Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2020, published 109th ILC session (2021)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Israel (Ratification: 1965)

Israel (ratification: 1965)

The Committee takes note of the supplementary information provided by the Government following the decision adopted by the Governing Body at its 338th Session (June 2020). The Committee proceeded with the examination of the application of the Convention on the basis of the supplementary information received from the Government this year, as well as the information at its disposal in 2019

COVID-19. Impact on the employment of women. The Committee takes note of the information provided by the Government on the impact of the pandemic on the employment of women. Specifically, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that: (1) more women than men have registered with the Employment Service and applied for unemployment benefits; and (2) these higher percentages for women apply to all economic branches and age groups.

Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. Gender pay gap. In its previous comment, the Committee requested the Government to provide statistical information on the evolution of the gender pay gap in the different sectors and occupations (including caregivers) and the corresponding earnings. The Committee takes note of the 2019 report on the Labour Market in Israel provided by the Government, which indicates that: (1) in every population group women’s average earnings are lower than those of men; (2) women are over-represented in part-time employment (61 per cent of ultra-orthodox women, 38 per cent of non-ultra-orthodox Jewish women and 26 per cent of Arab women); and (3) that Arab women face a low employment rate (38.3 per cent in 2018). The Committee also notes from the Government’s report that it has developed a Diversity Index with the Central Bureau of Statistics and the Tel Aviv University as an innovative tool that presents the status of wage representation and equality by demographic group, namely women, Arab workers, immigrants from Ethiopia, ultra-orthodox Jews and persons aged 45 and above in 20 major economic sectors. The Government specifies that in 2018 a segmentation by gender was added to the Diversity Index for each of the four minority groups in order to examine the possibility of double discrimination. The Diversity Index shows that women are poorly represented in sectors where wage levels are high, such as computer programming, computer manufacturing and scientific research and development. The Government also indicates that women are faced with a glass ceiling effect in these sectors, in which they participate in entry and middle-level positions, but rarely as managers. The Committee requests the Government to continue gathering statistical information disaggregated by sex on the distribution of men and women in the different sectors and occupations (particularly for care sector) and their corresponding earnings, including data for the different population groups. It also asks the Government to provide information on the evolution of the Diversity Index, as amended in 2018.

Article 2. Measures to promote equal remuneration. The Committee previously requested the Government to provide information on the promotion of the Wage Calculator and the Employers’ Guide and on any other tools developed to promote equal remuneration. The Committee takes note of the Government’s indications that the Wage Calculator allows users to identify the nature, scope and location of gender wage differences. As a supplementary tool, the Employers’ Guide provides step-by-step guidance to examine wage differences in an organization and to plan and implement a suitable gradual process of change to eliminate such differences. In its supplementary information, the Government also refers to two recent developments that should further encourage the reduction of gender pay differentials: first, it indicates that the Male and Female Workers Equal Pay Law, 1996, was amended on 24 August 2020 to require employers in workplaces with more than 100 workers to publish an annual report detailing the wage differentials between men and women employees; and second, in August 2020, the Nazareth District Labour Court held that workers are entitled to reveal publicly their wages and working conditions. The Committee takes note of this information and requests the Government to provide information on the impact of these measures on the reduction of the gender pay gap and to indicate whether other initiatives have been launched, in cooperation with workers’ and employers’ organizations, to promote greater understanding of the concept of equal remuneration for work of equal value.

Scope of comparison. In its previous comment, the Committee requested the Government to amend section 2 of the Male and Female Workers Equal Pay Law, 1996, to extend the scope of comparison for the remuneration of jobs of equal value beyond the same employer or workplace. Noting that the Government has not provided any information in this regard in its report, the Committee reiterates its previous request.

Article 3. Objective job evaluation. The Committee previously requested the Government to indicate the specific measures adopted to establish mechanisms to conduct objective job evaluations, and to provide information on the application in practice of section 5 of the Male and Female Workers Equal Pay Law, which provides for the possibility to appoint a job evaluation expert. Noting that the Government’s report is silent on this issue, the Committee reiterates its previous request.

Article 4. Cooperation with workers’ and employers’ organizations. The Committee previously requested the Government to provide information on cooperation with workers’ and employers’ organizations to promote the application of the principle of the Convention, and in particular on the activities of the two advisory committees of the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission (EEOC). The Committee notes the Government’s that: (1) the EEOC guides companies participating in a pilot programme on the implementation of equality and diversity in employment through a process engaging senior management to create and implement a long-term plan with specific goals; and (2) the EEOC guidance lasts 18 months, after which the companies continue the process on their own while submitting reports to the EEOC every six months. The Committee takes note of the information provided by the Government on its cooperation with companies to promote equality and diversity in employment. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on: (i) its cooperation with employers’ and workers’ organizations for the purpose of giving effect to the Convention; and (ii) on the activities of the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission and its advisory committees.

Enforcement. The Committee previously requested the Government to provide information on any judicial rulings in relation to the application of the principle of the Convention and the progress made in the adoption of legislation on compensation in equal pay cases. The Committee takes note of the information provided by the Government regarding a decision by the National Labour Court of Jerusalem in 2017 sett a precedent in which the EEOC submitted a lawsuit against the Municipality of Jerusalem calling for it to equalize wage terms for women and conduct a study of wage differences within the municipality. The ruling determined that gender-based wage differences may not be perpetuated through collective agreements. The Labour Court ruled that the Equal Wages Law is a specific and later law and therefore prevails over the Collective Agreements Law. The Labour Court noted that the test in the claim under the Equality Law is one of ‘final result’, and that there is therefore no need to prove intent to discriminate. The Committee also notes the indication by the Government that Amendment No. 2 of 2012 to the Male and Female Workers Equal Pay Law, 1996, extends from two to five years the period for which compensation may be granted.