Versión Español
EspañolFollowing a presidential decree, published yesterday, the minimum wage in Venezuela increases by 10 percent this week. The increase, which took effect on January 6, changes the minimum wage from VEF$2.973 to $3.270.30 per month. The decree also affects retired Venezuelans (2.7 million individuals) and retired officers who worked for the government and the Venezuelan Institute of Social Security.
President Nicolas Maduro said the decision represents an increase of 59 percent, coupled with the two other wage increases he has implemented since May of 2013. The president stated the decree was necessary “to protect the salaries of Venezuelan workers against the economic war caused by the oligarchy, which managed to generate high levels of inflation.”
The government decided on the adjustment — which seeks to increase the daily income of workers by $109 — after a year affected by historic levels of inflation and liquidity. The official inflation rate rose to 56.2 percent during 2013, and the value of physical currency in circulation grew by 69.2 percent.
Sources: Últimas Noticias and El Universal.
