Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2022, published 111st ILC session (2023)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - United Republic of Tanzania (Ratification: 2002)

Articles 1–4 of the Convention. Assessing and addressing the gender wage gap. The Committee notes that, in its report, the Government merely recalls the national legal framework on equal remuneration for men and women. In this regard, the Committee wishes to point out that, while giving legislative effect to the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value is important, it is not sufficient to achieve the goal of the Convention. The issue of the gender wage gap also requires positive measures aimed at tackling its structural and underlying causes, such as horizontal and vertical occupational segregation of women into lower paying jobs or occupations and lower-level positions without promotion opportunities (see the 2012 General Survey on the fundamental Conventions, paragraphs 669, 710 and 712). The Committee notes that, according to the 2021 and 2022 Global Gender Gap Reports of the World Economic Forum, the labour force participation rate of women is 79.5 per cent (compared with 87.1 per cent for men), with women being almost entirely concentrated in the informal sector (93 per cent), characterized by low wages. It also notes that, according to the Integrated Labour Force Survey 2020/2021, conducted by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the Office of the Chief Government Statistician Zanzibar (OCGS), only 2.1 per cent of women were employed in the central and local government sector, while 60.3 per cent were employed in the agricultural (own or family farm) sector, also characterized by significantly lower wages. The same survey shows that the average direct wages and salaries of women are lower than those of men in all areas and industries. More generally, the Committee notes that, according to the 2022 Global Gender Gap Report of the World Economic Forum, the gender pay gap is 25.5 percentage points.The Committee therefore urges the Government to take proactive measures to address the existing gender wage gap, both in the public and private sectors, by: (i) identifying and addressing the underlying causes of pay differentials in the country, such as vertical and horizontal job segregation and gender stereotypes, covering both the formal and the informal economy; and (ii) promoting women’s access to a wider range of jobs with career prospects and higher pay, including through the elaboration and implementation by employers of plans to promote gender equality in the workplace. It further asks the Government to communicate updated statistical data on the earnings of men and women in all economic sectors and occupations to monitor any progress achieved.

The Committee is raising other matters in a request addressed directly to the Government.