Pejudice still blocks women, minorities: ILO

Geneva, May 12: The most blatant discrimination in the workplace has faded in many nations, but prejudice continues to stop most women, ethnic minorities and other groups from realising their potential, the UN labour agency said on Monday.
Releasing a report titled “Time for Equality at Work,'' the International Labour Organisation said most governments worldwide have recognised that discrimination -- especially on grounds of race and gender -- is a problem that creates barriers to employment.

“Formal condemnation of discrimination is virtually universal, and action to stop discrimination at work has been taken in many places,'' said ILO chief Juan Somavia.

The 136-page study cites decades of lawmaking in North America and Europe and more recent anti-discrimination rules in developing countries such as India or post-apartheid South Africa.

“Still, discrimination remains a constantly evolving moving target,' and we have a long way to go on the road to equality,'' said Somavia.

ILO expert Manuela Tomei, the report's main author, told reporters, “Nobody has been able to measure discrimination directly.''

She said she relied on “proxies for discrimination,'' like varying income levels of different groups. The report draws on government data and cites research by the World Bank, anti-discrimination organisations and universities.