Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2001, published 90th ILC session (2002)

Minimum Wage Fixing Machinery (Agriculture) Convention, 1951 (No. 99) - Seychelles (Ratification: 1978)

The Committee notes the information provided in the Government’s reports.

Article 1, paragraph 1, of the Convention. The Committee notes the Government’s statement that there exists no machinery for setting minimum wage rates for workers employed in agricultural undertakings and related occupations as set out in section 40(1)(a) of the Employment Act, 1995 (Act No. 2 of 1995). It also notes that an Employment Task Force has been established in the Ministry of Social Affairs and Manpower Development for the purpose of creating such a machinery following which the Government will undertake discussions with the social partners with a view to reaching an agreement on the operation and application of the machinery.

In this connection, the Committee wishes to point out - as it has also observed in a similar comment regarding the application of Convention No. 26 - that the Employment Act, 1995, as it reads at present does provide for an institutionalized procedure whereby minimum rates of wages can be fixed either generally or for specific groups of workers. The Committee hopes that the Government will soon take all practical steps to give effect to the minimum wage fixing system laid down in its labour legislation and would appreciate receiving copies of any wage regulations which may be issued pursuant to section 40(2)(a) of the Employment Act, 1995.

Article 2, paragraph 2. The Committee notes that the Government refers to section 32 of the Employment Act, 1995, and indicates that there exist no national laws or regulations, collective agreements or arbitration awards which authorize the partial payment of wages in the form of allowances in kind. The Committee notes, however, that under section 40(2)(d) of the Employment Act, the Minister may adopt regulations allowing for benefits or advantages given by the employer in lieu of payment in cash and defining the maximum value to be attributed to them, while under section 40(3)(d) similar regulations may prescribe the maximum sum which an employer may deduct from the worker’s wages in respect of food or housing provided by him. The Committee therefore requests the Government to specify whether any such regulations have so far been adopted and, if so, to indicate the measures taken to ensure that authorized allowances in kind are appropriate for the personal use and benefit of the worker and his/her family and that the value attributed to them is fair and reasonable, as set forth in this Article of the Convention.

Article 5. The Committee notes the information that, in the absence of a specific machinery for fixing minimum rates of wages for agricultural workers, each agricultural undertaking has its own scheme of service which regulates the job specification and the remuneration that corresponds to each particular job. It further notes that the agricultural sector does not represent a considerable proportion of the workforce and that the majority of employed labour are government employees falling under the public service minimum wage, while in the private sector the majority of agricultural workers are self-employed. The Committee requests the Government to continue supplying information on all future developments with regard to minimum wage rates applicable to workers employed in agricultural undertakings and related occupations, the approximate number of workers concerned, the average minimum wage rates currently in force, and the enforcement measures by which the application of those rates is guaranteed.