Ontop’s Post

Colombia's decision to increase its minimum wage by 12% in 2024 is a big economic move, especially considering the country's ongoing problems with high inflation and a somewhat still economy. This increase, which will raise the minimum wage to 1.3 million pesos (approx US$340) per month, follows a 16% increase in 2023 and occurs amidst a challenging financial landscape marked by a 10.15% inflation rate. In the context of higher-paid, more qualified roles, this wage increase will probably create a ripple effect. Generally, when minimum wages rise, there is a domino effect on wages across the board. In industries that compete globally for talent, there might be a need to offer more competitive salaries to retain top-tier people. Furthermore, the rising cost of living, driven by inflation, could necessitate higher salaries even for more qualified roles, as employees seek salaries that keeps pace with their expenses. Companies might find themselves negotiating higher wages to prevent talent turnover or to attract skilled workers from other regions or industries. That all being said, there are still significant commercial advantages to hiring remote staff in countries like Colombia. Just be mindful that economies like these can have a fluid effect on salaries, and its important to have current information before making wage decisions. #Colombia #OutsourcingTrends #GlobalOutsourcing Nerissa Chaux Andrea Villa

South Africa’s National Minimum Wage (NWM) for the 2023/24 financial year was quite muted compared to 67 other countries – and the overall wage still ranks low when considering affordability. We ranked 44th in 2023: the minimum net wage was R4,353 last year, which is 9.4% more than in 2022 (R3,979 net). Read the full story to find out why we rank so low: https://lnkd.in/dj8Mb5WM

🇪🇺 💶𝗠𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗺𝘂𝗺 𝘄𝗮𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗘𝗨: 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟰; 𝗚𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲   After Cyprus also introduced a mandatory minimum wage in 2023, more than 80 % of all EU Member States have a 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗺𝘂𝗺 𝘄𝗮𝗴𝗲: 𝟮𝟮 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝟮𝟳 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 introduced by now.   Notably, there are two distinct clusters of countries with similar minimum wages: the six most expensive ones are around or above 2.000 €, and a large number of countries is between 500 € and 1.000 €. But the 𝗴𝗮𝗽 𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗵𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲: the minimum wage in Luxemburg used to be 7 times higher than that of Bulgaria. In 2024, it about 5 times as high.   While the differences look stark, the standard of living a worker with a minimum wage job can afford does not differ as much: the purchasing power in these countries is also very different. Relative to the 𝗽𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿, the 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗺𝘂𝗺 𝘄𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗟𝘂𝘅𝗲𝗺𝗯𝘂𝗿𝗴 𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝟭,𝟱 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝘀 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵 𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗕𝘂𝗹𝗴𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗮. #MinimumWage #EU #laborlaw #cms

According to estimates from the Center for Policy Dialogue (CPD), one of the country’s main think tanks, the minimum wage should be 169 euros so that workers can live with dignity. This is 64 euros more than the minimum wage which has just been reevaluated. “With the war in Ukraine, all food prices increased by 30%,” notes Khondaker Golam Moazzem, researcher at CPD. The workers can’t even feed themselves properly. Furthermore, since the last salary revaluation carried out in 2018, the Bangladeshi taka has been massively devalued. The 56% increase that the bosses are delighted with must therefore be put into perspective: “At the time, a dollar was worth 84 takas. Today one dollar is worth 124 takas. So in reality, the increase is not 56%, but rather around 20%,” explains the economist. Les Echos Read more: https://lnkd.in/guk4CZEb

"The minimum wage increase kept up with the prices of basic products in the past year, but South Africans in this bracket need to spend 35% of their income on a "survival basket". This is according to the Minimum Wage report collated by Picodi.com on how the minimum wage for full-time work changed in 67 countries in January 2024, and what part of the income has to be spent on a basic basket of food necessary to live. SA employees on a minimum wage earn R4,353 net monthly, compared to R3,979 in January 2023. This ranks SA in 44th place of the ranking (9.4% increase)." https://lnkd.in/dYTdFgJc

