Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2012, published 102nd ILC session (2013)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Austria (Ratification: 1953)

The Committee notes the observations of the Federal Chamber of Labour, which were attached to the Government’s report.

Cooperation with employers’ and workers’ organizations. The Committee notes that, according to the Federal Chamber of Labour, the Government, together with the social partners, is currently conducting pilot projects in the private and public sectors to abolish gender stereotypes in job evaluation and to eliminate gender discriminatory provisions in collective agreements. In this regard, the proposals include the assimilation of parental leave to a period of service. The Committee asks the Government to provide additional information on these pilot projects, in particular on their state of implementation and the progress achieved so far. It encourages the Government to continue its cooperation with the social partners with regard to the application of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value in collective agreements and asks the Government to provide information on any action taken to this end.

The Committee also notes that under the National Action Programme, adopted in June 2010, the social partners have committed to the drafting of a joint manual, targeting bargaining parties at every level of negotiation, which will lay down the definition of work of equal value, in light of the European Court of Justice’s rulings, whereby equivalent training, knowledge and skills, an equivalent degree of responsibility, equivalent exertion, strain or effort and comparable working conditions are to be taken into consideration. The Committee asks the Government to forward a copy of the joint manual once it is published and to provide information on its impact on gender mainstreaming in collective bargaining.

Practical measures to promote equal remuneration for work of equal value. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that in March 2011 the Council of Ministers decided to raise the federal quota for women’s participation to 25 per cent in the boards of enterprises in which the State has at least a 50 per cent share, by the end of 2013. In addition, in the Federal Province of Salzburg, pursuant to a resolution of May 2011, the rate of women in the boards of enterprises designated or appointed by the Federal Province of Salzburg must gradually increase to 25 per cent by the end of 2014, and to 35 per cent by the end of 2018. The Committee also notes that several awareness-raising campaigns and programmes have been implemented by the Government to promote the diversification of training opportunities for women (FiT Programme), to increase female employment (“Support for return to work” programme), and to promote better representation of women in senior positions. The Committee asks the Government to continue to provide information on the measures taken to promote gender equality and the impact of such measures on promoting the principle of the Convention. The Committee further asks the Government to indicate any measures taken to promote the development and use of objective job evaluation methods free from gender bias.

Application of the Convention in the public sector. According to the Government, the job classification applicable to salary scales in the federal public service guarantees that wage levels are gender neutral. The Government acknowledges, nevertheless, that the average income of women workers employed in the federal civil service is 16 per cent lower than that of men’s and reiterates that the causes of this gap can be attributed to differences in working hours, qualifications and job levels. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on how it is ensured that the criteria applied for the evaluation of jobs are free from gender bias, in particular in positions in which women predominate.

Furthermore, the Committee notes that, like the Vienna provincial authorities, several provinces (Burgenland, Carinthia, Salzburg, Styria and Tyrol) have adopted legislative provisions to ensure that, in case of breach of the principle of equal remuneration between men and women for work of equal value, discriminated civil employees are entitled to claim the payment of the difference and compensation for the injury suffered. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on any legislative developments granting similar rights to civil servants in other provinces and to supply data on any complaints filed under the existing provincial equal treatment provisions. It also asks the Government to continue to provide information on provincial initiatives and programmes to promote the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value.

Minimum wage and cooperation with employers’ and workers’ organizations. The Committee reiterates its previous request to the Government to provide information on the impact of the fixing of a minimum wage, in a range of sectoral agreements, on the remuneration of women and men and on the narrowing of gender wage differentials.

Enforcement. The Committee notes the statistical data on complaints lodged before the Equal Treatment Commission from 2009 to 2011. The Committee notes that the Equal Treatment Commission reviews individual cases and issues opinions, which are not binding on the court, but the court must give reasons for any material divergences. It also notes the 2010 ruling of the Vienna Labour and Social Court which held that, despite their job classification, the female plaintiffs’ work should be considered of equal value to that of their male predecessor. The Committee asks the Government to continue to supply information on any relevant court decisions and on the activities of the labour inspectorate in the field of equal remuneration.