| Submit your comments on this article |
| Caribbean-Latin America |
| Venezuela raising minimum wage again, this time by 30% |
| 2014-05-04 |
| Venezuela will raise the minimum wage by 30% on 1 May, President Nicolas Maduro has announced. He said he would also raise pensions by the same amount. The minimum wage would go up from 3,270 bolivars ($520; "310) to 4,252 bolivars. The increase is below the level of annual inflation, which official figures put at 56.2% for 2013. The announcement comes after almost three months of mass protests against Mr Maduro's government triggered by rising inflation, shortages of some basic goods and a high crime rate. In an address to workers from different key sectors, Mr Maduro said he hoped that "by the end of the year, we will be choking off and overcoming (...) inflation". The increase comes just months after the government raised the minimum wage by 10%. Critics say that while the new minimum salary amounts to $675 at the government-set exchange rate, it adds up to little over $67 at the black market rate. They say strict currency controls have only increased the shortage of dollars available in the country and driven up their price further. Opposition leader Henrique Capriles said the 30% raise was "insufficient" and that a real improvement would only be achieved if wages were lifted above the level of inflation. The president also did not rule out another raise in the last trimester of the year, at which point he promised to "re-assess" wages. |
| Posted by:Pappy |
| #6 Cause central planning didn't work before because the 'right'* people were not in charge. /sarc *the centralization and accumulation of power means that there never will be the 'right' people. "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely" - Sir John Acton. |
| Posted by: P2kontheroad 2014-05-04 10:44 |
| #5 Seattle is raising minimum wage to $15 over the next few years, the Dem mayor decreed it earlier this week. |
| Posted by: USN, Ret 2014-05-04 10:04 |
| #4 WE'RE BURNING TO DEATH!!!!! ADD MORE WOOD TO THE FIRE!!!!!!!! JCMTSU |
| Posted by: AlanC 2014-05-04 07:54 |
| #3 Now that's just mean RJ, you know if liberals could learn, they'd not be liberals. You shouldn't make fun of their mental health issues like that. :p |
| Posted by: Silentbrick 2014-05-04 05:03 |
| #2 Watch carefully America as everything goes up , this is a lesson that raising the minimum wage doesn't help, Liberals take note. |
| Posted by: Redneck Jim 2014-05-04 04:09 |
| #1 Gasoline shortages in Caracas, time for more sand to Saudi Arabia. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2014-05-04 02:36 |