Minimum Wage to Rise by 11 Pct, Sub-Minimum to be Abolished, Cabinet Decides
An 11 pct increase in the minimum wage and the abolition of the sub-minimum wage were approved during a cabinet meeting that was concluded late on Monday afternoon. According to a source in the government, Labour Minister Effie Achtsioglou could sign the pertinent ministerial decision as early as Tuesday. The new minimum wage, set at 650 euro, will be effective as of February 1, and will be applied to workers of all ages, thus leading to the abolition of the "sub-minimum" wage which was currently in place for young people under 25 years old. Addressing the cabinet, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said that 600,000 members of the Greek workforce will benefit from the two measures, while another 280,000 workers will be indirectly affected since the hike will result in the simultaneous increase of more than 20 different types of benefits linked with the minimum income.