Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2023, published 112nd ILC session (2024)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Madagascar (Ratification: 1962)

The Committee notes that the Government’s report has not been received. It hopes that the next report will contain full information on the matters raised in its previous comments.

Repetition

The Committee notes the observations of the Trade Union Confederation of Malagasy Revolutionary Workers (FISEMARE), received on 1 September 2022.

Articles 1 to 4 of the Convention. Assessing and addressing the gender pay gap and its underlying causes. Further to the observations of the Christian Confederation of Malagasy Trade Unions (SEKRIMA), according to which wage discrimination against women working in the private sector is particularly significant, the Committee previously requested the Government to: (1) take the necessary measures to collect detailed statistical data, disaggregated by sex, on the number of men and women employed in the public and private sectors and their respective remuneration levels; and (2) provide information on the measures adopted or envisaged to address the occupational segregation of women in the labour market and reduce remuneration gaps. With regard to the public sector, the Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that Decree No. 2019-1446 of 7 August 2019 establishes the “AUGURE” programme with a view to harmonizing personnel management in the public administration and the public service and collecting statistical data, and its reference to the principle of equal access to public employment set out in the Constitution. With reference to the private sector, it notes that the Government is planning to update the information collection system on private sector workers with a view to gathering statistical data on the distribution of men and women by occupational category and their respective remuneration levels. The Committee however draws the Government’s attention to the fact that, while it is important to establish the principle of equal access of men and women to public and private employment, that is not sufficient to combat the segregation (horizontal and vertical) faced by women in the labour market and to reduce remuneration gaps. Specific support measures are necessary, particularly to enable women to have access to a broader range of employment opportunities, including in sectors where wages are higher, and to positions of responsibility in the public and private sectors, such as: (1) the reinforcement of the economic independence of women and the active promotion of their access to formal employment and decision-making positions; (2) the encouragement of girls and women to choose non-traditional subjects for their studies and occupations; (3) the reduction of early school drop-out rates for girls; and (4) action to combat gender stereotypes; etc. Moreover, with reference to the observation by the SAIT, the Committee recalls that, while the Convention applies to all workers, it exclusively targets wage inequalities and remuneration gaps between men and women for work of equal value. In the absence of the statistics requested previously to enable it to assess the effect given to the Convention in practice, the Committee once again requests the Government to collect, analyse and provide detailed statistical data, disaggregated by sex, on the distribution of men and women in the various occupational categories in the public and private sectors and on their respective remuneration levels. It reiterates its request for information on the specific affirmative measures adopted or envisaged, in collaboration with employers’ and workers’ organizations, to enable women to have access to a broader range of employment opportunities, including in sectors where wages are higher and in managerial posts and positions of responsibility in the public and private sectors. The Committee recalls in this regard that the Government may avail itself of ILO technical assistance.

Article 2(2)(c). Collective agreements. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in response to its previous request concerning the application and revision of the collective agreement in the national air company.

Article 3. Objective job evaluation. In its previous comments, the Committee requested the Government to provide information on the measures to: (1) promote the use of objective job evaluation methods in the public and private sectors; and (2) ensure that the criteria used to determine remuneration do not give rise in practice to an under-evaluation of jobs mainly occupied by women. With regard to the public sector, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the professional scales of public officials are determined by the specific regulations governing their service. The Government indicated in its previous report (2016) that the Decree on the harmonization of the professional scales of employees in different services but in the same occupational category were under preparation. The Committee notes with regret that this Decree has still not been adopted and that the Government confines itself to indicating, as it did in 2011, that studies are currently being carried out to map existing jobs in the public sector and harmonize the wage system. With reference to the private sector, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that the minimum recruitment wage by occupational category is determined by decree based on the views of the National Labour Council (CNT), and is periodically revised by the social partners on the basis of the national accounts, the economic situation and consumer prices. The Government adds that section 53 of the Labour Code makes it possible to avoid any sexist distortion or under-evaluation of jobs occupied by women through its prohibition of wage discrimination on grounds of sex. In this regard, the Committee recalls that the prohibition by a national legal provision of wage discrimination on grounds of sex is not sufficient to ensure that minimum wage determination and adjustment processes are not tainted by gender stereotypes, particularly since section 53 of the Labour Code is more limited than the principle set out in the Convention (see the Committee’s observation on this Convention). Minimum wage rates should be fixed and revised on the basis of objective criteria (such as skills, effort, responsibilities and conditions of work), free from gender bias, to ensure that the work in sectors with a high proportion of women is not undervalued in comparison with sectors in which men are predominantly employed (2012 General Survey on the fundamental Conventions, paragraph 683). More generally, the Committee recalls that the principle of equal remuneration for work of “equal value” necessarily involves the adoption, in both the public and private sectors, of a method for the assessment and comparison of the relative value of different jobs. The Committee trusts that the Decree on the harmonization of the professional scales of public employees in the various services but in the same occupational category will be adopted in the near future and requests the Government to provide detailed information on the findings of the studies undertaken with a view to the harmonization of these scales and on the criteria used to ensure that they give effect to the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the criteria applied for the determination and adjustment of the minimum wage in the private sector with a view to ensuring that they are free from any gender stereotypes and do not result in practice in an under-valuation of jobs occupied mainly by women. The Committee recalls in this regard that the Government may avail itself of ILO technical assistance.

Enforcement and awareness-raising. According to the Government, the annual reports drawn up by regional labour inspection services have still not reported any complaints relating to the principle of the Convention and official information on the cases dealt with by the courts relating to wage discrimination between men and women have still not been received by the Ministry of Justice. In this regard, the Committee notes that the Government once again recognizes the need to train labour inspectors on the interpretation of the Convention and particularly of the concept of “work of equal value”, but indicates that, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Labour does not have the necessary resources to finance such training. The Committee notes the observations of FISEMARE indicating that the principle of the Convention is poorly applied, particularly in export processing zones, and calling for accompanying measures and more controls by the authorities. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing detailed information on: (i) the number, nature and outcome of complaints relating to the principle of the Convention examined by labour inspectors; (ii) cases of wage discrimination dealt with by the courts; and (iii) the awareness-raising and information activities undertaken or planned with a view to promoting improved understanding of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women, and particularly of the concept of “work of equal value”, among labour inspectors, and more broadly among workers, employers, their respective organizations, and judges. Finally, it requests the Government to provide information on the nature and effect given in practice to its request for technical assistance.