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

Minimum Wage Fixing Convention, 1970 (No. 131) - Brazil (Ratification: 1983)

Articles 3 and 4 of the Convention. Criteria for determining minimum wage levels. Periodic adjustment of the minimum wage. Further to its previous comment, the Committee notes the Government’s indications regarding the gap between the level of the national minimum wage (currently set at 545 reals (BRL) per month, or approximately US$295) and the minimum amount necessary to cover the basic living needs of workers and their families with respect to housing, food, education, health, leisure, clothing, hygiene, transportation and social security, as required under article 7 of the Federal Constitution. This latter amount, as of May 2011, was estimated at BRL2,300, which represents 420 per cent of the 2011 monthly minimum wage. The Committee notes that the same point is raised in the comments of the Single Confederation of Workers (CUT) which were received on 31 August 2011 and transmitted to the Government on 6 October 2011. According to the CUT, the current minimum wage rate should be more than four times higher to fully meet the constitutional requirements. The CUT also alleges that 80 per cent of workers are paid below the minimum subsistence amount of BRL2,300. The Committee requests the Government to transmit any comments it may wish to make in response to the observations of CUT.

Moreover, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that a new mechanism has been adopted for the review and adjustment of the minimum wage until 2023 taking into account the evolution of the national consumer price index. The Committee requests the Government to provide full particulars, including copies of any relevant legal texts, on the new mechanism and the consultations with employers’ and workers’ organizations prior to its adoption and implementation. In addition, the Committee notes that the Government’s report does not provide new information following up on the work of the Quadripartite Commission on minimum wage review to which reference was made in its previous report. The Committee takes the opportunity to recall that one of the essential obligations of the Convention is that the minimum wage fixing machinery must be set up and operated in consultation with organizations of employers and workers who must participate on equal footing. The Committee accordingly requests the Government to specify how the equitable representation of employers’ and workers’ organizations in the minimum wage fixing process is ensured both in law and in practice.

Article 5 and Part V of the report form. Practical application. The Committee requests the Government to provide up to date information on the practical application of the Convention including, for instance, inspection results showing the number of visits carried out, the violations of the minimum wage legislation reported and the penalties imposed, statistics on the evolution of the minimum wage as compared to economic indicators such as the inflation rate, and copies of official reports or studies addressing issues of minimum wage policy.