Introduction

1. In accordance with article 19 of the Constitution, the Governing Body of the ILO, at its 251st Session (November 1991) requested governments to report in 1992 on the position of their law and practice respecting the promotion of equality and treatment for workers with family responsibilities, as laid down in the Workers with Family Responsibilities Convention (No. 156) and Recommendation (No. 165), 1981. The reports supplied by the governments, together with those submitted in accordance with articles 22 and 35 of the ILO Constitution by States which have ratified the Convention, have enabled the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations to carry out this first general survey of the situation as regards the implementation of these instruments, both in ratifying States and in countries which have not ratified the Convention. Where appropriate, the Committee of Experts has also had occasion to refer to reports furnished by governments under articles 22 and 35 on the application of the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111).

ILO action in the field of equality

2. As part of its broad mandate of promoting social justice, the International Labour Organization has been concerned, since its inception, with taking measures aimed at establishing employment equity among workers. This objective has necessarily entailed the formulation of policies, programmes and more particularly, international labour standards, to redress gender inequality. While there has been constant adherence to this goal for more than 70 years, there has been an evolution in the approach taken to that end. Two predominant trends may be distinguished. From 1919 until the 1950s, an emphasis was placed on the protection of women workers, essentially because of the prevailing perception that women were more fragile both physically and socially than men, and therefore should not be permitted to engage in certain forms of employment or work at certain times, as they were more likely to be affected adversely by the dangers and exploitation still prevalent in much of the world. In this, a primary objective was to safeguard the health of women with special reference to child-bearing: minimum standards regarding maternity leave and benefits were accordingly among the first instruments adopted by the International Labour Conference. In addition, though, other Conventions and Recommendations were adopted to lay down measures of protection in areas not directly concerned with the function of women as mothers or future mothers. These prohibited the participation of all women in certain sectors or restricted their employment during specified periods. By the beginning of the 1950s, this concern had waned and there was a greater preoccupation with promoting equality at work for women.

3. This new outlook was translated into the adoption in 1951 of the Equal Remuneration Convention (No. 100) and Recommendation (No. 90), which relate specifically to the elimination of discrimination between women and men workers in respect of remuneration. Later, in 1958, comprehensive instruments concerning equality of opportunity and treatment -- the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention (No. 111) and Recommendation (No. 111) -- were adopted to establish the principle of non-discrimination on a number of grounds including sex, in regard to access to vocational training, access to employment and particular occupations and terms and conditions of employment. While marital status, family situation and family responsibilities are not mentioned specifically as grounds for discrimination, Article 1(b) of Convention No. 111 states that the term "discrimination" includes "such other distinction, exclusion or preference ... as may be determined by the Member concerned after consultation with representative employers' and workers' organizations". Furthermore, Article 5, paragraph 2, provides that member States may determine that other special measures, designed to meet the particular requirements of persons who, for reasons such as sex, age or family responsibilities, are generally recognized to require special protection or assistance, shall not be deemed to be discrimination.

4. In 1965, the Employment (Women with Family Responsibilities) Recommendation (No. 123) was adopted in recognition of the widely held concern that "all measures to promote equal rights may prove meaningless for a vast majority of women if -- as a result of their family responsibilities -- they must either give up their jobs entirely, or lose any chance of advancement because they can give only a smaller part of their attention and energy to their professional work". (Endnote 1) Recommendation No. 123 enumerates in some detail, the measures that should be taken to enable women to fulfil their various responsibilities harmoniously and without being subject to discrimination. It contemplates, on the one hand, the need for such measures as child-care services and facilities, to help women cope with meeting their dual tasks at home and at work. It also recommends a series of measures designed to ensure that girls receive education, vocational guidance and vocational training free from any discrimination on the grounds of sex, as a basis for their future work lives; and that women with family responsibilities be afforded appropriate counselling, placement and training facilities to enable them to enter or re-enter employment after comparatively long absences, owing, in particular, to family responsibilities.

