Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2003, published 92nd ILC session (2004)

Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) - Dominican Republic (Ratification: 1964)

The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government in its report and the attachments thereto. The Committee also notes the comments of October 2002 sent by the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU), concerning discrimination on grounds of colour, race, and sex, together with the comments thereon that the Government sent to the Office. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the following points:

1. Discrimination on grounds of colour and race. The ICFTU indicated that although discrimination on grounds of race is prohibited by law, it exists in practice. In earlier comments the Committee noted the concern expressed by the Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD) regarding the reports received on the existence of racial prejudice not only against Haitians but also against dark-skinned Dominicans (CERD/C/304/Add.74 of 12 April 2001, paragraph 7). The Committee notes the Declaration by the Dominican Republic and the Republic of Haiti to prevent discrimination in the hiring of migrant workers, both Dominican and Haitian. The Committee notes the comments sent by the Government in its report to the effect that there have been no complaints of such discrimination and that Haitian workers have the same conditions of health and hygiene as Dominican nationals; furthermore, there is no discrimination on grounds of colour, 80 per cent of Dominicans being dark skinned. The Committee recalls that the Convention requires the Government to formulate a national policy and to adopt educational and administrative measures to prevent discrimination on all grounds as mentioned in Article 1, in particular colour and race, and to promote equality of opportunity and treatment both in law and in practice. In this sense, the Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide information on measures adopted, indicating their impact in terms of avoiding in practice the occurrence of discrimination of the type alleged.

2. Discrimination on grounds of sex. The Committee notes that, according to the ICFTU, although gender discrimination, including pregnancy controls and sexual harassment, is prohibited by law, it exists and is allowed in practice. The Committee notes that according to the statistics provided by the Government in its report on the application of Convention No. 100, there were 42 instances of breach of the labour standards protecting maternity. The Committee again requests the Government to provide information in its next report on the machinery for prevention and investigation to combat practices that discriminate against women, such as pregnancy testing at the time of admission to employment. The Committee also notes the information in the Government’s report to the effect that, although there have been no complaints alleging pregnancy testing in the industrial export processing zones, the Government will hold a thorough investigation into the matter. The Committee trusts that the Government will be in a position to send the results of the investigation in its next report.