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

Article 1, paragraph 1, of the Convention. Machinery for fixing and readjusting minimum wages. The Committee notes that the minimum wage has not been readjusted for a number of years and stands at 44,000 CFA francs (around US$85) per month. It also notes, however, that, according to various sources of information, this wage will soon be increased to 80,000 CFA francs (around US$155) per month. The Committee notes that, under section 255, paragraph 2, of the Labour Code, the National Commission on Wage Studies (CNES), a tripartite consultative body responsible for issuing a reasoned opinion to the Government Wage Commission (CGS), shall meet at least once every three years, when convened by its chairperson or at the request of the majority of its members. The Committee asks the Government to specify whether the announced increase in the minimum guaranteed interoccupational wage (SMIG) has been the subject of tripartite consultation. It also asks the Government to indicate the measures taken or envisaged to guarantee the regular consultation of the CNES in accordance with the provisions of the Labour Code. Furthermore, the Committee recalls the importance of regularly readjusting minimum wage rates so as to guarantee workers a decent standard of living. If rates are not adjusted, the minimum wage-fixing system will be reduced to a mere formality and will no longer be at all effective as a means of combating poverty or as a means of social protection. The Committee asks the Government to provide details regarding the effectiveness of the mechanism used to fix and readjust minimum wages, and to communicate a copy of the decree establishing the new national minimum wage, as soon as it has been adopted.

Article 3, paragraph 2(2). Participation of the social partners on equal terms. The Committee notes that section 2 of Decree No. 000642/PR/MTEFP of 23 June 1997, establishing the composition of the CNES, ensures the representation of employers’ and workers’ organizations, in equal numbers and on equal terms, in the fixing of the national minimum wage. With regard to the fixing of wages by branch of activity, the Committee notes that section 144 of the Labour Code states that, in the absence of collective agreements, or where such agreements are silent on the matter, minimum wages by occupational category shall be fixed by a decree issued by the Minister for Labour. The Committee would like to receive further information on the participation of the social partners in the fixing of minimum wage rates by branch of activity, where these rates are not fixed by a collective agreement but by decree issued by the Minister for Labour.

Article 5 and Part V of the report form. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide, in its next report, general information on the application of the Convention, for instance: statistics on the number of workers remunerated at the minimum wage rate, including in the agricultural sector, given its significant workforce; copies of studies or other official documents of the CNES or the CGS on the functioning of the minimum wage system; statistics on recent fluctuations in economic indicators, such as the rate of inflation and its effect on the standard of living of workers; and extracts from inspection service reports, detailing the violations reported and the penalties imposed.