Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2007, published 97th ILC session (2008)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Sudan (Ratification: 1970)

1. Article 1(b) of the Convention. Legislation on equal remuneration for work of equal value. With respect to its previous comments concerning the amendment of the Labour Code, the Committee notes the Government’s statement that the draft amendment of the new Labour Code now covers all agricultural workers. The Committee notes, however, that the Government’s report is silent as to whether the draft amendment also gives explicit legal expression to the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value. It also notes that article 32(1) of the new Interim Constitution of 2005 provides for equal pay for men and women for equal work and other related benefits, and will remain in force until a Permanent Constitution is adopted. The Committee recalls that Article 1(b) of the Convention extends beyond equal remuneration for equal work and also covers work performed by men and women that may be of a different nature but of equal value. The Committee refers to its general observation of 2006 on this Convention, in which it urges governments to take the necessary steps to amend legislation to give full legislative expression to the principle of the Convention. The Committee hopes that the new Labour Code will include a provision guaranteeing equal remuneration for men and women not only for equal, the same or similar work, but also for work of equal value, and that the future Permanent Constitution, when adopted, will give full legislative expression to the principle of the Convention. It asks the Government to keep it informed of any developments in this regard.

2. Article 2. Application of the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value in the civil service. The Committee notes the statistics of 2005 on the employment of women in the civil service according to grade. It notes that although women are being employed in all ministries they are nevertheless concentrated in the ministries of finance and economy, health, financial resources and justice. In addition, women are also primarily employed in the lower grades of the civil service (grades 7 to 13). The Committee recalls that inequalities in remuneration may be the result of horizontal and vertical occupational segregation of women into lower paying jobs or occupations without promotional opportunities. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the measures taken to improve women’s access to a wider variety of posts in the civil service, especially those that attract higher pay.

3. Application of the principle in the private sector. The Committee refers to its previous comments in which it had pointed out that in addition to legislation applying the Convention, there is a need to adopt concrete measures aimed at correcting wage inequalities between men and women that may exist in practice. These inequalities can be the result of a number of factors such as less career-oriented education or training, the low status of women and their under-representation in decision-making posts and posts traditionally occupied by men, and the fact that family responsibilities are primarily borne by women. The Committee asks the Government to provide detailed information on the practical measures taken, including the collection of relevant statistical data disaggregated by sex, to determine the extent, nature and causes of wage inequalities between men and women, and to identify the measures taken to address them. The Committee also recalls its observation of 1998 on the need to collect and analyze statistical data on the distribution of women and men in the various sectors and occupations and their corresponding earnings, and hopes that the Government will take the necessary steps to collect such statistics.

4. Article 4. Cooperation with workers’ and employers’ organizations. The Committee notes the Government’s statement that cooperation with the social partners is ongoing in all fields. In the absence of any further details regarding how it is encouraging the social partners to make use of gender-neutral language in collective agreements, the Committee asks the Government to provide such information in its next report, as well as to include copies of relevant collective agreements for the various sectors.