Publications on Equality and discrimination

March 2022

  1. ILO Working paper 55

    Costs and benefits of investing in transformative care policy packages: A macrosimulation study in 82 countries

    09 March 2022

December 2019

  1. Publication

    Maternity income protection in Southern and Eastern Africa. From concept to practice

    02 December 2019

    This publication is part of a collaboration of the ILO with the Eastern and Central Africa Social Security Association (ECASSA) to encourage the move from employer liability systems to social insurance based systems and to provide universal and comprehensive coverage.

August 2017

  1. Working Paper No. 1 / 2017

    Cash transfer programmes, poverty reduction and women’s economic empowerment: Experience from Mexico

    23 August 2017

    This working paper on cash transfers in Mexico presents the impact of a major national cash transfer programme on health, education, income, poverty, labour force participation, time use and bargaining power of women at the household and community level. Its results point to evidence that most of these gender-related interventions have focused on breaking the inter-generational cycle of poverty, particularly for disadvantaged girl children, but have been weaker in promoting women’s economic empowerment through employment or sustainable livelihoods. It also highlights the challenge of enhancing women’s economic empowerment with targeted actions aimed at reducing women’s time poverty and redistributing unpaid care responsibilities between women and men and between families and the State. This working paper is a joint publication of the Gender, Equality and Diversity Branch in the ILO Conditions of Work and Equality Department and the ILO Social Protection Department.

July 2016

  1. Social protection

    Study on maternity protection insurance in Sri Lanka

    01 July 2016

    When women are discriminated against due to their reproductive role or not provided maternity protection, and when workers with family responsibilities are not protected, societal impacts can be wide-ranging.

March 2015

  1. International Women’s Day 2015

    The motherhood pay gap: A review of the issues, theory and international evidence

    06 March 2015

    Evidence that mothers suffer a wage penalty over and above the penalty for being a woman raises concerns not only for gender equality but also for the capacity of societies to manage a sustainable balance between their economic aims of active female participation in paid work and the social aims of providing a fair distribution of income to support the reproduction and rearing of children. These concerns underpin ILO Conventions designed to combat inequality in women’s position in paid employment, especially associated with motherhood status.

  2. International Women’s Day 2015

    The motherhood pay gap: A review of the issues, theory and international evidence

    06 March 2015

    Evidence that mothers suffer a wage penalty over and above the penalty for being a woman raises concerns not only for gender equality but also for the capacity of societies to manage a sustainable balance between their economic aims of active female participation in paid work and the social aims of providing a fair distribution of income to support the reproduction and rearing of children. These concerns underpin ILO Conventions designed to combat inequality in women’s position in paid employment, especially associated with motherhood status.

December 2013

  1. Publication

    Cash transfer programmes, poverty reduction and empowerment of women: A comparative analysis

    23 December 2013

    This comparative analysis aims to help the ILO generate new thinking on ways to improve the impact of cash transfer programmes on women's poverty alleviation and economic empowerment. Key findings relate to selected cash transfer programmes from five countries: Brazil, Chile, India, Mexico and South Africa.

July 2013

  1. Domestic Work Policy Brief no. 6

    “Meeting the needs of my family too”: Maternity protection and work-family measures for domestic workers

    01 July 2013

    This document is part of a series of briefs on issues and approaches to promoting decent work for domestic workers.

November 2012

  1. Comparative study

    Good practices and challenges on the Maternity Protection Convention, 2000 (No. 183) and the Workers with Family Responsibilities Convention, 1981 (No. 156): A comparative study

    05 November 2012

    The working paper presents ten national case studies on Conventions No. 183 and 156. It identifies opportunities for stepping up ratification and implementation of these Conventions, as requested in the 2009 International Labour Conference Resolution concerning gender equality at the heart of decent work. An annex contains an annotated bibliography of 150 relevant publications, making this a complete reference tool for policy-makers and practitioners.

April 2010

  1. Publication

    Maternity at work: A review of national legislation. Second edition

    30 April 2010

    This global report updates the current knowledge of the status and progress of maternity legislation around the world, providing a comprehensive review of national legislative provisions for maternity protection in 167 member States, with a particular focus on how well countries' provisions conform to the ILO Maternity Protection Convention, 2000 (No. 183), and its accompanying Recommendation (No. 191).