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President Cristina Fernández and Labour Minister Carlos Tomada at the Minimum Wage Council meeting (photo: Florencia Downes/Télam/aa)
The minimum wage will increase by 23%, up to $4,400, in September, and by 8%, up to $4,716, in January. The measure was agreed by the Minimum Wage Council —formed by government, business, and union representatives— and announced last night.
The Minimum Wage Council met this week for the 11th time since 2004, with the aim of reaching an agreement on the new minimum wage. Negotiations lasted for 12 hours, as unions rejected any increase of under 30%. It has been reported that unions were bargaining for a 35% increase retroactive to August —against the 28% offered by businesses- however they managed to negotiate a two-payment plan instead of the proposed three payments.
This year’s hike is slightly above the average 29.7% agreed at the beginning of the year in collective wage negotiations. The new minimum will directly benefit registered workers earning the minimum wage —between 113,000 and 300,000 people— though it is also expected to affect the income of unregistered workers, for whom the minimum wage is used as a reference.
Upon announcing the agreement reached by the Minimum Wage Council, President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner pointed out that the minimum wage in Argentina has risen by 2,389% since 2002 (when it was of $200). “We have the minimum wage with the highest purchasing power in Latin America,” she said.
President Fernández also announced the creation of the Labour Observatory —formed by government, business, and union representatives— which will study the labour market and the evolution of unregistered work, redundancies, and possibilities for job creation. According to information provided by statistics office Indec, unemployment rose by 0.3% between 2013 and 2014.
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