1. État, peuple, Authorities » 15. Fundamental Rights (GIG)

The present law aims to

a) Enact the implementing provisions of the federal law on equality between women and men;

b) Define the mission and duties of the delegate for equality between women and men;

c) Promote equality between women and men, particularly in terms of pay equity.

The terms used in this law to refer to persons apply equally to women and men.

1 The State creates a position of Delegate for Equality between Women and Men (hereinafter: "the Equality Delegate").

2 The Equality Delegate assumes the role defined in Article 44 of the Cantonal Constitution.

1 The appointed person for equality encourages the achievement of gender equality in all areas and works to eliminate all forms of direct or indirect discrimination.

2 To this end, they shall perform the following tasks, in particular

a) advise authorities and individuals, including persons who are victims of discrimination, on matters of equality between women and men;

b) participate in the drafting of legislation for the Canton and, where necessary, the municipalities, ensuring the elimination of all forms of discrimination in the legislation;

c) inform the public, provide or even organize training activities, and implement awareness campaigns;

d) conduct studies, if necessary, and issue recommendations to the authorities and individuals;

e) gather and maintain specific documentation on equality issues;

f) participate, if necessary, in projects of cantonal, inter-Jura, intercantonal, national or international interest.

In order to fulfill its mission and tasks, the delegated person for equality is granted the following powers and competencies

a) to make proposals aimed at realizing the principle of equality for the attention of the Government and departments;

b) to collaborate with administrative units that deal with issues relating to equality between women and men;

c) to participate in the development of projects concerning equality issues;

d) to conduct investigations and research necessary to carry out its tasks;

e) to support the activities of associations that advocate for the principle of equality;

f) to encourage balanced representation of women and men in politics;

g) to give preliminary advice on items related to equality issues on the agenda of the Government and Parliament.

1 The Attachment of the Delegate for Equality is governed by the decree on the organization of the Government and the cantonal administration.

2 An intercantonal collaboration is reserved.

1 Members of the commissions and working groups of the cantonal administration are selected in such a way that gender equality is respected.

2 The proportion of women and men in each of these bodies must, in principle, be at least 40% and at most 60%.

3 Exceptions are made in cases where it is not possible to comply with the quotas provided for in paragraph 2 for one of the following reasons

a) a legal provision or the decree establishing the commission or working group assigns membership to one of these bodies to a person holding a specific position within the cantonal administration, a municipality, an association of municipalities, or a parastatal institution;

b) membership of a commission or working group must be assigned to individuals who have the specific technical and/or professional expertise necessary for fulfilling the mandate of the relevant body.

4 The implementation of the rules contained in this article must not hinder or delay the appointment of the commissions and working groups of the cantonal administration.

Once per legislative term, the Government submits a report to Parliament specifying the proportion of women and men in each committee and working group and, if applicable, the reasons why the quotas set forth in Article 5a, paragraph 2, could not be met.

1 Any suspicion of non-compliance with gender equality in employment relations, particularly regarding salaries, may be reported to the Equality Officer.

2 The Equality Officer may advise the person who reported the situation.

3 The officer maintains an updated list of the number of reported cases, which is submitted annually to the Department of Economy and Employment.

1 Employers who have a workforce of at least 50 workers at the beginning of a year must internally conduct a pay equality analysis for that same year. Apprentices are not included in this workforce count.

2 Furthermore, Articles 13a and following of the Federal Act on Gender Equality apply.

The Government regulates, by way of ordinance, the methods for verifying the analysis of salary equality concerning

a) the staff of the cantonal administration;

b) the staff of autonomous public law establishments employing at least 50 workers; apprentices are not counted in this number;

c) the staff of municipalities employing at least 50 workers; apprentices are not counted in this number.

**1 Employers with fewer than 50 employees may conduct a pay equality analysis using a standard tool provided by the Confederation.**

2 They may have the analysis verified in accordance with Articles 13a et seq. of the Federal Act on Gender Equality.

3 The verification report of the pay equality analysis may be submitted by the employer in the course of a public procurement procedure or a request for the granting of subsidies.

4 The validity period of the verification of the pay equality analysis is six years.

1 A permanent equality commission (hereinafter referred to as: "commission") is established.

2 It consists of a maximum of twelve members.

3 ...

4 The presidency is held by the person delegated for equality, who is an ex officio member.

1 The Government appoints the members of the commission.

2 The term of office corresponds to the legislature. The mandate is renewable once.

1. The commission advises and supports the equality delegate in their activities.

2. It may provide its opinion on the definition of the objectives to be achieved by the equality delegate; it participates in achieving these objectives through working groups it establishes within itself.

3. It provides preliminary opinions on all matters submitted to it and may express itself on other topics concerning its mission.

1 For the remainder, the organization and functioning of the commission shall be established by regulations subject to the approval of the Government.

2 The regulations shall notably specify

a) the composition and representation;

b) the tasks;

c) the internal organization;

d) the operational procedures, including the secretariat.

The Code of Administrative Procedure is amended as follows

Article 138, paragraphs 2 and 3

...

Article 153, paragraph 2

...

Article 163, letter c

...

The Government shall, by ordinance, set the date by which the employers referred to in Article 5d must have conducted the first pay equality analysis.

This law is subject to an optional referendum.

The Government establishes the entry into force of this law.