Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2019, published 109th ILC session (2021)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Guatemala (Ratification: 1961)

Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention. Gender wage gap. In its previous comment, the Committee requested the Government to: (i) provide statistical data on the remuneration of men and women; (ii) examine the underlying causes of the existing wage gap; and (iii) provide information on the measures that have been taken to reduce the gap. The Committee notes that, in its report, the Government provides data published by the National Institute for Statistics on the average income of men and women in 2016 and 2017, which demonstrate a gender pay gap that favours men in all economic activities (except the construction sector) and in all occupations. The Committee notes that these data indicate, inter alia, that: the average total income for men is 2,490 Guatemalan quetzales (GTQ) and for women is GTQ2,026; in the agriculture, livestock, game and forestry sectors the average total income for men is GTQ1,198 and for women it is GTQ931; in the communications sector it is GTQ3,792 for men and GTQ2,805 for women; and for directors and managers it is GTQ6,985 for men and GTQ3,929 for women. With regard to the underlying causes of the wage gap, the Committee notes the detailed statistics provided by the Government on the labour market participation rates of men and women, compiled by the Labour Market Observatory, which indicate that women have a much lower labour market participation rate than men (40 per cent for women and 83.3 per cent for men). The Committee also notes the Government’s indications: (i) of the existence of occupational segregation, as men have higher participation rates in the agriculture, construction and transport sectors, and women in retail commerce, food and beverage services and in households as domestic workers; (ii) that many women choose to perform non-salaried work on an independent basis to avoid adhering to a schedule; and (iii) that women work fewer paid hours than men. As for the measures adopted to reduce the wage gap, the Committee notes the detailed information provided by the Government regarding the activities of the Working Women’s Section and the National Office for Women (ONAM) of the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare (MTPS), and the Presidential Secretariat for Women (SEPREM). The Committee also notes the information included in the Government’s report on the application of the Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111), relating to the measures adopted under the National Policy for the Advancement and Comprehensive Development of Women (PNPDIM) and the Equal Opportunities Plan 2008–23 (PEO) to eliminate gender stereotypes and facilitate women’s access to a more diverse range of jobs. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the outcomes of the measures adopted to reduce the gender wage gap (including statistical data on its evolution). The Committee also requests information regarding measures taken to tackle the underlying causes of the low labour force participation of women, including the nature of that participation (women working on an independent basis, and working for fewer hours than men).

Article 3. Objective job evaluation. In its previous comment, the Committee requested the Government to adopt mechanisms for objective job evaluation. With regard to public employment, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that, according to information provided by the Legal Affairs Directorate of the National Civil Service Office (ONSEC), the civil service remuneration system operates in accordance with the principle of equal opportunities and must be objective, impersonal and free from discrimination of any kind, which means that the value of the work performed in each job must be taken into account when fixing wages. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that section 10 of the Civil Service Wages Act (Decree No. 11-73) provides that the ONSEC shall develop an annual plan for the application of the wage scale. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that one of the priority actions of the National Decent Work Policy (2017–32) is the establishment of a National Wage Policy strengthening the legal measures against discrimination. In this respect, the Committee wishes to recall that, whatever methods are used for the objective evaluation of jobs, particular care must be taken to ensure that they are free from gender bias. To this end, it is important to ensure that the selection of factors for comparison, the weighting of such factors and the actual comparison carried out are not discriminatory, either directly or indirectly. Often skills considered to be “female”, such as manual dexterity and those required in the caring professions, are undervalued or even overlooked, in comparison with traditionally “male” skills, such as heavy lifting. The Committee notes that a number of analytical job evaluation methods have been developed that take into consideration characteristics considered to be masculine and feminine, and include criteria such as repetitiveness and precision of movement, responsibility for the life of others, responsibility for the environment, the number of work interruptions (for example in secretarial and clerical work), empathy and the ability to organize, which are often linked to occupations in which women are predominantly employed (see General Survey of 2012 on the fundamental Conventions, paragraphs 701–702). The Committee requests the Government to provide further information on the criteria taken into consideration for the development of the wage scale in the public sector to ensure that the existing wage scale is free from gender bias. The Committee also requests the Government to indicate whether formal procedures for the objective assessment of jobs in the private sector have been adopted (for example as part of the development of the National Wage Policy).

Application of the Convention in practice. In its previous comment, the Committee requested the Government to provide information on the complaints made concerning the application of the Convention. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that no complaints regarding equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value can be seen in the labour inspectorate’s system for monitoring cases. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that, in 2016, the single protocol on procedures for the labour inspection system was approved with a view to standardizing the approaches followed by the labour inspectorate, with the support of the ILO, which covers the application of the Convention. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information on the activities of the labour inspectorate to give effect in practice to the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value and to provide information on the number of complaints (lodged with the labour inspectorate, the courts or other relevant institutions) concerning the application of this principle, and the follow-up to those complaints.