Sri Lanka cabinet approves 40% hike to minimum wage
Reuters
Published Mar 26, 2024 09:44
COLOMBO (Reuters) - Sri Lanka's cabinet has approved increasing the minimum wage by 40%, a top official said on Tuesday, to support workers struggling with living costs as the economy slowly shakes off its worst financial crisis in decades, helped by an IMF bailout.
Sri Lanka's economy collapsed in early 2022 after its foreign exchange reserves dwindled to record lows triggering soaring inflation, currency depreciation and a default on its foreign debt.
Revision of the minimum wage from 12,500 rupees ($42) to 17,500 rupees was approved by cabinet to support people living in poverty, said cabinet spokesman and Transport Minister Bandula Gunawardana.
"This is a very important decision. Under this the national daily wage will also be increased by 200 rupees," he told a weekly briefing.
The average monthly household income of the poorest 20% of the population is 17,572 rupees, while 90% of overall households had increased their expenditure due to the crisis, latest government data showed.
Helped by a $2.9 billion program from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) the island of 22 million people has seen its economy slowly stabilise with inflation reducing to 5.9% in February from a high of 70%.
But multiple energy price increases and a 3% sales tax hike in January have raised the cost of living and hit the poor hard. University students and trade unions have held protests for months in Colombo demanding the government lower costs.
Get The App
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.