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

Botswana

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) (Ratification: 1997)
Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) (Ratification: 1997)

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 observations of the Botswana Federation of Public Private and Parastatal Sector Unions (BOFEPUSU) communicated with the Government report.

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

Article 1, 2 and 3(b). Discrimination in employment and occupation. Legislation. The Committee welcomes the Government’s indication, in its report, about the adoption of the Employment and Labour Relations Bill, 2025 which aims to replace the Employment Act of 1982 and is currently pending Presidential assent. It welcomes the provisions designed to promote equality at the workplace and to protect workers (including job applicants) from discrimination, as well as violence and harassment (Part IV). The Committee notes in particular that the Bill: (1) prohibits both direct and indirect discrimination in any employment policy or practice on any arbitrary grounds including “race, sexual orientation, tribe or place of origin, national extraction, social origin and maternity, pregnancy, marital status, paternity, religion, disability, political affiliation or opinion, and health status” (section 18(1)); (2) broadens the definition of “worker” to include apprentices and persons providing or seeking to provide labour (Part I); and (3) establishes procedures to address unfair labour practices, placing the burden of proof on employers in discrimination cases (Part VI). The Committee observes however, that, although Section 18(1) expands the list of prohibited grounds, at the same time it has removed “sex” and “colour” from this list. The Committee requests the Government to confirm that this omission from the Bill is unintentional and that these grounds will be reintroduced in the final Act or that the Act will be amended to reintegrate these two grounds. It further asks the Government to provide a copy of the text as ultimately adopted. The Committee once again requests information on the application of the “Code of Good Practice: Employment Discrimination”, with respect to workplace policies developed by employers.

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

Articles 1 to 4. Assessing and addressing the gender pay gap. The Committee notes with interest that the Government has taken steps to collect sex-disaggregated statistical data on the number of men and women employed and their corresponding earnings. Based on the figures for 2024, it notes that that women’s average monthly earnings (Botswana pula (BWP) 5,697) remain consistently lower than those of men (BWP6,493), despite women representing more employees overall. For example, among primary teachers, women occupy 5,076 posts and men 670, yet women earn on average BWP15,658 compared with BWP19,510 for men. Similarly, among shop sales assistants, women hold 10,389 positions compared with 4,928 for men but earn BWP1,817 per month compared with BWP2,757 for men. The Committee observes that this may reflect occupational segregation or the undervaluation of jobs traditionally done by women (such as caregiving, cleaning, and catering) and consequently seen as extensions of domestic roles and perceived as requiring intrinsic, rather than learned, skills. According to ILOSTAT (2024), the gender pay gap stood at 10.9 per cent in 2024. The Committee also notes BOFEPUSU’s observations that female interns in government service face unequal remuneration, as their wages are reduced during pregnancy. In reply, the Government indicates that the National Internship Guidelines are being revised following a 2020 review that recommended adopting a new National Internship Policy to address these gaps. The Committee encourages the Government to continue collecting detailed statistical information, disaggregated by sex and occupations, on the proportion of men and women employed in the different sectors and their corresponding earnings, and to use this information to identify and address any patterns of occupational segregation or gender wage gaps. It further asksthe Government to ensure that the revised Internship guidelines will provide for equal remuneration for men and women interns, including during maternity leave, and to report on any developments in this regard.

Articles 1 to 3. The principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value. Definition of remuneration. Objective job evaluation. Legislation. The Committee welcomes section 18(5) of the Employment and Labour Relations Bill, 2025 which prohibits discrimination arising from any difference in terms and conditions of employment between workers performing the same or substantially the same work, or work of equal value. It also notes that the Bill defines wage as “remuneration or earnings, however designated or calculated, which is paid by an employer to a worker, is capable of being expressed in monetary terms, is fixed by mutual agreement or legislation, and is payable by virtue of a written or unwritten contract of employment” (Part I). In this regard, the Committee recalls that Article 1(a) of the Convention provides a broad definition of remuneration that includes “any additional emoluments whatsoever payable directly or indirectly, whether in cash or in kind, by the employer to the worker and arising out of the worker’s employment” (2012 General Survey on fundamental Conventions, para. 686). The Committee notes that no formal measures have yet been taken regarding the promotion of objective job evaluation, although the Departments of Gender and Labour and Social Security have agreed to collaborate on this matter. The Committee asks the Government to clarify whether the Employment and Labour Relations Bill, 2025 encompasses for the purposes of the application of the Convention all the elements of the definition of “remuneration”, in accordance with Article 1(a) of the Convention. It also asks the Government to ensure that measures are taken to promote objective appraisal methods free from gender bias. Please provide information on progress made in this regard.

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