Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2023, published 112nd ILC session (2024)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Botswana (Ratification: 1997)

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Article 2 of the Convention. Minimum wages. The Committee recalls that: (1) as women generally predominate in low-wage employment, an increase of the minimum wage may have a positive impact on raising their wages and reducing the gender pay gap; and (2) 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. The Committee therefore trusts that the Government will take the necessary measures to ensure that the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value is taken into account by the Minimum Wage Advisory Board and fully reflected in the minimum wage-setting process, to ensure that jobs predominantly held by women are not undervalued. It asks the Government to provide full information on any steps taken in this regard.

Article 3. Objective job evaluation. Public sector. The Committee recalls that the principle of equal pay for work of equal value is set as a basic principle for job evaluation in the Job Evaluation Manual for the Public Service, even if it does not specifically refer to equal remuneration between men and women. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on: (i) how it is ensured that the job evaluation conducted through the Job Evaluation Manual for the Public Service is free from gender bias; (ii) the method and criteria used by the Job Evaluation Manual; and (iii) any measures taken or envisaged to promote objective job evaluation in the private sector.