A/HRC/34/29
women and their families out of poverty, and to support their inclusion in sectors
traditionally associated with men.
IV. Non-discrimination in the enjoyment of the right to just and
favourable working conditions
45.
Beyond equal access to opportunities, women’s equal right to work encompasses
equality of opportunity and treatment in the workplace. The right to just and favourable
conditions is the necessary corollary of the right to work that is freely chosen and
accepted. 24 In its general comment No. 23 (2016) on the right to just and favourable
conditions of work, the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights recalls that
States have an obligation to guarantee that women enjoy conditions of work not inferior to
those of men and receive equal pay for work of equal value. 25
A.
Non-discrimination in working conditions
46.
For women, non-discrimination encompasses the right to equal working conditions
as well as the right to differential treatment due to biological differences.
1.
Right to equal working conditions
47.
The right to equal working conditions is undermined for certain categories of female
workers, including due to the sectors they belong to. Domestic workers, the majority of
whom are girls or women, are among those most at risk of abuse, harassment and violence.
Their living and working conditions may be akin to slavery when they live with their
employers. Domestic work also falls outside the scope of the labour law in several
countries. Therefore there are no standards, at the country level, that spell out their working
conditions.
48.
The ILO Domestic Workers Convention, 2011 (No. 189) and Domestic Workers
Recommendation, 2011 (No. 201) provide guidance to States on measures to be taken to
protect the rights of domestic workers. On the basis of these instruments, several States
have started regulating domestic work and the operations of recruitment agencies. However
violations continue to be observed, as victims are often isolated and unable to seek
assistance. Treaty-monitoring bodies have expressed the view that domestic workers should
enjoy the same labour rights as other workers, in terms of health and safety at work, rest
and remuneration. 26 Any separate legislation should solely address their increased
vulnerability to abuses and not set specific conditions of work.
49.
Women working in manufacturing and other sectors in export-processing zones are
also vulnerable to violations of their labour rights. Often, in order to attract investors, States
adopt specific regimes for export-processing zones whereby labour law does not apply,
either partially or fully. Reports of low wages, long working hours, unpaid overtime, sexual
harassment and other forms of violence in export-processing zones are rife. States enforcing
such regimes fail in their obligation to protect the right to just and favourable conditions of
work and the right to non-discrimination.
24
25
26
10
See Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights general comment No. 23 (2016) on the right
to just and favourable conditions of work, para. 1.
Ibid., para. 54.
See, for example, CEDAW/C/BRA/CO/7, para. 12; and CEDAW/C/AND/CO/2-3, para. 30.
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