Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2022, published 111st ILC session (2023)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Brazil (Ratification: 1957)

The Committee notes the observations of: (i) the Single Confederation of Workers (CUT) received on 2 September 2022; and (ii) the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) and the National Confederation of Industry (CNI) received on 30 August 2022. The Committee requests the Government to provide its comments with respect to the observations of the CUT.

Articles 1–4 of the Convention. Assessing and addressing the gender pay gap and its underlying causes. The Committee notes that, according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), the gender pay gap has decreased slightly since 2017 but remains high, being estimated at 22.3 per cent in 2019 (compared with 22.5 per cent in 2017). The remuneration of women was systematically lower than that of men in all occupational categories, except for members of the armed forces, and the gender pay gap was as wide as 38.1 per cent in management positions, in 2019. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that efforts are being made in relation to higher positions, where pay differences between men and women are still very large and women are still facing difficulties in accessing such positions. In that regard, the Committee notes that, in their observations, the CNI and the IOE indicate that in recent years, public policies combined with efforts from the private sector have resulted in an increased participation of women in the formal economy, more particularly in positions and economic sectors with higher pay, and their departure from informal work characterized by low remuneration. The Committee notes this information but regrets the lack of information provided by the Government on the concrete measures elaborated and implemented to address the persistent gender pay gap. The Committee asks the Government to strengthen its efforts to address the gender pay gap and its underlying causes, including by enhancing women’s access to jobs with career prospects and higher pay. It also asks the Government to provide information on: (i) the content of the proactive measures taken and implemented to that end and their outcomes; and (ii) the levels of remuneration in the various economic sectors, disaggregated by sex and occupational category, so as to enable the Committee to assess the progress made.

Articles 1(b) and 2(2)(a). Equal remuneration for work of equal value. Legislation. The Committee notes that section 461 of the Consolidation of Labour Laws (CLT), as amended by Law No. 13.467 of 2017, guarantees the right to equal remuneration without discrimination on the grounds of sex, ethnicity, nationality or age to workers “performing the same functions, for all work of equal value, rendered to the same employer, in the same business establishment”. Section 461(1) further defines “work of equal value” as work “performed with the same productivity and technical perfection, among people working for the same employer with a difference of length of years of service for that employer of not more than four years and with a difference of length of tenure in the post of not more than two years”. The Committee notes the Government’s statement, in its report, that section 8 of Decree No. 9.571, of 21 November 2018, establishing the National Guidelines on Business and Human Rights, provides that companies should address discrimination and “ensure equal pay and benefits for positions and functions with similar attributions, regardless of gender”. The Government adds that a “Questions and Answers Booklet on Discrimination at Work” was published in 2018 by the Ministry of Labour and provides as an example of direct discrimination the payment of a lower salary to women “when the functions are identical and the service is provided for the same employer in the same establishment”. In this context, the Committee wishes to draw the Government’s attention to the fact that the provisions contained in its national legislation are narrower than the principle laid down by the Convention. The concept of “work of equal value” encompasses not only the same work, or work in the same occupation or activity, performed by men and women under the same conditions and specifications, but should also allow for the comparison of work performed by men and women that is of an entirely different nature, which is nevertheless of equal value. Furthermore, the application of the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value is not limited to comparisons between the jobs of men and women in the same establishment or with the same employer. It allows for a much broader comparison to be made between jobs performed by men and women in different places or enterprises, or for different employers. The Committee also emphasizes that, while factors such as skills, responsibility, effort and working conditions are clearly relevant in determining the value of the jobs, when examining two jobs, it is important to note that the value does not have to be the same with respect to each factor – determining value is about the overall value of the job when all the objective factors are taken into account. In this regard, it wishes to point out that, for the purpose of the Convention, the relative value of jobs with varying content is to be determined through objective job evaluation on the basis of the work performed and is different from performance appraisal, which aims at evaluating the performance of an individual worker in carrying out his or her job. Objective job evaluation is therefore concerned with evaluating the job and not the individual worker. The Committee therefore underlines that factors such as “productivity” and “technical perfection” relate to the performance appraisal of the individual worker rather than to objective job evaluation (see the 2012 General Survey on the fundamental Conventions, paragraphs 673–679 and 695–709). The Committee urges the Government to take the necessary steps to amend the Consolidation of Labour Laws (CLT), so as to give full legislative expression to the principle of the Convention and include a definition of “work of equal value” based on objective criteria, such as skills and qualifications, effort, responsibilities and working conditions. It asks the Government to provide information on any steps taken in this regard and their outcomes.

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