Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2004, published 93rd ILC session (2005)

The Committee notes the Government’s first report and asks the Government to provide further information in its next report on the following points.

1. Article 1(a) of the Convention. Definition of remuneration. The Committee notes that the Employment Act, 1978 uses the term "wage" without defining it and that the Industrial Organizations Act, 1962 defines "industrial matter", inter alia as "wages, allowances and remuneration of persons employed or to be employed" (section 1). The Public Services (Management) Act defines "pay" as meaning the salary and such allowances specified in the General Order made under that Act. In connection with the comments made in point 2 below, the Committee asks the Government to consider the possibility of introducing a broad definition of remuneration which would include basic wages, allowances and any other emoluments in accordance with Article 1(a) of the Convention.

2. Article 1(b). Equal remuneration for men and women workers for work of equal value. The Committee notes that under section 97(2) of the Employment Act an employer who fails to pay a female employee the same wage as a male employee employed at the same level in the same work, is guilty of an offence. With regard to section 97(2) the Committee notes the following:

(1) The equal pay principle established in this provision only covers "wages", and not any other elements of remuneration such as allowances or any other benefits as required by the Convention.

(2) The provision requires equal wages for women employed "in the same work", while the Convention’s principle requires equal remuneration for men and women performing work of equal value.

(3) The provision appears to protect only women from wage discrimination while the Convention is intended to protect men and women equally.

The Committee asks the Government to take the measures necessary to bring section 97(2) into conformity with the Convention in respect to the points raised above and to inform the Committee of the steps taken in this regard, for instance in the context of the draft Industrial Relations Act under consideration.

3. Article 2. Methods of wage determination. The Committee notes that under the Industrial Relations Act minimum wages are to be determined by registered industrial awards and the 1992 Minimum Wage Board Determination. It also notes that the National Executive Council has endorsed a government policy on wage fixing and determination of minimum wages, incorporating principles and guidelines of general application for collective bargaining. The Government is asked to provide further information on this government policy and on how it promotes the application of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women workers for work of equal value. Please also provide information on the manner in which workers and employers take the Convention into consideration when engaging in collective bargaining, and supply the text of the 1992 Minimum Wage Determination, and any others that may have been adopted since then.

4. Article 3. Objective appraisal of jobs. The Committee notes with interest the procedures and methods concerning job evaluation provided for under General Order No. 2 on organizational design and position classification, made under the Public Services (Management) Act, 1995. Please provide information on the practical application of these methods and procedures, indicating experiences and difficulties encountered with regard to ensuring that evaluation criteria are selected and applied without gender bias. Please indicate in this connection how often job evaluations in the public sector are reviewed, and what is being done to encourage job evaluation in the private sector.

5. Parts IV and V of the report form. The Government is asked to provide any relevant administrative or judicial decisions involving section 97(2) of the Employment Act or otherwise dealing with equal remuneration for men and women workers. The Committee also asks the Government to provide, as far as possible, statistical information on the levels of earnings of men and women in the private and public sectors, in accordance with its 1998 general observation on the Convention (attached for ease of reference).