Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2020, published 109th ILC session (2021)

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

The Committee notes the observations of the General Confederation of Industry (CONFINDUSTRIA) communicated to the Office on 4 November 2019.

Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. Gender pay gap. In its previous comments, the Committee requested the Government to take proactive measures to raise awareness of and promote the application of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value and to provide information on the impact of these measures on the reduction of the gender pay gap. The Committee also asked the Government to provide the following information: (1) information on the impact of the implementation of the Code of Equal Opportunities (Legislative Decree No. 198 of 2006) and the activities carried out by the National Equality Counsellor on the application of the principle of the Convention; (2) statistics disaggregated by sex on the distribution of men and women in the different sectors and occupations and their corresponding earnings, including in higher level occupations, in the public and private sectors; and (3) information on any measures adopted with the aim of collecting and processing statistical data on gender wage differentials, pursuant to section 46 of the Code. The Committee notes that, in its report, the Government indicates that on average women earn EUR 25,000 a year, while men earn EUR 44,000. The Government also indicates that, according to EUROSTAT data, the gender pay gap in the country is 5.3 per cent, compared to the European average of 16.3 per cent, and explains that this figure is due to the fact that the gender pay gap is particularly low in the public sector and thus compensates for any greater gaps found in the private sector. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that the gender pay gap is greater in the case of part-time work (8.4 per cent) and that in 2018, 32.4 per cent of employed women had a part-time job, compared with 8.5 per cent of men. The Government further indicates that, while the gender pay gap is observed in all sectors of the economy, higher values are found in financial and insurance activities, as well as in real estate activities. Lower values are observed in education, where public providers prevail. The Committee further notes the information provided by the Government that women are concentrated in economic activities that offer lower levels of remuneration, irrespective of the worker’s sex, but which provide more opportunities to reconcile professional obligations with family responsibilities, such as the education sector, care work and the textile industry. The Committee further notes the Government’s indication that more recent statistical information disaggregated by sex regarding the distribution of men and women in different sectors and occupations and their corresponding earnings are being elaborated by the National Institute of Statistics (INSTAT) and will be communicated once available. The Government adds that, following the introduction of mandatory quotas for women on the boards of public companies, women represent 33.5 per cent of board members according to the latest data from the Italian Companies and Stock Exchange Commission (Consob).

Concerning the proactive measures taken to raise awareness of and promote the application of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value, the Committee notes the information provided by the Government on several activities undertaken in this respect by the Department of Equal Opportunities under the Presidency of the Council of Ministers, the Ministry of Labour and Social Policies, the Committee for Equal Opportunities, the National Equality Counsellor and the network of local equality counsellors, including: the G7 Roadmap for a Gender-Responsive Economic Environment, promoted by the Government during the Italian presidency of the G7; the programme “smart working” to promote life and work balance in the public administration; the pilot project “Experimenting Flexible Labour Tools for Enterprises by Engaging Men and Women” which, according to the assessment made, resulted in higher productivity, greater worker satisfaction and better life–work reconciliation; the promotion of women’s access to managerial positions, through the monitoring of women’s participation in company management and control bodies ad a result of the collaboration between the Central Bank, the Department of Equal Opportunities and the Consob; various measures to promote girls’ access to education in scientific and technical subject matters, encompassing, for example, summer camps in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects for children attending primary and secondary school; and the creation in November 2019 of the Permanent Forum on Gender Equality by the National Council for Economy and Labour (CNEL) designed to identify concrete actions against gender inequalities, including tackling the gender pay gap, in collaboration with the social partners and public institutions. With regard more particularly to the role played by the Equality Counsellor in connection with the implementation of section 46 of the Code of Equal Opportunities, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that, in order to ensure the collection of data on gender wage differentials throughout the territory in a uniform manner, procedures have been simplified and a single IT platform has been created, and that this new method of data collection started in 2019 and a report will be made available in 2021. The Committee also notes CONFINDUSTRIA’s observation that often one root cause of the gender pay gap resides in women’s difficulty of participating in the labour market with the same “intensity” as men due to their care role. CONFINDUSTRIA observes that measures aimed at reconciling work and family responsibilities allow a greater involvement of women in the labour market, with positive repercussions on their economic conditions, including their pension entitlements. In this regard, the Committee notes that women bear an unequal burden of family responsibilities and that a more equitable sharing of family responsibilities between men and women should be encouraged. In this respect, the Committee refers to its comments under the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111). The Committee welcomes the range of measures adopted by the Government to reduce the gender pay gap and asks it to supply, once available, updated statistical information, disaggregated by sex, on the distribution of men and women in the different sectors and occupations and their corresponding earnings, in the public and private sectors, as well as the information on gender wage differentials collected by the Equality Counsellor under section 46 of the Code of Equal Opportunities. The Committee also asks the Government to continue providing information on the measures taken to raise awareness of and promote the application of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value, including any measures adopted in collaboration with social partners and any action promoted by the Forum on Gender Equality, and their impact on reducing the gender pay gap.

