Demande directe (CEACR) - adoptée 1996, publiée 85ème session CIT (1997)

The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government, including the fact that the job evaluation exercise in the public sector is still in progress and that it will communicate the results as soon as it is finalized. It also notes the comments on the application of the Convention submitted by the Turkish Federation of Employer Associations (TISK) which confirm the application of the Convention by constitutional and legislative provisions, and by the Confederation of Turkish Trade Unions (TURK-IS).

1. In its previous direct request, the Committee requested the Government to supply full information on the issue raised by TURK-IS in its communication of 4 July 1994, that in the public sector employees who may hold different status - namely, "workers", "civil servants" or "contract personnel" - carry out exactly the same work, but enjoy completely different rights, freedoms and remuneration. The new comments from TURK-IS reiterate this point while, in its report, the Government points out that the Convention deals with discrimination on the basis of sex. The Committee also reminds TURK-IS that the Convention enshrines the principle of equal remuneration regardless of the sex of the worker and not of his or her contractual status. Noting that there is no suggestion that either of the above-mentioned groups consists exclusively or largely of women, compared to the others, the Committee is of the opinion that the fact that in the public sector "workers", "civil servants" or "contract personnel" receive differing remuneration is not relevant in the application of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value.

2. In its previous comments, the Committee drew the Government's attention to the discriminatory effect of the fact that payment of certain components of remuneration to a public servant is linked to sex (family benefits and child allowances are systematically paid to the husband when the husband and wife are both public servants). From a reading of the Government's report, the Committee notes that this is always the case despite affirmations to the contrary by the Government. In fact, it would appear that for the competent public authorities it is a matter of avoiding double payment of family benefits, child allowances, housing allowances, etc. where both members of a couple are public servants. In these circumstances, the Committee suggests that the Government consider amending the relevant instruments so that when both members of the couple are public servants, only one of them shall receive family benefits, child allowances, housing allowances, etc., and therefore leaving it to the couple to decide which of them shall be paid the allowances. The Committee also notes that benefits for dependent children are paid to divorced or widowed female public servants for children in their custody. It trusts that the same applies where the public servant who has custody of dependent children is a divorced or widowed man. At a more general level, the Committee's view is that the systematic use of neutral language, not prejudging the sex of the worker concerned, would allow such discrimination to be avoided (in this respect, see paragraph 240 of the 1986 General Survey on equal remuneration). The Committee therefore requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken or contemplated in order to ensure that no discrimination based on the sex of a public servant occurs in payment of these benefits.

3. Noting the Government's statement that in Turkey self-employed workers are not covered by the principle of the Convention, the Committee stresses that the principle of equal remuneration enshrined in the Convention applies to all workers without exception (see paragraph 18 of the above-mentioned General Survey). The Committee considers that a distinction should be made here between, on the one hand, the self-employed individual who engages in entrepreneurial activities generating profits from an independent economic activity, and, on the other hand, individuals who are economically dependent upon a particular source for their income and who are thus not genuinely "self-employed". Recalling also that in its general observation of 1992, it drew attention to the fact that the provisions of Article 2, paragraph 1, of the Convention provide for application to all workers of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women workers for work of equal value, the Committee requests the Government to inform it of any measures taken or contemplated, for example, through campaigns promoting the principle of equality of remuneration, to ensure that this category of workers is not excluded from the benefits of the Convention.