Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2019, published 109th ILC session (2021)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Greece (Ratification: 1975)

The Committee notes the observations of the Greek General Confederation of Labour (GSEE) received on 31 August 2017 and 30 October 2019.

Legislative developments. The Committee notes with interest the adoption of Law No. 4604/2019 on Substantive Gender Equality Preventing and Combating Gender-Based Violence of 12 June 2019 which encourages public and private enterprises to draft and implement “Equality Plans” with specific strategies and targets to prevent all forms of discrimination against women and provides that the General Secretariat for Family Policy and Gender Equality (GSFPGE) can award “Equality Labels” to them as a reward for their engagement in favour of equal treatment, including equal pay for equal work, and balanced participation of women and men in managerial positions or in professional and scientific groups set up in the enterprise (section 21). It further notes that the Law provides for the establishment of municipal and regional committees for gender equality to promote women’s rights at local level (sections 6 and 7), as well as a National Council for Gender Equality (ESIF) under the auspices of the GSFPGE which aims at consulting relevant stakeholders in order to submit proposals to the GSFPGE for the adoption of policies and actions promoting gender equality, and assess and evaluate existing policies on gender equality (section 9). The Committee notes the enlarged scope of application of the Act which applies to persons who are employed or are candidates for employment in both the public and private sectors, irrespective of the form of employment and nature of services provided, as well as to freelance professional and persons in vocational training or candidate to vocational training (section 17). The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the application of the Law No. 4604/2019 in practice, and more particularly of its sections 6, 7, 9, 17 and 21, indicating: (i) the number, functioning and activities of municipal and regional committees for gender equality; (ii) the functioning and activities of the National Council for Gender Equality; (iii) the number of equality plans elaborated and implemented by employers, both in the public and in the private sectors; and (iv) the number of equality labels awarded. The Committee asks the Government to provide full information on the relevant activities and measures implemented in this framework as well as on their impact on the implementation of the provisions and principles of the Conventions.

Article 2 of the Convention. Gender pay gap. Referring to its previous comments on the gender pay gap and the occupational gender segregation of the labour market, the Committee notes, from the statistical information forwarded by the Government, that while the gender pay gap decreased from 15 per cent in 2010 to 12.5 per cent in 2014, the average monthly salary of women remained substantially lower than those of men in almost all economic sectors, even when men and women workers are employed in the same occupational category. It observes that, in 2018, the Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT) carried out a Labour Force Survey (LFS), but regrets that no updated information on the gender pay gap has been included in this survey nor has such information been published since 2014. The Committee notes that the GSEE highlights that the gender pay gap may be higher if data was properly collected, which demonstrates that there is an urgent need to establish an independent mechanism that will monitor this phenomenon, record and process targeted data already stored in existing information systems for employment and social security purposes. The Committee notes, from the 2018 LFS, that the employment rates for women slightly increased from 46.8 per cent in 2016 to 49.1 per cent in 2018, but remained 21 percentage points below that of men (70.1 per cent in 2018), being still one of the lowest employment rate for women among the European Union (EU average of 66.5 per cent), as highlighted by the GSEE. It further notes that women are still mostly concentrated in low-paid jobs, representing 61.2 per cent of clerical support workers but only 26.8 per cent of senior officials and managers and 9.1 per cent of board members of the largest publicly listed companies in the EU (Labour Force Survey of ELSTAT and European Commission, 2019 Report on equality between men and women in the EU, page 27). It further notes that, as highlighted by the European Commission and Eurostat, the gender gap in unpaid working time is one of the higher in the EU which is reflected in the labour market by the fact that more than twice as many women as men are in part-time employment (13.2 per cent and 6 per cent, respectively in 2018). The Committee takes note of the adoption of the National Action Plan for Gender Equality (NAPGE) for 2016–20 and more particularly of the Government’s acknowledgement that: (i) the gender pay gap and pension gap persist; (ii) employed women have low-paid and precarious jobs, with little room for promotion and are unable to develop professionally and educationally; and (iii) women still undertake the bulk of domestic work and spend periods away from the labour market more frequently than men, which also impact their future earnings and pensions. It notes that, as a result, the NAPGE sets specific actions to examine the transferability of good practices to tackle the gender pay gap, such as an annual report on the gender pay structure, and the design or a “salary and wage calculator” which provides up-to-date and easily accessible information on the usual wages in different industries and regions. While welcoming the adoption of the NAPGE, the Committee notes that, in April 2019, the United Nations (UN) Working Group on Discrimination Against Women in Law and in Practice highlighted the need for women’s equal access to the labour market and improved pay and conditions at work, and expressed specific concern at the persistence of the gender pay gap and the absence of women in leadership roles (OHCHR, Press statement of 12 April 2019). In light of the persistent gender pay gap and occupational gender segregation of the labour market, the Committee asks the Government to provide information on any measures taken, including in collaboration with employers’ and workers’ organizations, to raise awareness, make assessments, and promote and enforce the application of the Convention. It asks the Government to provide information on the proactive measures implemented, including in the framework of the National Action Plan for Gender Equality for 2016–20, to address the gender pay gap by identifying and addressing its underlying causes, such as vertical and horizontal occupational gender segregation and stereotypes regarding women’s professional aspirations, preferences and capabilities, and their role in the family, by promoting women’s access to a wider range of jobs with career prospects and higher pay. Recalling that regularly collecting, analysing and disseminating information is important for addressing appropriately unequal pay, determining if measures taken are having a positive impact on the actual situation and the underlying causes of the gender pay gap, the Committee requests the Government to take all necessary measures to provide updated statistical information on the gender pay gaps, both in the public and private sectors.

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