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Assessment of the gender pay gap.  The Committee notes from the statistical information provided by the Government that between 2004 and 2005, the gender pay gap (average annual wages) in the public sector increased from 20.1 per cent to 23.1 per cent, while it decreased during the same period from 21.3 per cent to 20.6 per cent in the private sector. According to EUROSTAT data, the gender pay gap calculated on the basis of average gross hourly earnings was 16 per cent in 2004, decreasing to 15 per cent in 2005 and 14 per cent in 2006. The Committee asks the Government to provide information explaining the increase in the gender pay gap in the public sector noted above and to provide information on the measures taken or envisaged to address this situation. The Government is also asked to provide more detailed information on the earnings of men and women, as far as possible in accordance with the Committee’s 1998 general observation, as well as information on the measures taken to address gender pay differentials in economic sectors where they are particularly pronounced.

Article 3 of the Convention. Objective job evaluation. In its previous comments, the Committee stressed the importance of objective job evaluation as a means of ensuring that remuneration is determined in accordance with the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value. The Committee regrets that the Government’s report contains no information in reply to the Committee’s comments on this issue. The Committee therefore reiterates its request to the Government to provide information on any measures taken or envisaged to promote the development and use of methods for the objective evaluation of jobs, free from gender bias, particularly in the private sector. The Committee also asks the Government to indicate the specific measure taken to seek the collaboration of workers’ and employers’ organizations in this regard.

Parts III and IV of the report form. Enforcement. The Committee notes the detailed information provided by the Government concerning the mandate and functioning of the Commission on the Protection against Discrimination, including the information regarding some cases dealt with by the Commission which involved issues of pay discrimination. The Committee asks the Government to indicate in its next report whether any of the promotional activities of the Commission on the Protection against Discrimination specifically address the right to equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value, and to provide detailed information on any such activity. The Committee also asks the Government to continue to provide information on any cases decided by the Commission concerning equal remuneration. In addition, the Government is asked to collect and provide to the Committee information on whether the labour inspectorate and the courts have dealt with any cases concerning the Convention’s principle.