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

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Serbia (Ratification: 2000)

The Committee notes the Government’s reports received in 2017 and 2022. The Committee notes the observations of the Trade Union Confederation “Nezavisnost”, received with the Government’s report.

Articles 1 to 4 of the Convention. Assessing and addressing the gender pay gap its underlying causes. The Committee notes the Government’s indication, in its report, that objective 2.3 of the Gender Equality Strategy Action Plan 2016-2018 sought the equal participation of men and women in the labour market, which implied the removal of the hurdles faced by women in accessing employment, career advancement, vocational upgrading of skills and training without discrimination. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that some employers continue to unjustifiably include requirements of family and marital status in job applications, listed vacancies and job interviews, or to automatically exclude women due to a presumption of their inability to reconcile private and professional obligations. The Committee notes, from the observations of the Nezavisnost that there are more women than men with tertiary level qualifications registered as unemployed and that women are more at risk of long-term unemployment than men. The Committee notes with regret that the Government has not provided information on the earnings of men and women. It notes that, according to Eurostat data, the unadjusted gender pay gap in 2018 was at 9.6 per cent. The Committee further notes, from the concluding observations of the United Nations (UN) Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), the persistent gender pay gap and vertical and horizontal occupational segregation in the labour market. The Committee also notes the high unemployment rates, in particular among Roma women, women with disabilities and rural women (CEDAW/C/SRB/CO/4, 14 March 2019, para. 35). It further notes, from the report of the UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) entitled “Economic Value of the Unpaid Care Work in the Republic of Serbia”, that women, to a large extent, tend to have part-time and underpaid jobs. Women also tend to be in part-time employment more than men, and 95 per cent of women stated that the care for own children or others in need was the main reason for this situation (only 4 per cent of men cited this reason). Additionally, 63 per cent of women stated that other family and personal reasons made them work less than full-time. The Committee requests the Government to step up its efforts and take the necessary measures to:

• (i)address effectively horizontal and vertical occupational segregation between men and women; and
• (ii)promote the participation of women in the labour market in a wider range of occupations, including through awareness raising and sensitization to overcome gender stereotypes. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on:
• (i)any measures taken in this respect, including measures addressing the specific situation of rural women, Roma women and women with disabilities, and the results achieved; and
• (ii)the earnings of men and women both in the private and the public sectors and on the evolution of the gender pay gap.

Articles 1(b) and 2(2)(a). Work of equal value. Legislation. In reply to its previous comment, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that section 104 of the Labour Code provides for “equal pay for men and women for equal work or work of same value” with the “same employer”. The Committee recalls that application of the Convention’s principle is not limited to comparisons between men and women in the same establishment or enterprise. It allows for a much broader comparison to be made between jobs performed by men and women in different places or enterprises, or between different employers (see the 2012 General Survey on the fundamental Conventions, paragraph 697). The Committee further notes the Government’s indication that, with regards to section 104 of the Labour Code, “work of the same value is defined as the work for which the same qualifications, same working ability, responsibility as well as physical and intellectual works are needed”. The Committee also notes the adoption of the Law on Gender Equality 2021, and its section 34 which provides that “Employees shall be guaranteed equal pay, either in cash or in goods and services, directly or indirectly, for the same work, or work of equal value for the employer, in line with the law governing employment relations”, and that “Work of equal value shall refer to work for which the same level of qualification or education, knowledge and ability is required, in which equal contribution has been made with equal responsibility”. In this regard, the Committee notes that these definitions of “work of equal value” are much narrower than the concept provided for in the Convention, as it should go beyond equal remuneration for “equal”, “the same” or “similar” work, and also encompasses work that is of an entirely different nature, which is nevertheless of equal value (see the 2012 General Survey, paragraphs 672-679). The Committee therefore urges the Government to amend section 104 of the Labour Code and section 34 of the Law on Gender Equality:

• (i)by amending the definition of “work of equal value” to ensure that equal remuneration for men and women is also provided when the jobs to be compared do not require the same level of education, working ability, responsibility as well as physical and intellectual work, but are nevertheless overall of equal value; and
• (ii)by ensuring that application of the principle of the Convention is not limited to the “same employer” but also between jobs performed by men and women in different places or enterprises, or between different employers. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the progress achieved in this regard.

