The Government must decide now, before the end of the year, the final increase that applies to this legal minimum income
The group of experts that the Ministry of Labor commissioned to study what would be the increase in the minimum interprofessional wage necessary for it to reach 60% of the average net wage in the country, as the coalition government promised by the end of The legislature has already completed its work. Thus, the proposal delivered today to the minister of the branch, Yolanda Díaz, proposes to the Executive a range of increases in the current minimum wage (1,000 euros per month in 14 payments) of between 46 and 82 euros more per month. Now, Labor will convene employers and unions next Wednesday "to listen to them" -since the law does not require that this increase be negotiated as such with the social partners- and will make the decision they consider most appropriate.
This would represent increases of between 4.6% and 8.2% of the minimum wage for 2023. Between this proposed minimum and maximum, there are two other intermediate proposals with increases of 5.4% (54 euros more per month) and 6, 6% (66 euros more per month). In any case, all these increases will be below the average inflation forecast for 2022. At this point, Díaz has been asked about an alleged increase in the highest range, which would still be below what pensions will increase in the year that comes (8.5%), to which he has responded that this issue "will be seen when the Government makes the final decision", without closing the door to an increase in the minimum wage similar to that of pensions for the next year.
After receiving this report, Minister Díaz commented: "I am not inclined towards any fork until I listen to the social agents." Although, the positions of employers and unions are very opposed and are even outside the forks proposed by the experts. While the unions advocate an increase in the minimum wage of the 10% up to 1,100 euros per month in 14 payments; The employers directly believe that this is not the time to raise this rent. Faced with this situation, and due to the announcement of the rupture of dialogue with Labor announced last week by the businessmen, Díaz asked the social agents “to comply with their constitutional mandate; go to the table to work. And, secondly, to both parties, who have high visions and come to the table with the best of intentions. And he added, I hope that the political noise heard last week in Congress does not infect the social dialogue, because it would be very worrying.
To carry out these calculations, the group of experts has estimated what the average net monthly salary in Spain would be in 2022, using the 2020 Salary Structure Survey published last June. From this survey, they have used two other sources to calculate the evolution of the average salary until 2022: the Quarterly Labor Cost Survey and the statistics of collective agreements, with which they have made different simulations to set the 60% of the average net salary for 2022. .
Díaz, has denied any accusation of job destruction caused by the increase in the minimum wage, assuring that more than one million jobs have been created since 2018 – “the European country that has created the most employment”, said the minister – with a 36% rise in the minimum wage since then. "Far from all the unscientific theories that have been published in Spain, the minimum wage does not have a negative impact on job creation," insisted the head of Labor.
This committee of experts has also proposed that, whatever the increase adopted by the Executive for 2023, this income can be reviewed again within six months, something that Díaz has not rejected. What's more, he has ensured that several European countries are applying this mid-year review.
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