Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2014, published 104th ILC session (2015)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Saudi Arabia (Ratification: 1978)

Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. Gender pay gap and its underlying causes. The Committee notes that the Government’s report does not contain any information regarding the levels of remuneration of men and women. The Government indicates that, with respect to the public sector, the Civil Service System does not discriminate in wages between men and women, since remuneration is based on merit and not on sex. The Committee notes from the statistics published in the Ministry of Labour’s statistical yearbook for 2013 available on the Internet that, in the private sector, the average monthly wage of Saudi women workers (3,153 Saudi Arabian Riyal (SAR)) represents 58 per cent of the average monthly wage of Saudi men workers (SAR5,355); the gender wage gap is therefore 42 per cent in favour of men. With reference to its observation under the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111), the Committee notes that, despite the increase in women’s participation in the labour market in recent years, the labour market remains highly segregated, with women being confined to certain jobs. In paragraph 712 of its General Survey of 2012 on the fundamental Conventions, the Committee pointed out that some of the underlying causes of pay inequality have been identified as the following: horizontal and vertical occupational segregation of women into lower paying jobs or occupations and lower level positions without promotion opportunities; lower, less appropriate and less career-oriented education, training and skill levels; household and family responsibilities; perceived costs of employing women; and pay structures. The Committee would like to draw the Government’s attention to the fact that even if the pay system does not make a difference in the wages of men and women, inequalities may arise from the criteria and the methodology used to classify jobs and establish the pay structure, possibly resulting in undervaluation of certain jobs in which women are concentrated. Inequalities may also arise from unequal access of men and women to various allowances and benefits. Recalling that appropriate data and statistics are essential in determining the nature, extent and causes of unequal remuneration, to set priorities and design appropriate measures, to monitor and evaluate the impact of such measures, the Committee asks the Government to provide detailed statistics on the participation of men and women, including migrant workers, in the labour market and on their wages, disaggregated by sex, in the various economic sectors and occupations, including the public sector, and at different levels of responsibility, including management positions. Please also communicate any available statistical data on the evolution of the gender wage gap. The Committee encourages the Government to seize the opportunity of the implementation of programmes to promote the employment of women to examine the underlying causes of wage disparities between men and women, including occupational gender segregation, and to take the necessary measures to address these causes and reduce the gender pay gap both in the public and the private sectors.

Promoting and enforcing the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that Order No. 2370/1of 18 September 2010 which provides that “any discrimination in wages shall be prohibited between male and female workers for work of equal value”, was communicated to the competent authorities and the department responsible for inspection was instructed to enforce it. The Government also indicates that training is provided to labour inspectors through the Labour Academy within the Ministry of Labour and in the International Training Centre of the ILO in Turin. The Committee further notes the Government’s indication that the inspection electronic form now refers to Order No. 2370/1 and that through the wages protection programme, wages can be consulted and verified; indicators are being elaborated, so as to reveal the extent according to which the enterprises comply with the Order. The Committee would like to recall that the concept of “work of equal value” – which goes beyond the same or similar work – requires some method of measuring and comparing the relative value of different jobs. There needs to be an examination of the respective tasks involved, undertaken on the basis of entirely objective and non discriminatory criteria to avoid the assessment being tainted by gender bias. While the Convention does not prescribe any specific method for such an examination, it presupposes the use of appropriate techniques for objective job evaluation, comparing factors such as skill, effort, responsibilities and working conditions. Differential rates between workers are compatible with the principle of the Convention if they correspond, without regard to sex, to differences determined by such evaluation (see General Survey, 2012, paragraphs 695–703). The Committee asks the Government to continue to take the necessary steps to reinforce the capacity of labour inspectors to detect and address unequal remuneration between men and women for work of equal value, and to ensure that workers can efficiently avail themselves of their rights pursuant to Order No. 2370/1, including through the development and use of appropriate objective job evaluation methods. The Committee asks the Government to provide detailed information on the indicators developed to assess compliance with the Order. Please also provide information on any case of non-compliance detected by labour inspectors or complaints of unequal remuneration submitted to them or to a court, and the outcome thereof.