Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1992, published 79th ILC session (1992)

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

The Committee refers to its previous comments and notes the information contained in the Government's report for the period ending 30 June 1990.

1. In particular, the Committee notes with interest the adoption of a number of measures in law and practice designed to improve the situation in the field of equality of treatment between men and women in employment. These measures concern the right to leave for family reasons and allowances for the interruption of a career in the event of the birth of a child. Furthermore, the Committee notes that, according to the Government, the national interoccupational agreement for 1989-90 recommended the adoption of positive action for the employment of women. The Royal Order of 27 February 1990, setting out measures for the promotion of equality of opportunity between men and women in the public services, was adopted under that agreement.

A joint paper by the Minister of Employment and Labour and the Secretary of State for Social Emancipation also contains detailed recommendations to the social partners in which they are requested, within the framework of their next interoccupational negotiations, to pay particular attention to the employment of women.

The Committee requests the Government to continue to keep it informed of the implementation of positive action for the employment of women and of the activities of the Women's Labour Committee, as well as to indicate, in its next report, the impact of the recommendations contained in the Ministerial document on the conclusion of collective agreements.

2. The Committee refers to the Government's previous indications relating to certain difficulties concerning access to jobs in the public sector arising out of the imposition of physical selection criteria and to the fact that each public service had to ascertain whether the use of such criteria was justified. The Committee notes that, in its latest report, the Government states that the implementation of positive action plans in all the public services should make it possible to assess the situation in this respect. It therefore requests the Government to inform it of the results thus obtained.

3. With regard to the question of sexual harassment, the Committee notes Opinion No. 49 of the Women's Labour Committee, of 16 January 1989, and the various campaigns carried out by the Government to provide information and increase public awareness of this problem. The Committee notes that, in particular, the opinion of the National Labour Council has been requested on this question and that it could be decided that the social partners should adopt effective preventive measures against sexual harassment at the workplace. The Committee requests the Government to keep it informed of developments in the situation in this respect.

4. The Committee had previously noted that discriminatory provisions against women were contained in certain collective agreements. It notes with interest the elimination of discrimination on the basis of sex by the Joint Inland Water Transport Committee in collective agreements for that sector. The Committee requests the Government to continue keeping it informed of any other cases in which collective agreements are brought into conformity with the principle of equality of opportunity and treatment as set out in the Convention.

5. The Committee refers to its previous comments concerning the re-examination of certain protective measures for women as envisaged by the Government. It once again requests the Government to keep it informed of any developments in this respect.