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

Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) - Jordan (Ratification: 1963)

The Committee notes the information provided by the Government and the documentation attached to the report.

1. The Committee notes the statistics provided by the Government on the distribution of women in the Jordanian public service, which show that women only represent 35.7 per cent of employees in the public service, and that the majority of women working in the public service are concentrated in categories No. 2 (37.88 per cent), No. 3 (54.52 per cent) and No. 4 (24.72 per cent), while being under-represented in category No. 1 (5.87 per cent) and in the higher categories (0.89 per cent). It also notes the statistics provided by the Government on the composition of the workforce employed by the Ministry of Health. It regrets that the statistics provided have not been systematically disaggregated according to the gender of the employees concerned. However, it notes that the majority of women working for the Ministry of Health are nurses and that the positions of responsibility are practically all held by men. In the light of these figures, the Committee wishes to recall the importance of the State's responsibility in pursuing a policy of equality of opportunity and treatment in respect of employment under its control. It therefore requests the Government to indicate the measures which have been taken or are envisaged, with regard to recruitment policy and further training policy (which largely determines promotion policy), to achieve an overall increase in the participation of women in the public service, and particularly at the higher levels. The Committee would also be grateful to be provided with information on the type of jobs which are covered by categories Nos. 2, 3 and 4 above. It also notes that the majority of women (56.54 per cent) working in the public service have the diploma of college societies.

2. The Committee notes that the Legal Committee of the Jordanian National Committee for Women is continuing its review of all Jordanian legislation, and particularly the aspects of the legislation relating to women, and that the Government's report indicates that new amendments to laws have been submitted to the Council of Ministers since its previous report. The Committee is grateful to the Government for transmitting copies of the amendments adopted up to now by the Council of Ministers. The Committee requests the Government to continue keeping it informed of the progress made in the process of reviewing all Jordanian legislation and in the adoption by the Council of Ministers of the amendments proposed by the Legal Committee, as its survey progresses.

3. In its previous direct request, the Committee asked the Government to provide copies of any orders issued in accordance with section 69 of the Labour Code of 1996, which has the objective of protecting women's health and establishes that, after consultation with the competent official bodies, the Minister shall issue an order indicating: (a) the industries and occupations in which work by women is prohibited; and (b) the hours during which women may not work and the possible exceptions. The Government attached to its report a copy of an Ordinance of 1997 issued by the Minister of Labour under section 69 of the Labour Code setting out the jobs and times at which work by women is prohibited. According to this Ordinance, the employment of women is mainly prohibited in mining industries and ports, and it is forbidden to engage women in work between 8 p.m. and 8 a.m., unless exceptions are authorized (restaurants, hotels, theatres, cinemas, airports, hospitals, dispensaries, accountancy, etc.). The Committee takes due note of the Government's explanations that these prohibitions are intended above all to protect the health and safety of women workers, but that they also take into account national traditions and customs and the private life of women workers by giving them the possibility to harmonize their family and working lives. However, the Committee requests the Government to envisage the possibility of reviewing these provisions, in consultation with the social partners, and particularly women workers, with a view to assessing whether it is still necessary to prohibit the access of women to certain occupations, taking into account the improvement in working conditions and changing mentalities. It also draws the Government's attention to the provisions contained in this respect in: (a) the Protocol of 1990 to the Night Work (Women) Convention (Revised), 1948 (No. 89); (b) the Night Work Convention, 1990 (No. 171), and the Safety and Health in Mines Convention, 1995 (No. 176), and their corresponding Recommendaions; and (c) the ILO resolution of 1985 on equal opportunities and equal treatment for men and women in employment.

4. One of the reasons put forward by the Government to justify the prohibition of certain jobs for women is the concern to enable women workers to harmonize their working lives with the constraints of their family life. The Committee wishes to recall in this respect the statement that it made in its previous comment, namely that it would be desirable for certain measures which are applicable to women workers, with a view to enabling them to bring up or care for their children, to be progressively extended to men so that such advantages cease to be an obstacle to women's competitiveness on the labour market. Family responsibilities may indeed constitute an obstacle to equality in employment and be an important cause of direct or indirect discrimination against women. The adoption of such measures would signal the recognition of the fact that family responsibilities are a problem which concern the family and society, and not only women. In this respect, the Committee takes due note of the fact that, while the Government appreciates its suggestion of extending to male workers unpaid leave for a year with reinstatement in their job, which is envisaged solely for women workers under section 67 of the Labour Code (or of granting it to one of the two parents in cases where they are both employees), it nevertheless considers that such a proposal goes against the standards and practices currently in force in the country. The Committee nevertheless notes that section 68 of the Labour Code, under which men and women are entitled to take unpaid leave for a period not exceeding two years to accompany a spouse who is given an assignment outside the usual workplace or abroad, constitutes a step in this direction.

5. With regard to vocational training, the Committee takes due note of the Government's statement that it is exempt from any distinction, exclusion or preference based on race, colour, sex, religion, political opinion, national extraction or social origin. However, it wishes to recall that experience shows that discriminatory practices in respect of access to training rarely originate in legislative provisions or regulations that are expressly of a discriminatory nature; more commonly they arise out of practices that are based on stereotypes affecting mainly women or certain disadvantaged or minority groups of society. For this reason, the Committee draws attention to the importance of vocational guidance in opening a broad range of occupations free of considerations based on stereotypes according to which specific trades or occupations are reserved for persons of a particular sex or certain disadvantaged groups. It therefore requests the Government to indicate the measures which have been taken or are envisaged to: (a) establish an information system opening a broad range of options to girls in their choice of occupation; and (b) to ensure that guidance tests for the choice of a trade or occupation do not perpetuate stereotypes by emphasizing social or cultural characteristics which are not germane to the qualifications required for a particular job. Finally, the Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide statistics on the type of vocational training followed by young women and men.

6. The Committee also notes the detailed information provided by the Government concerning the terms of reference, activities and advisory services provided by the women workers' division of the labour inspectorate. The Committee requests the Government to provide copies of any reports, studies or surveys undertaken by this division of the labour inspectorate, as well as information on the difficulties noted in practice by women inspectors in the application of the Convention.

7. The Committee notes that the Government once again emphasizes in its report the collaboration between employers' and workers' organizations, rather than the collaboration of employers' and workers' organizations with the State to promote the acceptance and observance of the national policy against discrimination.