Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2005, published 95th ILC session (2006)

The Committee notes the communication of 9 September 2004 by the Confederation of Trade Unions of the Slovak Republic (KOZ SR), which was sent to the Government on 15 October 2004 for its comments thereon.

1. Work of equal value. The Committee recalls its previous observation in which it noted that the wording in section 119(3) of the Labour Code provides that "wage conditions" must be equal for both men and women without any discrimination on grounds of sex and that women and men are entitled to equal wages for work of an equal level of complexity, responsibility and difficulty, performed under the same working conditions and upon achievement of the same efficiency and work results. In the Committee’s view this did not reflect fully the principle of the Convention of equal remuneration for work of equal value. The Committee notes the Government’s statement that the principle is indirectly guaranteed through the definition of the criteria of complexity, responsibility and difficulty. It notes with interest the adoption of Act No. 365/2004 Coll. on Equal Treatment in Some Areas and on Protection Against Discrimination and Amending and Supplementing Certain Acts (the Anti-Discrimination Act), amending section 13 of the Labour Code and reinforcing the prohibition of direct and indirect discrimination. However, in light of the Government’s explanations, the Committee notes with some regret that, although prohibiting sex-based discrimination with respect to remuneration, neither the adoption of the Anti-Discrimination Act nor the amendment of the Labour Code has led to the inclusion of a provision expressly providing for equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value. The Committee is therefore bound to reiterate its concern that, while the definition applied to the terms "complexity, responsibility and difficulty" may indeed assist in objectively determining whether different jobs are of equal value, the notion of "the same working conditions, efficiency and results" does not reflect fully the principle of the Convention. The Committee reiterates its previous request to the Government to provide information on the measures taken to ensure that the relevant provisions of the Labour Code are applied in a manner consistent with the Convention, including any relevant administrative or judicial decisions.

2. Remuneration gap between men and women. Further to its previous observation regarding the widening wage gap between men and women, the Committee notes the statistical information provided by the Government on the average earnings of men and women in the first quarter of 2004, for which it is grateful. The Committee notes that, despite the increase in the number of women in the labour market and the increase in their average wage, the wages of women nevertheless continue to be significantly lower than those of men, and that there are differences in remuneration in each age category. The data on average earnings show that, in the private sector, women’s earnings as a share of men’s have decreased from 77.4 per cent in 2001 to 75.5 per cent in 2004; in the public sector, the female/male ratio stabilized at around 84 per cent over the same period. In both the public and private sector the wage gap is the lowest for workers up to 20 years of age in the private sector, it is highest for the age categories between 30 and 39 years of age and those over 60 years of age (71 and 72 per cent respectively). In the public sector, wage differences are the highest in the age category from 50 to 54 years of age (77 per cent), while the earnings of women over 60 years of age are 90 per cent of those of men. When looking at average earnings according to occupation, statistics on for 2004 show that the female/male ratio is the lowest for legislators, managers and managerial staff (63 per cent in the private sector and 77 per cent in the public sector), craftspersons and qualified workers in affiliated professions (63 per cent in the private sector and 83 per cent in the public sector), servicing machines and equipment (72 per cent in the private sector and 77 per cent in the public sector) and operating staff in services and trade (78 per cent in the private sector and 72 per cent in the public sector). The Committee notes the Government’s statement that, in order to determine the precise gender wage gap, a deeper analysis would be necessary taking into account the various factors influencing the appraisal of wages of men and women. It asks the Government to continue to provide statistical information, disaggregated by sex, and to indicate in its next report any steps taken to undertake such an analysis and the results achieved. Noting further the Government’s statement that it is not possible through administrative or organizational measures to improve the representation of women in better paid occupations, the Committee recalls the importance of increasing women’s participation in higher paid jobs and in a wider variety of occupations and training courses as a means of implementing the principle of the Convention. It therefore urges the Government to investigate potential means and solutions to promote the access of women into higher paid sectors and positions, as well as any other measures to ensure that female-dominated sectors and occupations are not undervalued, and to report on the results achieved in its next report.

3. Collective agreements. The Committee notes the Government’s statement that, in order to apply the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value, all higher level collective agreements are formulated in a gender-neutral manner and work activities are classified into equal categories. Any violation of the principle would, under section 4(2)(a) of the Collective Bargaining Act (Act No. 2/1991), result in the clause being invalid. The Committee further notes that, pursuant to section 7 of the Act, the Government can, by means of regulations, extend a higher level collective agreement, including wage conditions, to employers with a similar economic activity. In this regard, the KOZ SR maintains that when supporting the application of the principle of the Convention through collective agreements, they meet, however, with the practice that the Government is not willing to extend collective agreements to the branch level, due to the resistance of employers. The Committee recalls that the possibility of giving general binding force to collective agreements provides the State with an important means of supervising the contents of collective agreements, and in particular the principle of equal remuneration (see paragraphs 154 and 155 of the 1986 General Survey on equal remuneration). The Committee asks the Government to continue to provide copies of higher level collective agreements in the public and private sectors that apply the principle of the Convention and to indicate the measures taken to cooperate with the social partners to extend such agreements to the branch level. Please also indicate whether there have been any cases reported of violations of the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value in collective agreements.

The Committee is raising other matters in a request addressed directly to the Government.