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1. The Committee notes with interest the information supplied by the Government in its report and the annexes attached to it, in particular regarding the improvement in the average wage gap between the sexes, which diminished from 27 per cent to 22.2 per cent in the period 1992 to 1996. It notes that, for all socio-occupational categories, the lowest remuneration is paid in the clothing, leather and footwear sector, while the highest is paid in the sectors of research and development, advice and assistance, inflammables and motor fuels, naval, aeronautic and railway construction, editing and printing trades, chemicals, finance and insurance. It also notes that the more feminized the socio-occupational category is, the lower is the wage differential between the sexes: thus, at the level of managers or qualified tradespeople where men predominate, men earn, respectively, 24 per cent and 21 per cent more than their female colleagues, whereas at the level of technician the gap is 10.8 per cent and especially at the level of employees -- the most feminized category, it is 6.8 per cent.

2. In this respect, the Committee recalls that the Council for Occupational Equality between Men and Women established a working group on the "comparative situation of men and women with regard to remuneration" which made a number of proposals to improve occupational equality -- in particular with regard to remuneration -- and that the Government had set about implementing certain of them. As regards progress achieved in this area, the Committee observes that, so as to improve the quality of information supplied by enterprises and the public administration, an information package for the public on equality in remuneration and in occupation has now been prepared (please send a further copy of this document, which was stated to be attached to the Government's report, but which was not received). It also notes that preparation is well under way for the "guide for negotiators", as it has been the subject of several seminars in which the social partners, among others, took part; they agreed on the list of issues for negotiation and, in principle, the guide should be finalized by the end of 1997. The Committee notes the Government's statement that the study on comparability of the value of work between two sectors which, a priori, appear to have few common characteristics, is listed for the research programme of 1998. It looks forward to receiving information on the guide and the study.

3. Noting that the working group had been particularly sensitive to transparency and the systematic re-examination of the methods used in occupational classification and evaluation of posts, a key element in the fight against wage discrimination, the Committee hopes that the Government's next report will supply information on the concrete measures taken or envisaged to monitor: (a) development of evaluation and job classification systems which reduce or eliminate the continuing gap between the average wage of men and that of women, both in the private sector and the public service; and (b) the widening of occupational terminology, in particular by the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE) so that it is more precise when it comes to occupations which are highly feminized.

4. The Committee notes with interest that, on 30 December 1996, the Ministry of Labour addressed to regional and departmental prefects, regional and departmental labour directors and the labour inspection services, Circular No. 96/12 relating to the application of the principle of occupational equality between men and women in collective agreements, which recalls that the law lays down the principle that discriminatory clauses in such agreements are null and void and that the principle of equal opportunity permits the social partners to negotiate catch-up measures in favour of women alone so as to establish genuine equality of opportunity between men and women. It takes note of the annual report on collective bargaining for 1995 which shows that negotiation mainly paid attention to the elimination of discriminatory clauses and the reaffirmation of the general principle of occupational equality between men and women, including the specific area of equal remuneration. Noting however that the collective agreements mentioned contain clauses on the implementation of the principle "equal pay for equal work", the Committee wishes to recall that, under Article 1(b) of the Convention, equal remuneration goes beyond the simple reference to "same" or "similar" work. It therefore requests the Government to indicate the measures taken or envisaged to draw the attention of the social partners to the wider scope of the principle laid down in the Convention.