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

Further to its observation, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the following matters.

1. Sexual harassment. The Committee notes that according to the information supplied by the Government, section 216-A of the Penal Code which punishes sexual harassment may be vetoed by the President when the harassment arises from domestic relations or a relationship of cohabitation or hospitality, and in the event of breach of the duties inherent in employment and occupation. The Committee notes that the Ministry of Justice has indicated that the veto is in breach of the system of penalties established by the Penal Code and confers undue advantage on perpetrators of this offence. The Committee requests the Government to consider amending this provision or adopting new legislation to take account of the elements set out in the general observation of 2002 on sexual harassment. The Committee notes from the statistics provided by the Government in its report that the units established to promote equal opportunities and combat discrimination processed 26 and 22 cases of sexual harassment in 2001 and 2002 respectively, which reflects an increase in the number of complaints in view of the fact that only two were filed in 2000. A report of the Ministry of Agrarian Development and the National Institute for Agrarian Settlement and Reform, produced in the context of the Affirmative Action Programme, shows that 52 per cent of economically active women have suffered some form of sexual harassment. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would continue to supply information on the processing of such cases by the abovementioned units, and on the practical effect given to new section 216-A of the Penal Code concerning sexual harassment.

2. Discrimination on grounds of race, colour and sex. The Committee notes the information supplied by the Inter-American Trade Union Institute for Racial Equality (INSPIR) indicating that for more than two years the Government has shown no inclination to use the tripartite Working Group for the Elimination of Discrimination in Employment and Occupation (GTEDEO) as an instrument for promoting application of the Convention, and that the employer members of the GTEDEO have not attended. The Committee notes the Government’s reply that the "Brazil, Gender and Race Programme", by establishing units (Núcleos), to promote equal opportunities and combat discrimination, is meeting the objectives of the GTEDEO and that the results of the abovementioned Working Group will be submitted in the near future. The Committee trusts that the Government will be in a position to provide details in its next report of the GTEDEO’s activities and the results it has attained in eliminating discrimination in employment and occupation, particularly discrimination on the grounds of race, colour and sex.

3. The Committee notes with interest the content of the reports sent with the Government’s report concerning the measures implemented in the rural sector by the Ministry of Agrarian Development and the National Institute for Agrarian Settlement and Reform, in the context of the Affirmative Action Programme, to redress the inequality affecting the black and indigenous populations in this sector, with a particular focus on women. The Committee trusts that the Government will continue to supply information on the measures adopted or envisaged by both the above institutions in order to give effect to the provisions of the Convention.

4. The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government on the improvement of women’s status in education matters. Nevertheless, the Government acknowledges in its report that no progress has been made with regard to literacy among black women. The Committee trusts that the Government will provide information in its next report on the measures adopted or envisaged to encourage education and training for work for black and mulatto women workers and to provide them with opportunities to enter and advance in the labour market.

5. The Committee notes that measures have been taken for training in a number of states, including Rio de Janeiro, with a view to establishing quotas in state universities for Afro-Brazilian students. It notes that, according to the Government, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs grants study scholarships to Afro-Brazilian students to enable them to compete with others in training courses for the diplomatic services. The Committee repeats its request to the Government to supply information on the measures undertaken with the 20 per cent of the budget of the Worker’s Assistance Fund (FAT) which, according to the Government, was to be invested in occupational training for the black and mulatto populations.

6. With reference to its previous comments concerning Order No. 1740 of 26 October 1999, the Committee asks the Government to provide in its next report information on the inclusion of data on race and colour in the General Record of Employment and Unemployment (CAGED) and in the Annual Social Information Report (RAIS). It also requests the Government to take measures to raise awareness, among the public at large and among workers’ and employers’ organizations in particular, of the advisability of collecting such data, thus avoiding controversies of the kind that arose in connection with the abovementioned Order.

7. The Committee notes with interest that on 28 June 2002 Brazil ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), which recognizes the competence of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women to examine and monitor violations of the women’s rights enshrined in the above Convention.