Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2022, published 111st ILC session (2023)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Zimbabwe (Ratification: 1989)

Other comments on C100

Observation

Direct Request

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Articles 2(2)(c) and 4 of the Convention. Application of the Convention through collective agreements. Cooperation with employers’ and workers’ organizations. With reference to its previous comment, the Committee notes the Government’s general statement, in its report, that there has been no discernible wage disparities between men and women across the National Employment Councils. The Committee takes due note of the copies of collective agreements provided by the Government for the transport operating industry, the funeral industry, the lumber milling industry and the agricultural sector. The Committee notes that the collective agreements all provide that wages are determined according to an agreed grading system and that the employer shall place each employee in a particular grade that is “appropriate to the occupation” of the employee. The Committee notes, however, that no reference is made to the principle of “equal remuneration for work of equal value” in the collective agreements and that no information is provided on the methods used by the employer to evaluate and grade a particular job. The Committee asks the Government to:

(i)take specific steps to raise the awareness of the employers’ and workers’ organizations regarding the issue of wage disparities between men and women and how they can be reduced, for example through objective job evaluations;
(ii)actively encourage social partners to address the issue of equal remuneration for men and women, including through the inclusion of specific provisions in collective agreements; and
(iii)provide information on the measures taken to this effect.

Article 3. Job evaluation. In reply to the Committee’s previous comment, the Government indicates that the Public Service Commission (PSC) started a job evaluation exercise in 2020, but that it was slowed down by the national lockdown imposed to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. So far, the PSC has completed the first of the three stages planned for the job evaluation exercise: the job analysis. The Government further states that workers’ and employers’ organizations engage at the National Employment Council level in the determination of effective job evaluation methods with a view to ensuring that the process is undertaken in an objective and fair manner that is free from gender bias. However, as noted above, the collective agreements provided by the Government do not include any explanation on how employers evaluate and grade a particular job. The Committee therefore once again refers to paragraphs 695 and 701 of the 2012 General Survey on the fundamental Conventions. The Committee requests the Government to:

(i)take measures to promote the use of objective job evaluation methods and criteria that are free from gender bias, such as qualifications and skills, effort, responsibilities and conditions of work, in the private sector; and
(ii)provide information on any measures taken, including information on the cooperation with employers’ and workers’ organizations in this regard.

The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on:

(i)the advancements of the job evaluation exercise started in 2020 by the Public Service Commission; and
(ii)the results of the exercise, indicating the criteria used and the measures taken to ensure that men and women receive equal remuneration for work of equal value.

Awareness raising and enforcement. The Committee previously noted the ZCTU’s statement that labour inspections were minimal owing to a lack of resources, technical equipment and staff. It notes the Government’s indication that, in 2020, 2,400 labour inspections were carried out, and that 921 labour inspections had been conducted in the first half of 2021. The Government states that during inspections, labour inspectors also carry out awareness-raising campaigns on the provisions of the Labour Act concerning equal pay for work of equal value. The Government also declares that no incidence of wage discrimination based on gender was recorded by the inspectors. The Committee recalls that when no cases or complaints, or very few, are being lodged, this is likely to indicate a lack of an appropriate legal framework, lack of awareness of rights, lack of confidence in or absence of practical access to procedures, or fear of reprisals (see the 2012 General Survey, para. 870). The Committee once again requests the Government to:

(i)take appropriate measures to raise public awareness of the relevant legislative provisions, the procedures and remedies available related to the principle of the Convention; and
(ii)provide information on any activities undertaken in this regard.

The Committee also requests the Government to continue to:

(i)indicate whether specific measures have been taken to strengthen the labour inspectorate;
(ii)provide information on any training activities undertaken for labour inspectors and magistrates to enhance their capacity to detect and address unequal pay; and
(iii)provide information, not only on the number of inspections carried out, but also on cases concerning inequality of remuneration detected by or reported to labour inspectors, as well as those dealt with by the Ombudsman, courts or any other competent authorities, and any administrative or judicial decision taken in this regard, particularly in order to enforce section 5(2)(a) of the Labour Act.

Statistics. Whereas the Committee noted, in its previous comment, that efforts were being made to set up a comprehensive Labour Market Information System where labour market statistics would be easily accessible, it notes with regret the Government’s indication that, currently, there are no statistics available on earning differentials between men and women in the various sectors and categories of employment. The Committee notes, the “Women and Men in Zimbabwe Report”, 2019, from the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT) which indicates that, for women in the agricultural sector, the situation worsened between 2015 and 2017. Indeed, in 2017, women in small and large scale commercial farms were earning, respectively, 73.4 per cent and 77.7 per cent of what men earned (compared to 94.2 and 83.1 per cent respectively in 2015). The Committee requests the Government to:

(i)take all the necessary measures to collect, process and analyse statistical data on earning differentials between men and women in the various sectors and categories of employment, as well as any data available, disaggregated by sex, that show the nature, extent and evolution of the gender pay gap; and
(ii)to provide information on the progress achieved to this end, including in the development of the Labour Market Information System.Referring to its previous comments on the goal expressed in the National Gender Policy to develop and implement a specific framework to monitor gender disparities, the Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on any steps taken to this end.