Observation (CEACR) - adoptée 1998, publiée 87ème session CIT (1999)

1. The Committee notes the statement in the Government's report that with the fixing of the new minimum wage, and the commitment of the Nepal Ministry of Labour to ensure its effective implementation, discrimination between men and women with regard to remuneration no longer exists in establishments covered by labour legislation, including the plantation sector. The Committee also notes the comments of the General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions (GEFONT), sent to the Government by a letter of 29 August 1998, stating that wage discrimination between men and women still exists in tea plantations, government-run agricultural farms, carpet industries and some of the garment and manufacturing establishments.

2. In previous observations, the Committee had expressed concern about wage discrimination between men and women, particularly in relation to the exemption (granted to employers in tea plantations) from paying women workers equal remuneration. It had reiterated that any scheme which denies women the basic human right of equal pay is a violation of the Convention, as well as the national constitutional and legal provisions. This view was also shared by the Conference Committee in the conclusion of its June 1997 discussion. Moreover, the Committee had suggested that if measures were needed to encourage the development of tea plantations and to encourage women's employment in that sector, the Government should explore the introduction of other non-discriminatory measures, such as granting special tax relief to employers.

3. While noting the assurances of the Government in its most recent report, the Committee remains concerned that the Government has not referred, in either the Conference Committee or in its reports, to any measures taken to remove the exemption which allows employers in tea plantations to pay lower wage rates to women workers. The Committee must once again call upon the Government to supply more detailed substantiation (such as studies, surveys, statistics, administrative decisions) in its next report on the measures taken to ensure that no more exceptions to the equal pay provisions are granted to employers in the tea plantation sector, and that women's pay in private, as well as public, tea plantations is brought into line with that of men in accordance with the national constitutional and legal provisions, and the Convention. It also requests the Government to provide information on measures taken to ensure that equal remuneration is paid to women and men in government-run agricultural farms, carpet industries and garment and manufacturing establishments, and to supply relevant statistics on the tea plantations as well as these other sectors in accordance with the general observation being made on this Convention at the present session.

4. The Committee further notes the statement in GEFONT's comment that Metropolis KMC is still discriminating between men and women in wages, incentives and benefits, such as in providing NRs.800 to male garbage cleaners and only NRs.150 to female workers to buy their aprons. The Committee observes that remuneration under the Convention includes benefits in kind such as the allotment and laundering of working clothes, and that any differences in payments or allotments should not be based on the sex of the worker. The Committee hopes that in future the Government will be in a position to provide information on this issue raised by GEFONT and on any measures taken to ensure the application of the principle of equal remuneration in the Convention to all employment-related benefits including allowances.

5. Once again, the Committee requests the Government to furnish copies of all documents pertaining to the new tripartite wage-fixing committee, including any rules, orders or administrative instructions concerning wages, together with copies of the specific instrument fixing the minimum wage in tea plantations. In addition, the Committee asks the Government to forward copies of the studies and surveys that, according to the information provided by the Government to the Conference Committee in 1997, had been undertaken to ascertain whether wage discrimination based on sex existed in privately owned tea plantations.

6. In previous observations, the Committee has sought information on the means by which the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value is applied in situations where women and men carry out different work noting, in this connection, that article 11(5) of the 1990 Constitution proscribes discrimination between men and women in regard to remuneration only "for the same work". Section 11 of the 1993 Labour Rules -- which provides that "In the event that male or female workers or employees are engaged in work of the same nature in an establishment, they shall be paid equal remuneration without any discrimination ..." -- is also a narrower formulation of the principle of equal pay than that required by the Convention. The Committee pointed out that the principle of the Convention is intended to cover not only those cases where men and women undertake the same or similar work, but also the more usual situation where they carry out different work. In order to determine pay structures, the Committee pointed out that the requirements of the different work carried out by men and women should be evaluated in a gender-neutral manner on the basis of objective criteria that take adequate account of the various aspects of men's and women's work. As the Government has provided no information in this regard, either in the Conference Committee or in any of its reports, the Committee must once again express the hope that the Government will address this matter, in line with the recommendations contained in the report of the ILO advisory mission on wage fixing and equal pay (presented to the Government in 1993), and that its next report will contain detailed information on the measures taken.