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

Minimum Wage Fixing Convention, 1970 (No. 131) - Costa Rica (Ratification: 1979)

The Committee notes the Government’s detailed report and the attached documents.

Article 2, paragraph 1, of the Convention. The Committee notes that the Apprenticeship Act of 16 November 1971 provides in section 5 that young persons between 15 and 20 years of age may receive a wage that is significantly lower than the minimum wage for the first two years of work, even when they are not covered by an apprenticeship contract and, as a consequence, do not receive any training. In this connection, the Committee refers to paragraph 176 of its General Survey of 1992 on minimum wages and emphasizes that the reasons that prompted the adoption of lower minimum wage rates for groups of workers on account of their age should be regularly re-examined in the light of the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value, and that the quantity and quality of the work performed should be the criterion applied in determining the amount of the wage. The Committee requests the Government to provide updated information on the number of workers covered by the above provision, the reasons for which a lower minimum wage rate has been established on account of their age, and any measure adopted or envisaged to comply with the principle of "equal wages for work of equal value".

Article 5 and Part V of the report form. The Committee notes Decree No. 30547-MTSS, of 26 June 2002, determining minimum wage rates by economic sector and occupational category, applicable as from 1 July 2002. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing information of a general nature on the application of the Convention in practice, such as statistics on the number of workers covered by the various categories of minimum wages, the results of the inspections carried out (violations reported, sanctions imposed, etc.), and any other information concerning the application of the minimum wage provisions.