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

1. Noting that the Government’s brief report provides very little information in reply to the specific requests for information made by the Committee concerning a number of matters, the Committee once again draws the Government’s attention to a number of issues that would need to be further examined and addressed with a view to ensuring the application of the Convention, in law and in practice.

2. The Committee previously noted that the Minimum Wage Ordinance, 1961, provides for minimum wages for the different categories of workers in industrial undertakings without distinction on the ground of sex. It contains, however, no specific provisions on equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value. The Committee also recalls that the 2005 Labour Protection Policy commits the Government to making gender equality with regard to pay and wage systems a key component of the new policies concerning conditions of work. The Policy further states that minimum wages and above-minimum wages will be paid on the basis of equal pay for equal work, and equal pay for work of equal value, as between men and women.

3. The Committee observes that while minimum wage setting is an important means to promote equal pay for women and men, appropriate measures must be taken to ensure that the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value is effectively taken into account in the minimum wage setting process. Where different minimum wage rates are set for different occupations or categories of workers, it is particularly necessary to have safeguards in place to ensure that work predominately performed by women is not undervalued as a result of gender bias. This is necessary to ensure that wage rates for categories of work predominately performed by women are not set at lower levels than the rates for male-dominated work where the work performed by men and women is, in fact, of equal value. The Committee draws the Government’s attention to its 2006 general observation which elaborates further on this issue. In addition, the Committee is concerned about the application of the Convention’s principle in sectors in which the minimum wage legislation does not apply, including in the agricultural sector, and with respect to wages which are above the minimum level.

4. The Committee considers that the Labour Protection Policy illustrates the Government’s commitment with regard to promoting equal remuneration for men and women, but that it now needs to be followed up by concrete action to promote and ensure the full application of the Convention’s principle in law and in practice. The Committee considers it particularly important that an appropriate legal framework be put in place. Awareness raising and training on the meaning of the principle of equal remuneration as defined in the Convention are also essential.

5. In relation to the above, the Committee asks the Government:

(a)   to provide information on the specific and practical measures taken to ensure that minimum wages are set in accordance with the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value, as envisaged under the Labour Protection Policy;

(b)   to initiate preparations for the enactment of provisions providing for the general application of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value, as envisaged by Paragraph 3 of the Equal Remuneration Recommendation, 1951 (No. 90), and to provide information in its next report on the steps taken to this end;

(c)   to provide information on any awareness-raising and training activities carried out to promote a full understanding of the meaning and the implications of the Convention’s principle among relevant government officials, as well as workers’ and employers’ organizations.

6. Enforcement. In its previous comments, the Committee asked the Government to provide information on the specific measures taken by the competent authorities to ensure the application of the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value and on the mechanisms and procedures available for victims of pay discrimination. In this regard, the Government indicated that effective inspection services were working under the auspices of the Directorate of Labour Welfare at the provincial level to enforce the Convention. In addition, the labour courts were able to redress grievances relating to unequal treatment. The Committee asks the Government to provide detailed information on any cases relating to the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value dealt with by the labour inspection services or the labour courts.

7. Objective job evaluation. The Committee notes that the information provided by the Government concerning the application of Article 3 of the Convention relates to the appraisal of the performance of individual civil servants, rather than to objective job evaluation within the meaning of Article 3. The Committee recalls that objective job evaluation, as envisaged under this Article of the Convention, refers to the analysis of the content of specific jobs or positions on the basis of objective criteria. Recalling that objective job evaluation is an important tool to ensure that remuneration rates are determined in accordance with the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value, the Committee asks the Government to state what methods have been adopted to promote the objective evaluation of jobs on the basis of the work performed in the private and public sectors.

8. Cooperation with workers’ and employers’ organizations. The Committee previously noted that the Government closely cooperated with workers’ and employers’ organizations in the preparation of the Labour Protection Policy, 2005. It asks the Government to provide information on how it is seeking the cooperation of workers’ and employers’ organizations in the follow-up to the elements on equal remuneration set out in the Labour Protection Policy with a view to achieving their full implementation.

The Committee is raising other matters in a request addressed directly to the Government.