Miss Wardasked the Minister of Labour whether he will circulate in the OFFICIAL REPORT the full statement of his speech at the recent International Labour Office Conference on the question of equal remuneration of men and women.
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§ Mr. IsaacsThe speech which I made to the recent session of the International Labour Conference covered a wide variety of topics. I am circulating in the OFFICIAL REPORT an extract dealing with the subject to which the hon. Lady refers.
Following is the extract
I would like to comment on a number of the other important technical subjects on your Agenda. In the time at my disposal, I must confine myself to one only, the question of equal remuneration for men and women workers for work of equal value. This is a highly complex and controversial subject; the Conference will, I am sure, devote its efforts to reaching conclusions that are both constructive and, at the same time, realistic and workable.
Equal remuneration cannot, in my view, be considered as an abstract conception. It must be viewed first of all against the widest possible background of social policy as well as economic and financial conditions. The real living standards of men and women workers alike depend upon the maintenance of the financial stability of their own and other countries. This is a matter of special concern to countries such as my own which have already established and aim to maintain a very high level of social services.
I would also remind the Conference that the relationship between the remuneration of men and women is but one constituent element of the wage and salary structure. Governments cannot, I suggest, be expected to take positive measures to secure the observance of one particular principle of remuneration which they would not be prepared to adopt in regard to remuneration generally.
Finally, there is the crucial question of definition. I trust that the Conference will be fully alive to the dangers of any formula which would have the effect of introducing an undue rigidity into national wage and salary structures, and which would unduly limit the flexibility of approach which is essential to the operation of collective bargaining.