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

1. Assessment of the gender pay gap. The Committee notes the statistical information provided by the Government concerning the average daily earnings of men and women in the service sector, the plantation industries and the tea-processing industry. The Committee notes that considerable gender pay differentials exist in a number of occupations in the service sector, mostly in favour of men. In the plantation industries (tea, rubber and coffee), women’s average daily earnings are consistently lower than men’s. In tea processing, there is a mixed picture as regards the earnings of women as compared to men performing the same occupation. In two occupations within this sector there is a considerable pay differential: while female tea blenders earn only 71 per cent of the male wage per day, female withering loft attendants earn 30 per cent more than their male counterparts. The Committee notes that this may indicate that earnings continue to a certain extent to be determined on the basis of whether a man or a woman performs the job. The Committee asks the Government to continue to provide detailed statistical information on the earnings of men and women, for the widest possible number of sectors, industries and occupations. The Committee also asks the Government to provide data on the earnings of men and women according to educational level. Please also provide information on measures taken to reduce the gender wage gap, and the results thereof.

2. Equal remuneration legislation. The Committee recalls its previous comments concerning the narrow scope of section 4 of the Equal Remuneration Act, 1976, which requires employers to pay equal remuneration to men and women for the same work or work of a similar nature. The Committee hopes that the Government will make every effort to ensure that any future revision of the equal pay legislation will include a provision that goes beyond a reference to the “same” or “similar” work, choosing instead the “value” of the work as a point of comparison. In this regard the Committee notes that the Government no longer plans to merge the Minimum Wages Act, 1948, the Payment of Wages Act, and the Equal Remuneration Act, 1976, which would have provided an opportunity to bring the equal pay legislation in line with the Convention. Recalling its general observation of 2006, in which it stressed that the concept of “work of equal value” goes beyond similar work and encompasses work that is of an entirely different nature, which is nevertheless of equal value, the Committee asks the Government to provide information on the measures taken to bring the Equal Remuneration Act into conformity with the Convention.

3. Enforcement. The Committee notes the information provided concerning the enforcement of the Equal Remuneration Act, 1976, in respect of establishments under the sphere of central Government during 2005–06. The Committee welcomes the efforts made by the Government to draw the attention of the State authorities to the need for more effective implementation of the Act and to seek related information from them. The Committee notes that the information provided by the state authorities is of a general nature and does not indicate the number, nature and outcomes of equal pay cases handled by the authorities. The Committee asks the Government to continue to provide detailed information on the enforcement of the Equal Remuneration Act by the central authorities, and to seek and provide such information also in respect of the states and territories. Noting that the report does not provide information on important equal pay cases decided by the courts, the Committee reiterates its request to the Government to supply such information in its next report.

4. Objective job evaluation. The Committee recalls that, according to the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) work traditionally done by women, such as weeding and transplanting in the agricultural sector, is often classified as “light work” which does not correspond with the real nature of the tasks involved. In this regard, the Committee stressed the need to promote the development and use of job classifications established on the basis of the work actually performed, using objective criteria unrelated to the worker’s sex and free from gender bias. It also stressed that the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value does not require only the abolition of separate wage rates for men and women but also the elimination of sex-discriminatory job classifications. Noting that no information has been provided in reply to these comments, the Committee asks the Government once again to indicate the measures taken to promote the use of objective job evaluation methods as a means to determine wage rates irrespective of the worker’s sex.

5. Cooperation with workers’ and employers’ organizations. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the report form concerning the Convention had been forwarded to all central organizations of workers and employers but notes that none of them gave specific comments concerning the Convention. The Committee asks the Government to indicate whether it has brought the Committee’s comments to the attention of these organizations, including the specific proposals made by the CITU in its communication of 24 August 2005. These were as follows: (1) special units in the labour department could be formed to monitor discrimination on the ground of sex in respect of wages, classification and promotion; (2) female labour officers should be involved systematically in the hearing and deciding of equal pay complaints; (3) trade unions should be authorized to lodge complaints under section 12 of the Equal Remuneration Act. The Committee asks the Government to continue to seek the cooperation of workers’ and employers’ organizations with a view to giving full effect to the Convention, to provide them with the present comments, and to indicate the outcomes of any consultations held on these matters, including the proposals made by the CITU.