Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1999, published 88th ILC session (2000)

Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) - Philippines (Ratification: 1960)

The Committee notes the information in the Government's report.

1. In its previous direct request, the Committee expressed its concern that employers' preferences in hiring males were not considered to constitute discrimination by the Government, based on an overly broad application of the inherent requirements of a job. In this connection, the Committee notes with interest that the proposed amendment of section 135(b) of the Labor Code considers "favouring a male employee over a female employee with respect to promotion, training opportunities, and study and scholarship grants solely on the account of their sex" to be an act of discrimination. The Committee would further recommend that consideration be given to including "male preference in hiring" to the proposed amendment. It requests the Government to keep it informed on the progress made in the adoption of the proposed amendment of the Labor Code. The Committee further notes Memorandum Circular No. 8, series 1999, entitled "Policy on equal representation of women and men in third-level positions in government" issued by the Civil Service Commission (CSC) pursuant to its resolution No. 99-0684 of 22 March 1999. According to the Government, the CSC seeks with this policy to address inequities in gender representation in third-level positions in government with a view to increasing the number of women executives (the current ratio of women to men being 1:3). The Committee requests the Government to supply information on the impact the policy has had on the elimination of male preference in hiring and on the promotion of equal opportunities for men and women at third-level positions in the civil service. The Committee also requests the Government to indicate, in its next report, the practical measures taken or envisaged to address male preference in the labour market and the restriction of women to low-income and low-skilled jobs in the private sector as well as for other than third-level positions in the civil service.

2. The Committee notes the continuous efforts by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to eliminate sexual harassment in the workplace. It also notes the information on the cases received by the CSC on sexual harassment and the action taken accordingly, and encourages the Government to continue to provide such information in future reports. The Committee notes, however, the Government's statement that inspection reports of the Labor Inspectorate do not reflect findings on companies which have developed a policy on sexual harassment in accordance with Republic Act No. 7877 and its implementing Rules and Regulations. The Committee asks the Government to indicate how compliance with the Act is monitored and ensured in the private sector. The Committee also looks forward to receiving a copy of the flash survey carried out by the Employers' Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) identifying the specific industries which have started implementing the requirements of Republic Act No. 7877. Noting further that some areas for amendment of Republic Act No. 7877 have been identified, the Committee requests the Government to keep it informed of any revisions of this Act.

3. As regards the implementation of Resolution No. 98-463 of the CSC, the Committee notes from information previously provided by the Government that, in 1992, the CSC designated Equality Advocates (EQUADS) to promote the equal opportunity policy in the civil service. The Government indicated in 1998 that, except for a nationwide information campaign in 1992 to ensure that government employees and members of the general public who are, or who have been, victims of discrimination due to their sex, religion, ethnic origin or political beliefs were given the facilities for airing and redressing their grievances, no further action had been undertaken by the EQUADS. Further, the Committee notes that the CSC was rethinking the role of the EQUADS as regards gender and development (GAD) issues and planned to reactivate it as a mechanism separate from other GAD mechanisms. In this regard, the Committee notes the information provided in the Government's report on the various initiatives to promote equal opportunities for women in development and encourages the Government to continue to provide such information in future reports. The Committee trusts that the Government will provide, in its next report, full information on the action taken by the EQUADS, and the CSC, to ensure equality of opportunity and treatment in employment and occupation on grounds of "political and religious affiliation, minority or cultural extraction or social origin" pursuant to paragraph 3 of Resolution 89-463. In this connection, the Committee notes with interest the adoption of the Indigenous Peoples' Rights Act No. 8371 of 1997, and in particular its section 21 (equal protection and non-discrimination) which extends to indigenous peoples the same employment rights, opportunities, basic services, educational and other rights and privileges available to every member of society; Chapter VII establishes a National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) which is responsible for the formulation and implementation of policies, plans and programmes to promote the rights of indigenous peoples. Further, the Government's report indicates that Bill No. 456 to ensure equal employment opportunities to Muslims and tribal Filipinos has passed its first reading in the Senate. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the implementation of Act No. 8371, including the activities of the NCIP as regards the promotion of equality of opportunity and treatment of indigenous peoples in employment and occupation, and to provide a copy of Senate Bill No. 456, upon adoption.

4. As regards the enforcement of equality legislation, the Committee notes the Government's statement that the report "Update on labor standards Enforcement as of March 1999" of the Bureau of Working Conditions (BWC), covering 8,527 establishments, does not show any violations of Republic Act No. 6725 (Strengthening prohibition of discrimination against women). The Committee wishes to point out that the absence of violations of equality legislation or cases brought before the court relating to those rights may be due to a general low level of knowledge and awareness amongst the public as well as labour inspectors of such legislation. The Committee therefore requests the Government to take further steps to publicize and explain the provisions of Republic Act No. 6725 and other relevant legislation among workers and employers and to consider organizing specialized gender training for labour inspectors on legislation designed to promote equality of opportunity and treatment in employment and occupation. The Committee further notes that Senate Bill No. 119, which provides for a comprehensive enforcement machinery of non-discrimination against women has now been pending in Parliament for a number of years. It requests the Government to indicate the likelihood that the Bill will be adopted.

5. The Committee notes with interest the adoption of the Philippine AIDS Prevention and Control Act of 1998 (No. 8504), and in particular section 35, which prohibits discrimination in any form from pre-employment to post-employment, including hiring, promotion or assignment, based on the actual, perceived or suspected HIV status of an individual; and provides that termination of employment on the sole basis of actual, perceived or suspected HIV status is unlawful.