Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2013, published 103rd ILC session (2014)

Minimum Wage Fixing Convention, 1970 (No. 131) - Kenya (Ratification: 1979)

Article 3 of the Convention. Criteria for adjusting minimum wage rates. The Committee notes the observations of the Federation of Kenya Employers (FKE) and the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) concerning the application of the Convention, which were received on 9 July 2013 and transmitted to the Government on 9 September 2013. The two employers’ organizations indicate that notwithstanding the process of development of a national minimum wage policy, two out of the three elements established by the national wages guidelines – ability of companies to pay and productivity – are not taken into account when determining the minimum wages increase, and as a result, the current minimum wage is quite costly for Kenya which in turn gives rise to a tense climate of industrial relations, more difficult collective bargaining and a growing informal sector, especially for those companies that can hardly afford such high minimum wages. The Committee also notes the additional comments made by the IOE on 17 July 2013, in which the IOE expressed its concern about the fact that, for the last five years, minimum wage rates have been adjusted annually on the sole basis of growing inflation without any consideration being given to the overall performance of the economy. The Committee requests the Government to submit any comments it may wish to make in response to the observations of the FKE and the IOE.