Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2025, published 114th ILC session (2026)

Belgium

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) (Ratification: 1952)
Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) (Ratification: 1977)

In order to provide a comprehensive view of the issues relating to the application of ratified Conventions on equality, the Committee considers it appropriate to examine Conventions Nos 100 (equal remuneration), and 111 (discrimination in employment and occupation) together.

The Committee notes the joint observations submitted on 23 September 2025 by the General Confederation of Liberal Trade Unions of Belgium (CGSLB), the Confederation of Christian Trade Unions (CSC) and the General Labour Federation of Belgium (FGTB). The Committee requests the Government to send its comments on this matter.

Convention No. 111 – National policy to promote equality of opportunity and treatment in employment and occupation

Article 1(1)(a). Discrimination on the basis of sex and/or gender. Pregnancy and maternity. The Committee notes the Government’s indication, in its report, that the Institute for the Equality of Women and Men (IEFH) recorded 100 reports in 2022, 115 in 2023 (including 56 complaints), and 178 in 2024 (including 67 complaints) concerning discrimination related to pregnancy, maternity, or associated criteria (medically assisted reproduction, family responsibilities, breastfeeding). The Directorate for Social Law Inspection (CLS) conducts reactive and proactive investigations to detect discrimination in employment. Since 2022, an internal coding system has allowed for more precise monitoring based on the protected criterion and the stage of the employment relationship. Nine investigations concerned sex and/or gender, including two relating to dismissal on grounds of pregnancy (one irregularity found and one not) and one relating to parental leave (no irregularity). The Government reports that since the April 2022 reform, which broadened its scope to all protected criteria, the CLS has carried out 19 practical tests, but none concerning pregnancy or maternity. The Committee notes with interest this information. The Committee requests the Government to indicate: (i) the specific measures implemented to prevent and combat all forms of discrimination on grounds of pregnancy, maternity or associated criteria; and (ii) awareness-raising and information activities carried out among workers’ and employers’ organizations aimed at combating sexist stereotypes and occupational segregation. It also requests the Government to continue to provide information on cases of discrimination in employment and occupation (including cases of discrimination on grounds of pregnancy, maternity or associated criteria), handled by the IEFH, labour inspection and the courts, as well as the outcome of the procedures, specifying the penalties imposed and remedies granted.Finally, it asks the Government to indicate whether the CLS plans to carry out a practical test on maternity.

Convention No. 100 – P rinciple of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value

Articles 1 and 2. Gender segregation in education and in employment and occupation. Pay gaps. Scope of comparison. The Committee notes the Government’s plans to amend the Act of 22 April 2012 on the pay gap in order to transpose Directive (EU) 2023/970 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 May 2023, which aims to strengthen the application of the principle of equal pay between men and women. Since 2007, the IEFH and the Federal Public Service (FPS) for Employment, Labour and Social Dialogue have published a four-yearly report on the pay gap, supplemented by annual social security data from the IEFH. In 2022, the pay gap stood at 7 per cent when adjusted (taking into account the effect of women’s part-time work) and 19.9 per cent without this adjustment, compared with 9.2 per cent and 23.1 per cent respectively in 2018, showing a steady decrease. Among the measures adopted to decrease the pay gap, the Government mentions the “Gender & Work” project under the National Plan for Recovery and Resilience, which aims to promote gender equality in the labour market, and the regulatory reforms that seek to ensure a balanced representation among women and men in FPS management posts, particularly parity on selection committees and limits on mandate renewals. At the level of the federal bodies, the French Community and the Brussels-Capital Region confirm strict equal pay in the public service.

The Government highlights that Directive (EU) 2023/970, which is currently being transposed in consultation with the social partners, will reinforce wage transparency, particularly with regard to gross extra-legal benefits (company cars, meal vouchers, insurance, computers or mobile phones and so forth). Despite progress made, the gender pay gap persists, fuelled in particular by the frequency of part-time work among women, the choice of lower-paid career paths and unequal access to extra-legal benefits. In this regard, the Committee notes the concerns expressed by the CGSLB, CSC and FGTB relating to the transposition process of the Directive. These organizations fear that the Government intends to use a minimalist approach to transpose Directive (EU) 2023/970; That is to say that it will integrate the strict minimum of the Directive without going further, setting aside the administrative requirements contained in the Act of 22 April 2012. The EU Directive and the Belgian Act of 2012 may have different objectives and scopes, and removing the requirements of the Act of 2012 may have negative repercussions on workers, even if Directive (EU) 2023/970 is adequately transposed. The Government explains that this transposition would not entail a decrease in the level of the current protection, in line with section 27 of Directive (EU) 2023/970, which lays down that the Directive does not affect the different national wage-fixing systems. With regard to the penalties in the case of non-compliance with the transparency requirements imposed by the Directive, the Government indicates that work is also under way to examine the degree to which new areas of criminalization and penalties must be formulated. To support greater gender neutrality in job classifications, the project entitled “Belgium – Modernization and Adaptation of Gender-neutral Instruments of Classification” (BE-MAGIC project), launched in January 2025 with European funding, makes tools available for social partners. In parallel, various reforms, including the Act of 7 October 2022 and the Royal Decree of 16 June 2020, aim to reduce involuntary part-time work and improve the balance between private and professional life through the extension of certain types of leave, the right to flexible working arrangements, increased protection against reprisals, the right to disconnect and new ways of organizing working time. These measures were also introduced in the public sector in 2024. The Government mentions several initiatives aimed at vulnerable women and combating gender stereotypes, including calls for projects “Bread & Roses” and “As long as it takes”, as well as a national awareness campaign on family-leave rights. The Committee observes that the data from the German-speaking Community shows the increasing participation of women in the labour market, despite a high rate of part-time work.

The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the impact of transposing Directive (EU) 2023/970 which should be effective in June 2026, on the gender pay gap for work of equal value. It also requests the Government to: (i) indicate any decision relating to the revision of the Act of 2012, following the transposition of the EU Directive on wage transparency; (ii) provide the latest statistical report on the wage gap of the IEFH and the FPS for Employment, Labour and Social Dialogue; and (iii) provide information on the impact of the measures taken to strengthen women’s representation in leadership posts in the public service.

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