Solicitud directa (CEACR) - Adopción: 2024, Publicación: 113ª reunión CIT (2025)

Convenio sobre igualdad de remuneración, 1951 (núm. 100) - Etiopía (Ratificación : 1999)

Articles 1 to 4 of the Convention. Assessing and addressing the gender pay gap and its underlying causes. The Committee notes that under section 48(1) and (2) of the Federal Civil Servants Proclamation No. 1064/2017, affirmative actions shall be taken in favour of women with regard to recruitment, promotion, transfer, redeployment, education and training, including to allow them to assume decision-making positions. The Committee further notes, from the concluding observations of the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), the concerns about: (1) the fact that the deep-rooted cultural values, attitudes and traditions, the perpetuation of gender stereotypes and the limitation of women’s roles in society, remain a barrier to combating discrimination against women; (2) the gender pay gap between women and men in the private sector and the large concentration of women in the informal economy; and (3) the lack of sufficient childcare facilities in the private and public sectors (CEDAW/C/ETH/CO/8, 14 March 2019, paragraphs 21 and 35). Recalling that pay inequalities may arise due to the segregation of women and men into certain sectors and occupations, the Committee requests the Government to strengthen its efforts to close the gender wage gap and address its underlying causes, including any prevailing stereotypes regarding women’s preferences or suitability for certain jobs. In this regard, the Government is also requested to provide information on: (i) awareness-raising activities and sensitization initiatives aimed at deconstructing views attributing specific skills, roles and occupations to girls, boys, women or men; (ii) steps taken to promote the participation of more women in male-dominated sectors and jobs, as well as of more men in female-dominated sectors and jobs, including any positive measures taken in the public sector in accordance with section 48 of the Federal Civil Servants Proclamation; and (iii) statistical data on the distribution of women and men in the different sectors of economic activity, occupational categories and positions and their corresponding earnings, both in the private and public sectors.

Articles 2 and 3. Wage fixing and objective job evaluation. The Committee notes, from the Federal Civil Servants Proclamation, that: (1) section 6(3) provides that job evaluation and grading shall be determined in accordance with regulations issued by the Council of Ministers; and (2) section 7(1) provides that salary scales shall be determined by the Government’s financial capability, the general living conditions of society, price levels and other relevant factors. It notes that these provisions do not explicitly refer to the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal ‘value’ between men and women. In this regard, the Committee recalls that, when equal remuneration for work of equal ‘value’ is not explicitly included in the objectives of the evaluation and classification method, there is often the risk that this method will reproduce sexist stereotypes concerning women’s capabilities and aspirations with regard to employment and that certain skills generally attached to women (such as fine manual dexterity, communication, personal care, interpersonal skills, etc.) are undervalued in comparison with skills generally attached to men (such as physical strength, independence, leadership, assertiveness, etc.). The Committee regrets the lack of information provided by the Government with regard to the private sector. Recalling that the concept of equal “value” requires some method of measuring and comparing the relative ‘value’ of different jobs and that there needs to be an examination of the respective tasksinvolved, undertaken on the basis of entirely objective and non-discriminatory criteria, the Committee reiterates its requests to the Government to take steps to: (i) develop and use objective job evaluation methods; and (ii) provide information on the objective job evaluation methods developed, including the time frames proposed for their implementation. The Committee further recalls that the Government had previously indicated that it was inthe process of amending the Public Service Position Classification and Scale Regulation, and once again asks the Government to ensure that in determining the various job classifications and grading, the criteria and the methods used are free from gender bias. Please provide information on the progress of the amendment process.

Article 2(2)(b). Minimum wage. The Committee notes the Government’s indication, in its report, that it is in the process of enacting a regulation to set up a Minimum Wage Board, comprised of Government representatives, employees, trade unions and other stakeholders, that will periodically revise minimum wages in accordance with section 55(2) of the Labour Proclamation. The Committee notes that section 55(2) provides that the revision of the minimum wages will be based on studies which take into account the country’s economic development, labour market and other considerations. The Committee welcomes this information, as it recalls that the setting of minimum wages is an important means by which the Convention is applied. As women predominate in low-wage employment, a national minimum wage system helps to raise the earnings of the lowest paid, it has an influence on the relationship between men and women’s wages and on reducing the gender pay gap (see General Survey of 2012 on the fundamental Conventions, paragraph 683). The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the progress achieved in adopting the above-mentioned regulation and establishing a Minimum Wage Board and in ensuring that the design or adjustment of sectoral minimum wage rates are free from gender bias, and in particular, that wages fixed in sectors where women workers predominate are not undervalued.

Articles 2(2)(c) and 4. Collective agreements and cooperation with workers’ and employers’ organizations. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that there is continuous training provided by the Government and social partners and that, in 2016-2017, trainings and awareness-raising activities benefitted to 226 women and 756 men. The Committee notes however that this information is very general and that the Government does not indicate if the principle of the Convention was specifically raised in these trainings and awareness-raising activities. Noting the absence of relevant information provided, the Committee asks once again the Government to provide extracts of clauses of collective agreements incorporating the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal ‘value’ and providing for objective job evaluation. The Committee also asks the Government, in cooperation with workers’ and employers’ organizations, to continue promoting training and awareness raising in respect of the Convention’s principle among public officials, workers and employers and other relevant target groups, and indicating the steps taken in this regard.

Statistics. The Committee notes that, once again, the Government does not provide statistical data that would enable it to assess the extent of the gender pay gap. In this regard, it wishes to recall that an analysis of the position and pay of men and women in all job categories, within and between sectors, is required to address fully the continuing remuneration gap between men and women. The Committee therefore once again requests the Government to: (i) take concrete steps to compile and analyse statistics on the current wage rates for men and women in the different categories of jobs in the public sector and, if available, in the private sector, so as to enable an adequate assessment of the nature, extent and causes of the continuing gender pay gap; and (ii) provide information on any progress made in this regard.