Taking into account the positions of the Georgian Tarde Unions Confederation (GTUC), the International Labour Organization Committee on the Application of Standards calls on the Government of Georgia to take effective measures to address the challenges of unequal pay between men and women.
As a result of the active advocacy of the Georgian Tarde Unions Confederation (GTUC), in 2020, provision was introduced into the Labour Code of Georgia, according to which the employer is obliged to provide equal pay for men and women with equal work. However, despite the stated provision, the gap between the average salaries of women and men is still quite large. The reason for this was the absence of a methodology, according to which the performed work would be evaluated. Which means that there were no mechanisms to enforce the norm.
By the resolution of the ILC Committee on the Application of Standards, the Government was urged to:
– Make changes in the legislation so that women and men no longer receive different wages in the workplace for work of equal value.
– Effectively solve the existing horizontal and vertical segregation in the country, which implies the elimination of the bad practice according to which men are mainly represented in high (managerial) positions, as well as the fact that the sectors where mainly women are employed are characterized by low wages.
– Regularly review salaries in sectors where women are concentrated;
– Regularly collect and analyze statistical data on the number of men and women employed, desegregated by economic sector and occupational level;
– Provide detailed and comprehensive information on ILO Convention 100 on “equal remuneration” so that the public has complete information about their rights and the mechanisms for protection of their rights.
It should be noted that the International Labour Organization periodically monitors the implementation of the country’s obligations and adopted resolutions through social partners. This means that the issue will not be removed from the agenda until the obligations in this direction are fully fulfilled by the country.
The committee adopted the resolution on June 13, 2024 at the 112th annual conference of the International Labour Organization (ILO) on the basis of the report and initiative of the Georgian Trade Unions Confederation (GTUC).