5. The first International Women's Year (1975) presented the occasion to develop a more broadly based and coherent approach to the question of equality between women and men. Following a general discussion on Equality for women workers in 1975, the International Labour Conference adopted a Declaration and two resolutions which for the first time, treat together -- and therefore underline the necessity of viewing as intrinsically interconnected -- all of the questions, principles and measures concerning equality of opportunity and treatment for women in the realm of labour. (Endnote 2) Each of these instruments stress that the promotion of equality of opportunity and treatment between men and women should be the main objective of all ILO activities relating to women. Regarding ILO standards dealing with the protection of women at work, the Conference stated the principle which is now the basis of the standard-setting activities of the ILO in respect of women, that is, that women should "be protected from risks inherent in their employment and occupation on the same basis and with the same standards of protection as men, in the light of advances in scientific and technological knowledge". (Endnote 3)

6. The emphasis has thus shifted from the protection of women to the promotion of their employment prospects and more lately, to an insistence that equality implies according equal opportunities and treatment to women and men in all respects including coverage by protective legislation.

7. Though these changes have been quite marked, as is shown by the revision in 1990 of the Night Work (Women) Convention (Revised), 1948 (No. 89), and the adoption in 1990 of the new Night Work Convention (No. 171) and Recommendation (No. 178), which protect both men and women, it is crucial to note that throughout this period of evolution, no derogation has ever been made from the ILO's concern with providing women with an adequate standard of maternity protection and benefits. While pregnancy, confinement and breast feeding are uniquely, biologically, a woman's province, reproduction is itself a social function which should be protected by society. This was reaffirmed in the 1975 Declaration, which recommended that all women workers be entitled to full maternity protection, in line with the relevant ILO standards, and called for special protection for women in those types of work "proved to be harmful to them from the standpoint of their social function of reproduction". Consequently, with a view to ensuring the protection of women workers and in order to secure, as far as possible, the health and well-being of the unborn and newly born child, action has been taken through seminars and the provision of technical advisory services to encourage the ratification and implementation of the provisions of the two relevant Conventions -- the Maternity Protection Convention, 1919 (No. 3), and the Maternity Protection Convention (Revised), 1952 (No. 103) -- and to promote acceptance of the provisions of the Maternity Protection (Agriculture) Recommendation, 1921 (No. 12) and the Maternity Protection Recommendation, 1952 (No. 95).

8. While the benefits afforded by these instruments are obviously directly applicable only to women workers, it is important to note that the International Labour Conference has also taken account of the dangers affecting the reproductive capacity of men, by making explicit the need to extend special protection to women and men for types of work proved to be harmful for them, particularly from the standpoint of their social function of reproduction. (Endnote 4)

9. The appreciation that equality of opportunity and treatment can be achieved only through improving general conditions of work for all workers, women and men, led the 1975 International Labour Conference to invite the Governing Body "on the basis of the reports under article 19 of the Constitution to be supplied by member States in 1977 on the Employment (Women with Family Responsibilities) Recommendation, 1965 (No. 123), to place on the agenda of the earliest possible session of the International Labour Conference the question of workers with family responsibilities, with a view to the adoption of a new instrument". (Endnote 5) During the 1975 Conference general discussion, it had been pointed out that any change in the traditional role of women should be accompanied by a change in the traditional role of men, which should be reflected in their greater participation in family life and in household duties. It was considered that Recommendation No. 123, however, perpetuated the notion that such responsibilities should fall only on women. The Governing Body, at its 198th Session (November 1975), requested the Director-General to take account of this resolution (and of the general survey on the application of Recommendation No. 123, which was due to be presented to the 64th Session of the International Labour Conference, 1978) when drawing up proposals for the agenda of future sessions of the Conference.

10. Accordingly, in reviewing the reports submitted by governments concerning the application of Recommendation No. 123, the Committee of Experts was particularly attentive to all comments bearing on the modifications which might be introduced to the Recommendation. The point most frequently made in this regard was that Recommendation No. 123 was no longer in line with present-day views on the role of women in society: it was based on the belief that women had a greater responsibility towards their families than did men and that special measures were therefore needed to assist women in meeting these responsibilities as well as those arising out of their work. Modern thinking, though, dictated that men and women should have equal responsibilities towards their children and other family obligations and consequently, that all services and arrangements developed in this respect should be available equally to men and women. It was also pointed out that this was in the interests of male workers (particularly when they carried out family responsibilities alone); and that it eliminated a possible source of discrimination against women in cases where the arrangements in question were liable to involve employers in additional costs or inconvenience so that they hesitated to employ women workers with family responsibilities. (Endnote 6)

11. In these circumstances, the Governing Body decided, at its 208th (November 1978) Session, to include in the agenda of the 66th (1980) Session of the Conference, an item entitled "Equal opportunities and equal treatment for men and women workers: Workers with family responsibilities", with a view to the adoption of an instrument or instruments. In 1981, the Conference adopted the Workers with Family Responsibilities Convention (No. 156) and Recommendation (No. 165).

