Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2013, published 103rd ILC session (2014)

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

Wage fixing. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the minimum wage which was 120,000 Iraqi dinars (IQD) for unskilled workers pursuant to the Council of Ministers’ Order No. 409 of 2008, as amended by Order No. 154 of 2009, has been increased to IQD250,000 by virtue of Order No. 178 of 2013 in order to adapt to real needs. With respect to skilled workers, the Government indicates that the wage-fixing committee will consider the possibility of examining wages, sector by sector, ensuring that the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value is applied in the process of wage setting. The Committee recalls that special attention is needed in the design or adjustment of sectoral minimum wage schemes to ensure that the rates fixed are free from gender bias, and, in particular, that certain skills considered to be “female” are not undervalued (see General Survey on fundamental Conventions, 2012, paragraph 683). The Committee asks the Government to indicate how it is ensured that, in the process of categorizing workers as “skilled” and “unskilled” workers, certain skills considered to be “female” are not undervalued. With regard to skilled workers, the Committee asks the Government to indicate, in the context of examining the wages sector by sector, how it is ensured that the criteria used for the determination of sectoral minimum wages are free from gender bias, and that the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value is applied. Please also provide statistics on the level of wages of men and women in the different branches of activity and occupational categories.

Occupational segregation. The Committee notes from a statistical analysis published by the United Nations Inter-Agency Information and Analysis Unit that, in 2012, only 14 per cent of Iraqi women participated in the labour force, and of these, 20 per cent were unemployed. In 2012, only 6 per cent of women in paid employment were in the private sector, of which 71 per cent had little or no education and most worked in agriculture. The Committee also notes that the Government has not provided information on the measures taken or envisaged relating to the low level of women’s participation in the labour market and their concentration in a narrow range of sectors. The Committee therefore asks the Government to take concrete steps to increase the participation of women in paid employment, and in a wider range of jobs and sectors, including higher paying jobs, and to provide specific information of the steps taken in this regard.

Parts III and IV of the report form. Enforcement. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that there has been no violation of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value, and that no decision in this regard has been handed down by the courts. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the measures taken to improve the capacity of judges, labour inspectors, and other officials to detect and address violations of the principle of the Convention, and to raise awareness of workers and employers and their organizations concerning the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value. The Committee also asks the Government to continue to provide information on any cases of violations that have been detected by, or brought to, the attention of the labour inspectors, and how such violations have been addressed, including any remedies provided or sanctions imposed. Please also provide information on any court decisions regarding section 4(2) of the Labour Code.