Demande directe (CEACR) - adoptée 2011, publiée 101ème session CIT (2012)

Convention (n° 26) sur les méthodes de fixation des salaires minima, 1928 - Bélarus (Ratification: 1993)

Article 3 of the Convention. Nature and form of minimum wage fixing machinery. The Committee notes the Government’s explanations concerning the indexation of the national minimum wage to the inflation rate and the establishment of the monthly and hourly minimum wage rates each year on the basis of ratios between the minimum wage and specific social reference indicators such as the minimum subsistence budget or the minimum consumer budget. According to data provided by the Government, in January 2011, the minimum monthly wage stood at 460,000 Belarusian rubles (BYR) (approximately US$53) which represented 100 per cent of the minimum consumer budget and 162.5 per cent of the minimum subsistence budget. The Government indicates that these ratios are determined each year by the Council of Ministers in consultation with employers’ and workers’ organizations. The Committee requests the Government to provide additional information on how these consultations are conducted in practice, in particular as regards the calculation of the minimum consumer and subsistence levels. The Committee also requests the Government to further explain the role and functions of the National Council on Labour and Social Issues (NCLSI) in the process of the annual revision of the national minimum wage.

Article 5 of the Convention and Part V of the report form. Practical application. The Committee notes that as of July 2011 the minimum monthly wage was BYR611,730 (approximately US$71). It also notes the statistical information provided by the Government concerning the number of inspection visits, infringements recorded and fines imposed for failure to comply with minimum wage legislation. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide up-to-date information on the practical application of the Convention.

Finally, the Committee wishes to recall that 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), the ILO Governing Body has decided that Convention No. 26 is 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.