Article 3. Objective job evaluation. The Committee takes note of the adoption of the Law on the System of Salaries for Public Sector Employees 2020. It notes the Government’s indication that the new law created the normative framework for the transition to a new system of salaries in which classification of jobs, positions and appointments is done in 13 pay groups (section 11). The values of jobs, positions and appointments which belong to a certain pay group are determined as values in the range of three initial pay grades of this group (section 12). In this regard, the Committee refers to paragraph 701 of its 2012 General Survey and recalls that whatever methods are used for the objective evaluation of jobs, particular care must be taken to ensure that they are free from gender bias: it is important to ensure that the selection of factors for comparison, the weighting of such factors and the actual comparison carried out are not discriminatory, either directly or indirectly. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on:

• (i)how it is ensured that the method used for the objective evaluation of jobs in the public sector is free from gender bias; and
• (ii)any measures taken to promote the use of objective job evaluation method in the private sector, such as through awareness-raising and the inclusion of objective job evaluations in collective agreements.

Enforcement. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that labour inspectors are responsible for determining whether employees are entitled to equal pay for the same work or work of equal value. To this end, labour inspectors refer to the employment contract and whether employees, regardless of gender, have the same contracted amounts of basic wages for the same type of work, as well as elements for determining work performance, salary compensation, increased salaries and other employee benefits. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, in 2016, the labour inspectorate did not find any case of discrimination with regard to remuneration and no complaints were brought forward in this regard. The Government also declares that, in 2020, there were no findings of breach of the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value, and that the Commissioner for the Protection of Equality did not receive any complaints related to equal pay in 2021. In this regard, the Committee recalls that where no cases or complaints, or very few, are being lodged, this is likely to indicate a lack of an appropriate legal framework, lack of awareness of rights, lack of confidence in or absence of practical access to procedures, or fear of reprisals. The lack of complaints or cases could also indicate that the system of recording violations is insufficiently developed. The Committee also stresses the need to collect and publish information on the nature and outcome of discrimination complaints and cases, as a means of raising awareness of the legislation and of the avenues for dispute resolution, and in order to examine the effectiveness of the procedures and mechanisms (see the 2012 General Survey, 2012, paras. 850, 870 and 871). The Committee further takes note of the Government’s indication that the Labour Inspectorate organizes and attends meetings with representative associations of employees, in order to strengthen social dialogue and to more effectively protect the rights of employees. The Government also indicates that, in order to promote equality and better inform citizens about the concept and forms of discrimination, methods of protection and the work of the institution, the Commissioner for the Protection of Equality continuously provides trainings on the concept of discrimination and protection mechanisms to labour inspectors, representatives of local self-governments, officials of the National Employment Service, trade unions members and others. The Committee also notes that the Commissioner developed a Handbook on equal pay which clarifies the way in which equality bodies can perceive and prove cases of discrimination when it comes to unequal pay, most often of women, for work of equal value. The Committee asks the Government to:

• (i)continue to raise awareness of the legislation on equal pay among relevant authorities, social partners, and the general public;
• (ii)enhance the capacity of the competent authorities, including judges, labour inspectors and other public officials to prevent and detect cases of unequal remuneration between men and women for work of equal value; and
• (iii)examine whether the applicable substantive and procedural provisions, in practice, allow claims to be brought successfully.

The Committee also requests the Government to continue to provide specific information on:

• (i)the number of cases of wage discrimination detected by the labour inspectors as well as the number of claims dealt with by them, by the Commissioner for the Protection of Equality or any other competent authority, including extracts of relevant reports, and their outcomes;
• (ii)any activities carried out or envisaged by these institutions to foster understanding of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value among workers and employers and their organizations, labour inspectors, judges and other relevant target groups; and
• (iii)any cases concerning violations of the Convention’s principle which have been decided by the courts.