Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2006, published 96th ILC session (2007)

Article 1, paragraph 1, of the Convention. Fixing and adjusting minimum wages. The Committee notes that the guaranteed minimum agricultural wage (SMAG) has not been adjusted since 1994 and remains at the rate of 13,929 CFA francs (around US$27) a month in the coffee, rice, cocoa and cotton sectors and 17,443 CFA francs (around US$34) a month in other agricultural sectors. The Committee also notes the Government’s indication that in practice employed persons whose remuneration is set at the rate of the SMIG benefit from various advantages, such as benefits in kind, which take into account the cost of living and correspond closely to the expectations of employed persons. The Committee requests the Government to provide fuller information on its policy to give preference to benefits in kind and wage supplements as a means of increasing the real income of the poorest workers and to specify, in particular, whether this wage policy has been the subject of consultation with the social partners and the extent to which this practice of wage accessories undermines any prospect of a readjustment of the SMAG in the short or medium term. In this respect, the Committee is obliged to recall that one of the fundamental objectives of the Convention is to guarantee workers a minimum wage sufficient to meet their needs, but also to preserve the purchasing power of the wage, and that this objective can only be achieved through the periodic readjustment of minimum wage rates. The Committee hopes that the Government will take into consideration in the announced revision of its labour legislation the socio-economic trends in the country and the real needs of agricultural workers and their families with a view to bringing the minimum wage into line with these needs. It requests the Government to keep it informed of any development in this field.

Article 3, paragraph 4. Minimum wage rates for young workers. With regard to the wages of young workers, the Committee notes the indication that age is not a determining criterion in the fixing of wages, which are the same for all workers in the same sector, despite the contrary provisions of clause 49 of the Collective Agreement of 1977. In this respect, the Committee refers to its comments under Convention No. 26 and requests the Government to keep it informed of any measures adopted or envisaged to bring its legislation into conformity with prevailing practice.

Article 5 and Part V of the report form. The Committee considers that additional information is necessary with regard to the application of the Convention in the agricultural sector and hopes that the Government will provide statistical data in its next report on the number of workers covered by the SMAG, extracts of the reports of the inspection services indicating the number and type of infringements reported and the penalties imposed, and any other official document relating to the operation of the machinery for the fixing of the SMAG.