Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2012, published 102nd ILC session (2013)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Türkiye (Ratification: 1967)

The Committee notes the observations of the Turkish Confederation of Employer Associations (TISK).

Legislative developments. The Committee notes that the Act on the Committee on Equal Opportunities for Women and Men entered into force in March 2009. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that the draft Civil Aviation Act is still pending before the Grand National Assembly and that section 16/5 provides that different wages shall not be paid to women and men flight personnel working in the same quality job with the same efficiency in a workplace, due to discrimination based on gender. The draft Act also provides that section 40 or the provisions of the Labour Act shall apply in the absence of any provision. The Committee once again recalls that the Convention requires that men and women receive equal remuneration not only for the same type of work but also for entirely different work that is nevertheless of equal value, and further that the principle applies beyond the level of the workplace. The Committee urges the Government to take the necessary steps to ensure that the equal pay provisions in the Civil Aviation Act fully reflect the principle of the Convention, and to report on the progress made in this regard.

Scope of application of the Labour Act. The Committee notes the Government’s explanations regarding the annulment of the “Regulation Regarding the Work Conditions of the Employees Working in the Job that is considered to be Among Agriculture and Forestry” (Official Gazette dated 6 April 2004, No. 25425), pursuant to the Regulation published in the Official Gazette dated 9 October 2009, No. 27019, and notes that the Labour Act and the provisions of all the regulations based on the Act shall be enforced with respect to agricultural and forestry workers within the scope of the Labour Act. The Committee asks the Government to confirm that the equal pay provisions of the Labour Act apply to agricultural and forestry workers, and to indicate how the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value is applied in practice in these sectors.

Civil service. Noting the Government’s indication that section 203 of the Civil Service Act – which provides that family allowances are paid to the father if both parents are civil servants – is being examined, the Committee hopes that progress will soon be made to bring this provision into conformity with the Convention, and asks the Government to provide information on the progress made in this regard.

Statistical information. The Committee welcomes the detailed statistical data and analysis on wages and earnings in the Structure of Earnings Survey, 2006. The Survey indicates that there was a direct relationship between wage and education for both male and female workers, and that wages increased with education, age and seniority. The data, which covered full-time employees, show that vocational high school graduate male employees received 5.3 per cent more monthly gross wages compared to “all employees” with this educational attainment. Female employees with this educational attainment obtained 23.4 per cent less monthly gross wages compared to “all employees” with the same education. The monthly average gross wages for male employees was higher than that of their female counterparts in all occupational groups except legislators, senior officials and managers. The Committee encourages the Government to collect and analyse detailed statistics disaggregated by sex on the earnings of men and women with a view to assessing the evolution of the gender pay gap since 2006, and to provide information on the progress made in reducing any differences in earnings between men and women.