The workers’ share of national income has been shrinking in many countries, causing public dissatisfaction and increasing the risk of social unrest, the International Labour Organization warned in a report.
“Declining workers’ share of national income has affected perceptions of what is fair, particularly given the huge payments some company executives have been getting,” said Patrick Belser, co-author of the ILO Global Wage Report 2012/13.
Wages represent the main source of income for Africans to support their families. The level of wages, therefore, has a direct impact on the well-being, education and security of African families and communities.
In sub-Saharan Africa, the share of wage employment has recently been showing fair growth. While many countries, including Ghana, Tanzania and Uganda have recorded relatively modest increases in the share of wage earners; countries like Namibia, Rwanda and South Africa have managed to register significant progress.
In 2010, real average wages increased by nearly 10 per cent in South Africa, where wage growth remained unequally distributed in various sectors, according to government figures.
Despite this progress, wage employment in sub-Saharan Africa continues to hold a relatively small part of the total paid employment jobs. In 2010/2011, the number of wage earners on the Continent accounted for more than 100 million – a significant amount in absolute terms.
The proportion of wage earners among women workers also remains disconcertingly lower than men.
Although higher labour productivity resulted in positive wage growth in Africa, the nature of informal economies poses challenges in measuring the accurate status of wages. This may result in the projection of an overly optimistic picture of wage trends.
The quest for reliable data
Data on the evolution of average wages in Africa are relatively scarce. Only a few countries in Africa, including Botswana, Egypt, Lesotho, Mauritius, South Africa and Uganda, carry out quarterly or annual establishment surveys in order to measure the evolution of earnings.
In most countries, wage data are best collected through labour force surveys that are implemented at irregular intervals, and are not always comparable across the years.
At present, Africa‘s population stands at just over 1 billion people – a 200 million increase since the turn of the century. Within the next two decades Africa‘s population is expected to swell to over 1.5 billion – exceeding 2 billion by 2050. Strengthening labour statistics to monitor progress and devise policies should therefore remain an absolute priority.
The only sustainable way to raise wages is through economic growth that brings about increases in labour productivity.
Evidence shows that productivity growth and education for all are critical to improving both the level and the distribution of wages.
In current economic conditions, the ILO encourages member states to adopt a minimum wage policy to reduce working poverty and provide social protection for vulnerable employees, such as women, people with disabilities and youth.
The ILO recommends government authorities set minimum wages after consultation with social partners.
South Africa, for example, introduced new minimum wage floors in 2002 to support the earnings of millions of low-paid workers in a variety of economic sectors, including domestic work.
By 2007/2008, more than 2/3 of the 54 countries in Africa had put in place a minimum wage policy – with wide variation in the level and design of the minimum wage across the continent.
While 70 per cent of African countries (where data is available) implement relatively simple national minimum wages – with a few possible adjustments by region, sector or broad categories of workers – the other 30 per cent implement more complex systems by industry and/or occupations.
The ILO has recently been providing technical assistance at the request of a growing number of governments and social partners around the world, to ensure implementation of successful national minimum wage policies.
ILO also supports efforts made to put in place other practical strategies, including collective bargaining, in-work benefits and income-support policies.
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