Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2024, published 113rd ILC session (2025)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Republic of Moldova (Ratification: 2000)

The Committee notes that the Government’s report contains no information in response to a number of its previous comments. In this regard, it recalls that Governments are under the duty to provide information on the application of ratified Conventions in law and in practice. It is on the grounds of that information, that the Committee fulfils its duties of assessment of the effective implementation of the ratified Conventions. Therefore, the Committee encourages the Government to submit a more exhaustive next report which includes all the matters raised below.

Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. Gender wage gap and occupational segregation. The Committee notes the Government’s indication in its report that, in the framework of the implementation of the Concluding Observations of the United Nations (UN) Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, a set of measures for the period 2021–24 are being put in place to effectively apply the principle of equal pay for work of equal ‘value’, and to reduce and ultimately eliminate gender pay gaps. Such measures encompass reviewing wages in all sectors on a regular basis, applying gender-sensitive analytical methods of job classification and evaluation, and conducting regular labour inspections and periodic wage surveys. The Committee draws the Government’s attention to the fact that combating the horizontal occupational segregation (that is, channelling men and women into different types of activity and employment) and the vertical occupational segregation (that is, different levels of responsibility for men and women) faced by women in the labour market and ultimately reducing remuneration gaps requires specific support and proactive measures, particularly to enable women to have access to a broader range of employment opportunities, including in sectors where wages are higher, and to positions of responsibility in the public and private sectors. In light of the above, the Committee requests the Government to provide: (i) information on the impact of the measures adopted to address the existing gender pay gap, in particular the gender gap due to occupational segregation, and the results obtained; and (ii) detailed and up-to-date statistics on wages of women and men, including sex disaggregated data by industry and occupational category.

Article 1(a). Definition of remuneration. Legislation. Noting that the Government does not provide a reply to its previous request on this point, the Committee, once again, asks the Government to consider harmonizing the different terms used in the legislation, at the earliest opportunity, with a view to ensuring that the principle of equal pay for men and women for work of equal value covers all elements of remuneration as defined in Article 1(a) of the Convention and to provide information on the progress made in this regard.

Article 2(a). Work of equal value. The Committee notes with interest the Government’s indication that amendments to the Labour Code and the Wages Act No. 847/2002 were made by Law No. 107/2022 on the amendment of certain normative acts. Article 5(f1) of the Labour Code was inserted and lays down the principle of equal pay for equal work or work of equal “value”. The Government indicates, in its report on the application of Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111), that Law No. 107/2022 introduced the employee's right to request information on the levels of remuneration broken down by gender for categories of employees performing work of equal ‘value’ and describes the employer's obligation to periodically inform employees and/or their representatives of the gender pay gap by category of employees and by function. While the Committee welcomes this information, it observes that the Government has not specified which provisions of the Wages Act No. 847/2002 were amended, nor has it indicated any progress on the revision of section 7(2)(d) of Law No.121 of 2012 which refers to equal pay for “the same type and/or amount of work”. The Committee therefore requests the Government to (i) revise section 7(2)(d) of Law No. 121 of 2012 with a view to harmonizing it with other pieces of legislation which refer to “work of equal value” and thus avoid any legal uncertainty and indicate the progress achieved in this regard; and (ii) provide a copy of the amended provisions of the Labour Code and the Wages Act No. 847/2002, as well as information on the application in practice of these amended provisions, by providing examples of cases relating to unequal pay which have been brought to the labour inspectorate or the courts

Article 2. Determination of wages and collective agreements. The Committee observes that the Government does not respond to its previous comment on the application of the principle of the Convention in collective agreements setting payment conditions, nor does it provide information on the measures taken to strengthen the capacity of social partners, as envisaged in the Action Plan for Gender Equality 2017-2021. It notes the Government’s indication that the main objective of the regulation of wages at state level is to ensure a guaranteed minimum wage and to create the conditions for ensuring wage growth. Government Decision No 854/2022 (in force on 1 January 2023) on setting the amount of the annual minimum wage aims to unify and establish the amount of guaranteed minimum wage in the country, in both the budgetary and the real sectors, irrespective of gender, type of ownership and organizational and legal form of employment. 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 asks the Government to provide: (i) information on how it is ensured that the conditions of payment in different branches of the economy set by collective agreements are free from gender bias, and in particular that certain skills considered to be “female” are not undervalued (see General Survey of 2012 on the fundamental Conventions, paragraph 683), as well as copies of any collective agreements currently in force providing for equal remuneration for work of equal value; and (ii) measures taken by the social partners and through tripartite cooperation, to achieve equal pay between men and women in both the public and private sectors, including in the framework of the Programme for Promoting and Ensuring Equality between Women and Men in the Republic of Moldova for the years 2023–27.

