Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2008, published 98th ILC session (2009)

The Committee notes with regret that the Government’s report has not been received. It hopes that a report will be supplied for examination by the Committee at its next session and that it will contain full information on the matters raised in its previous direct request, which read as follows:

1. Article 1(a) of the Convention. Definition of remuneration. The Committee notes the provisions of Act No. 493-I “on labour in the Republic of Kazakhstan” referred to in the Government’s report. It notes that wages are defined under section 1 of the Act but that the definition given is narrower than the Convention’s concept of remuneration, which includes all payments, both cash or in kind, direct and indirect, arising out of the worker’s employment. The Committee also notes that section 7.2 of the Act provides that “the worker has the right to equal pay for equal labour without discrimination”. The Act however does not define “pay” in this context and it is therefore unclear what the scope of this provision is. The Committee asks the Government to indicate the definition of remuneration to which the principle of the Convention applies.

2. Article 1(b). Definition of equal remuneration. As already noted under Article 1(a) above, section 7.2 of the Labour Act provides for the right to equal pay for equal labour. The Committee notes that this principle is narrower than the Convention’s requirement, which goes beyond a reference to the “same” or “equal” work in making the “value” of the work the point of comparison (see General Survey on equal remuneration, 1986, paragraph 19). The Committee also notes that the Government reports that equal remuneration for men and women workers for work of equal value is understood to refer to remuneration rates which are determined without discrimination on the basis of sex. The Committee asks the Government to clarify the meaning of the concept “equal pay for equal labour” in view of the broader concept contained in the Convention, and to clarify whether the value of the work is used as the reference point for determining remuneration rates.

3. Articles 2(2)(b) and 3. Wage determination. The Committee notes that section 70.3 of the Labour Act provides that the criteria used to determine differential wage rates include the complexity of the work, and the expertise and productivity of the worker. It further notes that the appraisal of skills required and the complexity of jobs will be determined with reference to “professional skill reference book” (section 70.5). In order to assess fully the objectivity of the grounds used to evaluate jobs, in particular whether they are free from discrimination based on sex, the Committee asks the Government to provide a copy of the “professional skills reference book”. It also asks the Government to indicate what measures have been taken to reduce any differential in wage rates for men and women through methods including job evaluation.

4. Article 2(2)(c). Collective agreements. The Committee notes from the Government’s report that the principle of equal remuneration is applied through the General Agreement between the Government and national trade union associations and employers’ associations for 2003–04, and by tripartite regional agreements. It also notes that section 70.4 of the Labour Act provides that “systems of labour remuneration” may be determined by collective agreements. The Committee asks the Government to provide copies of the collective agreements referred to in its report together with copies of any agreements concluded in application of section 70.4 of the Labour Act, in so far as these agreements provide for differential rates of remuneration for work performed.

5. Article 4. Cooperation with employers’ and workers’ organizations. The Committee notes from the report that the Act “on social partnership” makes provision for the establishment of a mechanism to regulate social, labour and associated economic relations and that the elimination of discrimination has been the subject of a discussion by a national tripartite commission on social partnership. The Committee asks the Government to provide more information on cooperation in tripartite commissions and under the Social Partnership Act for the purpose of giving effect to the provisions of the Convention.