Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2006, published 96th ILC session (2007)

Protection of Wages Convention, 1949 (No. 95) - Democratic Republic of the Congo (Ratification: 1969)

Article 8, paragraph 1, of the Convention. Deductions from wages. The Committee notes with interest that, following the adoption of Act No. 015/2002 of 16 October 2002 issuing the Labour Code, the provisions concerning deductions from wages are more consistent with the requirements of this Article of the Convention. The Committee notes, however, that section 112 of the new Code, which lists the circumstances in which deductions are authorized, cannot be taken as an exhaustive list and does not establish that deductions made for reasons other than those listed in that section are prohibited. The Committee also notes that the same section – contrary to section 114 on the attachment and assignment of wages – does not establish a limit to the deductions that may be made, as is required by this Article of the Convention. The Committee therefore requests the Government to provide clarification on these points.

Article 12, paragraph 1, and Part V of the report form. Regular payment of wages. The Committee understands that the country is currently experiencing serious problems concerning wage arrears and notes that the Government’s report contains no information in response to its previous comments on the wage debt in the civil service. The Committee would like to remind the Government that wages are indispensable for the maintenance of the worker and wishes to refer to paragraph 355 of its General Survey of 2003 on protection of wages, which states that the accumulation of wage debts clearly contravenes the letter and the spirit of the Convention and renders the application of most of its other provisions simply meaningless. Consequently, the Committee asks the Government to provide detailed information on the extent of the problem (number of workers affected, sectors concerned, average delay of payment) and on the steps taken or envisaged to put an end to the wage arrears phenomenon and enable the workers concerned to recover all the sums of money they are owed.