Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2018, published 108th ILC session (2019)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Ukraine (Ratification: 1956)

Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. Gender pay gap. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the gender pay gap had not decreased since 2009 and that there was a significant gap in the monthly wages of women and men in certain sectors of the economy. The Government explained that, differences in wages were largely due to the system of the gender division of labour, with women being concentrated in sectors with relatively high educational requirements, but lower wages, primarily in the public sector. The Government also indicated that the State Programme to Ensure Equal Rights and Opportunities for Women and Men, 2013–16, included activities aimed at reducing the gender gap in wages between men and women. The Committee therefore requested the Government to intensify its efforts in reducing the gender pay gap and to provide information on the activities undertaken in the framework of the State Programme to Ensure Equal Rights and Opportunities for Women and Men, 2013–16, in this respect. The Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that, in 2016, the average monthly gender pay gap was 25.4 per cent and 21.6 per cent in the first quarter of 2017. It further notes, from the data provided by the Government, that the gender pay gap remains particularly high in certain sectors of the economy, for example, in sports, entertainment and recreation (35.8 per cent), postal and courier services (39.4 per cent) and financial and insurance services (39.2 per cent). The Government indicates that differences in wages can be explained by the higher proportion of men in better-paid management positions as well as in work with arduous and dangerous working conditions and in night work, where salaries are higher and women are prohibited to work under the law. With regard to the prohibition of hazardous work for women, the Committee refers to its detailed comments under the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111); as to the prohibition of certain types of employment for women with children, it refers to its detailed comments under the Workers with Family Responsibilities Convention, 1981 (No. 156). The Committee further notes that the Government has not provided information on the impact of the activities undertaken in the framework of the State Programme to Ensure Equal Rights and Opportunities for Women and Men, 2013–16. It notes however, the adoption of a new Programme on providing Equal Rights and Opportunities for Women and Men up to 2021. Therefore, the Committee once again requests the Government to continue its efforts to reduce the gender pay gap, including through identifying and addressing its underlying causes, and to provide information on any activities undertaken under the auspices of implementing the State Programme to Ensure Equal Rights and Opportunities for Women and Men up to 2021, and the results achieved in this respect. The Government is also requested to continue to provide statistical data on the wages and salary levels of men and women, by sector of employment and occupation, and in the various grades and levels of the civil service, as well as by occupational group.

Equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value. Legislation. For a number of years, the Committee has been commenting on section 17 of the Law on Ensuring Equal Rights and Equal Opportunities of Women and Men (2006) which requires the employer to ensure equal pay for men and women for work involving equal skills and working conditions, which is more restrictive than the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value set out in the Convention. Moreover, by linking the right to equal remuneration for men and women to two specific factors of comparison (skills and working conditions), the Committee recalled that section 17 may have the effect of discouraging or even excluding objective job evaluation on the basis of a wider set of criteria, which are crucial in order to eliminate effectively the discriminatory undervaluation of jobs traditionally performed by women. The Committee notes that the Government’s report is silent on this point. However, it recalls the ongoing labour law reform and notes the most recent version of the draft Labour Code, available on the Parliament’s website and dated 24 July 2017. It notes that section 2(1) of the draft Labour Code provides that one of the main principles of legal regulation of labour relations is “ensuring the right to equal remuneration for work of equal value”. It further notes that section 20(1) of the draft Labour Code sets out, as one of the main rights of employees “remuneration for work of equal value”. While it welcomes the introduction of the concept of equal remuneration for work of equal value in the draft Labour Code, the Committee requests the Government to indicate the measures taken to amend section 17 of the Law on Ensuring Equal Rights and Opportunities of Women and Men to give full legislative expression to the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value, and to indicate any progress made in this regard. It also requests the Government to provide information on the adoption of the draft Labour Code, and to provide a copy of the law once adopted. Noting that the Government’s report is silent on the matter, the Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the implementation and enforcement of the current section 17 of the Law on Ensuring Equal Rights and Equal Opportunities of Women and Men, including the number and outcome of any relevant cases brought before the competent authorities.

Article 3. Objective job evaluation. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that it remained unclear whether the methods used to evaluate the work performed in the different jobs and occupations are appropriate in determining wage rates in a manner that is free from gender bias. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that under section 8 of the Wage Act (1995), as amended in 2014, the conditions and levels of remuneration for employees of institutions and organizations financed by the State are determined by the Cabinet of Ministers. The Government further indicates that section 15 of the Remuneration Act provides that in the private sector, enterprises can determine the conditions and levels of remuneration for their workers independently but must comply with statutory provisions and collective agreements. The Committee notes however that the Remuneration Act does not indicate how the Cabinet of Ministers or private sector enterprises evaluate the work performed and whether the wage-fixing mechanisms use objective criteria free from gender bias. The Committee is bound to recall, once again, that while the Convention does not prescribe a specific method for measuring and comparing the relative value of different jobs, whatever methods are used, particular care must be taken to ensure that they are free from gender bias. The Committee refers the Government to paragraphs 695–703 of its General Survey on the fundamental Conventions, 2012, for further guidance on objective job evaluation. In light of the persistent gender pay gap and the horizontal and vertical gender segregation of labour recognized by the Government, the Committee once again urges the Government to take specific measures to promote the use of objective job evaluation methods free from gender bias in the public and private sectors, with a view to ensuring the establishment of wages and salary scales in accordance with the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value, and to provide information on any progress achieved in this respect. The Committee encourages the Government to seek ILO technical assistance in this regard.

The Committee is raising other matters in a request addressed directly to the Government.