12. Since the adoption of Convention No. 156 and Recommendation No. 165, emphasis has consistently been placed, in resolutions adopted by the International Labour Conference and in the activities of the International Labour Office, on equality for workers with family responsibilities as a priority area for action. The Office has carried out a number of promotional activities, including the organization of meetings of experts and of seminars in different regions, designed to stimulate a better understanding of the importance of including the principles of these standards in national efforts to promote equality of opportunity and treatment for men and women in employment. Technical advisory services have also been provided to ILO constituents with a view to encouraging them to develop measures to implement the major requirements of the instruments. These efforts have been strengthened by the collection and dissemination of material, as for example, through the publication of a special issue of the Conditions of Work Digest on child care. A study is also under way of arrangements in selected industrialized countries that enable workers to reconcile employment with the provision of care to elderly family members. Among promotional measures to be taken in the forthcoming biennium 1994-95, the Office intends to prepare a publication containing illustrations of the enterprise-level benefits, with an emphasis on comprehensive, dynamic packages of benefits which permit individualized responses to the many dimensions of employees' family needs.

Activities of the United Nations and other organizations

13. A number of United Nations instruments emphasize the need for measures to be taken in a way consistent with the spirit of the ILO Convention No. 156 and Recommendation No. 165. Most notable is the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, which was adopted in 1979 and came into force in 1981. The Convention calls for the adoption of measures to ensure "... the recognition of the common responsibility of men and women in the upbringing and development of their children ..." (Article 5(b)), and requires States Parties to "encourage the provision of the necessary supporting social services to enable parents to combine family obligations with work responsibilities and participation in public life, in particular through promoting the establishment and development of a network of child-care facilities" (Article 11.2(c)).

14. The European Community has also placed emphasis on the development of measures to enable women and men to reconcile their occupational and family obligations. A 1976 Directive of the Council of Ministers of the European Community (Endnote 7) on the implementation of the principle of equal treatment for men and women as regards access to employment, vocational training and promotion, and working conditions provides that "... the principle of equal treatment shall mean that there shall be no discrimination whatsoever on grounds of sex either directly or indirectly by reference in particular to marital or family status". A proposal for a Council Directive on parental leave and leave for family reasons (Endnote 8) which the Council has been unable to approve, was presented in the context of the Community's first action programme on equal opportunities (1982-85). One of the key issues to be addressed by the Commission of the European Communities under its Third Action Programme on Equal Opportunities (1991-1995) is the integration of women in the labour force. The implementation and development of measures to improve the reconciliation between work and family responsibilities for women and men has been defined as a priority objective in this regard. The importance attached by the European Community to the principles contained in Convention No. 156 and Recommendation No. 165 is further reflected in the Community Charter of the Fundamental Social Rights of Workers. The Charter, adopted by the Heads of State or Governments of 11 Member States of the European Community on 9 December 1989, lays down the broad principles on which European labour law should be modelled. The instrument is based on texts such as the Social Charter of the Council of Europe and international labour Conventions. Paragraph 16 of the Charter, which relates to equal treatment for men and women, provides that measures should be "developed enabling men and women to reconcile their occupational and family obligations".

Contents of the Convention and the Recommendation

15. The Workers with Family Responsibilities Convention (No. 156) and Recommendation (No. 165) apply to men and women with responsibilities in relation to their dependent children and to other members of their immediate family who clearly need their care and support. They cover all branches of economic activity and all categories of workers. Their provisions may be applied by stages, if necessary, provided that such measures of implementation as are taken shall apply in any case to all the workers with responsibilities in relation to their dependent children.

16. States which have ratified the Convention undertake to make it an aim of national policy to enable persons with family responsibilities to exercise their right to obtain or engage in employment without being subject to discrimination and, to the extent possible, without conflict between their employment and family responsibilities.

