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

Minimum Wage-Fixing Machinery Convention, 1928 (No. 26) - Czechia (Ratification: 1993)

Article 1(1) of the Convention. Lower minimum wage rates for disabled workers. In its previous comment, the Committee requested the Government to provide explanations concerning the reasons that might justify lower minimum wage rates for disabled and young employees and to explain how it is ensured in practice the principle of “equal remuneration for work of equal value”. In its reply, the Government states that the lower minimum wage rates reflect the potentially increased costs of the employer when employing certain groups of persons who need a longer period of introductory training, or more thorough supervision or some adjustment of the workplace. The Committee understands that the question of differentiated minimum wages on the basis of age or disability is the subject of continued tripartite consultations. The Committee notes, in this connection, the comments made by the Czech–Moravian Confederation of Trade Unions (CMKOS) according to which the Council for Economic and Social Agreement – the country’s supreme tripartite consultative body – should decide whether the lower rates for disabled workers would be abolished or kept with a view to facilitating the participation of those workers in the labour market. The Committee requests the Government to keep the Office informed of any further developments in these matters.

Article 3(2). Minimum wage fixing machinery. The Committee notes the Government’s indications that the Working group of the Council for Economic and Social Agreement for wages, salaries and associated issues was abolished in autumn 2010 and that the issue of the minimum wage is now discussed within the Working group of the Council for Economic and Social Agreement for labour law relations, collective bargaining and employment. The Government adds that following discussion in August 2011 the tripartite partners in principle agreed on increasing the minimum wage although no agreement was reached on any specific rate. The Committee notes, in this connection, the comments of the CMKOS according to which the minimum wage should be raised by 15 per cent (from 8,000–9,200 Czech crown (CZK)) in order to compensate for the increase of the inflation rate. The CMKOS considers that unless the minimum wage is automatically indexed to the consumer price index, it would risk losing its protective function and purpose. The Committee notes that the Confederation of Industry (SPCR) is opposed to the idea of automatic indexation of the minimum wage and considers that the minimum wage should guarantee certain income without jeopardizing employment and the competitiveness of small and medium enterprises. Noting that the Government is currently considering follow-up action based on the recent discussions of the Council for Economic and Social Agreement, the Committee requests the Government to provide in its next report detailed particulars on the outcome of tripartite consultations concerning the possible reform of the minimum wage fixing mechanism and the readjustment of the minimum wage rate.

Part V of the report form. Practical application. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would supply up to date information on the manner in which the Convention is applied in practice, including for instance the approximate number of workers remunerated at the minimum wage rate, and inspection results showing the number of infringements of the minimum wage legislation and the penalties imposed.

Finally, the Committee recalls once again 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 is 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.