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

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Fiji (Ratification: 2002)

Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. Minimum wage fixing. The Committee previously noted the introduction, in 2014, of the first National Minimum Wage (NMW) initially set at 2.00 Fijian dollars (FJD) (0.93 United States Dollar, US$) per hour and raised, effective since 1 July 2015, to FJD2.32 per hour (US$1.08). The Committee also noted that ten sectoral minimum wages were maintained. However, the Committee noted that workers in the garment industry, who are mostly women, are only entitled to a minimum wage of FJD2.24 per hour (US$1.05), less than the National Minimum Wage, whereas, in other industries which are typically male dominant the minimum wage is considerably higher (for example, FJD 3.15 per hour (US$1.47) in the manufacturing industry and FJD3.10 per hour (US$1.45) for an unskilled worker in the building and engineering trades). The Committee asked the Government to provide information on how it is ensured that the criteria currently applied (including skills, experience or level of occupational hazard) are free from gender bias in practice and that female-dominated occupations are not undervalued in comparison with those undertaken by men who are performing different work which is nevertheless of equal value. The Committee also asked the Government to provide information on the implementation of the National Minimum Wage and to assess its impact on the gender pay gap. The Committee welcomes the Government’s indication in its report that pursuant to the Wages (Garment Industry) (Amendment) Regulations, 2017, the minimum hourly wage rate for garment industry workers was increased from FJD2.24 (US$1.05) to FJD2.68 (US$1.25), that is above the National Minimum Wage. It notes that the last review and increase were reflected in the ten sectoral minimum wages maintained, such as for example, Building and Civil and Electrical Engineering Trades, Hotel and Catering Trades, Manufacturing Industry, etc. The Committee observes that the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) in its 2018 concluding observations was concerned about the fact that women are frequently subject to occupational segregation with concomitant wage differentials, are concentrated in lower-paid jobs, the informal economy or unpaid work and, that even within the same industry, the wage differential persists” (CEDAW/C/FJI/CO/5, 14 March 2018, para.39). The Committee asks the Government to indicate the manner in which it is ensured that the minimum wage rates for the abovementioned sectors are fixed, based on objective criteria, free from gender bias, and that work in sectors with a high proportion of women, including the garment sector, is not being undervalued in comparison with work in sectors in which men are predominantly employed.

Articles 2(2)(c) and 4. Collective agreements and cooperation with employers’ and workers’ organizations. The Committee previously asked the Government to provide information on how the Registrar of Trade Unions takes into account the principle of the Convention when reviewing collective agreements and to provide examples of collective agreements, which implement the equal remuneration provisions. The Government states that, in conformity with section 149 of the Employment Relations Act 2007, gender equality is taken into account within the gambit of good faith employment relations while negotiating for a collective agreement. The Government also indicates that awareness raising campaigns on gender equality and equal remuneration for work of equal value were conducted for employers and workers of the ten sectors for which there is a sectoral minimum wage. 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 requests the Government to indicate: (i) the manner in which it is ensured that, in determining wage rates in collective agreements, the work performed by women is not being under evaluated in comparison to that of men who are performing different work and using different skills, and that the mechanisms of wage fixing adopted by companies were free from gender bias; and (ii) whether and how any forms of cooperation or joint activities of the Government and the social partners have been undertaken to promote the application of the principle of the Convention and the results obtained.

Objective job evaluation. Noting that the Government does not provide information on this point, the Committee asks again the Government to provide information on the conclusions of the Employment Relations Advisory Board (ERAB) mechanism to ensure compliance with ILO fundamental Conventions, especially with regard to the promotion of objective job evaluations and the implementation of section 79 of the Employment Relations Act.

Statistical information. The Committee takes note of the statistical information provided by the Government that, in 2019, there was a significant gender differential between the labour force participation rate of men (76.4 per cent) and that of women (37.4 per cent); between the unemployment rate of men (2.9 per cent) and that of women (7.8 per cent); and between the number of persons engaged in paid or unpaid work (234,059 men and 106,680 women). The Committee requests the Government to provide detailed statistical information on the rates of remuneration of men and women in employment, disaggregated by sex, activity sector and occupational category.

Enforcement. The Committee notes the Government’s repeated indication that most cases dealt with by the labour inspectorate relate to the payment of wages under the Wages Regulation Orders for the ten sectors for which there is a sectoral minimum wage and under the National Minimum Wage. The Committee requests 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 courts, or other competent bodies as well as on the sanctions imposed and remedies granted.