orientation are cause for growing concern.
- Progress in fighting discrimination at work has been uneven and patchy, even for long recognized forms such as discrimination against women. Discrimination at work will not vanish by itself; neither will the market, on its own, take care of it.
- Inequalities within discriminated groups are widening. Affirmative action policies, for example, helped create a new middle class of formerly-discriminated persons in some countries. A few rise to the top of the social ladder, while most remain among the low paid and socially excluded.
- Discrimination often traps people in low-paid, "informal" economy jobs. The discriminated are often stuck in the worst jobs, and denied benefits, social protection, training, capital, land or credit. Women are more likely than men to be engaged in these more invisible and undercounted activities.
- The failure to eradicate discrimination helps perpetuate poverty. Discrimination creates a web of poverty, forced and child labour and social exclusion, the report says, adding "eliminating discrimination is indispensable to any viable strategy for poverty reduction and sustainable economic development".
- Everyone gains from eliminating discrimination at work - individuals, enterprises and society at large. Fairness and justice at the workplace boosts the self-esteem and morale of workers. A more motivated and productive workforce enhances the productivity and competitiveness of businesses.
Types of discrimination: a "moving target"
Sex discrimination is by far the
most prevalent. And women are by far the largest
discriminated group. Although more and more women are
working, in addition to the "glass
ceiling", the "pay gap" between women
and men is still significant in most countries. Women
are also more likely to be stuck in lower-paid and
least secure jobs.
They faced higher unemployment rates.
Discrimination can occur at every stage of
employment, from recruitment to education and
remuneration, occupational segregation, and at time
of lay-offs.
In common with all forms of discrimination,
racial discrimination persists and
affects migrants, ethnic minorities, indigenous and
tribal peoples and others vulnerable groups.
Rising levels of global migration have
significantly altered patterns of racial
discrimination against migrant workers, second and
third generation migrants and citizens of foreign
origin. It is the perception of these workers as
foreigners - even when they are not - that
may lead to discrimination against them.
Discrimination against people living with
HIV/AIDS is a growing concern,
especially among women. This can take many forms,
including pre-employment testing leading to a refusal
to hire, testing of long-term foreign visitors before
entering a country, and in some countries, mandatory
tests for migrant workers.
Other forms of discrimination include dismissal
without medical evidence, notice or a hearing,
demotion, denial of health insurance benefits, salary
reductions and harassment.
The number of people with
disabilities, currently put at some
7-10 per cent of the world's population, is
likely to grow as the population ages. The majority
live in developing countries, and disability rates
appear higher in rural areas than in urban areas.
The most common form of discrimination is the
denial of opportunities, both in the labour market,
and in education and training.
Unemployment rates for people with
disabilities reach 80 per cent or more in many
developing countries. People with disabilities are
often trapped in low-paid, unskilled and menial jobs,
with little or no social protection.
Over the past decade, discrimination based on
religion appears to have increased.
The current global political climate has helped fuel
sentiments of mutual fear and discrimination between
religious groups, threatening to destabilize
societies and generate violence.
Religious discrimination can include offensive
behaviour at work by co-workers or managers towards
members of religious minorities; lack of respect and
ignorance of religious customs; the obligation to
work on religious days or holidays; bias in
recruitment or promotion; denial of a business
licence; and lack of respect for dress customs.
Concerns over discrimination based on age are
also growing. By 2050, 33 per cent of people in
developed countries and 19 per cent in developing
countries will be 60 or older, most of them women.
Discrimination can be overt, such as age limits
for hiring, or take more subtle forms, such as
allegations that people lack career potential, or
have too much experience. Other forms of
discrimination include limited access to training and
conditions that virtually compel early retirement.
Age discrimination is not limited to workers nearing
retirement.
Many people suffer from
"multiple discrimination".
Indigenous and tribal people, for example, are among
the poorest of the poor, and women within these
groups are even more severely affected.
The intensity or severity of the disadvantages
they may confront depend on how many personal
characteristics may generate discrimination, and how
these interrelate.
For example, one person can have several
characteristics that give rise to discrimination.
People who suffer several forms of discrimination
tend to be over-represented among the poor,
particularly the chronic poor, and in the informal
economy.
The ILO response
The ILO report says the workplace
- whether a factory, office, plantation, farm or
household - is a strategic entry point for
fighting discrimination. "When the workplace
brings together people with different characteristics
and treats them fairly, it helps to combat
stereotypes in society as a whole", the report
says.
"It forces a situation where
prejudices can be defused and rendered obsolete. A
socially inclusive world of work helps to prevent and
to redress social fragmentation, racial and ethnic
conflict and gender inequalities."
So far, the report says, outlawing
discrimination at work has failed to eliminate the
practice. Still, the report concludes that laws
banning discrimination are an indispensable, but
insufficient, step.
Effective enforcement institutions, positive
action, unbiased education, training and employment
services, and data to monitor progress, are also
necessary. This mix of policies and instruments is
essential whatever the form of discrimination.
"Eliminating discrimination at work is
everybody's responsibility", Mr. Somavia
says. "The State has the obligation of banning
discriminatory practices and establishing sound laws
and institutions and policies that promote equal
opportunities at work. Employers and workers
organizations, individually and together, should
identify and combat discriminatory practices at the
workplace.
Most importantly, the voices of discriminated
workers and employers need to be heard, no matter
where they work."
The report was prepared as a follow-up to the
adoption of the
ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and
Rights at Work by the International Labour
Conference in 1998.
The Declaration reaffirmed the constitutional
principle of the elimination of discrimination in
respect of employment and occupation, thereby
confirming the universal resolve to suppress
discrimination in the world of work through the
promotion of equal treatment and opportunity.
The Declaration emphasizes that all ILO member
States have an obligation to respect the fundamental
principles involved, whether or not they have
ratified the relevant Conventions.