Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2010, published 100th ILC session (2011)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Tunisia (Ratification: 1968)

The Committee notes that the Government’s report has not been received. It hopes that a report will be supplied for examination by the Committee at its next session and that it will contain full information on the matters raised in its previous direct request, which read as follows:

Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. Application in practice in the public and private sectors. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the wage scale in the public sector and the respective provisions of the collective agreements in the private sector apply equally to men and women. However, the Committee considers that this is not sufficient to ensure that full effect is given to the Convention. Drawing the Government’s attention to its general observation of 2006, the Committee wishes to emphasize once again that the concept of “work of equal value” includes but goes beyond equal remuneration for “equal”, the “same” or “similar” work, and also encompasses work that is of an entirely different nature, but which is nevertheless of equal value. This broad scope of “equal value” is all the more important in that inequality of wages is often the consequence of occupational sex segregation, resulting in the concentration of women in a limited range of occupations. The statistical data provided by the Government in its report on the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111), do indeed demonstrate a concentration of women in certain sectors, such as the service sector, and their low rate of representation in positions of responsibility. In this respect, the Committee emphasizes the importance of comparing the value of the different types of work on the basis of criteria that are objective and non-discriminatory, such as the skills required, effort, responsibility and conditions of work, so as to determine the respective remuneration rates in accordance with the principle of the Convention. With regard to the issue of occupational segregation, the Committee refers to its comments on the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111). The Committee asks the Government to do the following:

(i)    to supply updated statistical data, disaggregated by sex on the distribution of employees in the various economic sectors, occupations and jobs and the corresponding remuneration levels;

(ii)   to provide information on the impact of the Government’s plan of action to encourage the vocational advancement of women and to combat gender stereotypes in terms of the reduction of the wage gap between men and women, as well as information on the measures adopted or envisaged to promote the objective appraisal of jobs; and

(iii)  to indicate specifically the manner in which it is collaborating with the social partners, including in the context of the National Social Dialogue Commission, with a view to giving full effect to the provisions of the Convention, and promoting compliance in collective agreements with the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide copies of collective agreements applying the principle of the Convention.

Equal remuneration in the agricultural sector. The Committee recalls its previous comments concerning cases of unequal wages recorded by the labour inspectorate in the agricultural sector in 2004 and 2005. It notes the Government’s indication that the regulations determining the minimum wage do not make a distinction between men and women. The Committee reiterates its request for information on the distribution and level of the wages of men and women among ordinary, specialized and skilled workers in the agricultural sector, and on the measures adopted in this sector to reduce the wage gap between men and women workers.

Parts III to V of the report form. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on violations of the principle set out in the Convention identified by labour inspectors, the penalties imposed and the remedies applied. Please also provide information on any court decisions relating to the application of the principle of the Convention and on any measures taken or envisaged to promote knowledge and understanding of the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value.