Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2014, published 104th ILC session (2015)

Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) - Qatar (Ratification: 1976)

Article 1 of the Convention. Scope of application. In its previous comment, the Committee noted Law No. 6 of 2009 which amends section 3 of the Labour Law No. 14 of 2004 exempting from its scope of application an additional category of workers, namely those in companies involved in the implementation of drilling and production agreements, agreements on development of oil and gas fields and production sharing, and joint venture agreements in the area of petroleum operations and petrochemical industries. The Committee notes that the Government refers to the policies adopted by Qatar Petroleum to provide for internal procedures on complaints and appeals, as well as a dispute settlement process for performance evaluation and other matters, and to provide vocational training and counselling without discrimination. The Committee notes however, that the Government provides no concrete information with respect to the legal protection of those categories of workers enumerated in section 3 of the Labour Act No. 14 of 2004 as amended in 2009. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken to protect all categories of workers excluded from the coverage of the Labour Act 2004 as amended in 2009, against discrimination on all the grounds set out in the Convention.

Sexual harassment. For a number of years, the Committee has been referring to the insufficiency of the legislative framework to provide for the prohibition and effective protection against sexual harassment in the workplace, in particular against female domestic workers who are particularly vulnerable to this kind of sex discrimination. The Committee notes that the Government provides a copy of Decision No. 7 of 22 August 2005 of the Minister of Civil Service Affairs and Housing which, while providing that an employer may dismiss a worker in the case of repeated “aggression” against other workers, does not expressly refer to sexual harassment. The Government further indicates that section 38 of the Law on Criminal Procedures specifies that legal enforcement officers are under the obligation to accept the notifications and complaints submitted to them on crimes committed including sexual harassment, whether they were perpetrated against female domestic workers in houses or female workers employed in the public and private sectors, and to refer them immediately to the public prosecutor. The Committee further notes that only three complaints relating to harassment and sexual harassment were filed with the National Human Rights Committee (NHRC) in 2013, and that according to the Government the low number of complaints may be due to the lack of awareness of domestic workers of the law and their rights, the existence of difficulties in providing evidence and the fact that sexual harassment complaints are considered to be penal in nature. The Government indicates that Qatar Petroleum has adopted procedures allowing workers to submit complaints of sexual harassment and to pursue administrative investigations in such cases, however, the Committee notes that no concrete information on the number of complaints and the measures adopted has been provided. The Committee recalls that sexual harassment is a serious manifestation of sex discrimination which undermines equality at work by calling into question the integrity, dignity and well-being of workers and that calls for effective measures to prevent and prohibit it. Such measures should address both quid pro quo and hostile environment sexual harassment. In this respect, the Committee considers that addressing sexual harassment only through criminal proceedings is normally not sufficient due to the sensitivity of the issue, the higher burden of proof and the fact that criminal law generally focuses on sexual assault or “immoral acts” and not on the full range of behaviour that constitutes sexual harassment in employment and occupation (see General Survey on the fundamental Conventions, 2012, paragraphs 789 and 792). For further guidance concerning the elements that constitute sexual harassment, the Committee refers to its 2003 general observation. The Committee requests the Government to give serious consideration to the possibility of adopting legal provisions expressly defining and prohibiting both quid pro quo and hostile environment sexual harassment at work against men and women workers in the public and private sectors, including domestic workers, and providing for effective mechanisms of redress, remedies and sanctions. Please provide information on any progress made in this regard as well as on measures taken to raise awareness on sexual harassment and existing avenues of redress among all workers and employers, including employers of domestic workers. Please also provide information on the number of complaints regarding sexual harassment filed with the NHRC or any other competent authorities, the sanctions imposed, and remedies provided.

Cooperation with employers’ and workers’ organizations. Noting that the Government provides no information regarding the involvement of workers’ and employers’ organizations to implement the principle of the Convention, the Committee again requests the Government to indicate how the cooperation of employers’ and workers’ organizations is being sought to address discrimination and promote equality with respect to the grounds set out in the Convention.

Article 5. Special measures of protection and assistance. The Committee has been referring to sections 94 and 95 of the Labour Law No. 14 of 2004, which provide that women shall not be employed in dangerous work and establish limitations regarding working time. The Committee had noted that the ministerial orders issued pursuant to these sections and concerning industries, occupations and jobs prohibited to women and concerning working time had not yet been adopted. The Committee notes the Government’s general statement that legislation does not provide for discrimination of any kind between men and women, and that article 35 of the Constitution provides that there shall be no discrimination based on sex. The Committee recalls that any measures aimed at protecting women generally because of their sex or gender, based on stereotypical perceptions about their capabilities and appropriate role in society, constitute obstacles to the recruitment and employment of women and are contrary to the Convention, and that measures of protection should be limited to maternity protection (see General Survey, 2012, paragraphs 839 and 840). The Committee requests the Government to ensure that any protective measures for women are strictly limited to maternity protection and to provide copies of any regulations, orders and ministerial decisions adopted regarding such protective measures.

[The Government is asked to reply in detail to the present comments in 2015.]