Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2013, published 103rd ILC session (2014)

Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) - Germany (Ratification: 1961)

Other comments on C111

Observation

Direct Request

Display in: French - SpanishView all

The Federal Anti-Discrimination Agency. The Committee notes from the expert reports commissioned under the Filling Gaps research project that among persons with a migrant background, those from Islamic communities reported the highest levels of discrimination. The Committee also notes from the expert reports that persons with disabilities continue to face significant challenges regarding access to the job market. The Government indicates that on the basis of these reports, the Federal Anti-Discrimination Agency (FADA) has established the Anti-Discrimination Networks support programme in order to provide advice to those affected by discrimination. The Government also indicates that as of April 2013, the FADA had received 9,300 queries related to the grounds of discrimination in the Equal Treatment Act. Of these requests for advice, 27 per cent concerned discrimination on the basis of disability, while discrimination on the grounds of ethnicity/race, gender and age, each comprised 23 per cent of the queries. The Committee asks the Government to continue providing information on the FADA’s activities, including statistical data on individual queries and cases. The Committee also requests information on steps taken to strengthen the FADA’s operational capacity in all 16 Länder, and asks the Government to consider expanding the FADA’s mandate to include the investigation and filing of complaints in court.

Equality of opportunity and treatment of men and women. The Government indicates that the Women on Board index collects data regarding the number of women on the supervisory boards of 160 public companies. The Committee notes that from 2010 to 2013, the percentage of women on supervisory boards rose from 13 to 21 per cent. The Government indicates that as part of the Women Shareholders Call for Equality project, members of the German Women Lawyers’ Association visit shareholders’ meetings of large public companies in order to obtain information about the advancement of women in the company. The Committee also notes the findings of the Fraunhofer Institute’s study on women’s career breaks, which showed that an overall shift in corporate culture is necessary to increase women’s representation in leadership positions, and that efforts to change the corporate culture should target both women and men. While noting these efforts, the Committee recalls that the UN Human Rights Committee expressed concern at the low representation of women in decision making positions in the private sector (CCPR/C/DEU/CO/6, October 2012, paragraph 8). The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on measures taken to increase women’s representation in leadership positions in the private sector. The Committee also requests information on steps taken to combat gender stereotypes regarding women’s career aspirations and capabilities which contribute to their under-representation in leadership positions.

Reconciliation of work and family responsibilities. New legislation. The Committee notes the adoption of the Family Care Time and Flexible Retirement for Civil Servants of the Federal Government Act (BGBI No. 35 of 10 July 2013) which provides civil servants with the same benefits provided for in the Family Care Time Act. The law allows civil servants to apply for part-time work for a maximum of 48 months, during which period an advance payment is made to the employee by the employer. Upon return to full-time work, the employee continues to receive the salary paid during family leave in order to gradually reimburse the wage advance which was granted. With regard to the Family Care Time Act, the Government indicates that it applies to all enterprises. While the Government states that it does not have comprehensive statistics on the number of employees who have elected to take family care time, it reports that as of 27 June 2013, 213 applications for family care time loans or inclusion in group insurance had been submitted by employers. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the procedure for granting family care time with a view to ensuring that applications are considered using objective and non-discriminatory criteria. The Committee also requests information on awareness-raising activities which aim to combat the stereotyped assumption that the main responsibility for family care lies with women. Please also provide the results of the studies on the impact of the Family Care Time Act once they are available.

Depersonalized job application process. The Committee notes with interest that between November 2010 and February 2012, the FADA instituted a pilot programme in which five enterprises and three public sector employers depersonalized their job application processes with a view to increasing fairness in the selection of applicants by withholding the applicant’s photograph, name, date of birth and marital status until a decision had been made on whether to invite the candidate for an interview. The Government indicates that the results of the pilot programme were overwhelmingly positive, with women and persons with a migrant background benefiting in particular. The Government also indicates that following the end of the programme, four of the eight project partners continued the project voluntarily, and that the FADA has published an employers’ guide on implementation of the programme. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the development of the depersonalized job application project in the public and private sectors, including statistics on the applicants selected through these processes, disaggregated by sex and national extraction.

Equality of opportunity and treatment irrespective of race, colour or national extraction. The Committee notes that out of 1,461 decisions issued for recognition of foreign qualifications for unregulated skilled occupations under the Recognition Act, 65.7 per cent of the applications were awarded full equivalence, 30.6 per cent were awarded partial equivalence and 3.7 per cent were rejected. Regarding the National Action Plan for Integration, the Government indicates that strategic goals and compulsory targets were set with the aim of increasing employment of persons with a migrant background. These goals include increasing qualifications and competencies of persons with a migrant background, promoting intercultural sensitization measures and improving workplace integration. The Government also indicates that between 2012 and 2014, 113 projects will be sponsored under XENOS with the aim of improving access for youth with a migrant background to education and employment. The Committee notes that the federal government representative for migration, refugees and integration was added as a partner to the training pact in order to address the issue of vocational integration for young people with a migrant background. The Committee asks the Government to continue providing information on specific measures taken to ensure that persons with a migrant background have improved access to education and employment opportunities, including through affirmative action measures. The Committee also requests the Government to provide specific information on the content of the projects sponsored under XENOS and the status of their implementation.