After several long, drawn-out meetings over the past few days, representatives of both the business and labor sectors arrived at a resolution for a new scale of minimum wages. This announcement was made at the Ministry of Labor, where the National Committee on Salaries’ office is located. Those small businesses, with declared capital of between RD$200,000 and RD$500,000, will offer a minimum wage of RD$4,400 per month. Micro-establishments whose capital is less than RD$200,000 will pay RD$3,900. Those businesses that declared capital of more than RD$500,000 will offer a minimum wage of RD$6,400 per month.
The most significant news was that the business and union leaders did not abandon the final meeting after three hours of what El Caribe described as “face-offs”, and the parties agreed that those workers earning from RD$5,000 per month to RD$20,000 per month would also see a 25% wage increase.
Representatives from the Dominican Committee on Small and Medium Business were worried about the effect a substantial increase to the minimum wage would have on their membership, and were not in agreement with the RD$200,000 level that the National Commission on Salaries finally accepted. One other disconcerting note was made when the president of the Chamber of Deputies announced that the deputies would continue to discuss an overall wage increase of 30% for all salaries, including those above the RD$20,000 benchmark set by the CNS and the business and union leaders.
The new wages would go into effect as of November.
This is the second raise that workers making less than RD$20,000 receive in the DR. Last month, workers benefited when the level at which wages are exempt from paying income taxes was pushed up 25%, as part of the new tax reform package.