Haiti agrees to increase minimum wage

PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti, Feb 21, CMC – Haiti has announced an increase in the minimum wage less than a week after police used teargas to disperse textile workers who had taken to the streets to demand better pay.

The workers were demanding a 300 per cent increase in the minimum wage, which is now 500 Gourdes per eight-hour working day, in addition to other social benefits such as transport and food subsidies.

The Council of Ministers met on Sunday and agreed to increase the minimum wage for different categories of workers effective Monday.

According to the decree published in the Official Journal “Le Moniteur” workers in the private electricity production; financial institutions, telecommunications; import-export trade; supermarkets; jewellery stores; art galleries; furniture, furniture and appliance stores; doctor's office and polyclinics, will receive an 54 per cent increase moving their minimum wage from 500 to 770 Gourdes.

The council said workers in the buildings and public works (BTP); truck and heavy machinery rental companies; construction material rental companies; construction material transport companies; hardware stores; other financial institutions such as cooperatives, credit unions will receive a 39. 7 per cent increase with their new wages being 615 Gourdes, up from 440 Gourdes.

Another segment of workers who received 385 Gourdes per eight-hour day, will now receive 540 Gourdes and these workers are those in the restaurants; agriculture, forestry, livestock and fishing; agricultural products processing industry and retail trade.

The decree had also announced salary increases 37 to 40 per cent for workers whose daily pay ranges from 250to 440 Gourdes.

Last week, Senate President, Joseph Lambert, called for an independent investigation into the circumstances that led to cops using teargas to break up a demonstration by textile workers who had been seeking an increase in wages.

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