Charles Jr touts minimum wage increase, Opposition members want improvement

Parliament on Tuesday approved Orders to increase the minimum wage by $1,000, moving it from $16,000 to $17,000 per 40-hour work week, effective July 1.

Stating that this is the fifth increase in the minimum wage by the Government, Minister of Labour and Social Security Pearnel Charles Jr said the impending rise in the wage floor is a signal of the continued commitment to Jamaica’s most vulnerable.

“It is important to note that the Government has not treated minimum wage adjustments as an isolated act. This is part of a broader commitment to improve living standards, strengthen economic security, and ensure that national progress is shared more fairly across society,” he said.

He noted that overtime pay is to be increased from $600 per hour to $637.50 per hour.

The double-time rate is to be increased from $800 per hour to $850 per hour for work done on rest days or public holidays.

Additionally, he said the minimum wage for industrial security guards is also to be increased from $16,000 to $17,000 per 40-hour work week, with corresponding adjustments.

Opposition Member of Parliament (MP) Zuleika Jess, speaking on the issue, said the increase is disrespectful to minimum wage earners.

“Announcing a measly increase of roughly $200 per day is really an insult to the hard-working people of Jamaica who are struggling, who are fighting to survive, who are living from hand to mouth and who are finding it difficult to understand how they're going to find tomorrow's meal,” she said.

She called for the minimum wage to be aligned with the Consumer Price Index, which she said would allow for annual automatic adjustments instead of “sporadic or erratic announcements made at election time”.

During the lead-up to last year’s general election, Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness promised to increase the minimum wage from $16,000 to $18,500 in the next budget.

He further committed to doubling it to $32,000 over the next several years.

However, during his budget presentation in March this year, Holness pointed to the impact of Hurricane Melissa and increasing energy and shipping costs as factors preventing a $2,500 increase at this time.

Accusing the Government of reneging on its promise, Opposition MP Dr Dayton Campbell said he wants to put into law a requirement for the necessary consultations to take place before an increase to the minimum wage is announced.

“That is necessary to prevent this continuous practice of a political party playing on the minds of the poor people of this country,” he said.

He further called for a shift in the narrative from a minimum wage to a “livable wage”.

“People need food and people need utilities. Those are basic requirements. So when we speak of a minimum wage of $16,000, we gloat about that being a 174 per cent increase over 2016, without taking into consideration the increases in housing costs, transportation costs, food costs and utility costs,” he said.

Dennis Gordon, MP for East Central St Andrew, advocated for equity in discussions surrounding minimum wage increases.

“I’ve been examining what was announced by the Minister. Let me share the reality of the numbers: six and eight per cent respectively, with an inflation rate of 5.5 per cent. It just cannot add up,” he said.

Pointing to the penalties for employers who pay below the established minimum wage, Gordon asserted that “employers also need some protection”.

“When these rates are announced, it takes months for the Ministry of Finance to make payments available to comply with these announcements,” he said.

“I am asking for equity to ensure that when these announcements are made, budgetary allocations are also provided so that employers can satisfy the mandate of the Minister without facing penalties before the courts,” he said.

He said employers have for too long been asked to subsidise Government services, which he said has become burdensome.

“We have other attendant costs, such as bank charges,” he said.

Gordon is also Executive Chairman of the JacDen Group of Companies.

Meanwhile, MP for Trelawny Southern Marisa Dalrymple-Philibert urged parliamentarians who employ minimum wage earners to ensure they are paying them a livable wage.

“It tells the truth about us — whether we are pontificating to the public or whether we are genuine,” she said.

- Sashana Small

Follow The Gleaner on X, formerly Twitter, and Instagram @JamaicaGleaner and on Facebook @GleanerJamaica. Send us a message on WhatsApp at 1-876-499-0169 or email us at onlinefeedback@gleanerjm.com or editors@gleanerjm.com.