The review committee has decided, pending government approval, to increase the minimum wage of Nepal from 6000 to 8000 NPR per month. As the minimum wage is reviewed every 2 years this increase of 33% is greater than inflation over the same period 19% (as the currency is tied to India), so progressive, just. The greater rate of inflation in global food prices is possibly not so much of a concern in the controlled Indian (and Nepali?) markets. Still, 60 GBP per month is no great salary...
But naturally the comedy is in the detail. The wage breakdown consists of a salary and a 'dearness allowance'. I suppose at one point the quaint sounding 'dearness allowance' was intended to be set by region, but then it makes about as much sense as separated 'National Insurance Contributions'. The union representing the Monster Raving Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) isn't happy with this settlement. They are campaigning for a 15,000 NPR a month wage, which is not far off the equivalent of the 10,000 INR wage which inspired the last strikes I witnessed in India. I'm not sure how they intend to implement this 150% increase, or have even considered that many Nepali's are self employed, or run small enterprises.
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