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Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Austria (RATIFICATION: 1953)

The Committee notes the information contained in the Government's report, as well as in the Government's report on the application of Convention No. 111.

1. The Committee notes with interest the enactment of the Federal Act of 27 February 1998, amending the Equality of Treatment Act of 1979, which added a paragraph 2(a) to section 3(a) of the Act. The new paragraph 2(a) provides that the Federal Chancellor may decree that regional offices be set up for lawyers for equal treatment issues designated by the Federal Chancellor pursuant to section 3(a). This measure was intended to promote and facilitate the application of the Equality of Treatment Act at the regional level. The Committee notes that by decree of the Federal Chancellor (BGB1.II, No. 356/98), a regional office of the lawyer for equal treatment issues was established for the provinces of Vorarlberg, Tyrol and Salzburg. It requests the Committee to supply information on the measures taken by these bureaus to reduce salary disparities between men and women, as well as information on the results achieved.

2. The Committee notes with interest that, in its decision of 16 April 1998, the National Council instructed the Federal Ministry of Labour, Health and Social Affairs to conduct a study, in conjunction with the social partners, on salary trends and "non sex-specific" criteria, with the aim of eliminating salary differentials between men and women. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide a copy of this study once it is completed.

3. The Committee notes the Government's statement that, in accordance with the 1979 Equality of Treatment Act, wage rates are set by collective bargaining and that section 2(2) of that Act prohibits the establishment of criteria that could constitute indirect discrimination. Where a collective bargaining agreement contravenes this provision, it will be corrected by judicial decision, or through a recommendation issued by the Equality of Treatment Commission. Such a decision or recommendation would render the challenged collective bargaining provision null and void. Noting the collective bargaining autonomy that exists in this area, the Committee requests the Government to indicate the manner in which it encourages the social partners to promote the application of the Convention through collective bargaining, for example, through seminars, awareness-raising programmes, or the dissemination of documents on the methods of eliminating sexist stereotypes in wage setting, etc.

4. The Committee notes that the report supplied by the Government on the application of Convention No. 111 is accompanied by numerous annexes that contain statistical data on the percentage of women in the public service. These reveal a continued increase in the participation of women in the public administration, including in high-level positions. It also notes with interest the activity reports of the Equality of Treatment Commission. These documents will be examined in the framework of Convention No. 111, after their translation into one of the working languages of the ILO. The Committee nevertheless wishes to draw the Government's attention to its 1998 observation, in which it stresses the importance of gathering and analysing statistics on salary levels, disaggregated by sex, in order to permit the Committee adequately to evaluate the nature, extent and causes of the salary differentials between men and women. It hopes that the Government will be able to supply this information in order to permit it adequately to evaluate the progress achieved in applying the principle of the Convention.