Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2010, published 100th ILC session (2011)

Articles 1 and 3 of the Convention. Minimum wage fixing machinery. The Committee recalls the observations made by the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU), according to which wage negotiations within the National Employment Council for the Agricultural Industry (NEC) are problematic because of the non-cooperative attitude of the employers. The ZCTU denounced the exceptionally low wages paid in the agricultural sector which had forced farm workers to leave employment massively and join the informal sector, while migration to neighbouring countries continued unabated. It also made reference to the wage dispute settlement procedures which were slow and tedious and regretted that, despite having the lowest pay rates, some farm workers went for months without a salary.

In its reply, the Government indicates that the NEC continues to engage employers’ and workers’ organizations in the review of minimum wages in the agricultural sector and that the question of whether minimum wages are in keeping with the rate of inflation, or indeed the frequency of reviews, remains to be answered by the respective parties. The Committee therefore requests the Government to provide additional information on any developments concerning minimum wage policy in the current economic context and to indicate any progress made with regard to the readjustment of the minimum wage for the agricultural sector.