Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2019, published 109th ILC session (2021)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Cyprus (Ratification: 1987)

Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. Assessing and addressing the gender pay gap. The Committee notes from the Government’s report that the gender pay gap was 13.9 per cent in 2016. It notes the Government’s indication, in reply to its previous comments, that the project on “Actions for reducing the gender pay gap” was implemented from 2010 to 2015 by the Ministry of Labour, Welfare and Social Insurance. The Committee welcomes the measures taken within the framework with a view to: (i) addressing gender vertical and horizontal occupational segregation, including through training programmes for careers advice professionals, teachers and parents and exchanging good practices; (ii) strengthening and upgrading of the inspection mechanism for the enforcement of equality in employment and equal pay legislation; (iii) review collective agreements and training social partners on equal pay; and (iv) issuing and disseminating a guide explaining in detail the provisions of Equal Pay, and Protection of Wages Laws to nearly 1,500 companies and associations. The Committee further notes the Government’s indication that, since several of the measures are ongoing or expected to have long-term benefits, and due to the gradual but continuous advancement of women’s position in the labour market, the downward trend of the gender pay gap is expected to continue. However, the Committee notes that Eurostat’s data show that, despite a slight decrease in the unadjusted gender pay gap from 14.2 per cent in 2014 to 13.7 per cent in 2017, the gender pay gap is still very high in the private sector reaching 22.8 per cent in 2017 (compared to 23.5 in 2014). It further notes, from the “Average gross monthly earnings by branch of economic activity and sex” survey published by the Statistical Service of Cyprus (CYSTAT), that in 2017 the gender pay gap remained particularly high in sectors where the majority of workers are women, standing at 42.1 per cent in education and 35.3 per cent in human health and social work activities. Furthermore, according to the survey, the average monthly salary of women remains substantially lower than that of men, even when men and women workers are employed in the same branches of economic activity, except in the public administration. The Committee asks the Government to continue to provide detailed information on the steps taken or envisaged to reduce the gender pay gap, including measures to address the occupational gender segregation and awareness-raising measures. The Committee also asks the Government to provide updated statistical information: (i) on the participation of men and women in education and training, as well as in employment and occupation, disaggregated by occupational categories and positions; and (ii) on the earnings of men and women, disaggregated by economic activity and occupation, both in the public and private sectors.

Article 2(2)(a). Minimum wages. Referring to its previous comments where it noted that although there is no national minimum wage which covers every occupational category, there is a statutory minimum wage which applies to nine occupations among which women are predominantly employed and which are usually low-paid, such as clerks, shop assistants, childcare workers, personal care workers and cleaners, the Committee notes the Government’s repeated indication, in its report, that, since 2012, there has not been any increase of the statutory minimum wage. It notes however that, in its concluding observations, the United Nations (UN) Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) expressed concern at the very low level of coverage (13 per cent) of the workforce by minimum wages and at the insufficient level of the minimum wages, which have been frozen since 2012 (E/C.12/CYP/CO/6, 28 October 2016, paragraphs 23 and 27). In light of the persistent gender pay gap and gender segregation of the labour market, the Committee asks the Government to provide information on the manner in which it is ensured that, in defining minimum wages, rates are fixed on objective criteria, free from gender bias, and, in particular, that sector-specific wages do not result in the undervaluation of jobs predominantly occupied by women in comparison to those occupied by men. It asks the Government to continue to provide information on any future increase in the statutory minimum wage, as well as on any steps taken or envisaged to increase the coverage of the workforce by minimum wage. The Committee asks the Government to provide statistical information on the percentage of women and men who are paid the statutory minimum wage.

Articles 2(2)(c) and 4. Collective agreements and cooperation with employers’ and workers’ organizations. Referring to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that training was provided to members of trade unions and employers’ organizations regarding the promotion of equal pay in the collective bargaining process, and that a guide was issued and disseminated involving practical ways of promoting pay equality while engaging in collective bargaining. Recalling the important role that can be played by collective agreements in the application of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value, the Committee asks the Government to provide information on the impact with respect to the principle of the Convention of the training delivered to social partners and the guide on the promotion of equal pay in collective bargaining. It asks the Government to provide summaries of the provisions on wages determination and equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value that have been included in collective agreements. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on any concrete steps and actions undertaken to promote the implementation of the principle of the Convention with the cooperation of the social partners, and the results of such initiatives.