Article 3. Objective job evaluation. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that in assessing whether employees are performing work of equal “value”, the employer will consider aspects of the employee's work, including: (a) the degree of responsibility; (b) the level of qualification and experience; (c) the effort and nature of the tasks involved; and (d) working conditions. The Committee however observes that the Government’s report does not reply to its request for clarification as to how tariff and non-tariff payroll systems provided by the Labour Code ensure the application of objective job evaluation methods, including beyond the same establishment or enterprise, with a view to effectively applying the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value. In light of the above, the Committee requests once again the Government to provide information on how objective job evaluations in both tariff and non-tariff payroll systemsare carried out in a gender-inclusive way.

Public sector. The Committee notes the detailed information provided by the Government on the conditions of the salary of employees in the budgetary sector which are regulated by the general framework of Law 270/2018 on the unitary salary system in the budgetary sector and by Government Decision No. 1231/2018 for the implementation of its provisions. The Government indicates that under the previous pay system, there were several ways of setting salaries (some were linked to the average salary, others to the function salary, and the vast majority were set on the single tariff grid), which resulted in inequity in the remuneration of employees' work. The unitary pay system applied in the budgetary sector as of 1 December 2018 establishes pay conditions at the function level and does not differentiate according to gender. The Government states that the positioning in the hierarchy of functions was carried out following a broad analysis of all functions in the budgetary sector on several criteria relating to the effort made, the conditions of working conditions, degree of responsibility, etc. The reform of the pay system establishes a clear link between performance and salary level. It provides for a gradual increase in the salaries of employees in the budgetary sector, including civil servants, based on a system of motivation on the basis of individual job performance, the quality of work, the employee's contribution and professionalism, objectivity and impartiality. Any employee in the budgetary sector is subject to evaluation of individual performance achieved during the previous quarter/week in order to receive the performance bonus in each month of the next quarter/week together with basic salary. In this regard, the Committee wishes to draw the Government’s attention that, while factors such as “the effort made, the conditions of working conditions, degree of responsibility” are clearly relevant in determining the ”value” of jobs for the purpose of equal remuneration, the criteria of “motivation, individual performance, quality of work, professionalism, objectivity, impartiality, etc.” relates more to the performance appraisal of the individual worker which is different from the objective job evaluation. The Committee notes that “performance appraisal” and “objective job evaluation” are different exercises. The latter is concerned with evaluating the job itself and not how an individual worker performs it, and ensures that remuneration is determined without gender bias, for example, by not undervaluing skills considered to be “female” compared to “male” (see General Survey of 2012 on fundamental Conventions, paragraphs 696 and 700–703, and ILO guide, Equal Pay - An introductory guide, page 30). The Government indicates that since 1 December 2018 the simplified unitary system of salaries in the budgetary sector, adopted by Law No. 270/2018, is based on the results of job value assessment and is driven by the main objective of promoting equal pay for equal work. In light of the above information, the Committee asks the Government to: (i) indicate the measures taken or envisaged to avoid a potential confusion between criteria used to assess an individual performance appraisal and criteria used to measure the relative value of a job value on the basis of the work to be performed; (ii) provide information on the results achieved to narrow the gender pay gap following the implementation of the unitary pay system applied in the budgetary sector since the adoption of Law No. 270/2018; (iii) provide statistical information, disaggregated by sex, on the distribution of men and women in the various categories and positions in the public sector with their corresponding levels of earnings; and (iv) clarify how salaries under the simplified unitary system adopted by Law No. 270/2018 also include any additional emoluments whatsoever payable directly or indirectly, as provided for under Article 1(a) of the Convention.

Enforcement. The Committee notes that, in response to its previous request, the Government indicates that, during the inspections carried out in the first half of 2023, the State Labour Inspectorate informed economic agents of their obligations to comply with the principle of the Convention to reduce and eventually eliminate gender pay disparities by regularly reviewing wages in all sectors, applying gender-sensitive analytical methods of job classification and evaluation, and by conducting regular labour inspections and regular wage surveys. Noting the Government’s information according to which no violations were found concerning the allegation of unequal pay between male and female employees for equal work or work of equal value, the Committee wishes to recall that where no cases or complaints, or very few, are being lodged, this is likely to indicate a lack of an appropriate legal framework, lack of awareness of rights, lack of confidence in or absence of practical access to procedures, or fear of reprisals. The lack of complaints or cases could also indicate that the system of recording violations is insufficiently developed (see General Survey of 2012, paragraph 870). The Committee also recognizes the difficulties faced by labour inspectors in identifying cases of pay discrimination, or of determining whether equal remuneration is being provided for work of equal value, particularly where men and women do not perform the same work. The Committee reminds the Government that it may avail itself of technical assistance from the Office. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on: (i) its efforts to train and raise awareness, not only of labour inspectors but also of judges, lawyers, public officials, workers, employers and their organizations, as well as the public, on the principle of the Convention; (ii) the different complaint mechanisms available; and (iii) any studies or information gathered on the practicability and accessibility of substantive and procedural provisions which allow claims to be brought. The Committee further asks the Government to provide information on decisions handed down by the competent authorities or bodies about the application of the principle of the Convention.