Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2012, published 102nd ILC session (2013)

Minimum Wage Fixing Convention, 1970 (No. 131) - Uruguay (Ratification: 1977)

Article 2(1) of the Convention. Compulsory nature of minimum wages – Minimum wages differentiated according to age or disability. The Committee understands that, since the revival of the wage councils in 2005, certain agreements concluded within these councils have included an “opt-out” clause (descuelgue) enabling enterprises, according to various modalities, not to apply the established minimum wages if they consider that they are not in a position to do so. Recalling that the compulsory nature of minimum wages is a fundamental principle established by the Convention, the Committee requests the Government to provide further information on agreements currently in force including such clauses and, if applicable, on cases in which they have been invoked by enterprises and any action taken further to such requests.

The Committee also notes that, in accordance with section 16 of Act No. 10.449 of 12 November 1943 concerning wage councils, wage councils can take account, when fixing wage scales, of special situations connected with the age or physical or mental capacities of certain workers in an industrial or commercial workplace. In this case, they must give a brief justification of the existence of a particular situation. Recalling that the fixing of minimum wages must observe the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the extent to which wage councils have made use of section 16 of Act No. 10.449 in order to fix lower minimum wage rates for young workers or workers with disabilities.

Articles 3 and 4. Methods for fixing and adjusting minimum wages. Further to its previous comment, the Committee notes with interest the adoption of Act No. 18.566 of 11 September 2009 concerning the collective bargaining system, section 7 of which provides for the creation of the Higher Tripartite Council, which is the body for the coordination and governance of industrial relations and one of whose tasks, under section 10 of the Act, is to issue opinions prior to the fixing, application and modification of the national minimum wage and to establish the classification of tripartite bargaining groups by branch of activity or chain of production. It notes that the Higher Tripartite Council comprises nine members appointed by the Government, six members nominated by the representative organizations of employers and six members nominated by the representative organizations of workers. The Committee further notes Decree No. 509/011 of 30 December 2011 fixing the national minimum wage, adopted after consultation of the Higher Tripartite Council, the preamble to which refers explicitly to the Convention and increases the national minimum wage to 7,200 Uruguayan pesos (approximately US$365) per month from 1 January 2012, namely an increase of 20 per cent.

The Committee further notes that section 5 of Act No. 10.449, as amended by section 12 of Act No. 18.566, provides for the compulsory convocation of the wage councils when the representative organizations of the parties so request. It notes that several rounds of negotiations have taken place since 2005 within the wage councils, with each round covering a period of two to three years. The Committee notes with interest that a bargaining group was created in 2008 for domestic workers, and so the wage councils now cover all employees in the country. It notes that, on 16 July 2012, the Group No. 21 (Domestic Workers) Wage Council fixed, for the period 1 July to 31 December 2012, the minimum wage for these workers at 8,534 pesos (approximately US$430) for 44 hours of work per week and 25 working days per month, equivalent to 44.90 pesos (US$2.28) per hour. The Committee also notes with interest that on 14 June 2012 Uruguay was the first ILO member State to ratify the Domestic Workers Convention, 2011 (No. 189).

Furthermore, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that, although bargaining within the wage councils occurs in full freedom, the Executive Authority establishes directives with a view to the conclusion of agreements, so as to guide the negotiations according to the needs of the workers and of the situation of the sector of activity in question. The Government explains that the current directives comprise a formula for calculating adjustments to the minimum wages, which is based on three components: (a) the forecast inflation rate for the period concerned (from six months to one year); (b) a corrective mechanism corresponding to the difference between the forecast inflation rate for the preceding period and the actual inflation rate; and (c) a percentage that takes account of trends in the economic sector concerned, increases in productivity, or any other indices that the parties consider representative for this sector. The Committee understands that the directives established for the 2005 negotiations also included a percentage increase in wages aimed at recovering the purchasing power that had been lost owing to the economic crisis. The Committee requests the Government to continue to supply information on the components of the calculation formula used in the directives sent to the wage councils in order to guide their negotiations, particularly in a context of economic crisis.

Parts IV and V of the report form. Application in practice – Court decisions. The Committee notes the Government’s indications that the labour inspection system has been strengthened, with penalties for failure to comply with the applicable legislation ranging from observation to closure of the enterprise, without prejudice to the possibility for workers who have been paid less than the applicable minimum wage to recover the outstanding amounts through legal channels. It also notes that, according to the Government’s report, the Convention is frequently cited in court decisions as the basis for meeting the demands formulated by workers in the event of failure to comply with the rules on minimum wages. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide general information on the manner in which the Convention is applied in practice, including the result of the activities of the labour inspection services regarding enforcement of the applicable minimum wage rates and also examples of court decisions which refer explicitly to the Convention. Finally, the Government is requested to send a copy of the framework agreement for the public sector concluded in 2010, which was not attached to the Government’s report as indicated.