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The Committee has taken note of the Government's report, its annexes, and the comments of several employers' and workers' organizations on the application of this Convention and on the Government's request to workers' and employers' organizations for statistics in this connection (in particular, the comment of the General Confederation of Industry (CONFINDUSTRIA) and the joint letter from the Italian General Confederation of Labour (CGIL), the Italian Confederation of Workers' Unions (CISL), and the Italian Union of Labour (UIL)).

1. The Committee takes note of the Government's statement that one of the main factors responsible for the persistence of a wage gap between men and women is the greater family responsibilities assumed by women. It also notes that the CGIL-CISL-UIL refer to the burden of family life as a main factor in the continuation of a 30 per cent wage gap between men and women. The Committee asks the Government to supply whatever data may be available regarding the average number of hours worked per week for full-time men and full-time women workers. Noting that section 1(e) of Act No. 125 of 1991 states that one of the purposes of the Act is to favour a balance between family and professional responsibilities and a better division of such responsibilities between the two sexes through new work arrangements, the Committee requests the Government to provide details regarding the measures undertaken or contemplated in order to give practical effect to this declared objective in the face of the acknowledged problems for women workers with family responsibilities. The Committee would like to draw the Government's attention to the suggestions contained in Convention No. 156 and Recommendation No. 165 regarding the harmonization of work and family responsibilities. It hopes that the Government will give due consideration to the principles contained therein.

2. The Committee notes that the statistics supplied by the Government for the public sector reveal a concentration of women in low-paying positions. With reference to paragraph 26 of its 1986 General Survey on Equal Remuneration, the Committee recalls that Article 2, paragraph 1, of the Convention obliges a State to ensure the application of the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value to its own employees. This obligation goes beyond the obligation merely to promote the application of the equal pay principle; rather, it requires the Government to ensure that the principle is in fact being applied in the public sector. The Committee therefore requests the Government to indicate which measures have been adopted or are contemplated in order to redress this problem and to supply statistical data showing the current situation of male/female remuneration in the public sector.

3. Referring to its previous comment, the Committee again requests the Government to provide statistical data on wage rates of men and women in the private sector. The lack of statistics prevents the Committee from fulfilling its responsibility of monitoring the progress within countries in achieving the objectives of the Convention (see paragraph 248 of the 1986 General Survey which highlights the importance of statistics in the effort to give full effect to the principle of equal remuneration). In this respect, the Committee notes that the Ministerial Decree of 8 July 1991 requires enterprises to submit data concerning the remuneration and relative placement of their staff, but that CONFINDUSTRIA has launched an appeal against the Decree leading to a blockage in the collection of data. Nevertheless, the Committee must stress the importance of having appropriate data and, consequently, it asks the Government to do its utmost to convince the private sector of the need to collaborate in preparing well-documented reports for ratified Conventions.

4. The Committee notes with interest the provision in Act No. 125/91 stipulating that the burden of proof should be shifted in some cases, when the complainant alleges indirect discrimination based on sex and supports her claim with statistical evidence. The Committee asks the Government to supply, in its next report, information as to the use of this provision in wage discrimination cases.

5. Regarding the enforcement of the national legislation on equal wages, especially in agriculture, the Committee notes with interest the efforts of the Government to resolve the problem of the "caporalato" system (illegal fee-charging placement agencies), in particular, the collaboration between the Ministry of Labour and the agricultural trade union organizations. It asks the Government to supply, in its next report, information on the monitoring of violations of the principle of equal remuneration between men and women (infringements detected, penalties imposed; court decisions; any discussions of this principle within the National Committee for Equality between male and female workers or by the Commissioners for Equality by virtue of section 3(8) of the Regulations of 29 April 1992 to implement Act No. 125 of 1991).