The Minimum Wage Deliberation Committee’s decision on Wednesday to raise the minimum monthly and hourly wage by 4.08 percent is a reflection of the consumer price index (CPI), academics said.
The committee decided to raise the minimum monthly wage from NT$27,470 to NT$28,590, and the minimum hourly wage from NT$183 to NT$190.
If approved by the Cabinet, the planned minimum wage increase is to take effect on Jan. 1 next year, the Ministry of Labor said.
Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
Asked about the proposed wage hike, Lin Hung-yang (林宏陽), a professor in the Department of Social Work at Pingtung University of Science and Technology, said that it reflects the CPI and it is expected to help maintain the purchasing power of the working class.
However, as the proposed increase is set to take effect next year, Lin said that it it is hard to gauge how much help it would provide for consumers, given such variables as the prospect of the US Federal Reserve lowering interest rates, the global economic outlook and CPI fluctuations next year.
Meanwhile, professor Lee Chien-hung (李健鴻) from the Department of Labor and Human Resources at Chinese Culture University said that the proposed wage increase reflects the projected year-on-year CPI increase and the cost of living of workers earning the minimum wage or just above it.
It also factors in economic growth and the wage increase met the expectations of labor rights groups, Lee added.
However, Hsu Shu-po (許舒博), head of the General Chamber of Commerce of the Republic of China, said the planned wage increase exceeds the 3 percent proposed by representatives from the private sector at Wednesday’s meeting.
That could cause some companies to lay off employees or increase the price of products, exacerbating inflation, Hsu said.
Hsu called on the government to implement accompanying measures to help micro, small and medium-sized businesses, which are likely to bear the brunt of the proposed wage increase.
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