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1. Article 2 of the Convention. Application of the principle in the public service. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee notes the report on the "Social Assessment of New Caledonia in 2004" (Bilan social 2004 de la Nouvelle-Calédonie) containing statistics on the distribution of men and women in the public sector according to salary level and age, for which it is grateful. It notes that according to the findings of the report, the number of female civil servants in the highest salary category A increased from 37 per cent in 2003 to 41 per cent in 2004. However, rather than reflecting a feminization of the employees in higher level posts, this increase is due to the fact that more women have been hired as schoolteachers. The Committee encourages the Government to further analyse and try to correct the causes of the continuing income gap between men and women in the public service and to promote women’s access generally to the higher paid positions in Category A. The Government is asked to provide information on all measures taken towards this end and the results of such action.

2. Application of equal remuneration in the private sector. The Committee notes from the information provided in the Government’s report on Convention No. 111, that the Government is developing a legislative framework to protect foreign workers employed by enterprises established outside New Caledonia providing services in the area of construction and civil engineering. Noting that the draft law will include provisions concerning equal remuneration between men and women, the Committee asks the Government to keep it informed of any developments in this regard and to provide copies of the text of the relevant provisions. Noting further that no study has been undertaken on the distribution of men and women in the various economic branches and occupations and their corresponding salary levels in the private sector, the Committee, referring to its 1998 general observation on this Convention, hopes that the Government will undertake such an analysis, in the very near future, so as to enable the Committee to evaluate adequately the nature and extent of the salary differentials in the private sector.

3. Enforcement. The Committee notes the Government’s statement that for the moment the labour inspection services have not raised any issues of equal remuneration for work of equal value with the enterprises. It asks the Government to continue to provide information on the activities and methods used by the inspection services to promote and ensure compliance with the principle of the Convention, including, for example, any awareness-raising activities targeting employers and trade unions, on the legal provisions providing for equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value.