Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2023, published 112nd ILC session (2024)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Cabo Verde (Ratification: 1979)

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Articles 1 to 4 of the Convention. Gender pay gap and occupational gender segregation, including employment in the informal economy. The Committee notes the Government’s indication, in its report, regarding the adoption of the National Plan for Gender Equality for 2021-2025 (PNIG), through Resolution No. 1/2022 of 5 January 2022, which sets as main objective the achievement of women’s autonomy in three areas, including economic autonomy and autonomy in decision-making. It notes that the PNIG acknowledges that women: (1) still have a greater burden of unpaid work; (2) are poorer; (3) work mostly in the informal sector; and (4) consequently lack social protection coverage and access to finance. As regards the concentration of women in the informal economy, with low salaries and lack of social protection coverage, the Committee notes that, according to the National Institute of Statistics (INE), excluding agriculture, in 2022, more women than men were still in informal employment (45.9 per cent compared to 43.2 per cent, respectively). Observing the lack of information provided by the Government on the implementation of the National Strategy for 2017–20 to encourage the transition from informal to formal employment, the Committee however notes that, in 2021, in the context of the “Jov@Emprego” project, implemented in collaboration with the ILO, the “Sucupira50 pilot project” was implemented with a view to strengthen the capacities of 50 women entrepreneurs and support the growth and formalization of their businesses. Welcoming this initiative, the Committee notes that the Second National Sustainable Development Strategy for 2022-2026 (PEDS II) highlights the difficulties faced by women in accessing the formal labour market which constitute an important barrier to women’s economic empowerment. According to the INE, the employment rate of women decreased from 45.5 per cent in 2017 to 43.3 per cent in 2022 (compared to 58.7 per cent for men) and remains particularly low in rural areas (29.2 per cent in 2022). The Committee notes the persistent occupational gender segregation with women being still overrepresented in certain sectors, such as trade (22.3 per cent), hospitality (13.1 per cent), domestic work (12.9 per cent) and education (10.4 per cent). In 2022, women were still mainly represented in elementary occupations (33.8 per cent) and personal services (31.0 per cent), while only 3.1 per cent of them were employed in decision-making positions (INE, Continuous Multi Objective Survey - IMC, 2022). The Committee further notes, from the statistical information provided by the Government, that, in the private sector, women are mostly concentrated in lowest remuneration levels (78.0 per cent of women in the four lowest remuneration levels compared to 64.5 per cent of men; while only 3.1 per cent of women were in the four highest remuneration levels compared to 4.4 per cent of men). In the public sector, a higher proportion of women are in higher remuneration levels, while this proportion is still lower than those for men (18.8 per cent of women in the four highest remuneration levels compared to 25.7 per cent of men). Welcoming the efforts made by the Government to provide information on the distribution of men and women in the different remuneration levels, the Committee observes that the data provided does not reflect the average remuneration of men and women or the overall magnitude of the gender pay gap, which does not enable the Committee to fully assess the extent and nature of wage differentials between women and men in practice. It notes, from the 2022 Global Gender Gap Report from the World Economic Forum, that the estimated earned income of women was still 29.2 per cent lower than those of men, in 2022. In light of the substantial wage differentials between women and men and the persistent lack of legislation that fully reflects the principle of the Convention, the Committee urges the Government to strengthen its efforts to take proactive measures in order to identify and address the underlying causes of pay differentials between men and women, such as occupational gender segregation and gender stereotypes, in both the formal and informal economy, and to promote women’s access to a wider range of jobs with career prospects and higher pay, in particular in rural areas. It asks the Government to provide information on: (i) any measures implemented to that end, including in collaboration with employers’ and workers’ organizations; (ii) any programmes or activities implemented to enhance the transition from informal to formal employment, which will be especially important for women; and (iii) the earnings of men and women, in both the public and private sectors, if possible disaggregated by sector of economic activity.

Articles 1 and 2(2)(a). Equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value. Legislation. Recalling the absence of legal provisions that fully reflect the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value set out in the Convention, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that several awareness-raising activities have been carried out regarding gender equality and equal pay, including in collaboration with the ILO in the context of the Trade for Decent Work Project (T4DW). The Government adds that, in June 2022, a tripartite workshop was held, in collaboration with the ILO, in order to formulate a roadmap on equal pay. Welcoming this information, the Committee however observes that no information is provided on the implementation of the roadmap. It further notes that, in its last national report published in 2020, the National Commission for Human Rights and Citizenship (CNDHC) specifically recommended the incorporation of the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value into the Labour Code, in line with ILO Convention No. 100. The Committee notes that, in March 2023, the Social Concertation Council (CCS) reaffirmed the need for a third revision process of the Labour Code and that the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value was invoqued during a parlamentarian debate on the revision of the Labour Code on parenthood, as a means to address gender inequalities in the labour market. The Committee again draws the Government’s attention to the fact that article 62 of the Constitution and section 16 of the Labour Code are not sufficient to ensure the full application of the principle enshrined in the Convention which is fundamental to tackling occupational gender segregation in the labour market, as it permits a broad scope of comparison, including, but going beyond equal remuneration for “equal”, “the same” or “similar” work, and also encompassing work of an entirely different nature which is nevertheless of equal value (see General Survey of 2012 on the fundamental Conventions, paragraphs 672–675). The Committee urges the Government to take the opportunity of the revision of the Labour Code to give full legislative expression to the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value. It asks the Government to provide information on: (i) any progress made in that regard and the provisions adopted; (ii) any proactive measures taken to raise awareness of the meaning and scope of application of the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value among workers, employers and their organizations, as well as among law enforcement officials; and (iii) the manner in which section 15(1)(b) of the Labour Code, which provides that “equality at work” includes the right to receive a special compensation which is not allocated to all workers but which is based, among other grounds, on sex, is implemented in practice.

The Committee is raising other matters in a request addressed directly to the Government.