Discussions on increasing the minimum wage in the private sector to $60,000 are underway, according to Minister of Labour Joseph Hamilton.
The Department of Public Information (DPI) reported on Thursday that under the former APNU+AFC government, a tripartite committee was responsible for reviewing the increasing of the private sector’s minimum wage, which it recommended be raised to $60,000 from the current $44,200 a month.
Hamilton, according to the report, said while he is comfortable with the recommendation, the tripartite committee has not met since March. However, there are plans to reconfigure and re-establish the committee with assistance from Chief Labour Officer Charles Ogle.
Hamilton added that the downturn in business was discussed in his engagement thus far with the private sector.
“To be fair, I have to take the [COVID-19 impact] into consideration…What I can say is that the minimum wage will be raised. The question is should or can we do it now and how will it impact more workers who are working in the private sector?” he was quoted as saying.
The report noted that many private sector entities were forced to dismiss some of their employees due to the pandemic.
