CEDAW concluding observations 2019, paragraph 44
Plain English recommendation
Government should: (a) Take action to increase the number of women in decision-making roles in the workplace and reduce women’s over-representation in particular sectors, including by making it easier for women to access apprenticeships in areas where they are underrepresented. (b) Discourage the use of zero-hours contracts and increase opportunities for women to take up secure employment. (c) Implement the law on mandatory gender pay gap reporting in Northern Ireland. (d) Encourage employers to publish further information about their gender pay gap to better understand the reasons behind it and what they are doing to reduce it. (e) Make it mandatory for employers to take steps to protect women from sexual harassment in the workplace. (f) take specific steps to improve access to work for women from marginalised groups, such as ethnic minority and disabled women, to increase their employment rate and reduce their over-representation in low-paid jobs.
Original UN recommendation
The Committee recommends that the State party: (a) Continue to take proactive and specific measures to increase the representation of women in decision-making positions in the workplace and decrease the horizontal occupational segregation of men and women, including by increasing women’s access to apprenticeships in fields where they are underrepresented. (b) Take measures to increase opportunities for women to access formal and secure employment and discourage the use by employers of zero-hour contracts. (c) Ensure that the provisions regarding mandatory pay gap reporting in the Employment Act (Northern Ireland) 2016 is brought into effect in Northern Ireland. (d) Encourage employers to publish a narrative with their gender pay gap data to understand the reasons behind the gender pay gap and to take appropriate remedial measures. (e) Introduce a mandatory duty on employers to take reasonable steps to protect women from sexual harassment in the workplace. (f) Adopt specific measures, including temporary special measures, to facilitate the access of women from marginalized groups, such as “Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic” women and women with disabilities to the labour market in order to increase their employment rate and alleviate their concentration in low-paid jobs.
Date of UN examination
26/02/2019
UN article number
11 (work and employment)
Original UN document
Download the CEDAW concluding observations 2019 on the UN website