Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2008, published 98th ILC session (2009)

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

The Committee notes the discussion that took place in the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards in June 2008 and the resulting conclusions of the Conference Committee. The Committee also notes the observations of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) of 29 August 2008, regarding discrimination against women, which were sent to the Government for its comments.

The Committee notes that the Conference Committee expressed its disappointment with the absence of progress achieved since it had discussed the case in 2006. The Conference Committee requested the Government to take urgent action on all the outstanding issues, with a view to fulfilling its promises of 2006 that it would bring all its relevant legislation and practice into line with the Convention by 2010. The Conference Committee requested the Government to provide complete and detailed information to this Committee at its present session in reply to all the issues raised in its previous observation and those raised by the Conference Committee. The Committee regrets that despite this specific request, the information provided in the Government’s report is virtually identical to the information it put before the Conference Committee. In its report and the letter of 24 November 2008 accompanying the report, the Government acknowledges that it has had difficulties in obtaining the information requested, and that what has been provided is an “abridged report”.

Legislative developments

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that a comprehensive Bill prohibiting any form of discrimination in employment and education has been drafted. The Bill relates to access of all Iranian nationals, irrespective of gender, colour, creed, race, language, religion, ethnic and social background, to education, technical and vocational training, and to job and employment opportunities and similar working conditions. The Government states that violations of the proposed Bill would be subject to very heavy penalties and sanctions, unlike violations of the Constitution or the Labour Law. The Committee notes that this Bill is awaiting approval of the Cabinet of Ministers, and that the Government hopes to receive comments of the Office on the Bill. The Committee understands that the proposed Bill has not yet been sent to the Office with a request for comment thereon. The Committee urges the Government to forward the proposed Bill on non-discrimination to the Office for its comments as soon as possible. The Committee hopes that in drafting the new law, the opportunity will be taken to prohibit direct and indirect discrimination against nationals and non-nationals, on all the grounds enumerated in the Convention, including political opinion, national extraction and social origin. Noting the concern expressed by the Conference Committee that over the years a number of bills, plans and proposals had been referred to which had not come to fruition, the Committee hopes that every effort will be made to adopt a comprehensive law on non-discrimination which is fully in conformity with the Convention, in the near future.

National Equality Policy

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Charter of Citizenry Rights referred to in article 100 of the Fourth Economic, Social and Cultural Development Plan (the Plan) was approved by Parliament in 2007. The Committee also notes from the Government’s report that disciplinary measures, including dismissal, were taken by the head of the judiciary against the judges who failed to apply the Charter. As regards article 101 of the Plan, calling for the elaboration of a national plan for the development of “meritorious work” on the basis of a number of principles, including “prohibition of discrimination in employment and profession”, the Government indicates that regular meetings with the social partners are held in order to survey and monitor the implementation of this provision. No information is provided with regard to article 130 of the Plan empowering the judiciary to take measures towards the elimination “of all types of discrimination – gender, ethnic and group – in the legal and judicial [field]”. The Committee requests the Government to provide a copy of the Charter of Citizenry Rights as well as information on its application in practice, and detailed information on any measures taken against judges and other officials failing to respect and apply the rights set forth in the Charter, including any disciplinary sanctions imposed. The Committee also reiterates its request for information on the status of the adoption of the National Plan foreseen under article 101 of the Plan and on any measures taken to implement article 130. The Committee would also appreciate receiving specific information on the outcome of the meetings held to survey and monitor the implementation of article 101 of the Plan, including detailed information on the measures taken to implement this provision. The Committee again requests the Government to provide translated summaries of the evaluation reports prepared pursuant to article 157 of the Plan, and any other information on the implementation of the Plan in practice, and the results achieved with respect to furthering equality in employment and occupation. Please also provide information on any measures taken or envisaged to raise awareness of the Plan, in particular with respect to equality rights. The Committee again requests the Government to provide a copy of the Charter of Women’s Rights, to clarify how the Charter and the Plan interrelate, and to provide information on any measures taken to implement the provisions of the Charter of Women’s Rights.

Equal opportunity and treatment of men and women

With regard to the measures taken to improve women’s access to employment and occupation, through increasing access to university and technical and vocational training, the Committee recalls that in June 2008 the Conference Committee, while noting the efforts to promote women’s access to university education, also noted the Government’s acknowledgement that there remained a long way to go in practice to remove the barriers to women’s employment. The Committee notes that in his report on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, the UN Secretary-General pointed out that “women have limited participation in wage labour outside of the agricultural sector, estimated at 16 per cent, which signifies that the progress achieved in female education in the recent past has not as yet translated into increased women’s economic participation” (A/63/459, 1 October 2008, paragraph 51). The Committee also notes the ITUC’s allegation that quotas restricting women’s access to university have been secretly applied since 2006 in up to 39 fields of study.

