Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1993, published 80th ILC session (1993)

With reference to its previous direct requests, the Committee takes note of the Government's brief report.

1. Concerning the comments it has been making for several years on the application of the principle of equal remuneration in the case of wage rates that are above the legal minimum, the Committee recalls that seasonal agricultural workers are excluded from the application of the Individual Labour Relations Act, 1981 (under section 4(d)). The Committee notes that the Government's report merely again repeats that, under the terms of this Act, "worker" means any person who has entered into a contract of service with an employer for a wage of any kind, thus covering both men and women who receive equal remuneration for the work they carry out. As the Government supplies no further information on the committee, mentioned in previous government reports, which was to have dealt with all the problems affecting the application of this Convention, the Committee can only repeat its earlier comment that the Convention is applicable to all workers in the country without exception. It therefore requests the Government to indicate what measures - whether legislative, administrative or through collective agreements - have been taken or are envisaged, beyond the protection of the minimum wage-setting machinery, to ensure that this category of workers - where large numbers of women are represented - are covered by employment conditions which respect the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value.

2. The Committee notes that the 1974 Minimum Wages Act, amended in 1978, is currently before the Council of Ministers awaiting promulgation and that the Government undertakes to send a copy of it once it has been adopted. The Committee trusts that this text will include a provision ensuring that the principle of the Convention applies to all remuneration (as is required by Article 1(b) of the Convention) and looks forward to receiving this text in the near future.

3. The Committee recalls that it had asked for copies of representative agreements, particularly in sectors which employ a substantial number of women, so as to help it assess the practical application of the various measures in place to ensure equal remuneration for work of equal value. Noting from the 1984-87 Collective Agreement between the Shell Company of the Sudan and the Trade Union of the Staff of the Shell Company that employees shall be entitled to special leave on "death of wife, children, parents, brothers and sisters" (clause 14(b)), the Committee recalls paragraph 15 of its 1986 General Survey on Equal Remuneration according to which the equal remuneration principle applies to any additional emoluments granted to workers of a very wide nature. It accordingly draws the Government's attention to the fact that provisions of this kind in this collective agreement are contrary to the principle of remuneration established without discrimination based on sex under Article 1(b) of the Convention, and asks the Government to inform it whether the renegotiated collective agreement for this company has retained emoluments payable only to men, or whether they have been made payable to women employees upon the death of their husbands. In addition, it would appreciate receiving copies of current collective agreements in other sectors, where there are a large number of women employed.