Observation (CEACR) - adoptée 2008, publiée 98ème session CIT (2009)

Assessment of the gender pay gap. The Committee notes that according to the statistical information provided by the Government on the earnings of men and women in the public sector for the second quarter of 2005, 69 per cent of the employees earning a wage inferior to €750 and 48.55 per cent of the employees gaining more than €750 were women. As to the private sector, the Committee notes that these percentages were 66.6 per cent and 37.7 per cent, respectively. According to Eurostat data, the gender pay gap (average gross hourly earnings) was 10 per cent in 2006 compared to 9 per cent in 2005. According to the Government’s report the main reasons underlying the gender pay gap relate to occupational segregation based on sex and to different educational choices made by men and women. The Committee asks the Government to continue to provide detailed information on the earnings of men and women in the private and the public sectors, as well as its analysis of the existing gender pay differentials and the evolution thereof.

Articles 1, 2 and 3 of the Convention. Legislative developments. The Committee notes that section 5(1) of Act No. 3488/2006 on the implementation of the principle of equal treatment for men and women as regards access to employment, vocational training and promotion, and working conditions provides that men and women are entitled to equal remuneration for work of equal value. Section 5(2) defines remuneration in accordance with Article 1(a) of the Convention. Section 5(3)(a) provides that where a job classification system is used for determining pay, this system must be based on common criteria for both men and women and be drawn up so as to exclude any discrimination on the grounds of sex. In addition, section 5(2)(b) requires that the principle of equal treatment and non-discrimination on the grounds of sex or family status must be respected in the context of a performance appraisal impacting on the workers’ promotion and earnings. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the measures taken to promote the full implementation and enforcement of section 5 of Act No. 3488/2006. In this regard, the Committee asks the Government to provide information on any judicial or administrative decisions concerning section 5. With respect to section 5(2)(b) of the Act, the Government is asked to provide information on the measures taken to promote the development and use of objective job evaluation methods that are free from gender bias, as envisaged under Article 3 of the Convention, with a view to ensuring that job classification systems are established in accordance with the principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value.

Articles 2, 3 and 4. Other measures to address the gender pay gap. The Committee notes that the Government intends to address the gender pay gap through measures to promote equality of opportunity and treatment of men and women in the labour market, including measures to address vertical and horizontal occupational segregation, such as vocational guidance. The General Secretariat on Equality, the most representative employers’ organizations and the Hellenic Corporate Social Responsibility Network signed a Protocol of cooperation to promote equal opportunities for women. The report also states that the Government promotes social dialogue and collective bargaining as a means of improving the remuneration in female-dominated occupations and sectors. The Committee further notes the Government’s indication that none of the collective agreements in force in Greece have been found to contain provisions violating the right to equal remuneration. The Committee asks the Government to indicate whether there are any collective agreements that promote and facilitate equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value, including equal pay mapping, targets for reducing the gender pay gap, or objective job evaluation. Similarly, the Committee asks the Government to indicate whether any such measures are being promoted under the abovementioned Protocol of Cooperation. It also reiterates its request to the Government to provide information on the concrete results achieved by the equal pay projects carried out by the General Secretariat on Equality and the Centre for Equality Issues, as noted in the Committee’s previous comments. In addition, the Committee asks the Government to provide statistical information on the progress made in improving the wages in female-dominated sectors of the economy.

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