17. The Convention provides that all measures compatible with national conditions and possibilities shall be taken: to enable workers with family responsibilities to exercise their right to free choice of employment; to take account of their needs in terms and conditions of employment and in social security, as well as in community planning; to develop or promote community services, public or private, such as child-care and family services and facilities; and, through vocational guidance and training, to enable workers with family responsibilities to become and remain integrated in the labour force and to re-enter the labour force after an absence due to these responsibilities. Appropriate measures shall also be taken to promote information and education which engender broader public understanding of the principle of equality of opportunity and treatment for men and women workers and of the problems of workers with family responsibilities. Family responsibilities, as such, shall not constitute a valid reason for termination of employment.

18. The Recommendation spells out concrete measures that are suggested in the framework of the national policy called for by the Convention to avoid discrimination against workers with family responsibilities and to enable them to combine work and family responsibilities. These measures relate to training and employment; terms and conditions of employment; child-care and family services and facilities; social security; and help in the exercise of family responsibilities. The Recommendation supersedes the Employment (Women with Family Responsibilities) Recommendation, 1965 (No. 123).

Available information and arrangement of the survey

19. Convention No. 156 has been ratified by 19 member States. Through the reports on the Convention submitted by both ratifying and non-ratifying States and the reports on the Recommendation, information has been made available concerning 71 States and 11 Territories. Appendix II contains a table showing the reports received. The reports from certain countries contained detailed information on the measures being taken or envisaged to implement the provisions of the Convention and the Recommendation and many examples quoted in this survey have therefore been drawn from these reports. The Committee wishes to emphasize, though, that particular examples have been cited to illustrate the different approaches that may be taken to apply various provisions of the instruments. For this reason, the report does not provide an exhaustive list of all the measures taken in different countries that give effect to the Convention and Recommendation.

20. The Committee has also examined the comments made by a number of employers' and workers' organizations on their government's reports. Where appropriate, it has also had occasion to refer to reports furnished by governments, under articles 22 and 35 of the ILO Constitution, on the application of the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111). In addition, in accordance with its usual practice, the Committee has, in some cases, sought to supplement the information available with research into legislation, official documents and other appropriate sources.

21. In the following chapters, the Committee has outlined the main requirements of the instruments (the texts of which are set out in Appendix I), including their scope of application and the definitions used, on the basis of the studies that preceded them or from the discussions that took place during the Conference sessions leading to their adoption (Chapter I), before examining the means by which member States have formulated, implemented and evaluated national policies to give effect to their provisions (Chapter II), the measures taken in the fields of training and employment to assure equality for workers with family responsibilities (Chapter III), the adaptation of terms and conditions of employment, including social security, to enable workers to reconcile their work and family responsibilities (Chapter IV), and specific provisions regarding care for children and other family members (Chapter V). The last chapter of the survey (Chapter VI) is devoted to a discussion of the prospects for further ratification of the Convention. A final section contains the general conclusions and observations the Committee has thought it appropriate to make in order to encourage the understanding and therefore the acceptance of the objectives of these standards.

Endnotes

Endnote 2

Endnote 3

Endnote 4

Endnote 5

Endnote 6

Endnote 7

Endnote 8

Cross references
Constitution: Article 19
Constitution: Article 22
Constitution: Article 35
Conventions: C003 Maternity Protection Convention, 1919
Conventions: C012 Workmen's Compensation (Agriculture) Convention, 1921
Conventions: C089 Night Work (Women) Convention Revised), 1948
Conventions: P089 Protocol of 1990 to the Night Work (Women) Convention (Revised), 1948
Conventions: C095 Protection of Wages Convention, 1949
Conventions: C100 Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951
Conventions: C103 Maternity Protection Convention Revised), 1952
Conventions: C111 Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958
Conventions: C171 Night Work Convention, 1990
Recommendations:R012 Maternity Protection (Agriculture) Recommendation, 1921
Recommendations:R090 Equal Remuneration Recommendation, 1951
Recommendations:R095 Maternity Protection Recommendation, 1952
Recommendations:R111 Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Recommendation, 1958
Recommendations:R123 Employment (Women with Family Responsibilities) Recommendation, 1965
Recommendations:R178 Night Work Recommendation, 1990