Occupational gender segregation. In its previous comments, the Committee asked the Government to provide information on the impact on reducing the gender pay gap of the implementation of the Inter-ministerial Decree of 13 October 2015, which establishes incentives for the recruitment of men and women in the sectors and occupations where they are under-represented, and the measures directed at promoting gender equality adopted by the National Equality Counsellor and the Department of Equal Opportunities of the Prime Minister’s Office. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, under the above Inter-ministerial Decree, the Government invested EUR 23.5 million, EUR 52.8 million and EUR 94.6 million, respectively, in 2016, 2017 and 2018 in incentives for the recruitment of women in the sectors and occupations where they were under-represented. These incentives concerned the following sectors: agriculture, construction, mining, electricity supply, water supply and waste management, wholesale, transportation and storage, and public administration services. While noting the information provided by the Government, the Committee asks it to report on the results achieved in addressing occupational gender segregation and reducing the gender pay gap since the adoption of the incentives established by the Inter-ministerial Decree of 13 October 2015, including information on the measures adopted to promote the recruitment of men in sectors and occupations where they are under-represented.

Public administration. In its previous comments, the Committee asked the Government to indicate the specific measures adopted to ensure the application of the principle of the Convention in the public administration and to report on their impact on reducing the gender pay gap. The Committee notes that the Government refers to the adoption of Directive No. 2/2019 by the Ministry of Public Administration and the Department of Equal Opportunity, which contains measures to promote equal opportunities for men and women and encompasses specific measures aimed at identifying and addressing any wage differentials based on gender. The Committee also notes the Plan for Positive Actions for the years 2016–18 of the Ministry of Labour and Social Policies that was annexed to the Government’s report. The Plan envisaged measures directed at: raising awareness among staff of the public administration, particularly managers, on gender equality; facilitating the reconciliation of family and work responsibilities; and promoting the return to work of workers after a time of absence due to maternity or paternity leave, or leave to take care of family members. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the final evaluation of the Plan for Positive Actions, its impact on reducing the gender pay gap in the public administration and any lessons learnt for future action. The Committee also asks the Government to provide information on the implementation of Directive No. 2/2019, and particularly on any periodic monitoring and assessment made to identify its impact on the application of the principle of the Convention.

Article 3. Objective job evaluation. In its previous comments, the Committee asked the Government to provide information on the implementation of section 28(2) of the Code of Equal Opportunities, under which “systems of job classification determining remuneration shall adopt common criteria for men and women and be developed with a view to eliminating discrimination”. It also asked the Government to provide information on any action taken or envisaged to promote, in cooperation with the social partners, the development and use of objective job evaluation methods in both the private and the public sectors. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government on the manner in which levels of remuneration are generally established respecting a “minimum” set out in collective agreements irrespective of gender. The Committee also notes the Government’s reference to a number of decisions of the Constitutional Court clarifying, among other matters, that ordinary judges are called upon to oversee the classification of workers in the various job categories and remuneration scales so as to ensure that such classification corresponds in practice to the work actually performed by the worker and to demand any corrective measure in accordance with the principle of equal treatment in respect of remuneration. The Committee further notes the observations by CONFINDUSTRIA that collective bargaining has historically played an important role in guaranteeing gender equality. Recalling that women may be predominately employed in certain specific sectors and occupations, the Committee asks the Government to indicate how it is ensured that the systems of job classification currently used to guide the determination of remuneration levels are free from gender bias and guarantee in practice the application of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value. The Committee also once again asks the Government to provide information on any action taken or envisaged to promote, in cooperation with the social partners, the development and use of objective job evaluation methods in both the private and the public sectors.

Enforcement. In its previous comments, the Committee asked the Government to: (1) enhance the capacity of labour inspectors and other competent authorities to identify and address cases of violation of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value and to provide information in this respect, including on the remedies provided and the sanctions imposed; (2) provide information on the impact of the application of anti-discrimination legislation (such as Legislative Decree No. 5/2010 and Act No. 183/2010) on reducing pay differentials between men and women; and (3) provide specific information on the activities of the Single Committee to Guarantee equal opportunities in the achievement of the well-being of workers and the prevention of discrimination (CUG) with respect to the implementation of the Convention. The Government indicates in response that the labour inspectorate is still unable to provide information specifically concerning violations of the principle of the Convention, but that the possibility of collecting such information in addition to general information concerning violations of the principle of gender equality will be submitted to the competent authorities for consideration. The Committee also notes that the labour inspectorate operates in cooperation with national and local equality counsellors and can also act on the basis of the information transmitted by them. In this respect, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that workers can bring any issues concerning the application of the principle of the Convention to the attention of the counsellors pursuant to the Code of Equal Opportunities, as amended, among others, by Legislative Decree No. 5/2010. The Committee further notes the cases of violations of the relevant legislation concerning maternity protection and gender equality detected by the labour inspectorate (641 cases in 2017 and 632 in 2018), as well as the information on the various awareness-raising activities on themes related to gender equality organized by the labour inspectorate. The Government add that the CUG is responsible for reporting annually on the implementation of the Plan for Positive Actions in the public administration and refers to its above comments on this subject. The Committee recognizes the particular difficulties faced by labour inspectors in identifying cases of wage discrimination and in determining whether equal pay is provided for work of equal value, especially where men and women do not perform the same work. It therefore wishes to stress the importance of training labour inspectors so that they are better able to prevent, detect and remedy such cases. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on any measures taken or envisaged to ensure that the labour inspectorate is in a position to report specifically on cases of violation of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value and the sanctions imposed. It also asks the Government to enhance the capacity of all other competent authorities to identify and address cases of violation of the principle of the Convention and to provide information on any such cases dealt with by national and local counsellors and/or referred by them to the labour inspectorate.