Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2010, published 100th ILC session (2011)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Jamaica (Ratification: 1975)

Article 2 of the Convention. Measures to address the wage gap between men and women. The Committee notes that the Government’s report does not reply to its request for information on the measures taken or envisaged to promote the principles of the Convention. The Committee therefore once again asks the Government to provide information on the measures taken to promote the application of the Convention through policies aimed at promoting equal access of women to all occupations and economic sectors, especially to decision-making and management posts in both the public and private sectors, and on their effect on the elimination of wage differentials that occur through the segregation of women in the labour market at all salary levels.

Application of the principle through collective agreements. In a previous report, the Government indicated that equal remuneration was applied in practice through collective agreements. The Committee therefore asked the Government to supply copies of such agreements and the Government indicated that it would send them after it had sought permission from the social partners. Noting that the requested documents were not included in the Government’s report, the Committee once again asks the Government to provide copies of collective agreements that include provisions on equal remuneration and applicable wage scales. Please also provide an indication of the distribution of men and women in the different wages scales and occupations covered, so as to enable the Committee to assess the extent to which the principle of the Convention is applied through collective agreements.

Article 3. Objective job evaluation in the public service. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Performance Management Appraisal System (PMAS) that has been in the process of being implemented for several years in the public service, once fully implemented, will seek to ensure efficient job performance based on agreed performance targets for the positions held. According to the Government’s report, the salary scales establishing remuneration for the civil service are based on the technical and administrative responsibilities of the position and the level of professional and academic qualification required. Furthermore, the Committee notes that the statistical data provided by the Government on the distribution of men and women in the central Government show that men and women tend to be concentrated in different job groups. With respect to the PMAS, the Committee notes that it is not clear whether it is related to the evaluation of the content of the different jobs for the purpose of determining remuneration or whether it is a system to appraise the performance of individual staff. In this regard, the Committee wishes to clarify that Article 3 is concerned with the analysis of the content of specific jobs or positions on the basis of entirely objective and non-discriminatory criteria, such as skill, effort, responsibilities and working conditions, rather than evaluating the performance of an individual. It also wishes to emphasize that such an objective job evaluation method is particularly important to address occupational segregation, where men and women perform different jobs, and to ensure that tasks traditionally performed by women are not undervalued or even overlooked in comparison with those of men performing different tasks and using different skills. The Committee asks the Government to indicate how it is ensured that men and women receive equal remuneration for work of equal value in the civil service, and to clarify whether the PMAS aims at analysing and classifying jobs for the purpose of remuneration determination and to describe the method and criteria used to that end. Please also provide copies of salary scales in the civil service, disaggregated by sex.

Enforcement of equal remuneration and minimum wage legislation. Noting the absence of a reply to its previous request, the Committee once again asks the Government to provide information on the following: (i) the distribution of men and women in the sectors where non-payment of minimum wages has been most problematic; (ii) the measures taken to ensure that the minimum wage legislation as well as other legislation relevant to the application of the principle of the Convention is effectively enforced for both women and men; and (iii) any obstacles with respect to its enforcement that disproportionately affect women workers. Please also provide information on any activities carried out by the Pay and Conditions of Employment Branch (PCEB) with respect to equal remuneration.