Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2010, published 100th ILC session (2011)

The Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that a training session on international labour standards and reporting obligations was organized with the ILO in August 2010 and provided some clarifications on the principle of “equal remuneration for work of equal value”. The Committee notes the Government’s commitment to address the issue of equal remuneration for men and women, through the examination of reference documents and publications referred to in the training session as well as the Government’s intention to request ILO technical assistance once this review is completed. The Committee nevertheless recalls that in its previous comment it raised the following points, which have not been addressed in the Government’s report.

Article 1(b) of the Convention. Legislation on equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value. The Committee recalls that article 32(1) of the Interim National Constitution of the Republic of the Sudan, 2005, and article 20(2) of the Interim Constitution of Southern Sudan, 2005, provide only for equal pay for men and women for equal work, which is narrower than the right to equal remuneration for men and women for “work of equal value” contained in Article 1(b) of the Convention. The Committee also recalls that the Labour Code, 1997, does not give explicit legal expression to the principle of the Convention. The Committee notes that section 11(1) of the new Southern Sudan draft Labour Act provides for equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value, and that subsection (2) provides that every employer shall take positive steps to guarantee equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value. Given that the draft Labour Act only covers Southern Sudan and that the relevant constitutional provisions for Sudan as a whole and for Southern Sudan continue to provide for equal pay for equal work, the Committee must conclude that legal uncertainty continues to exist as to the full application in law of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of “equal value”. The Committee therefore asks the Government to take the necessary steps to bring its national legislation into conformity with the principle of the Convention. The Committee hopes that the new Southern Sudan draft Labour Act will soon be adopted and asks the Government to consider inserting a similar provision in the Labour Code of 1997. The Committee further hopes that the Government will make every effort to ensure that the future permanent Constitution, when adopted, will give full legal expression to the principle contained in Article 1(b), and to provide information on any developments in this regard.

Article 2. Application of the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value in the civil service. The Committee recalls its previous comments in which it noted that women employed in the civil service were concentrated in the ministries of finance and economy, health, financial resources and justice. They were also employed in the lower grades of the civil service (grades 7–13). The Committee notes the Government’s statement that equal remuneration applies to all public officials, whether in government or the private sector, without discrimination based on sex. The Committee recalls that the principle of the Convention goes beyond equal remuneration for work performed by men and women in the same occupation and grade, and that inequalities in remuneration may also be the result of the concentration of women in occupations or grades where pay is low and where promotional opportunities are scarce. The Committee asks the Government to:

(i)    consider undertaking an assessment of the nature and extent of the remuneration gap that may exist in the civil service due to the concentration of women in certain ministries and in the lower grades of the civil service, and to report on the findings; and

(ii)   to provide information on the measures taken to improve access of women to a wider variety of posts in the civil service, especially those that attract higher pay.

Application of the principle in the private sector. The Committee recalls the need to adopt concrete measures aimed at correcting gender inequalities in remuneration that may exist in practice. Referring to its 1998 general observation on this Convention, the Committee also recalls the importance of collecting and analysing statistics on the earnings of men and women in the various occupations and sectors of the economy in order to determine the nature, extent and causes of remuneration inequalities between men and women. The Committee notes in this regard the Government’s intention to communicate the results of the population census undertaken in 2008 and of the labour market survey, which is still ongoing, as soon as they are available. The Committee looks forward to receiving the results of the population census and labour market survey, and hopes that these contain relevant sex-disaggregated data on the distribution of men and women in the various occupations and their corresponding earnings. The Committee also asks the Government to provide any other information allowing an assessment of the extent to which the principle of the Convention is being applied in practice in the private sector.

Article 4. Cooperation with employers’ and workers’ organizations. The Committee reiterates its request to the Government to provide further details regarding how it is encouraging workers’ and employers’ organizations to ensure that collective agreements promote and apply the principle of the Convention, and to include copies of relevant collective agreements.