The Committee notes that according to official government statistics collected by the ILO, the unemployment rate for women decreased from 17 per cent in 2005 to 15.8 per cent in 2007. In the same period, however, the number of women in the occupational category of legislators, senior officials and managers, decreased by almost 20 per cent. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that the Deputy Minister for Industrial Relations is responsible for the supervision of the Presidential Circular calling for the guarantee of equal access to women and religious minorities to employment opportunities. Moreover, the Government indicates that various empowerment programmes for women were implemented under article 101 of the Plan. The Committee recalls that the Conference Committee urged the Government to provide the Committee of Experts with the detailed statistics it had been repeatedly calling for in order to allow it to make an accurate assessment of the situation of women in vocational training and employment. The Committee notes that these statistics were not provided. The Committee urges the Government to provide detailed statistics on the number of women and men in public and private sector employment, disaggregated by category and level of employment. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the number of women participating in the empowerment programmes mentioned in the Government’s report. Please also provide more information on the content and impact of these programmes. The Committee also asks the Government to provide a copy of the Presidential Circular referred to above and more detailed information on the role of the Deputy Minister for Industrial Relations in supervising the implementation of the Circular. The Committee again requests the Government to provide information on the number of women trained through the Technical and Vocational Training Organization (TVTO) and on the participation rate of women and men in the various disciplines of technical and vocational training in privately run institutes. The Committee further reiterates its request for information on the activities of the Women’s Entrepreneurship Guild as well as on the activities of the Centre for Women and Family Affairs.

The Committee notes from the ITUC’s submission that an increasing number of women are working in temporary jobs and contract employment, and thus are not covered by legal entitlements and facilities, including maternity protection. The ITUC states that since Iranian labour law does not require companies employing less than 20 people to abide by these regulatory protections and women often work in small and medium-sized enterprises, they may in practice face serious discrimination in the labour market. The Committee recalls that the Conference Committee had urged the Government to ensure that all entitlements and facilities are made available to women working in temporary and contract employment. Noting that no information has been provided by the Government on this point, the Committee urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that women in temporary and contract employment benefit from all the legal entitlements and facilities, and to provide information on progress made in this regard.

The Committee recalls the Government’s acknowledgement that the existing imbalance in women’s participation in the labour market in comparison with that of men “is a direct result of cultural, religious, economic and historical factors”. The Government also raised the issue of the difficulty of women balancing work and family responsibilities. The Government indicates that the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs held regular workshops throughout the country to raise public awareness about ILO standards and the rights set out in the Labour Law. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that various workshops were held at provincial level with a view to “teaching Iranian women how best to balance work and family responsibilities”. The Committee refers to its previous comments and stresses that restricting measures to reconcile work and family responsibilities to women reinforces the assumption that women are solely responsible for caring for children. The Committee requests the Government to provide detailed information on the measures taken to improve awareness, access and enforcement of equality and non-discrimination rights and policies, as well as on protection and benefits aimed at balancing work and family responsibilities. It also again requests the Government to consider extending the special measures for workers with children to men as well as women.

The Committee recalls the findings of the technical assistance mission regarding the prevalence of discriminatory job advertisements. In the absence of the information previously solicited, the Committee again requests the Government to provide information on measures taken or envisaged to prohibit such practice. Further to its 2002 general observation, the Committee also reiterates its request for information on measures taken or envisaged to prevent and prohibit sexual harassment in employment and occupation.

Discriminatory laws and regulations

The Committee, as well as the Conference Committee, has raised over a number of years the need to repeal or amend discriminatory laws and regulations. In June 2008, the Conference Committee expressed deep regret that despite the Government’s statements that it was committed to repealing laws and regulations that violated the Convention, progress in this regard was slow and insufficient. The Committee notes with regret that despite the repeated call from this Committee and the Conference Committee for the amendment or repeal of the laws and regulations restricting women’s employment and the discriminatory application of the social security legislation, the Government reports no new developments since the Conference Committee discussion.

