Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Pre-sessional working group

List of issues in relation to the fifth periodic report of Norway (E/C.12/NOR/5), adopted by the pre-sessional working group at its fifty-first session (21-24 May 2013)

I.General information

Please provide updated information on the work of the commission appointed by parliament to examine the position of human rights in the Constitution, including on relevant recommendations.

Please provide information on cases in which the rights of the Covenant have been invoked before and/or applied by domestic courts in the State party.

II.Issues relating tothe general provisions of the Covenant (arts. 1-5)

Article 2 paragraph 2 - Non-discrimination

Please provide information on steps taken to combat and prevent discrimination against migrants, persons from a migrant background, asylum seekers and refugees with regard to access to housing, employment and public health-care services. Please also provide information on the results of the implementation of the Action Plan to Promote Equality and Prevent Ethnic Discrimination 2009-2012, as well as the Action Plan for Integration and Social Inclusion of the Immigrant Population.

Please provide information on steps taken to prevent and combat discrimination against Roma and Romani/Taters, in particular regarding their access to employment, housing and education.

III.Issues relating to the specific provisions of the Covenant (arts. 6-15)

Article 6 - The right to work

Please provide information on steps taken to improve the retraining and reintegration of long-term unemployed persons.

Please provide information on steps taken to address the high and growing unemployment rate for women from ethnic or minority communities and to improve their access to, and participation in, the labour market.

Article 7 - The right to just and favourable conditions of work

Please clarify whether the State party plans to introduce a national minimum wage, and if so, when.

Please clarify whether the Working Environment Act of 2005 allows for overtime that results in total working hours up to 16 hours in a 24 hour period. Please also provide information on breaches of working time regulations identified by the Labour Inspection Authority, as well as penalties imposed.

Please provide information on steps taken to address the persisting gender pay gap and to ensure the implementation of legislation guaranteeing equal pay for work of equal value.

Please provide information on the legislative framework regulating occupational health and safety in the shipping, fishing and offshore petroleum sectors, as well as measures taken to address and prevent work-related accidents in those sectors.

Article 9 - The right to social security

Please clarify whether the amount of child allowances constitutes an adequate income supplement and provides sufficient support to families to meet child-related expenses, in particular for single-parent families and families in difficult economic situations.

Please clarify whatsteps are taken to ensure that the new pension system does not result in indirect discrimination against women due to pension calculation based on the total number of years that a person has worked.

Please clarify whether the level of social assistance benefit that is paid to individuals in need, who are not participants in the “individual qualification programme”, is sufficient for a decent standard of living above the poverty threshold.

Article 10 - Protection of the family, mothers and children

Please provide information on steps taken to implement the 2010 Plan of Action against Human Trafficking, as well as its impact on the reduction in the occurrence of trafficking in persons, in particular girls.

Please provide information on the 2012 Plan of Action to Combat Domestic Violence, steps taken to implement it, as well as measures adopted to identify and address the root causes of violence against women and children. Please clarify whether the State party plans to establish a comprehensive law on prevention of violence against women. Please also provide information on steps taken to strengthen the capacity of shelters and crisis centres and ensure that all such centres are accessible to women with disabilities.

Please provide information on steps taken to address the increase in the number of children that are removed from family care due to the incapacity of that family to provide adequate care and support to their children. Please also provide information on measures taken to ensure an effective and continuing monitoring and follow-up for children in foster families or homes.

Article 11 - The right to an adequate standard of living

Please provide updated information on poverty levels in the State party and the impact of steps taken, such as the Action Plan against Poverty, targeted at those groups that are more likely to live below the poverty line, including immigrant families.

Please provide information on steps taken to provide social housing to disadvantaged and marginalized groups and individuals. Please also clarify whether the State party will take steps to ensure the collection of data, on an annual basis, on the demand for social housing and the average waiting time.

Article 12 - The right to physical and mental health

Please provide information on measures taken to improve the availability of professional interpreters in the health sector so as to ensure accessibility to public health-care services by the Sami people, members of minority communities, as well as non-citizens.

Please provide information on steps taken to improve the accessibility to, and availability of, public health-care services in remote and rural areas, in particular for Sami women.

Please clarify which steps have been taken to address the persisting high level of drug and alcohol abuse among young people.

Please provide information on measures taken to ensure that prisoners with mental health problems receive adequate mental health care.

Articles 13 and 14 - The right to education

Please provide information on steps taken to address the reportedly significant discrepancies between municipalities in the quality of education as well as student performance.

Please provide information on the impact of steps taken to address the high dropout rate of students with an immigrant background, including from secondary education.

Please provide information on steps taken to combat and prevent bullying in schools, in particular against children from minority communities.

Please indicate which steps have been taken, in particular at the municipal levels, to integrate children with disabilities into the mainstream school system.

Article 15 - Cultural rights

Please provide information on steps taken to ensure mother-tongue teaching of the Sami people, including through the allocation of adequate teaching materials and staffing. Please also provide information on steps taken to preserve and promote the traditional means of livelihood of the Sami people, such as reindeer grazing and fishing.