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

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - El Salvador (Ratification: 2000)

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Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. Gender pay gap. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in relation to: (1) the provisions of the Act on equality and the eradication of discrimination against women, which call on the State to adopt public policies to facilitate the co-responsibility of women and men in the field of reproductive activities and family care; and (2) Decree No. 407/2019 adding subsections 11 and 12 to section 29 of the Labour Code and amending section 123 of the Labour Code. The Committee welcomes the Government’s efforts to provide statistical data, according to which: (1) women are mainly employed in commerce, hotels and restaurants (44.4 per cent), manufacturing (14.9 per cent) and domestic service (11.7 per cent), and are most represented in occupational groups such as workers in services and sales personnel in commerce and markets (45.9 per cent) and unskilled workers (19.8 per cent); and (2) the differences in monthly wage levels between men and women by occupational group persist, except in the case of women who work in the armed forces, middle-level technicians and professionals and scientists and intellectuals. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on any measures adopted to address the causes of the gender pay gap and on the manner in which the application in practice of the Act on equality and the eradication of discrimination against women and the Labour Code have contributed to reducing this gap. It also requests the Government to continue providing detailed statistical data on remuneration levels in the various economic sectors, disaggregated by sex and occupational category so that it can assess the progress achieved, particularly in sectors employing a majority of men.

Article 3. Objective job evaluation. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government on the Labour Market Information System and observes that it is not related to the objective evaluation of jobs. The Committee reminds that job evaluation is a formal procedure which, through analysing the content of jobs, gives a numerical value to the various types of job (where two jobs are found to have the same overall numerical value, the remuneration should be the same) The Committee reminds the Government that experience has shown that analytical methods of job evaluation have been found to be the most effective for the purpose of ensuring gender equality in the determination of remuneration. Such methods analyse and classify jobs on the basis of objective factors, such as the skills and qualifications required, effort, responsibilities and working conditions. Emphasizing that the existence of a procedure for the objective evaluation of jobs in accordance with Article 3 of the Convention is crucial for the achievement of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on any measures adopted for the establishment of such a procedure and invites the Government to have recourse to the technical assistance of the Office when preparing the corresponding legislative amendments.

Enforcement. The Government indicates that, within the framework of its Strategic Institutional Plan 2020–24, various training activities have been carried out for labour inspectors and regional offices on the principle set out in the Convention, as well as on other international labour standards and international treaties relevant to gender equality. The Committee encourages the Government to continue providing capacity-building for labour inspectors and other competent authorities on the principle set out in the Convention and requests it to provide detailed information on its content (for example, whether it addresses the components of “remuneration”, methods of identifying discrimination in respect of remuneration, and the underlying causes of the gender pay gap).

Article 1(1)(b). Real or assumed HIV serological status. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that: (1) sections 18 and 32 of the Civil Service Act of 1961 explicitly prohibit the requirement of an HIV test for persons who apply to the civil service and for public and municipal employees; and (2) Decree No. 244/2019 on persons with chronic and disabling diseases provides protection for men and women workers who have this condition. The Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the effect given in practice to sections 18 and 32 of the Civil Service Act and Decree No. 244/2019 on persons with chronic and disabling diseases.