Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2007, published 97th ILC session (2008)

1. Gender pay gap. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that while the gender pay gap is highly variable, at an aggregate level it has not widened over time. The Government states that one of the key reasons for the gender pay gap is occupational segregation in industries undergoing a period of high economic activity, where women are highly under-represented, such as mining. The Government refers to a report providing recommendations on attracting and retaining women in the minerals industry. According to data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics for March 2007, the gender pay gap is highest in finance and insurance (35.5 per cent), health and community services (30.75 per cent), property and business services (23.2 per cent), and mining (22.7 per cent). The Committee also notes the results of the Victoria pay equity inquiry, which determined that women in Victoria were paid 11 per cent less than men, and that there had been no substantial improvement in women’s pay in relation to men’s since 1986. According to the study, the reasons for the stagnating pay gap include long-entrenched and systematic discrimination. The Committee also notes the updated data provided regarding earnings for women and men in New South Wales (average ordinary time earnings of women 84.1 per cent of men’s). Noting the persistent pay gap that is particularly wide in a number of sectors, the Committee asks the Government to consider assessing the underlying causes of the pay gap, and to determine proactive measures to be taken, with the cooperation of the workers’ and employers’ organizations, to address these causes. The Committee also asks the Government to provide information on any measures taken to follow-up on the recommendations regarding women in the minerals industry, and the outcome of such measures.

2. Measures to promote equal remuneration. The Committee notes that a number of measures have been taken to promote the principle of the Convention, in particular in the States of South Australia, Victoria and Western Australia. At the federal level, the Committee notes the initiatives of the Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency (EOWA), including making available online resources for employers to measure the gender pay gap and take measures to reduce it. The Committee also notes that the Government refers to a March 2007 report of the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) entitled “It’s about time: Women, men, work and family”. The report provides a series of recommendations, including taking measures to encourage the development of quality part-time work, to address the gender pay gap, monitor the federal minimum wage and its impact on women workers, and develop community resources to assist women with workplace negotiation and individual bargaining. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the following:

(a)   the measures taken or envisaged to give effect to the recommendations of the HREOC relevant to promoting the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value;

(b)   the impact of the initiatives of the EOWA, in particular on improving the application of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women in the private sector;

(c)   further initiatives of the Victorian Workplace Rights Advocate with respect to low pay and equal remuneration, and the impact thereof;

(d)   any further follow-up to the Victoria pay equity inquiry, and the impact thereof;

(e)   the measures taken to follow-up on the review of the gender pay gap in Western Australia, including the use of gender pay audits, and the impact of the work of the Pay Equity Unit to implement voluntary strategies;

(f)    the practical outcome of the collaboration between SafeWork South Australia and the Commissioner for Equal Opportunity in promoting equal remuneration for men and women workers.

3. Equal remuneration in the public sector. The Committee notes the concerns raised by the Government of the State of Victoria regarding the effect of the Work Choices legislation on conditions of public sector employees, including on pay, overtime, bonuses and allowances. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the practical impact of the Work Choices reforms on the remuneration of men and women employed in the public sector.

4. Supervision and enforcement. The Committee notes that the Government in its report under the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111), refers to the role of the workplace authority in applying a fairness test regarding compensation in collective agreements or Australian Workplace Agreements (AWAs), and that the authority provides a comprehensive information service on workplace relations issues including pay and conditions. The Government also refers to the newly established Office of the Workplace Ombudsman. The Committee notes the information regarding the Queensland Industrial Relations Commission in ensuring equal remuneration for work of equal value. The Committee also notes the outcome of the case brought by the Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Workers’ Union (LHMU), resulting in an award of increased wages for childcare workers, as their work was found to have been undervalued. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on any determinations of the workplace authority relevant to the principle of the Convention, including how the fairness principle has been interpreted in this regard, and details regarding the role of the Office of the Workplace Ombudsman in promoting and enforcing equal remuneration for work of equal value. Please also continue to provide summaries of relevant cases decided by the courts or administrative authorities at the federal and state levels relevant to equal remuneration.