How to enforce minimum wages?
If you have only one minute
In some countries more than half of all wage earners who are entitled to the minimum wage are paid wages below the legal floor.
High rates of non-compliance have negative consequences not only for workers and their families, whose rights are violated, but also for compliant employers, as it gives non-compliant enterprises an illegitimate cost advantage.
Compliance can be increased through a number of implementation measures, including:
This is why a comprehensive approach is necessary.
High rates of non-compliance have negative consequences not only for workers and their families, whose rights are violated, but also for compliant employers, as it gives non-compliant enterprises an illegitimate cost advantage.
Compliance can be increased through a number of implementation measures, including:
- information and awareness raising campaigns
- capacity building activities for employers’ and workers’ representatives
- empowering workers to claim their rights through individual complaints as well as collective action
- measures to formalize the informal economy
- targeted labour inspections
- sanctions that function as a deterrent to non-compliance
- monitoring and responsible purchasing practices within global supply chains
- public employment programmes that pay minimum wages
This is why a comprehensive approach is necessary.