Regarding section 1117 of the Civil Code pursuant to which a husband can prevent his wife from taking up a job or profession, the Government states that due to the existence of section 18 of the Family Protection Law, section 1117 is automatically repealed and courts are not authorized to hear complaints regarding section 1117. The Committee notes from the UN Secretary-General’s report that a family protection draft Bill was being debated. However, it is not clear if the reference to section 18 in the Government’s report is a provision in the draft Bill. The Committee also notes that the same explanation was provided to the Conference Committee, which nonetheless expressed concern that in the absence of the express repeal of section 1117, the provision would continue to have a negative impact on women’s employment opportunities. The Committee requests the Government to clarify the content of section 18 of the Family Protection Law, and how it automatically repeals section 1117, as well as to provide information on the status and content of the family protection draft Bill. Noting the concern expressed by the Conference Committee that in the absence of an express repeal of section 1117, it would continue to have a negative impact on women’s employment opportunities, the Committee urges the Government to take steps to repeal the provision or to ensure that the public is aware of any consequential repeal due to the adoption of new legislation, and the fact that a husband can as a result no longer prevent his wife from taking up a job or profession. Please provide the Committee with detailed information of steps taken in this regard.

Regarding the discriminatory provisions in social security regulations, the Government indicates that it is collaborating with the social partners to launch a global plan for social security that would address amendments to the social security regulations. With respect to the limitations on women’s access to all positions in the judiciary, with particular reference to Decree No. 55080 of 1979, the Government once again refers to a Bill addressing this issue having been drafted. The Government rejects the existence of any administrative rules restricting the employment of wives of government employees. With respect to the age barrier to women’s employment, the Government states that the maximum age for employment is 40 years, not 30, and a five-year extension is possible exceptionally in the civil service. On the issue of the obligatory dress code, the Committee notes that no information has been provided by the Government. The Committee urges the Government to repeal or amend all laws and regulations restricting women’s employment, and the discriminatory application of the social security legislation. The Committee also urges the Government to take measures to address any barriers to women being hired after the age of 30 or 40. Please also provide details of the content and status of the most recent Bill regarding women in the judiciary.

Discrimination on the basis of religion

In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the situation of unrecognized religious minorities, and in particular the Baha’i, appeared to be very serious, and called on the Government to take a range of measures. The Conference Committee also strongly urged the Government “to take decisive action to combat discrimination and stereotypical attitudes, through actively promoting respect and tolerance for the Baha’i”, to withdraw all discriminatory circulars and other government communications, and to ensure that authorities and the public were informed that discrimination against religious minorities, in particular the Baha’i, would not be tolerated. In reply, the Government states generally that a circular was recently issued by the President of the Technical and Vocational Training Organization, providing that all Iranian nationals had free access to vocational training. Noting that the Committee has been urging the Government to take decisive action to address the very serious situation of discrimination against religious minorities, in particular the Baha’i, and the urgency expressed by the Conference Committee with respect to this matter, the Committee deeply regrets that the Government appears to have taken no action along the lines called for by this Committee or the Conference Committee, and urges it to do so without further delay. The Committee is also once again obliged to request information on the practice of “gozinesh” and on the status of the Bill that had been before Parliament asking for a review of this practice.

Ethnic minorities

Noting the very general information provided by the Government to the Committee’s previous request, the Committee once again asks the Government to provide information on the employment situation of ethnic minority groups, including the Azeries, the Kurds and the Turks, including statistics on their employment in the public sector, and information on any efforts taken to ensure equal access and opportunities to education, employment and occupation for members of these groups. The Committee also reiterates its request for information on the positions from which members of ethnic minorities are excluded on the ground of national security.

Dispute settlement and human rights mechanisms

As no information has been provided regarding the Committee’s previous request on this issue, the Committee, stressing the importance of accessible dispute resolution mechanisms to address cases of discrimination, again requests the Government to provide information on the nature and number of complaints lodged with the various dispute settlement and human rights bodies and the courts, including the outcome thereof. The Committee urges the Government to take measures to raise awareness of the existence and mandate of the various bodies, and to ensure the accessibility of the procedures for all groups.

Social dialogue

The Committee previously raised concerns that in the context of the freedom of association crisis in the country, meaningful national-level social dialogue regarding issues related to the implementation of the Convention would not be possible. The Conference Committee also expressed deep concern in this regard. The Committee regrets that the Government has provided no information on this issue. The Committee understands, however, that there has been no improvement in the social dialogue situation in the country. The Committee, expressing its deep concern at the social dialogue situation in the country, urges the Government to make every effort to establish constructive dialogue with the social partners to address the considerable gaps in law and practice in the implementation of the Convention, and to demonstrate concrete results by 2010.

[The Government is asked to supply full particulars to the Conference at its 98th Session and to reply in detail to the present comments in 2009.]