Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1998, published 87th ILC session (1999)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Colombia (Ratification: 1963)

The Committee notes the information provided in the Government's report. Given that the jurisprudence referred to in the report was not received, the Committee requests the Government to provide it with copies of Constitutional Court decisions SU-519/97 and T-026.

1. The Government indicates that article 13 of the Colombian Constitution prohibits any form of discrimination, thereby implicitly establishing the principle of equality, which the Government states has been applied in the area of labour through the relevant jurisprudence. For some years, the Committee has noted that section 143 of the Substantive Labour Code ("the Code") provides that "equal wages shall be paid for equal work performed in the same job, with the same working time and under equal conditions of efficiency". The relevant jurisprudence has expressed the principle of equal pay for equal work, establishing it as a fundamental right under the Colombian Constitution. However, the Committee refers the Government to the language of Article 2(1) of the Convention, which calls for "the application to all workers of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women workers for work of equal value". The Convention thus moves beyond a reference to the "same" or "similar" work, choosing instead the "value" of the work as the point of comparison. This basis of comparison is intended to reach discrimination which may arise out of the existence of occupational categories and jobs reserved for women and is aimed at eliminating inequality of remuneration in female-dominated sectors, where jobs traditionally considered as "feminine" may be undervalued due to sex stereotyping (see General Survey on equal remuneration, ILO, 1986, paragraphs 19-23). The Committee therefore again asks the Government to indicate whether it contemplates giving legislative expression to the principle of Article 2 of the Convention.

2. The Government indicates that, in decision No. T-026 of 26 January 1996, the Constitutional Court established criteria for evaluating jobs to determine the existence of discrimination on the basis of sex. The Committee notes with interest the Government's summary of the Court's decision. According to the summary provided, the Court held, inter alia, that the exclusion of certain activities from the scope of equal opportunity and treatment on the basis that the sex of the actor is an inherent requirement of the activity must be analysed in a restrictive manner. The Government is asked to indicate the manner in which this principle is applied in practice and to provide information on the categories of jobs and occupations, if any, from which women are excluded on the basis of sex.

3. The Committee notes that the Government's report does not contain any information reflecting the average earnings of men and women. In order to permit an evaluation of the application of the principle of the Convention, the Government is asked to provide, in its next report, the statistical information requested in the general observation on the Convention.

4. The Committee notes that the Government's report does not respond fully to the points made in the Committee's previous comments. The Government is asked to provide a response in its next report to the matters raised in points 3 and 4 of the previous comments, which read as follows:

3. With regard to methods of evaluating tasks in order to determine wages, particularly in large enterprises, the Committee notes that, according to the Government, the criteria taken into account are length of service, improvement of occupational skills and output. The Committee draws the Government's attention to paragraph 54 of the above-mentioned General Survey in which it points out that, while such criteria (relating to performance appraisal), are not discriminatory in themselves as a basis for wage differentiation, they must be applied bona fide. The Committee asks the Government once again to indicate how it ensures that these methods for assessing tasks are not applied in a discriminatory manner and to provide copies of collective agreements in sectors of activity which employ a large number of women workers.

4. The Committee notes the statistical information supplied by the Government in its report on administrative careers and the protection provided by the State through the National Civil Service Commission to these officials. The Committee requests the Government to supply these statistics disaggregated according to sex and any decision of the National Civil Service Commission relating to equal remuneration for work of equal value.