OSCE/ODIHR Opinion on the Draft Federal Law on the Support to the National Human Rights Institution of Switzerland wages and benefit packages for its staff, especially professional expert staff, which may differ from those of the public service in general; 123 similar comments apply regarding rules on career advancement and human resources management.124 82. The Sub-Committee on Accreditation has also noted positively cases where NHRIs have adopted policies to promote greater gender balance, diversity and opportunities for advancement within their institutions.125 These include, for instance, measures to ensure equal opportunities for promotion, supporting professional development of underrepresented persons126 and human resource policies that take into consideration the needs of pregnant women and persons with parental and/or caretaking responsibilities, and that promote work-life balance for all employees, more broadly.127 Additionally, NHRIs should pay particular attention to special requirements for employees with disabilities, in line with Article 27 of the UN CRPD, and should ensure that its human resources policies128 accommodate such persons as far as reasonably possible. It is recommended to supplement the Draft Act accordingly, or to include references to other applicable legislation. 5.4. The Budget and Funding of the NHRI and its Premises and Infrastructure 83. Article 1 of the Draft Act provides that the Confederation may grant financial assistance to the NHRI, which takes the form of a contribution to its operating costs. Article 4 of the Draft Act further states that within the framework of its tasks, the NHRI provides, against payment, services to authorities and private persons. The Explanatory Statement to the Draft Act specifies that the estimated amount of the operating grant will be one million Swiss Francs per year129 (see also Sub-Section 6 infra), while noting that the underlying condition for granting this amount is the provision of paid services. which will allow the NHRI to earn additional funding resources.130 However, there is no guarantee that this level of funding will be maintained and it is rather unlikely that such an amount will be adequate to allow this body to fulfil its mandate as an NHRI in accordance with the Paris Principles.131 84. As it stands, the Draft Act does not seem to include the modalities by which to ensure the NHRI’s financial and operational autonomy, whereas proper, detailed statutory regulations concerning this institution’s budget are especially important for its independence. 85. The Paris Principles provide that an NHRI should be provided with “adequate funding” to ensure the smooth conduct of its activities and enable the institution to have its own staff and premises. General Observation 1.10 specifies that an appropriate level of funding also helps guarantee an NHRI’s independence and allows it to freely determine 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 ibid. page 152 (2010 UNDP-OHCHR Toolkit for Collaboration with National Human Rights Institutions). ibid. page 174 (2010 UNDP-OHCHR Toolkit for Collaboration with National Human Rights Institutions). Sub-Committee on Accreditation (SCA), Report and Recommendations of the Session (October 2014), page 17, <http://nhri.ohchr.org/EN/AboutUs/ICCAccreditation/Documents/SCA%20OCTOBER%202014%20FINAL%20REPORT%20%20ENGLISH.pdf>. See e.g., the good practice of special programmes for professional development addressed to women, which use different selection criteria for recruitment and then provide training and development prior to accessing permanent employment, see op. cit. footnote 16, page 174 (2010 UNDP-OHCHR Toolkit for Collaboration with National Human Rights Institutions). Op. cit. footnote 18, pages 9, 78 and 80 (2012 OSCE/ODIHR Handbook for NHRIs on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality). See also ibid. pages 174-175 (2010 UNDP-OHCHR Toolkit for Collaboration with National Human Rights Institutions). ibid. page 175 (2010 UNDP-OHCHR Toolkit for Collaboration with National Human Rights Institutions). Op. cit. footnote 19, Sub-Section 1.2 (Explanatory Statement to the Draft Act). ibid. Sub-Section 2 on page 21 (Explanatory Statement to the Draft Act). See, in that respect, the comments made by the UN Human Rights Committee in its latest Concluding Observations on Switzerland (March 2017); see op. cit. footnote 4, par 14. 27