Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2003, published 92nd ILC session (2004)

Minimum Wage Fixing Convention, 1970 (No. 131) - Cameroon (Ratification: 1973)

The Committee notes the report provided by the Government.

Article 2, paragraph 2, of the Convention. The Committee notes the Government’s statement in its report that since 1999 the revision of collective agreements has started to occur in reality and that the social partners use this means to fix minimum wages at rates that are significantly higher than those of the guaranteed minimum interoccupational wage (SMIG). It requests the Government to provide copies of all the minimum wage scales fixed by collective agreement that are currently in force and the various occupational categories to which these wage scales are applicable. It also requests the Government to indicate whether it has had occasion to avail itself of the provisions of section 55 of the Labour Code authorizing it to set minimum wages for specific categories by decree or to extend the application of minimum wages applicable in an allied trade in the event of the non-existence or shortcomings of employers’ and workers’ organizations resulting in a persistent inability to conclude a collective agreement.

Article 3 (in conjunction with Article 4, paragraph 1). The Committee notes the indication made by the Government in reply to its previous direct request that the subsistence needs of workers’ families were taken into consideration when the SMIG was last determined in 1995, although its level was set taking into consideration the constraints imposed by structural adjustment. The Government states in this respect that it took into consideration, among other elements, price levels at the time. While requesting the Government to provide copies of the legal texts setting forth the elements to be taken into consideration for the purpose of determining the rate of SMIG, the Committee recalls that the national machinery established in accordance with the Convention is not only intended to allow for the fixing of the minimum wage rate, but also its adjustment from time to time in accordance with clear criteria established in advance for this purpose. The Committee considers that in practice minimum wage fixing machinery would have no purpose if it did not allow for the adjustment of minimum wages so as to maintain them at an adequate level in relation to the economic and social conditions of the country. It is therefore also necessary, on the one hand, to provide in national laws or regulations for the adjustment of minimum wage rates as a function of the various elements established therein and, on the other, to implement them effectively in the manner deemed appropriate by the competent authorities. In this respect, the Committee does not have information on the existence of national machinery applicable to the adjustment of minimum wages. It also notes that the SMIG has not been adjusted since 1995. Nevertheless, it believes that since that date the country has experienced inflation of over 20 per cent. While recalling that, according to the Government’s report, the subsistence needs of workers and their families were estimated as a function of the price levels in 1995, the Committee trusts that the Government will take the necessary measures to ensure that the rate of the SMIG better reflects current economic and social conditions, and particularly fluctuations in the cost of living. The Committee agrees with the Government concerning the need to take into account the constraints of structural adjustment, but recalls the obligations incumbent upon it to ensure the participation of the social partners in the national machinery for fixing and adjusting minimum wages, which are playing an increasingly important role as a safety net in the social protection of workers, as recalled by the Committee in paragraph 341 of its General Survey of 1992 on minimum wages, which means that they have to maintain their purchasing power in relation to a basic basket of consumer products.

Article 4, paragraph 3. The Committee notes that, by virtue of section 119(2) of the Labour Code, the arrangements for the organization and operation of the National Labour Advisory Commission and the committees established under its aegis shall be determined by regulation. It requests the Government to indicate whether such legal texts have been adopted and, if so, to provide copies thereof with its next report. The Committee would also be grateful if the Government would provide on the same occasion any recent opinions issued or studies undertaken by the National Labour Advisory Commission relating to minimum wages.

Article 5 and Part V of the report form. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would keep it informed of the manner in which the Convention is applied in practice, for example by providing general information in this respect for all the sectors of the economy, including agriculture, recent statistics on the number and various categories of workers covered by the SMIG regulations, and the results of inspections carried out, with an indication of the number and nature of the infringements reported and the sanctions imposed.