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

Article 3, paragraphs 4 and 5, of the Convention. Differentiated wage rates on the basis of sex. The Committee notes the Minimum Wage Order 2002, which establishes minimum pay rates for various categories of workers, including agricultural workers. It notes, however, that in agriculture, contrary to all other sectors of employment, different wage rates are fixed for male and female workers. Even though the Minimum Wage Order expressly provides that where female workers perform the same task as men they should receive the same rate as men, the Committee considers the mere fact that lower rates are determined on account of workers’ sex and not on the basis of objective criteria or differences in the work performed (for example, seniority or grade, specialization, skills, etc.) to be inconsistent with core principles of gender equality and non-discrimination. In this connection, the Committee recalls paragraph 170 of its 1992 General Survey on minimum wages in which it stated that any fixing of minimum wage rates on the basis of sex is discriminatory under the terms of the Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100). It also observed that in the absence of any specific provision on this matter in the ILO minimum wage-fixing Conventions, general principles should apply and particularly those contained in the Preamble of the ILO Constitution which refers to the application of the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value. Referring also to its previous comments made under Convention No. 100, the Committee asks the Government to take all necessary measures to modify its national law and practice as regards minimum wage fixing in the agricultural sector so as to remove any grounds for sex-based discrimination.

Article 5 and Part V of the report form. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would continue to provide up to date information concerning the application of the Convention in practice including, for instance, available statistics on the number of agricultural workers covered by relevant legislation, inspection results showing the number of minimum wage-related offences and the sanctions imposed, any indication as to whether current minimum wage levels provide a decent standard of living for agricultural workers, etc.

In addition, the Committee refers to the comments made under the Minimum Wage-Fixing Machinery Convention, 1928 (No. 26).