Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2011, published 101st ILC session (2012)

Minimum Wage-Fixing Machinery Convention, 1928 (No. 26) - Colombia (Ratification: 1933)

Article 3(2) of the Convention. Minimum wage-fixing machinery. Consultations with the social partners. Further to its previous comment, the Committee notes Decree No. 033-2011 which fixes the national minimum wage for 2011 at 532,500 Colombian pesos (COP) (approximately US$282) per month. It also notes the statistical information provided by the Government regarding the evolution of the minimum wage and the inflation rate during the period 2001–11. The Committee requests the Government to provide more detailed information on the composition, mandate, and effective operation of the tripartite consultative Standing Committee on the Coordination of Wage Policies and Labour, specifically as regards the determination and periodic revision of the national minimum wage. In this connection, the Committee notes the comments of the Single Confederation of Workers of Colombia (CUT) and the Confederation of Workers of Colombia (CTC), dated 29 August 2011. The CUT and CTC allege that in practice the Government does not make use of any of the mechanisms for social dialogue provided for in the Constitution and national laws. They denounce the non-existence of genuine tripartite consultations in matters related to the determination of the minimum wage and explain that the discussions within the Standing Committee on the Coordination of Wage Policies and Labour are a mere formality as the arguments of the workers’ representatives are not given any consideration – in clear violation of Conventions Nos 26 and 99 – at the time of fixing the minimum wage. The Committee requests the Government to transmit any comments it may wish to make in response to the observations of CUT and CTC.

Article 4(1) and Part V of the report form. System of supervision – Application in practice. The Committee notes the Government’s indications that pursuant to Decree No. 1128 of 15 April 2011, 100 new labour inspection offices were created while the number of labour inspectors has been increased from 289 in 2009 to 524 in 2011. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide general information on the practical application of the Convention, including, for example, the approximate number of workers paid at the minimum wage rate, statistics on the evolution of the minimum wage in relation to fluctuations of the inflation rate, inspection results indicating the number of infringements reported and the penalties imposed, and copies of official publications or research papers concerning wage policy and the operation of the minimum wage system.

Finally, the Committee wishes to recall that based on the recommendations of the Working Party on Policy regarding the Revision of Standards (GB.283/LILS/WP/PRS/1/2, paragraphs 19 and 40), the ILO Governing Body has decided that Convention No. 26 and the Minimum Wage Fixing Machinery (Agriculture) Convention, 1951 (No. 99), are among those instruments which may no longer be fully up to date but remain relevant in certain respects. The Committee therefore suggests that the Government should consider the possibility of ratifying the Minimum Wage Fixing Convention, 1970 (No. 131), which marks certain advances compared to older instruments on minimum wage fixing, for instance, as regards its broader scope of application, the requirement for a comprehensive minimum wage system, and the enumeration of the criteria for the determination of minimum wage levels. The Committee requests the Government to keep the Office informed of any decision taken or envisaged in this regard.