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1. The Committee notes the Government's report and the attached documentation. It also notes that the draft Law on Labour Relations which, among other provisions, requires employers to pay workers equal remuneration for equal work as well as for work of equal value, regardless of gender, has not yet been adopted. It hopes that this text will be adopted in the very near future and that the Government will provide the Committee with a copy.

2. In its previous direct request, the Committee asked the Government to provide information on the implementation of the Act of 26 June 1997 on Minimum Wage Determination and Adjustment of Wages and on the corresponding Regulations of 7 May 1997. It notes that on 27 January 1998, the Government adopted an Act amending and supplementing the Act of 26 June 1997, as well as regulations respecting remuneration from employment on 21 January 1999. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would indicate the extent to which these new texts have amended the former texts and to provide information on their application in practice as regards the principle set out in the Convention.

3. The Committee notes two reports published in 1998, one by the Labour Inspectorate and the other by the Ombudsman, on the situation of human rights in Slovenia. It notes that no part of these two reports specifically addresses the issue of the application in practice of the principle set out by the Convention, namely equal remuneration between men and women workers for work of equal value. Nevertheless, in the initial report which it submitted to the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW/C/SVN/1), the Committee notes that the Government expressed concern at the persistence of traditional stereotypes of women and certain de facto forms of discrimination against women. With regard to education, it indicated that, although women in general have a high level of education, there remain marked differences in the choice of occupation in relation to men, with women being more attracted to the occupations which are traditionally reserved for them. The Committee notes that this situation is confirmed by the statistics provided by the Government in its report, which show that, for equal levels of education or vocational qualifications, women earn systematically less than the average monthly wage, irrespective of their category, whereas their male colleagues systematically earn more than the average wage, also irrespective of their category. For example, while the average monthly wage for a doctor in Slovenia is 319,795 tolars, a woman doctor earns on average 273,646 tolars, compared with 331,078 for her male colleague, or 82.7 per cent of the earnings of the male colleague.

4. This situation demonstrates that it is not sufficient to prohibit open and directly identifiable discrimination in order to eliminate discrimination. It is also necessary to take into account past discrimination and correct its effects. Indeed, experience shows that many of the difficulties encountered in achieving equal remuneration are closely related to the general status of women and men in employment and in society. The Committee therefore requests the Government to provide information on the measures which have been taken or are envisaged to extend the range of occupations which can be selected by women, guarantee their access to different levels of employment, and particularly the higher levels, and promote their attainment of positions of responsibility. In this respect, the Committee draws the Government's attention to the suggestions and recommendations of the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (A/52/38/Re.1, paragraphs 81-122).

5. With reference to the 1998 report of the Labour Inspectorate, the Committee notes that, due to the numerous complaints of violations of the law respecting minimum wages, labour inspectors limit their supervision to checking whether workers receive at least the minimum wage. It also notes that employers set wages which are lower than the minimum wage in certain fields, such as retail, catering and construction. The Committee therefore requests the Government to provide information on the manner in which the application of the Convention in practice is ensured.

6. Finally, the Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide it with a copy of the report of the Office for Women's Policy, which was referred to as being attached to the report, but which has not been received.