🌍 𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐄𝐔 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐦𝐮𝐦 𝐖𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒  🌍 Here are some highlights from the Minimum Wages 2024 review conducted by Eurofound:   💼 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐦𝐮𝐦 𝐖𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬: Many EU countries saw substantial increases in national minimum wages, leading to real-term gains after inflation adjustments. Countries like Poland, Croatia, and Bulgaria had some of the highest nominal wage hikes, reversing the purchasing power losses from recent years. 🌡️ 𝐂𝐨𝐬𝐭-𝐨𝐟-𝐋𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐬: Minimum wage earners continue to face challenges. In 2022, 23% reported difficulties making ends meet, 10% struggled to keep their homes warm. Countries like Greece saw particularly high rates of financial stress among these workers. 📈 𝐄𝐔 𝐈𝐧𝐟𝐥𝐮𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞: The EU Minimum Wage Directive, aiming for upward convergence and reduction of in-work poverty, has influenced wage-setting policies, prompting many countries to link minimum wage increases to average wage percentages. 🏠 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐛𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: As expected around two-thirds of minimum wage workers reside in middle- to lower-income households. 🌍 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐬 𝐑𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐢𝐧: Despite positive trends, debates continue around ensuring that minimum wages guarantee a 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠, particularly in the context of inflation and economic pressures. However, the main counter-argument is the fear that the lower wage groups in collective bargaining agreements get pushed upwards and thereby the freedom of collective bargaining is in danger.    #MinimumWage #EU #WageGrowth #CostOfLivingCrisis #EmployeeRights #SocialPolicy #2024Wages

Argentina's government recently increased the monthly minimum wage by approximately 15% to 180,000 pesos ($215) for February. This adjustment aims to address the impact of soaring annual inflation, which has exceeded 250%. The wage will further rise to 202,800 pesos in March. Despite the government's efforts, an agreement between workers and employers could not be reached, leading to the presidential decree. In January, inflation in Argentina surged by 20.6%, following a staggering 211.4% annual rate in 2023. The government is hopeful that inflation will slow down to around 10% this month. Balancing economic stability and meeting the needs of workers remains a significant challenge for policymakers. For more information: https://lnkd.in/eKv9JE65  

Private sector employees may soon see changes in their minimum wage. While employers typically go beyond the minimum wage with extra benefits, a new standardization is on the horizon. The 2024 International Workers’ Day highlighted this shift, with trade unions advocating for a ₦615,000 minimum wage, which could benefit both government and private sector workers. Inflation, especially after recent economic decisions, has prompted a reevaluation of wages. The proposed increase is based on extensive research by the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress, aiming to cover the cost of living for an average family. Despite the potential impact on businesses, unions are pushing for this change, including demands for a two-year adjustment plan tied to inflation. Employers with over five workers would be required to comply. Stay informed about these potential changes and their impact. 📍Read more: https://lnkd.in/ddfbKGsK #meizanigeria #Nigeria #MinimumWage #Labour #Economy

South Africa's minimum wage was recently increased to R27.6 for hour (or R4400 per fulltime worker per month). According to estimates available from the Living wage and income dataset, the 2022 minimum wage figure is about 15% lower than the living wage per worker of around R4900 fulltime worker per month. Compared to other emerging markets, the minimum wage-living wage gap is relatively low by these estimates. Countries with the largest implied minimum wage-living wage gap are Uganda, Ghana, India, Mexico and Bangladesh. Note that measuring living wages comes with several challenges related to the complex nature of income sufficiency and regional cost of living, so there is a large margin of uncertainty around such estimates. https://lnkd.in/dkSm4a2Q

Japan’s Minimum Wage Miracle   It has taken a couple decades, but Tokyo has finally raised the minimum wage enough to lift almost 20 million workers above levels close to, or even below, the poverty level. When the minimum wage was raised to ¥961 in 2022, 20 million were earning less than that. The real (price-adjusted) minimum wage has doubled since 1978. This has improved both lives and consumer purchasing power, the latter indispensable to economic recovery. Equally important, a higher minimum wage did not destroy jobs, as was inaccurately predicted by business lobbies.   A minimum wage raises the income not only of those below it but of millions somewhat above it. As the minimum wage rose, the share of full-time women in the low-paid category—two-thirds of the median pay level—plunged from almost half (45%) in 1985 to just 18% these days.   Unfortunately, the benefits of the minimum wage were offset by companies who replaced regular full-time male workers at one wage with non-regulars and women whose hourly pay is much, much less. As a result, the real median hourly wage of full-time workers is no higher today than it was in 1993. Among all workers (regular and non-regular) the average real hourly is 10% below its level in 1997.   To raise the income of the majority of workers, it will help to raise the minimum to ¥1,500, but additional steps are also needed.   For details, see https://lnkd.in/eiTTQ78U #Japan #Minimumwage #jobs #1500yen #Ishiba #poverty