Observation (CEACR) - adoptée 2002, publiée 91ème session CIT (2003)

1. The Committee notes the detailed information contained in the Government’s report. It notes the comments attached to the report by the Commission for Local Authority Employers (KT) and the Confederation of Unions of Academic Professionals in Finland (AKAVA). It also notes the information attached to the report by the Confederation of Finnish Industry, the Employers’ Confederation of Service Industries in Finland, and the Central Organization of Finnish Trade Unions on their activities undertaken to promote equality in the areas of collective bargaining and enterprise management. The Committee will consider the issues concerning equal pay and the equality allowance under Convention No. 100.

2. The Committee notes the adoption on 11 June 1999 of a new Constitution, which entered into force on 1 March 2000. It notes that article 6(2) provides that "no one shall, without an acceptable reason, be treated differently from other persons on the grounds of sex, age, origin, language, religion, conviction, opinion, health, disability or any other reason that concerns his or her person", which is in accordance with Article 1 of the Convention. It notes that article 6(4) states that "equality of the sexes shall be promoted in societal activity and working life, especially in the determination of pay and the other terms of employment, as provided in more detail by an Act". The Committee also notes the adoption on 2 February 2001 of a new Employment Contracts Act (Act No. 55 of 2001), which entered into force on 1 June 2001, replacing Act No. 320 of 1970. It notes that Chapter 2, section 2, provides that "an employer may not without reasonable grounds treat a worker differently due to age, state of health, national or ethnic origin, sexual orientation, language, religion, opinion, family relations, trade union activities, political activities or any other comparable condition". It further notes the Act respecting equality between men and women (Act No. 609 of 1986) was amended on 24 January 2001 to strengthen provisions prohibiting discrimination based on sex. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the application and enforcement of the newly adopted provisions on the elimination of discrimination in practice.

3. Further to its previous comments, the Committee notes the repeated concern expressed by the AKAVA that sex discrimination in fixed-term employment relationships is still a serious problem and that such jobs are most commonly to be found in the public sector, among young, highly educated women. AKAVA states that 85 per cent of its women members below 30 years of age working for the Government are in fixed-term employment relationships. It also states that the salaries of fixed-term employees are on average much lower than those of permanent employees, and that women’s careers suffer from this. AKAVA states that it seems that fixed-term jobs are used deliberately to circumvent job security and to keep down the costs employers have to bear due to family leave.

4. The Committee notes the comments by the Commission for KT, in which it states that the claim made by AKAVA - that employers do not want to take on women of childbearing age - requires confirmation through much more detailed analyses. It considers that fixed-term jobs among women specifically derive from the fact that people are needed to replace workers who are on maternity, parental and care leave. KT states that in fields of employment in which men predominate, leave other than parental leave is taken very much less than in fields of employment in which women predominate and thus there are nowhere near as many replacements needed in the former as in the latter. Noting the various measures taken by the Government to study, analyse and address inequalities in the labour market, the Committee would be grateful if the Government would address the issues raised above concerning discrimination in employment against women of childbearing age and provide information with its next report.

5. Further to previous comments the Committee thanks the Government for the information provided on the procedures and enforcement actions to protect workers against retaliation for making complaints of discrimination. Please continue to provide practical information on the application of the prohibition of retaliation.

The Committee is raising other points in a request addressed directly to the Government.