ILO launches report on discrimination in the workplace

FAILURE TO tackle the widening socio-economic inequalities in the world of work not only amounts to accepting a waste of human talent and resources, but could have disastrous effects on national social cohesion, political stability and growth in years to come. This, according to the Inter-national Labour Organisation’s first global report on discrimination at work, which was launched today.

The report, which is the ILO’s most comprehensive study on the subject to date, states that while the more blatant forms of discrimination may have faded, it remains a persistent and daily part of the world of work or is taking on new, more subtle forms that are cause for growing concerns. The report, entitled “Time for equality at work,” was prepared under the ILO’s Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work and is expected to examine, for the first time, the state of discrimination in the world of work today. The reports states that “this may be the most challenging task of contemporary society, and is essential for social peace and democracy.”

The report shows that many of those who suffer from discrimination — especially on the basis of their sex or colour — face a persistent equality gap that divides them from dominant groups who enjoy a better life, or even their own peers who have benefited from anti-discrimination laws and policies. The report states that prejudice, stereotypes and biases are to be blamed for continuing discrimination that has resisted decades of legal efforts and policy measures against unequal treatment at work, enacted by governments, workers and employers.