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

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

The Committee notes the detailed information contained in the Government’s report and wishes to draw attention to the following points.

Article 3, paragraph 2(2), of the Convention. Consultation and participation of employers and workers. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government concerning the establishment of the Economic and Social Council by virtue of Act No. 103/2007 Coll. on tripartite consultations at the national level. The Council is a consultative and advisory body in the field of economic and social development. It is tasked to study and formulate recommendations on several issues, including labour legislation with regard to working and wage conditions and employment promotion. The Council is composed of 21 members, comprising seven representatives appointed by employers’ associations and seven representatives appointed by trade unions. In July 2007, the Council reached agreement on the amount of the minimum wage (8,100 SKK, or approximately US$327 per month and 46.60 SKK, or approximately US$2, per hour) that will take effect on 1 October 2007. The Committee would appreciate receiving additional information on the functioning and working method of the Economic and Social Council, in particular as regards minimum wage fixing and the socio-economic criteria used for that purpose.

Article 3, paragraph 2(3). Lower minimum wages on the basis of age or disability. The Committee notes the Government’s statement that a new Minimum Wage Act is currently under deliberation to replace Act No. 90/1996 Coll. currently in force. The Government indicates that the draft legislation, which is expected to enter into force on 1 January 2008, no longer provides for lower pay rates (50 per cent and 75 per cent of the minimum wage) for young workers and workers with disabilities in an effort to remove all grounds of discrimination following the adoption of Act No. 365/2004 Coll. on equal treatment and protection against discrimination. Under the new system, the social partners and Government representatives will no longer discuss on the coefficient to be used for determining the amount of the minimum wage but will directly negotiate the sum of the monthly minimum wage for the following calendar year. The objective of the new procedure is to strengthen the role of the social dialogue in the determination of the minimum wage. The Committee requests the Government to keep it informed of any developments in this regard and to transmit a copy of the new Minimum Wage Act as soon as it is adopted.

Article 4, paragraph 1. Dissemination of information on minimum wage rates. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the minimum wage rates are established in the form of a government regulation which is published in the Collection of Laws and also diffused through the public mass media, professional publications and the Internet site of the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family. It also notes that under section 5(4) of Act No. 2/1991 Coll. on collective bargaining, any higher pay rates fixed through collective agreements must be communicated to the workers concerned, for instance through the posting of notices at the workplace or otherwise.

Article 5 in conjunction with Part V of the report form. The Committee notes the statistical information provided by the Government on the evolution of the monthly gross minimum wage and the average wage in the period 2002–07, and on the higher minimum pay rates established in seven branch/sector collective agreements concluded in 2006. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would continue supplying up to date information on the practical application of the Convention, including labour inspection results, statistics on the approximate number of workers remunerated at the minimum wage rate, copies of any relevant documents or studies such as activity reports of the Economic and Social Council, etc.

Finally, the Committee wishes to draw the Government’s attention to the conclusions of the ILO Governing Body on the continued relevance of the Convention 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). In fact, the Governing Body has decided that Conventions No. 26 and No. 99 are 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.