Announced on February 2, 2024, as a support measure aimed at reducing the impact of the increase in fuel prices on purchasing power, the revaluation of the guaranteed interprofessional minimum wage (Smig) was initiated on Monday February 19, 2024 Gathered around the Minister of Labor and Social Security (Mintss), the trade union organizations, as is usual in this type of process, formulated proposals which will subsequently be evaluated by the government, which at the same time end will propose a revaluation that it considers sustainable. These organizations offer a minimum wage of 100,000 FCFA. “Everything has increased in the markets. But no support measures are taken. The minister said that he received everything we proposed as support measures, such as the salary increase measure. We asked for a Smig of 100,000 CFA francs“, declared Louis Pierre Mouangue, president of the Confederation of Autonomous Trade Unions of Cameroon.
Reasons
The unions’ proposal is not new. During the last readjustment of the Smig which took place in March 2023, it was already their flagship suggestion. At the time, the latter estimated that a minimum amount of 100,000 FCFA is the only viable alternative that could allow the average worker to live decently.We, the workers, propose that the minimum wage be 100,000 CFA francs. Not because we’re going into the air. We rely on two parameters. The first parameter is what a person, taken alone, must have in one month, to be able to live at the poverty line. We start from statistics provided by the National Institute of Statistics (INS) which say that a poor person in Cameroon needs 931 FCFA to live. The Ins also says that an average family in Cameroon has 4.5 people. If we take 25 and multiply it by 4.5 and 931 FCFA it gives 104,000 FCFA. Based on this, we estimated that a minimum wage of 100,000 CFA francs on average is the best. indicated the aforementioned confederation.
Finally, faced with the disagreement observed between the State and the unionists, the Prime Minister made public a decree which established three distinct Smigs. A minimum wage for state employees covered by the Labor Code which increased from 36,270 FCFA to 41,875 FCFA. Another for employees in the agricultural and similar sectors, who saw their minimum wage increase from 36,270 FCFA to 45,000 FCFA. As for the last amount set at 60,000 FCfa for the category reserved for “other workers” , it was obtained through a hard struggle by the trade unionists. “having noted the blockage of the government, aware of the issues of the day and in the hope of achieving a harmonious outcome, have decided, after bipartite consultation, to postpone the proposal of the inter-union Smig at 100,000 FCFA/ month, and to align with that of the Smig at 60,000 FCFA/month supported by two employers’ organizations, namely Gicam and Ecam”indicated the Cameroon Workers Forum which called for a strike to obtain this proportion increase from the government.
Compensation
However, the government’s hesitation in adopting the minimum amount of 60,000 was certainly due to the content of the compensation measures that it had to implement to satisfy the employers’ organizations which were calling, for example, for an end to the certification policy. prices. This time again, citing the repercussions of the Russian-Ukrainian crisis and the Covid-19 pandemic which have had a negative impact on their activities, the latter, who are not opposed to an increase in the Smig, are demanding reductions, or even tax exemptions. “ We spoke with the Minister of Labor and we told him that industries will have to have compensation because the cost of charges today for industries is becoming stifling and we decided to continue discussions but by sector. Because you have sectors which are more affected than others. We are concerned about the increase in transport. If we really want the basis of development (and of which industry is the spearhead) to be vibrant, we will need supporting measures.“, declared Samuel Kondo, president of the Cameroon Industries Union.
At the end of the work, the different parties recommended further reflection by type of sector. But before the consultations begin, discordant sounds are heard. The General Union of Workers of Cameroon (UGTC) of Isaac Bissala does not support the possibility of a minimum wage of 100,000 CFA francs. According to the trade unionist, this proposal does not take into account the repercussions on companies which would see their costs increase. He is also convinced that it ignores the provisions of ILO Convention No. 131 concerning the setting of minimum wages.
