Demande directe (CEACR) - adoptée 2007, publiée 97ème session CIT (2008)

Convention (n° 131) sur la fixation des salaires minima, 1970 - Espagne (Ratification: 1971)

The Committee notes with interest the Government’s report and the information it contains, especially with regard to the increases in the inter-occupational minimum wage (SMI) which have occurred in recent years. It notes that the SMI, which was 451 euros (€) in 2003, increased by 2 per cent during the first half of 2004 and that a second (6.6 per cent) increase was then made to offset the loss of purchasing power which occurred between 1996 and 2003. The Committee notes that the increase in the SMI was 4.5 per cent in 2005, 5.4 per cent in 2006 and 5.5 per cent in 2007, these increases being greater than those of the consumer price index. Accordingly, the SMI was €570 per month in 2007, or 621 PPS (purchasing power standard). Finally, the Committee notes that the Government intends to increase the minimum wage to €600 in 2008 and to €800 during the next legislative session.

The Committee notes with interest the adoption of Royal Legislative Decree No. 3/2004 of 24 June 2004, the preamble to which explicitly mentions the Government’s objective of enhancing the status of the SMI by bringing it closer to the threshold considered acceptable by the European Committee on Social Rights, namely 60 per cent of the average national wage. It notes that, according to data published by Eurostat, the SMI represented 35.56 per cent of average monthly earnings in industry and services in 2003; 36.5 per cent in 2004; 40.44 per cent in 2005; and 41.39 per cent in 2006. The Committee also notes that, under the terms of section 1 of the above mentioned Royal Legislative Decree, the SMI no longer serves as a basis for calculating certain social benefits. In this respect, it notes that this dual role previously played by the minimum wage constituted the main obstacle to increasing it, because of its direct impact on public finances.

Moreover, the Committee notes that, according to data published by Eurostat, in 2005 Spain was the European Union Member State with the lowest percentage (0.8 per cent) of full-time workers being paid the minimum wage. The Committee also notes the indications in the Government’s report to the effect that between 80 and 85 per cent of workers are covered by a collective agreement and are paid a wage greater than the SMI.

Finally, the Committee understands that the Government, in the context of negotiations conducted in 2004 and 2005, intended to maintain purchasing power for recipients of the SMI by prescribing that increases in the minimum wage should not be less than the rate of inflation. The Committee requests the Government to indicate whether measures have been taken to this end and, if so, to send copies of the texts which are applicable in this regard.

The Committee also requests the Government to continue providing information on changes in the legal minimum wage and on the application of the Convention in practice. In particular, the Government is requested to supply information on trends in the relationship between the minimum wage and the average national wage and on the percentage of workers being paid the minimum wage in the main branches of economic activity (particularly in agriculture, the hotel industry and construction). The Committee also invites the Government to supply information on the results of labour inspection visits with regard to observance of the legal provisions concerning the inter-occupational minimum wage.