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ARTICLE 4: THE RIGHT TO A FAIR REMUNERATION
ARTICLE 4 PARA. 1 "With a view to ensuring the effective exercise of the right to a fair remuneration, the Contracting Parties undertake: to recognise the right of workers to a remuneration such as will give them and their families a decent standard of living." "...The exercise of this right shall be achieved by freely concluded collective agreements, by statutory wage-fixing machinery, or by other means appropriate to national conditions;" Question A Please state what methods are provided and what measures are taken to provide workers with a fair wage, having regard to national living standards and particularly to the changes in the cost of living index and in national income. 4 Question B Please specify if these include methods for fixing minimum wage standards by law or collective agreements. Question C Please indicate what proportion of wage-earners are without protection in respect of wages, either by law or collective agreement. Question D: Please provide information on: - national net average wage5 (ie. after deduction of social security contributions and taxes 6); - national net minimum wage if applicable or the net lowest wages actually paid (ie. after deduction of social security contributions and taxes)7. Please provide information, where possible, on: - the proportion of workers receiving the minimum wage or the lowest wage actually paid (after deduction of social security contributions and taxes); - the trend in the level of the minimum net wage and/or the lowest wage actually paid compared to national net average wage and any available studies on this subject. ARTICLE 8: THE RIGHT OF EMPLOYED WOMEN TO PROTECTION ARTICLE 8 PARA. 1 "With a view to ensuring the effective exercise of the right of employed women to protection, the Contracting Parties undertake: to provide either by paid leave, by adequate social security benefits or by benefits from public funds for women to take leave before and after childbirth up to a total of at least 12 weeks;" Question A Please indicate the length of maternity leave, showing, where appropriate, its division before and after confinement. Question B Please indicate whether in some cases the total duration of leave before and after confinement is less than twelve weeks. Question C Please indicate whether the benefits during maternity leave are provided in the form of paid leave (if normal pay is reduced, please indicate the amount), under a social security system or from public funds, stating whether the payment of benefits is subject to conditions and if so, which. Question D Please indicate, in circumstances where part or all of benefits payable during maternity leave are not covered by paid leave, the amount of social security benefits or benefits from public funds in monetary terms and, as appropriate, as a percentage of the wages previously paid to the worker. Question E Please indicate any sanctions that may be imposed on an employer failing to observe this provision, and state whether the employed woman has the option of voluntarily giving up all or part of her maternity leave. 4.If your country has accepted Article 16, there is no need to give information here concerning family allowances, etc. 5.In principle the net average wage should be the overall average for all sectors of economic activity. The average wage may be calculated on an annual, monthly, weekly, daily or hourly basis. Wages cover remuneration in cash paid directly and regularly by the employer at the time of each wage payment. This includes normal working hours, overtime and hours not worked but paid, when the pay for these latter are included in the returned earnings. Payments for leave, public holidays and other paid individual absences may be included insofar as the corresponding days or hours are also taken into account to calculate wages per unit of time. 6.The net wage (average and minimum) should be calculated for the standard case of a single worker. Family allowances and social welfare benefits should not be taken into account. Social security contributions should be calculated on the basis of the employee contribution rates laid down by law or collective agreements etc. and withheld by the employer. Taxes are all taxes on earned income. They should be calculated on the assumption that gross earnings represent the only source of income and that there are no special grounds for tax relief other than those associated with the situation of a single worker receiving either the average wage or the minimum wage. Indirect taxes are thus not taken into account. 7.The net minimum wage should be given in units of time comparable to those used for the average wage.
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