Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2022, published 111st ILC session (2023)

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) - Grenada (Ratification: 1994)

The Committee notes with deep concernthat the Government’s report, due since 2019, have not been received. In light of its urgent appeal launched to the Government in 2021, the Committee proceeds with the examination of the application of the Convention on the basis of the information at its disposal.

Articles 1 to 4 of the Convention. Assessing and addressing the gender pay gap, including its underlying causes. The Committee notes from the Comprehensive National Review on Implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action of May 2019 (the Beijing + 25 report) that : (1) a larger share of women wage earners earn in the lower wage classes and the reverse is true in the upper wage distributions; and (2) in 2017, the gross monthly salary by sex indicates that women earned lower incomes than men overall. The Committee further notes from this report that the pay gap may be largely due to the division of labour based on sex, noting that jobs predominantly done by women (clerical, care and domestic work) are paid lower wages than the jobs predominantly done by men (construction and machine operators). In light of the above, the Committee asks the Government to provide:

• (i)up-to-date data, disaggregated by sex, on the remuneration of men and women as well as any recent information on the gender pay gap, by occupational category, if possible, in both the private and public sectors; and
• (ii)information on any measures taken to address the gender pay gap and its underlying causes, such as occupational gender segregation at all levels and gender stereotypes in society and employment, and to promote the employment of women in a wider range of jobs, in particular in well paid jobs.

Articles 2(2)(b) and 3. Minimum wages and objective job evaluation. In its previous comments, the Committee noted the adoption of the Minimum Wage Order in 2011. This Order sets out the minimum wages that are payable to workers in the following categories of employment: industrial workers (garment industry); clerical workers; security guards; domestic workers; caregivers of the elderly; workers in bakeries; agricultural workers; construction workers; shop assistants; workers in the hospitality industry; vehicle drivers; bus drivers and bus conductors. With reference to the above paragraph, the Committee observes that as women predominate in low-wage employment, and a uniform national minimum wage system helps to raise the earnings of the lowest paid, it has an influence on the relationship between men and women’s wages and on reducing the gender pay. The Committee also recalls that there is a tendency to set lower wages for sectors predominantly employing women. Due to such occupational segregation, special attention is needed in the design or adjustment of sectoral minimum wage schemes to ensure that the rates fixed are free from gender bias, and in particular that certain skills considered to be “female” are not undervalued. Even if regulations determining the minimum wage do not make a distinction between men and women, this is not sufficient to ensure that there is no gender bias in the process. Rates should be fixed based on objective criteria, free from gender bias, to ensure that the work in sectors with a high proportion of women is not being undervalued in comparison with sectors in which men are predominantly employed (see 2012 General Survey on the fundamental Conventions, paragraph 683). In the absence of information in this regard, the Committee asks once again the Government to provide specific information on:

• (i)the methods and objective criteria used to determine the minimum wage rates to ensure that such rates are free from gender bias and certain skills considered to be “natural” to women workers are not undervalued, while those traditionally associated with men are not overvalued; and
• (ii)the steps undertaken to develop or implement objective job evaluation methods in both the public and private sectors, as required by Article 3 of the Convention.

Articles 2(2)(c) and 4. Collective agreements and cooperation with workers’ and employers’ organizations.The Committee asks the Government to provide information on:

• (i)any collective agreement providing for equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value;
• (ii)any job evaluation exercise carried out in the context of a collective agreement; and
• (iii)the steps taken to give effect to the principle of the Convention in cooperation with workers’ and employers’ organizations, including through training or awareness raising on the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value.

Monitoring and enforcement. The Committee notes that addressing gender-based violations of the Employment Act and Minimum Wages Orderwith regard to equal pay for work of equal value and reinforcing enforcement mechanisms and sanctions in case of violations, are among the objectives of the Gender Equality Policy and Action Plan 2014-2024. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on :

• (i)any measures adopted in the framework of the Gender Equality Policy to reinforce enforcement mechanisms and sanctions in case of pay inequalities;
• (ii)the number and results of inspections carried out by the labour inspectors in relation to pay inequalities and equal remuneration for work of equal value, pursuant to section 27 of the Employment Act;
• (iii)the number, nature and outcomes of cases brought before the courts, thepenalties applied and remedies granted; and
• (iv)any measures taken or envisaged to raise public awareness of the provisions of the Convention, the procedures and remedies available, and to enhance the capacity of the competent authorities, including judges, labour inspectors and other public officials, to identify and address cases of pay inequalities.