Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek: “Minimum Wage is Not Low in Turkey”
Making evaluations on the economic agenda in the Habertürk live broadcast, Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek stated that he does not agree with those who claim that the minimum wage in Turkey is low.
Minister Şimşek, who emphasized that the minimum wage in Turkey is not low by giving examples of developing countries, said, “Look at the countries in Asia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, and compare them with Latin America, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Bulgaria and Hungary in Europe. Except for Poland, we have the highest minimum wage among developing countries. The minimum wage in Turkey is not low.”
Minister Şimşek: “There is a Serious Increase in Dollar Basis”
Minister Şimşek, who stated that there were serious increases in the minimum wage during the AKP government, said, “We have increased the minimum wage in Turkey by 5.5 percent in real terms in the last 20 years. Turkey’s real growth is 5.4 percent. There has been a serious increase in the minimum wage, which remained around 100 dollars in the 90s, in dollar terms during the AKP period. The minimum wage increase is 49 percent. Inflation in the first 6 months will be around 20 percent. The upper band of the Central Bank is 42 percent at the end of the year. Even in this case, it corresponds to a minimum wage equivalent that is greater than the growth.”
