Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1996, published 85th ILC session (1997)

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

1. With reference to the tables showing the average hourly and monthly remuneration of men and women by occupation for the period 1993-94, the Committee notes that the difference between the average wage of men and of women, across all categories, which was already considerable, has again increased in absolute terms to the detriment of women, even though it has narrowed slightly in relative terms owing to a proportionally larger increase in the average wage of women. This relative improvement is insufficient in terms of the principle established in the Convention and considerable efforts are still required in order to narrow and eliminate the gap which still remains, to the detriment of women, between the level of remuneration of women and men for work of equal value. The Committee hopes that the Government will provide information in its next report on the new measures taken or envisaged to give practical effect to the principle of equal remuneration for men and women workers. It also asks the Government to continue to provide up-to-date statistical information in its future reports, on the rates of remuneration of wage-earners, disaggregated by sex and by job category.

2. The Committee notes the information concerning the adoption of amendments to certain provisions of the civil service Act dealing with recruitment of employees to the civil service, which introduce appropriate representation of workers of both sexes. The Committee hopes that this measure will have a positive effect on equal remuneration in the civil service, and requests the Government to keep it informed of developments and to provide a copy of the amendments.

3. With reference to its previous comments, in which it asked the Government to take appropriate measures to reduce, by one or more of the means provided for in Article 2, paragraph 2, of the Convention, the disparities which still existed between men's and women's hourly and monthly rates of pay, the Committee notes that there have been no further developments with regard to the Job Evaluation Project in the civil service owing to lack of agreement between the workers' and employers' organizations. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on developments in the event of a resumption of the Job Evaluation Project. Noting the importance given in Article 4 of the Convention to appropriate cooperation with the social partners, the Committee would be grateful if the Government would explain the reason for the failure of the above organizations to reach agreement on this matter.

The Committee welcomes the positive effects of the job evaluation projects implemented in other sectors, particularly in Payis (Israeli Lottery) where a new job and wage scale has been established. It hopes that the Government will be in a position to state in its next report that similar projects have been implemented in other ministerial departments and state bodies, municipal bodies and other private sector enterprises.

4. The Committee also asks the Government to provide available information, relevant to the provisions of the Convention, on the two new projects referred to in its report, one of which concerns the determination and definitions of social workers' jobs in hospitals and local municipalities, and the other, a job definition in the national water system corporation Mekorot for the establishment of a nw work division scale, indicating to what extent these projects give effect to the principle of the Convention.

5. Noting that approximately 60 cases of violations of the Equal Opportunities Act were recorded during the period covered by the report, the Committee trusts that the Government will provide, as it undertook to do in its report, detailed information on the measures taken to ensure supervision of the application of the provisions of the law concerning equal pay and, in particular, on infringements recorded and penalties imposed.