Article 3. Objective job evaluation. The Committee previously noted that officers and inspectors from the Department of Labour Relations received training from experts on how to perform objective job evaluations and that it was envisaged that job evaluation procedures would feature extensively in a specialized manual to be created and utilized by employers. It notes the Government’s indication that a guide explaining in detail the provisions of the equal pay legislation, and including in-depth guidance on job evaluation, was issued and disseminated to nearly 1,500 companies and associations. The Committee notes the Government’s statement that as no complaint was filed regarding the equal pay legislation, no job evaluation was carried out. The Committee draws the Government’s attention to the fact that, regardless of any complaint lodged on pay discrimination, the effective implementation of the principle of the Convention requires some method of measuring and comparing the relative value of different jobs held by men and women, through an examination of the respective tasks involved, undertaken on the basis of entirely objective and non-discriminatory criteria, such as skill, effort, responsibilities and working conditions, in order to avoid the assessment being tainted by gender bias. It further recalls that measures for the objective evaluation of jobs can be taken at the enterprise, sectoral or national level, in the context of collective bargaining, as well as through wage-fixing mechanisms (see 2012 General Survey on fundamental Conventions, paragraph 695). Furthermore, the Committee notes that, in its concluding observations, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) specifically recommended that the Government adopt further measures to close the gender wage gap, including through gender-neutral analytical job classification and evaluation methods and regular pay surveys (CEDAW/C/CYP/CO/8, 25 July 2018, paragraph 37). The Committee asks the Government to provide information on any measures taken to promote, develop and implement practical approaches and methods for the objective evaluation of jobs, both in the public and private sectors, based on criteria that are free from gender bias, such as qualifications and skills, effort, responsibilities and conditions of work, with a view to ensuring the effective implementation of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value. It asks the Government to provide information on any job evaluation exercise undertaken in the public sector, indicating the criteria used and the measures taken to ensure that men and women receive equal remuneration for work of equal value, as well as on any measures taken to promote the use of objective job evaluation methods and criteria that are free from gender bias in the private sector.

Enforcement. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that an Equal Pay Day is organized annually to raise public awareness on the gender pay gap and its detrimental consequences, as well as on the existing complaint mechanisms, and that an annual target for inspection on equal pay has been set. The Government adds that 148 and 197 inspections were conducted in 2016 and 2017 respectively, but that no violation of the legislation was found and that no complaint was filed regarding the equal pay legislation. The Committee notes that the European Commission recently highlighted that there is no case law on the issue of equal pay but that a complaint lodged with the Ombudsman regarding equal pay was treated under the law on gender equality, and that another complaint lodged was solved between the complainant and the employer (European Commission, Country report on gender equality, 2018, page 18). Furthermore, the Committee notes that, in its concluding observations, CEDAW recommended that the Government strictly enforce the Equal Pay for Men and Women for Equal Work or Work of Equal Value (Amendment) Law, including by imposing sanctions for non-compliance (CEDAW/C/CYP/CO/8, 25 July 2018, paragraph 37). The Committee recalls that where no cases or complaints, or very few, are being lodged in the area of pay discrimination, this does not mean that no problem exists with regard to the practical application of the Convention but is likely to indicate a lack of an appropriate legal framework, lack of awareness of rights, lack of confidence in or absence of practical access to procedures, or fear of reprisals (see 2012 General Survey, paragraph 870). In light of the very low number of cases concerning inequality of remuneration officially registered, the Committee asks the Government to continue to provide information on any activities undertaken to raise public awareness of the relevant legislative provisions, the procedures and remedies available related to the principle of the Convention, as well as to increase the capacity of women, including migrant women, to better understand and claim their rights. It asks the Government to continue to provide information on the activities carried out by the labour inspectorate on equal remuneration, including detailed information on their annual target for inspections on equal pay. The Committee asks the Government to provide detailed information on the number, nature and outcome of any cases or complaints concerning inequality of remuneration dealt with by the labour inspectors, the Ombudsman or the courts, as well as on the sanctions imposed and remedies granted.