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

The Committee notes the observations made by the Congress of Argentine Workers (CTA) on the application of the Convention, which were received on 12 September 2007 and transmitted to the Government on 21 September 2007. In particular, it notes the CTA’s comments relating to section 103bis of the Act on labour contracts, under the terms of which certain benefits in kind, classified as “social benefits”, are not considered as forming part of the wage. It also notes the CTA’s reference to the adoption of decrees and the conclusion of collective agreements providing for wage increases which are not considered as remuneration. The Committee further notes the CTA’s reference to a recent ruling by the labour chamber of the National Court of Appeal, which is reported to have found to be unconstitutional, as they are contrary to ILO Convention No. 95, the first paragraph and subsection (e) of section 103bis referred to above. The Committee further understands that the case law on this issue is not uniform. The Committee requests the Government to provide its comments in reply to the observations made by the CTA and to supply copies of any relevant court rulings handed down on this subject.

In this connection, the Committee refers to paragraph 64 of the General Survey of 2003 on the protection of wages, in which it emphasized that:

… Article 1 of the Convention is not intended to establish a binding “model” definition of the term “wages”, but to ensure that the real earnings of workers, however termed or reckoned, are fully protected under national laws in respect of the matters dealt with in Articles 3 to 15 of the Convention. As recent experience has shown, especially with regard to the “desalarization” policies practised in certain countries, the obligations deriving from the Convention with respect to the protection of workers’ wages cannot be bypassed by mere terminological subterfuges, but require the extended and bona fide coverage by national legislation of labour remuneration whatever form it takes.

The Committee also notes that a Bill to partially repeal section 103bis of the Act on labour contracts is currently being discussed by the Parliament. It requests the Government to provide full relevant information concerning the adoption of this text.

The Committee also notes the observations made by the Federation of Professional Employees of the Government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires in relation to the application of the Convention, which were received on 11 June 2007 and forwarded to the Government on 20 August 2007. It notes that this organization reports a collective labour dispute involving 4,600 workers in the health sector and the Ministry of Health of the Government of the City of Buenos Aires, which is reported to be refusing the claims made for a wage increase. The Committee further notes that the above organization is also claiming the conversion into wages of a number of bonuses which are not recognized as remuneration. The Committee notes that the issues raised in these observations are related to those referred to in the CTA’s observations concerning social benefits. The Committee requests the Government to provide its comments in reply to the observations made by the Federation of Professional Employees of the Government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires.

Furthermore, the Committee notes that a Bill to amend sections 120 and 147 of the Act on labour contracts in relation to the proportion of the wage which cannot be attached is under examination by the Parliament. It requests the Government to keep it informed of the progress made regarding the adoption of this text.

The Committee also requests the Government to reply to the following questions which were raised in its previous comment.

First, concerning the payment of wages in the form of locally issued vouchers, the Committee notes the indications in the Government’s last report that the issuing of vouchers, serving as wages in certain provinces in the country, has been interrupted. Moreover, a programme of currency unification has been established by Decrees Nos 743/2003 of 28 March 2003 and 266/2003 of 9 April 2003 so as to guarantee the circulation of a single national currency that is legal tender and to redeem the vouchers issued between 2001 and 2002 at the provincial level. The Committee requests the Government to keep it informed of any developments in this field and to indicate the proportion of vouchers that are still in circulation and the period envisaged for their redemption.

Secondly, as regards the deferred payment of wages, the Committee notes the information contained in the Government’s report in 2006 on the adjustment of the minimum wage and the rise in average wages over the past three years, which hint at a gradual return to normal in the payment of wages. The Committee requests the Government to specify whether all wage arrears have now been settled or whether certain sectors, branches or provinces continue to experience difficulties in paying wages regularly and, if so, to provide specific information on the number of workers concerned and the average delay in the payment of wage arrears.

Finally, the Committee notes the Government’s indications concerning the organization of the labour inspection services and the number of inspections carried out in 2005. The Committee requests the Government to continue providing general information on the application of the Convention including, for instance, extracts of official reports of the labour inspection services showing the number and nature of the infringements reported, copies of official studies relating to wage protection, information on the difficulties encountered in implementing the Convention, or any other information enabling the Committee to assess how the Convention is applied in practice.

[The Government is asked to reply in detail to the present comments in 2008.]