Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2007, published 97th ILC session (2008)

Minimum Wage-Fixing Machinery Convention, 1928 (No. 26) - Argentina (Ratification: 1950)

The Committee recalls that in its previous comment it noted with interest the information that the National Council for Employment, Productivity and the Minimum Adjustable Wage, a tripartite consultative body, which had not been consulted when minimum wage levels were modified in 2003 for reasons relating to the situation of emergency in the country, was once again operating normally. It further notes the observations received on 12 September 2007 from the Congress of Argentine Workers (CTA) on the application of the Convention which were transmitted to the Government on 21 September 2007.

The Committee notes that according to the CTA, although the minimum wage (SMVM) has increased by 300 per cent since 2003 (i.e. 3.2 times more than the average income of workers), this government policy has benefited only workers in the formal economy, who account for no more than 57.2 per cent of employees. The Committee also notes the CTA’s statement that the pace of collective negotiations has increased significantly, reaching an all time record in 2006. However, according to the CTA, initially, the negotiations did no more than confirm the amount of the minimum wage fixed by the Government and thereafter merely applied the wage indexation rule imposed by the authorities. The Committee also notes the CTA’s observations on the working of the National Council for Employment, Productivity and the Minimum Adjustable Wage. It notes that, according to the CTA, the Council, which meets only upon a government decision and not at the initiative of the social partners, has dwindled in importance as a forum for social dialogue to define the priorities and measures to be taken regarding wage policy. The Committee also notes the CTA’s statement that because of the way it now operates, the Council is unable to determine the basic basket to serve as a reference for setting the amount of the minimum wage. Lastly, the Committee notes the CTA’s conclusion that because of shortcomings in the Council’s procedures, there are no objective rules to determine the amount of the minimum wage, the wage policy agreed between the social partners is not implemented, and the amount of the minimum wage is fixed at the discretion of the Government. The Committee requests the Government to send comments in reply to the CTA’s observations.

The Government is also asked to reply to the questions the Committee raised in its previous comment and which concerned the following points: statistical data on the number of workers remunerated at the minimum wage rate; copies of collective agreements fixing the minimum wage level by sector or branch of the economy; information on the fixing of the minimum wage for workers excluded from the scope of Act No. 20.744 on work contracts, such as domestic workers and farmers; copies of studies or other official documents – such as the activity reports of the National Council on Employment, Productivity and the Minimum Adjustable Wage – on the functioning of the minimum wage system; extracts of inspection services reports indicating the contraventions reported and the penalties imposed; and statistics on recent trends in minimum wage rates in relation to fluctuations in economic indicators, such as the inflation rate, during the same period.

[The Government is asked to reply in detail to the present comments in 2008.]