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1. Articles 2 and 4 of the Convention. Application of the principle by collective agreements. The Committee notes the Government’s statement that a draft text will be submitted to the social partners concerning the effective application of the principle of remuneration for men and women for work of equal value through collective agreements, and asks the Government to keep it informed of any developments in this regard. Noting further the salary grids set by various collective agreements for the different economic branches and professional categories, the Committee would be grateful if the Government could provide, as far as possible, information on the number of men and women that are employed in the various sectors and occupations covered by these agreements.

2. Wage gap between men and women. The Committee thanks the Government for the statistics on the average monthly and hourly wages of men and women for the year 2003 according to age. It notes that, while the hourly wages of women are slightly higher than those of men in the age categories up to 30 years of age, the monthly wages of women are consistently lower than men’s and the wage gap between men and women increases significantly with age. The Government explains in its report that the wage differentials between men and women are not necessarily due to discrimination at the recruitment stage but rather develop and widen throughout their careers. Noting that the Government also attributes the salary differentials between men and women to the fact that more women work part-time, the Committee asks the Government to indicate the measures taken to ensure that part-time employment is not disproportionately under-remunerated in relation to full-time employment. Please also continue to provide statistical information on the wages of men and women in the various sectors and occupations, and on the measures adopted or envisaged to increase women’s participation in full-time and higher status positions, as a means to reduce wage inequalities.