Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2008, published 98th ILC session (2009)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Sri Lanka (Ratification: 1993)

The Committee notes the comments by the Lanka Jathika Estate Workers’ Union attached to the Government’s report, and the comments from the Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC) received 29 August 2008, which were sent to the Government for its reply.

Article 2 of the Convention. Application though wages boards. Further to its observation, the Committee notes that according to the CWC certain large rubber estates which have been converted into palm oil estates – not covered by the wage boards – continue to pay the minimum wage applicable for the rubber growing and manufacturing industry. As it appears that work in the palm oil industry is far more hazardous and arduous than the employment on the rubber plantations, CWC recommends that the Government, awaiting a unified minimum wage, take immediate measures to set up a wages board for the oil palm growing and milling industry. The Committee notes this information to the extent that it may have an impact on the application of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value in these two industries. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the number of workers, disaggregated by sex, in the rubber and palm oil plantations, respectively, including the specific occupations in which men and women are respectively employed.

Private sector (export processing zones (EPZs)). The Committee recalls its previous comments regarding the concentration of women in the lower paid unskilled, semi-skilled occupational categories to which a fixed wage rate applies, and their under-representation in the higher skilled and managerial occupations, for which wages and salaries vary within a spectrum. The Committee notes the Government’s statement that in EPZs wages are paid according to the Labour Standards and Employment Relations Manual of the Board of Investment (BOI). The Committee notes that one of the principles of the Manual is to eliminate discrimination in employment, occupation and remuneration on the grounds of race, sex, colour, religion and political opinion, and that section 1.5 of the Manual states that male and female workers shall be paid equal remuneration for work of equal value. The Committee recalls its observation, as well as its 2006 general observation on this Convention, and asks the Government to provide information on the rationale behind the different wage system for skilled workers and above, as well as on how it is being ensured that those occupations dominated by women are not being undervalued compared to those dominated by men.

General measures to promote gender equality as a means to reduce inequalities in pay. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that women are gradually entering jobs previously held exclusively or predominantly by men. However, the Government does not provide any information on any active measures taken which are aimed at correcting existing inequalities between women and men and may also have an impact on reducing the gender wage gap. The Committee, however, welcomes the continuous programmes undertaken by the Gender Bureau and the Women’s and Children Affairs Division, with the assistance of the ILO, to raise awareness among the working population on gender equality. Hoping that these programmes have improved the capacity of government officials and the workers’ and employers’ organizations to collect and analyse information on the distribution of men and women, and their corresponding earnings, in the public and private sectors, as well as to develop measures to correct any inequalities between men and women in the labour market that have been found, the Committee trusts that the Government’s next report will include information on the progress made in this regard.

Application in the public service. Further to its observation, the Committee notes that as of 2006, a new salary structure has been applied in the public service (Public Administration Circular No. 06/2006). The Committee notes the re-categorization and regrouping of posts and services and the criteria used for the categorization of employees as well as the definitions of the skill levels. It notes that these have been based on entry qualifications/scheme of recruitment, promotional procedures, nature of duties, simplicity, practicality and consistency/compatibility. The Committee recalls that for the purpose of ensuring gender equality in the determination of remuneration, methods of job evaluation should analyse and classify jobs on the basis of objective factors relating to the jobs to be compared such as skill, effort, responsibilities and working conditions. In order to ensure that the criteria used are free from gender bias, it is important to ensure that the selection of factors for comparison, the weighting of such factors and the actual comparison carried out, are not inherently discriminatory (see 2006 general observation). However, it is unclear how this has been taken into account in the re-categorization and regrouping of the posts and services in the public service. The Committee asks the Government to indicate which criteria have been used to determine the value of different posts, and to ensure that the process of re-categorization has been free of gender bias. Please provide statistical information, disaggregated by sex, on the distribution of men and women in the various posts and levels of the civil service.