Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2011, published 101st ILC session (2012)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Lithuania (Ratification: 1994)

Public sector. The Committee understands from the Government’s report that the Law on the remuneration of workers of state and municipal institutions has been adopted and that remuneration of civil servants is governed by the Law on Public Service, according to which the single methodology for the appraisal of job positions applies. The Government further indicates that, following the adoption of the Law on the remuneration of workers of state and municipal institutions, equal remuneration was ensured for employees performing equal work based on qualifications and complexity. The Committee recalls that the principle of the Convention goes beyond equal work and therefore requires the evaluation of jobs on the basis of the work to be performed using objective and non-discriminatory criteria in order to avoid a gender-biased assessment of their value for the purpose of wage setting. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the evaluation methodology and criteria used to classify and rank different jobs and positions in the civil service and positions of state and municipal employees, indicating how it is ensured that the classification established does not result in an undervaluation of tasks and, as a consequence of jobs, traditionally performed by women. Please also provide a copy of the law on the remuneration of workers of state and municipal institutions and statistical data on the distribution of men and women in the civil service, by category, and their respective levels of remuneration, as well as any available statistics on state and municipal employees disaggregated by sex.

Enforcement. The Committee notes that there was a significant decrease in the number of complaints received by the labour inspectorate in 2008 (eight complaints) and 2009 (one complaint), and that none of the complaints received so far with respect to equal remuneration have been successful. The Committee would like to point out that the absence or the low number of complaints does not necessarily mean that there is no wage discrimination in practice, as such discrimination may be difficult to identify or prove, and the workers may not always be aware of their rights and the means of redress available under the legislation. The Committee asks the Government to take the necessary measures to promote public awareness of the legal provisions on equal remuneration and the procedures and remedies available where there has been a violation thereof, and to assist workers in such procedures. It also asks the Government:

• (i) to continue to provide information on any violations of the principle of equal remuneration for women and men for work of equal value detected by, or brought to the attention of, the labour inspection services, indicating the nature of the case, any penalties imposed and the remedies provided; and
• (ii) to provide information on the activities of the Equal Opportunities Ombudsperson which relate to the application of the Convention and on their outcomes.