Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2017, published 107th ILC session (2018)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Netherlands (Ratification: 1971)

The Committee notes the observations by the Netherlands Trade Union Confederation (FNV) and the National Federation of Christian Trade Unions (CNV) received on 31 August 2016.

Article 2 of the Convention. Measures to address differences in remuneration of part-time workers. In its previous comments, the Committee requested the Government to provide details on the advice given by Social and Economic Council (SER) on labour market discrimination, including on how the advice addressed the recommendations made by the Task Force Part-Time Plus in 2010 to tackle differences in pay between men and women. The Committee recalls that the Task Force Part-Time Plus was established to address equal pay in a wider national context in which men are usually working full time and women part time. The Committee notes that the most recent study on equal pay published by the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) in November 2016 and referred to by the Government in its report, indicates that average hourly wages of part-time workers are relatively low compared to those of full-time workers, and a significant gender pay gap persists between full-time and part-time workers. The study found that in 2014, 32 per cent of the male workers and 79 per cent of the female workers were working part-time in the private sector, compared to 24 per cent of the male workers and 70 per cent of the female workers in the public sector. Part-time work is also more common in female dominated sectors, and the study indicates that of the five sectors with the highest number of part-time workers, restaurant and hotel and commerce sectors – where many women work – are those with the lowest hourly wages. While welcoming the research undertaken on equal pay differences and part-time work, the Committee notes that the Government’s report does not contain information on specific measures taken to address differences in remuneration, including on any follow-up given to the recommendations of the Task Force Part-Time Plus. The Committee further notes that FNV and CNV point out that the unjustified difference in pay with respect to part-time work also exists with respect to other types of non-standard forms of employment, including fixed-term work, zero or undefined hours contracts, and self-employed workers undertaking regular work, and encourage the Government to broaden the study on the gender pay gap to other non-standard forms of work contracts and to examine the low number of legal proceedings initiated in this regard. With regard to the promotion of part-time work as a means to assist workers in reconciling work with family responsibilities, and to promote full-time employment of working parents, especially women, the Committee refers to its comments on the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111), and the Workers with Family Responsibilities Convention, 1981 (No. 156). Noting that the action taken and the follow-up given to the recommendations to reduce the gender pay gap with respect to part-time workers remain unclear, the Committee asks the Government to adopt more targeted measures to reduce the pay gap between men and women, taking into account the high number of women engaged in part-time work and their concentration in jobs that are generally lower paid, and to report in detail on the results achieved. Further, the Committee asks the Government to consider broadening the study on the gender pay gap to other non-standard forms of work contracts and to examine any obstacles that may exist for workers employed in non-standard forms of employment to initiate legal proceedings concerning pay inequalities between men and women, and to provide information on the steps taken in this regard.

Measures to address the gender pay gap. The Committee previously requested information on any proactive measures taken including any follow-up given to recommendations with respect to an equal pay campaign, the enforcement of equal pay provisions by the labour inspectorate and the development of an equal pay policy when providing government support to financial institutions, as the gender pay gap in this sector was significant. The Committee notes from the CBS study on equal pay that the uncorrected gender pay gap – based on gross hourly wages – in the public sector narrowed from 13 per cent in 2010 to 10 per cent in 2014. In the private sector the gender pay gap however remained at 20 per cent. After correction (taking into account differences in part-time and full-time work, age, level of occupation and management posts) a difference remained of 5 per cent in the public sector and 7 per cent in the private sector in 2014. The study also indicates that the gender pay gap increases with age and that, in female dominated enterprises in the private sector, average hourly wages are lower. Female managers in the private sector also earn significantly less than male managers and persisting occupational segregation negatively impacts women’s wages in the health sector where the gender pay gap is the highest. In terms of measures to address the gender pay gap, the Government reports that the SER advice “Discrimination doesn’t work!” issued in April 2014, emphasized the collective responsibility of government, trade unions and employers’ organizations and other social actors to address discrimination in the labour market, and that in response, the Government presented the Action Plan on Labour Market Discrimination (May 2014) – which was updated in 2016. The Government reports that measures under the Plan have included: (i) the launching by the Labour Foundation of the Diversity Charter for employers in July 2015; (ii) the creation of a specific discrimination team within the labour inspectorate; and (iii) additional research on equal pay. The Committee notes the new periodic study on equal pay in the public and private sectors published by the CBS (November 2016) and the research undertaken in 2016 by the Netherlands Institute for Human Rights (the Institute) on equal remuneration between men and women in higher education institutions. While welcoming these initiatives, the Committee observes that, apart from the additional research on equal pay, the information provided by the Government is insufficient to assess the effectiveness of any of the proposed solutions for reducing the gender pay gap, including any follow-up given to the abovementioned recommendations. The Committee notes that FNV and CNV urge the Government to monitor at regular intervals the effectiveness of the measures concerning the gender pay gap and to hold consultations with the social partners on how to improve effectiveness. Noting that the uncorrected gender pay gap remains significant and that no further information has been provided by the Government on additional measures taken to address, in cooperation with the social partners, that part of the difference in remuneration that may be due to discrimination, the Committee urges the Government to provide such information in its next report. The Committee asks the Government to take measures, in cooperation with the social partners, to address the effects of occupational segregation in certain sectors of employment on the differences in pay between men and women, in particular in the health sector, and to adopt specific measures to address the gender pay gap in female-dominated enterprises in the private sector and at higher management level. The Committee encourages the Government to monitor, in consultation with the social partners, the effectiveness of the measures concerning the gender pay gap, and to provide information on the results achieved in this regard.

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