Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2015, published 105th ILC session (2016)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - South Africa (Ratification: 2000)

Other comments on C100

Observation

Direct Request

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Gender wage gap and income differential statements. In its previous comments, the Committee requested the Government to provide information on the measures taken to reduce the gender wage gap and to supply statistical data on earnings disaggregated by sex. The Committee also requested the Government to provide information on income differentials between men and women revealed by the income differential statements submitted by employers to the Employment Conditions Commission. The Committee notes that the Government indicated in its report that the relevant form (EEA4) that employers had to fill in with information related to income had been recently amended in order to overcome certain difficulties with the collection and analysis of data on income disparities. According to the Government, this would enable it to provide adequate information in the future. The Government further referred to the barriers to employment equity in remuneration identified, which included non-grading of jobs and absence of job profiles, and indicates that a specific budget has been allocated to address the disparities found. The Committee hopes that the Government will soon be in a position to provide statistical information disaggregated by sex on the remuneration of men and women in both the public and private sectors as well as information on the analysis of the existing income differentials following the statements submitted by employers. Please also provide information on the concrete measures adopted in order to address the existing gender remuneration gap.

Occupational segregation. The Committee notes from the 15th Commission for Employment Equity annual report (15th CEE annual report) that in 2014 women were most represented in the community, social and personal services sector (30.7 per cent) where there is a large representation of governmental employers, followed by catering and accommodation (29.5 per cent). According to the report, black women are most represented in the electricity, gas and water supply, and community, social and personal services sectors. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government that the tripartite National Skills Authority has adopted the National Skills Development Strategy III to ensure equal access to skills by women, especially black women, in order to access better paying jobs. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken to address occupational gender segregation in employment and occupation, including through education and vocational training and other measures adopted in the framework of the National Skills Development Strategy III, and the concrete impact of these measures on the inclusion of women in better paid jobs, on their career advancement and on the reduction of the gender wage gap. Please provide statistical information of women employment in all sectors and levels of occupation.

Article 1 of the Convention. Equal remuneration for work of equal value and scope of comparison. The Committee notes that section 6(4) of the Employment Equity Act of 1998 (EEA), as amended, provides for the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value but limits the scope of comparison to jobs performed for the same employer. In this regard, the Committee recalls that the application of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value should not be limited to comparisons between men and women in the same establishment, enterprise or sector and that the Convention allows for a much broader comparison to be made between different employers or sectors. Where women are heavily concentrated in certain sectors of activities or occupations, there is a risk that the possibilities for comparison may be insufficient at the level of the establishment (see General Survey on the fundamental Conventions, 2012, paragraphs 697–698). The Committee requests the Government to provide information on how it is ensured that wages in sectors predominantly employing women are not set on the basis of gender-biased undervaluation of the work performed in these sectors, and invites the Government to give consideration to widening the scope of comparison of jobs performed by men and women beyond the same employer and to provide information on any developments in this regard.

Article 2(2)(b). Minimum wages. The Committee had requested the Government to provide information on the manner in which it was ensured that minimum wage rates were free from gender bias. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that minimum wages by sector were established irrespective of gender and that if employers failed to comply with the law, this could be enforced by the Labour Court. The Committee recalls its examination of the manner in which minimum wages were established in South Africa made in its previous report and recalls once again that there is a tendency to set lower wage rates for sectors predominantly employing women, and that, taking into account the persisting occupational segregation, particular attention should be given when setting sectoral minimum wages to ensure that the rates fixed are free from gender bias. The Committee once again requests the Government to provide concrete information on how it is ensured that when setting minimum wages by sector, these are free from gender bias.

Article 2(2)(c). Collective agreements. Noting that no information was provided in this respect, the Committee requests the Government once again to indicate the measures taken to promote the inclusion of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value in collective agreements, and to forward a copy of any collective agreement that provides for the principle in its text.

Article 3. Objective job evaluation. The Committee notes that according to section 6(5) of the EEA as amended “the Minister, after consultation with the Commission, may prescribe the criteria and prescribe the methodology for assessing work of equal value …”. The Committee further notes that sections 4 to 6 of the Employment Equity Regulations, 2014 (Regulations), and Titles 5 to 7 of the Code of Good Practice (Code) provide for the meaning of work of equal value, the methodology to be applied and the assessment to determine whether work is of equal value. The Committee notes that the Regulations and the Code provide for the criteria commonly used to evaluate the value of jobs which are: the responsibility demanded by the work; the skills, qualifications, effort, either physical or mental; and the working conditions. Title 6 of the Code on “Comparing and evaluating male and female dominated jobs” provides for measures to ensure that the job evaluation is carried out without gender bias. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the practical application of these provisions, the obstacles found and the results achieved. Please provide examples of objective job evaluations carried out within the new legislative framework.

Article 4. Cooperation with social partners. Noting the information provided by the Government concerning the cooperation of the social partners in the framework of the National Economic Development Labour Commission (NEDLAC) in the elaboration of the recently adopted legislative amendments and regulations on employment equity, the Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the concrete measures adopted for the implementation of the principle of the Convention with the cooperation of the social partners.

Parts III and V of the report form. Enforcement and practical information. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that in cases where the Employment Equity Plans do not identify barriers and affirmative action measures to address income disparities within specific time frames, they might not be approved and the Labour Court, on the request of the Director-General, may impose a fine. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide details of any judicial or administrative decisions related to the application of the principle of the Convention as well as any action taken by the Department of Labour when reviewing employment equity reports by employers. Please also provide information on any other measure or activity carried out by the Department of Labour or the Commission on Gender Equality in order to ensure the practical application of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value.