Observación (CEACR) - Adopción: 1998, Publicación: 87ª reunión CIT (1999)

Convenio sobre la fijación de salarios mínimos, 1970 (núm. 131) - España (Ratificación : 1971)

1. The Committee notes the observations made by the General Union of Workers (UGT) concerning the application of the Convention in the country. Although these observations were communicated to the Government in March 1998, up to now no response or comment has been received from the Government.

2. The UGT points out in its observations, first, that the Interprofessional Minimum Wage (SMI) in Spain is fixed each year by the Government after a non-binding consultation with the social partners, which generally ends up as an information session on the Government's intention, without taking account of the trade unions' proposals. According to the UGT, the SMI directly affects the fixing of wages for a large number of workers, constitutes a point of reference for determining many basic benefits in the system of social protection (subsidies and benefits for unemployment, minimum pensions, social wages, wages guaranteed in the case of the employer's insolvency, etc.) and provides conditions of access to other benefits and rights (scholarships, officially protected housing, etc.).

3. The UGT observes that the fixing of the SMI has been constantly criticized on two main grounds, viz. (i) because its amount and periodical revisions do not comply with the national legislation or the accepted international criteria, and (ii) because it establishes a clear discrimination against workers under 18 years of age, for whom lower wages are fixed. Regarding the latter point, the UGT notes that the SMI fixed for 1998 will be applied to all workers, as the SMI for those under 18 years of age has disappeared.

4. The UGT states that the SMI has lost 2.5 points of purchasing power in the last decade, and continues to worsen further with the latest decision to fix the amount of SMI at 68,040 pesetas for 1998. The UGT recalls that section 27.1 of the Workers' Statute makes it obligatory to fix the SMI taking account of the consumer price index, the average national productivity attained, the increase of the labour participation in the national income and the general economic conjuncture. According to the UGT, the Executive applied only the first of these criteria (consumer price index) raising the previous amount by 2.1 per cent. The UGT considers that such a decision was also an infringement of Convention No. 131.

5. The Committee recalls again that it requested, in its observation of 1997, the Government to provide information on the measures taken to ensure effective consultation with employers' and workers' organizations concerned before the fixing of the SMI, in accordance with the provision of Article 4 of the Convention.

6. The Committee hopes that the Government will communicate detailed information in its next report regarding the observations made by the UGT and on the outstanding questions relating to the consultation with the organizations concerned.

[The Government is asked to report in detail in 1999.]