Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2002, published 91st ILC session (2003)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Republic of Korea (Ratification: 1997)

The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government in its second report on the application of the Convention.

1. The Committee recalls that the various pieces of legislation establish substantial protection in law against wage discrimination based on sex. In this connection, it observes once again that, in order to apply fully the principle of the Convention, the comparison of posts must be as broad as possible and should not be confined to a single establishment or business. It therefore asks the Government to indicate whether any measures exist to promote an objective comparison of jobs which is not confined to a single enterprise, particularly where wages are fixed at sector level.

2. The Committee notes that, according to the Government’s report, women are paid lower wages than men for a variety of reasons, including the fact that women’s wages are, in general, supplementary income for households; because the costs of employing women include additional elements, such as maternity protection expense; and because certain occupations predominantly held by women are set at a lower level than those of other occupations, without reasonable justification. It notes with interest the measures taken by the Government to remedy wage inequality between men and women. In particular, it notes that the Government is setting up and monitoring, each year, a target group of companies by size of establishment; that directives are issued to individual companies to correct gender-segregated salary systems; that special inspections are made at pre-targeted workplaces twice a year; and that the Ministry of Labour has the power to publish the results of the investigation on equal employment practices made at a particular workplace where an employer violated the principle of equal pay. It asks the Government to provide information on the results achieved by these measures and the follow-up.

3. The Committee notes the extensive statistical information provided by the Government. It notes that there has been a constant decrease in the wage gap between men and women since the implementation of the Equal Employment Act, from 48 per cent in 1988 to 36.9 per cent in 1998. It also notes that, aside from a brief period in 1992, the wages growth rate has been greater for women than for men on a constant basis since 1988. However, the Committee notes that women are still poorly represented in management and professional occupations as well as in companies employing more than 1,000 employees. The Committee asks the Government to continue to provide statistical information, by sector of economic activity, occupation or occupational group, in conformity with its 1998 general observation.

4. The Committee notes, as it did in its previous direct request, that the Government adheres fully to objective job appraisals within the framework of the law as a means of promoting equal remuneration, as stated in article 5 of the Administrative Regulation on equal employment, which defines "work of equal value". The Committee asks the Government to state the measures it has adopted to encourage enterprises which use a job-based, performance-based or skill-based wage structure to incorporate an objective job appraisal methodology of remuneration into their practices.

5. The Committee, in its previous direct request, noted the observation from the Federation of Korean Trade Unions pointing out that efforts to eliminate discrimination on the basis of sex should be an obligation not just for employers but also for local authorities, vocational training institutions and other public bodies concerned. It asks the Government once again to provide information on measures directed to the abovementioned bodies in order to promote the elimination of wage discrimination based on sex, and the measures taken to protect men and women workers who are excluded from the scope of the Labour Standards Act (No. 5885) of 1997.

6. The Committee notes with interest that a new Equal Employment Counselling Desk (EECD) was set up in 1998 in each regional labour office, so that workers can file a complaint or suit against their employer in relation to gender discrimination in wages or other cash benefits, and that the Ministry is developing indicators to evaluate the employment status of men and women in workplaces with a view to offering incentives to enterprises fully complying with equal employment rules. It asks the Government to keep it informed about the activities of the EECD’s activities and the Ministry’s project to develop indicators.

7. The Committee notes the decision of the Seoul District Court of 8 January 1998, in the case of the OOO Research Institute. It asks the Government to continue to provide information on decisions made by courts or other authorities, such as the Ministry of Labour, regional labour offices or the Presidential Commission on Women’s Affairs, applying the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value in practice.