Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2021, published 110th ILC session (2022)

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

Article 2 of the Convention. Gender wage gap and occupational segregation. In its previous comments, the Committee requested the Government to provide updated statistics on the distribution of men and women in the various economic sectors, occupations and jobs and the corresponding remuneration levels in order to be able to assess the application of the Convention in practice. The Committee notes the Government’s reference to framework collective agreements in the agricultural and non-agricultural sectors which enshrine the principle of gender equality in all areas of work. The statistics provided by the Government in its previous report, show the progression of the number of women in jobs by sector of activity from 1999 to 2016, and reveal a perceptible evolution, especially in the social and cultural services (from 41 per cent to 53.8 per cent), and in the agriculture and food industries (from 13.2 per cent to 28.2 per cent). In this regard, the Committee wishes to stress that to determine the nature, extent and causes of the pay gap, the relevant data and statistics are indispensable in order to define priorities and design appropriate measures, to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the measures taken and make any adjustments which may become necessary (see General Survey on the fundamental Conventions, 2012, paragraphs 887–891). In the absence of statistical data on the distribution of men and women in the various economic sectors, occupations and jobs, and the corresponding remuneration levels, the Committee requests the Government to indicate the measures taken or envisaged to collect and analyse these data in order to identify remuneration gaps between men and women and take the necessary measures to eliminate them, thus allowing it to evaluate the application of the Convention in practice, and its development over time.

Rural areas. The Committee recalls that it requested the Government to provide updated information on the distribution of men and women among the different categories of workers in the agricultural sector, specifying the amount of their respective average salaries. In the absence of information on this point, the Committee again requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken or envisaged to promote women’s paid employment and reduce the wage gaps between men and women in rural areas.

Collective agreements. The Committee notes the Government’s reference to the sectoral collective agreement related to hosiery and garments. The Committee again reminds the Government that the principle enshrined in the Convention is not restricted to guaranteeing equality between men and women with regard to remuneration in general, but rather to guaranteeing more specifically that equal remuneration is paid to men and women workers who carry out work of equal “value”. The Committee urges the Government to indicate the measures taken or envisaged to promote and ensure, in collaboration with the social partners, the application of the principle of the Convention in practice, including through collective agreements.

Article 3. Objective job evaluation. The Committee again requests the Government to provide information on measures taken or envisaged to promote, in collaboration with the employers’ and workers’ organizations, the use of objective job evaluation methods in the private and public sectors, with a view to guaranteeing that the principle of equal pay for men and women for work of equal value is given effect in all wage scales. The Committee requests the Government to indicate which criteria are used and applied to determine remuneration in the public and private sectors to ensure that they are free from gender bias and do not lead in practice to an undervaluation of jobs performed mainly by women. The Committee reminds the Government of the possibility to avail itself of ILO technical assistance in this regard.

Enforcement. With regard to the Government’s indication that the labour inspectors have received no complaints related to gender discrimination in respect of wages, occupational classification or promotion, the Committee refers the Government to its comment in this connection under the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111). Moreover, the Committee recognizes the particular difficulties encountered by the labour inspectors in identifying cases of wage discrimination or in determining whether equal remuneration is paid for work of equal value, especially when men and women are not undertaking the same work. It is for this reason that it stresses the need to train labour inspectors so that they are better equipped to prevent, detect and remedy such cases. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on: (i) specific training programmes designed to strengthen the capacity of labour inspectors to deal with cases of wage discrimination; and (ii) the number and nature of cases of gender-based wage discrimination for work of equal value that have come before the labour inspectorate and the courts, and their results.