The Chamber of Deputies has approved a first reading of a bill that would increase the minimum wage in the government sector, including the military and police, to RD$4,000 per month. It also establishes a RD$3,000 minimum for those in retirement. Exempt from the new levels are judges and the administrative personnel of the Judicial Branch. The bill establishes an across-the-board 30% increase to the salaries of government officers earning up to RD$90,000 a month. By their votes, the deputies determined that government wages would rise by 20% in January and another 10% in July 2005. The government had sought to budget a 15% increase in January and another 15% in July. The bill furthermore proposes that wages be indexed to the Central Bank’s Consumer Price Index.<\/p>\n
The legislators voted by a count of 107 in favor and two against. Ruddy Gonzalez and Jose Gonzalez of the PRD protested the bill for being left out of the floor debates. A second reading is still necessary to have the measure ratified. The legislators plan to merge it with a bill passed in the Senate that proposes a 30% wage increases in the private and in public sectors as of January.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Chamber of Deputies has approved a first reading of a bill that would increase the minimum wage in the government sector, including the military and police, to RD$4,000 per month. It also establishes a RD$3,000 minimum for those in retirement. Exempt from the new levels are judges and the administrative personnel of the Judicial … <\/p>\n