Portugal: government stays on course with the EUR 500 minimum wage increases in 2011

Complying with the agreement.  After a meeting dedicated to the pending “Employment Pact,” Labor Minister Helena André confirmed that the Portuguese government intends to apply the increase of the Portuguese national minimum wage planned in the agreement signed between the social partners in 2006.  This agreement was negotiated to compensate checked n in the country.  The SMN was created in 1974 and frozen for a long time, notably during the 1983-1985 economic crisis, before taking a new step forward between 2002 and 2005.  The 2006 agreement provided for a gradual boosted increase to reduce the gap with other western European countries.  The SMN increased to €450/month in 2009, €475/month in 2010, and should therefore get to €500/month in 2011.  The pace of the increase in Portugal was 11.7% between 2007 and 2009, as opposed to 8% in average in the euro zone (only Slovenia did better over that period).
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boosted increase to reduce the gap with other western European countries. The SMN increased to €450/month in 2009, €475/month in 2010, and should therefore get to €500/month in 2011. The pace of the increase in Portugal was 11.7% between 2007 and 2009, as opposed to 8% in average in the euro zone (only Slovenia did better over that period).

Employers are stressing the crisis. To delay this increase, employers argued that the conditions weren’t met to implement the €500 monthly increase on Ja

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