“Today, the cabinet approved the increase of the minimum wage to 830 euros and the minimum daily wage to 37.07 euros. This is a brave increase of 50 euros per month, with which the government fulfills its commitment to better wages for our fellow citizens”, said the Minister of Labor and Social Security, Domna Michailidouduring a press conference.

Mrs. Michailidou underlined that with the new brave increase in the minimum wage, the fourth in a row since 2019, which will be implemented from April 1, 2024, three additional wages have been added to the workers’ income. In fact, as he pointed out, the increase in workers’ incomes from 2019 until today is also reflected in the decrease in the percentage of workers who are paid the minimum wage. “In 2019, the percentage of workers paid the minimum wage was 27%. Today, that percentage has dropped to 22%. This is a significant improvement, which is many times over, if we consider that during this time, 400,000 more workers have been added to the country’s workforce than in 2019,” he commented.

At the same time, the Minister of Labor and Social Security noted that the new increase in the minimum wage is a product of the consultation that preceded it with social and scientific bodies and takes into account the needs of households, the endurance of businesses and the prospects of the Greek economy and exceeds the effects of inflation. Specifically, since 2019, the minimum wage has increased cumulatively by 27.7%, while the inflation increase over the same period was 16.6%.

As he pointed out, to determine the amount of the increase in the new minimum wage, the following factors were taken into account: the reduction of unemployment to 10.4% in January 2024, the decline of inflation, the improvement of the competitiveness of the Greek economy and, of course, its positive growth prospects this year as well.

“THE minimum wage is growing, because our economy allows it and because our produced national wealth must be distributed in terms of justice” Mrs. Michailidou added in another point of her statement and noted: “With careful steps and without jeopardizing fiscal stability, we implement our pre-election commitment for a minimum wage of 950 euros and an average wage of 1,500 euros, until the end of the four years. With the fourth consecutive increase since 2019, the minimum wage has increased by 28%. In other words, three additional salaries have been added annually to the income of the employees”.

“The increase in annual salaries for employees with previous service will be even greater, especially after the “unfreezing”, after 12 years, of the three years. This means higher wages of up to 30% for thousands of workers”, added Mrs. Michailidou.

The Minister of Labor and Social Security also made a special reference to the benefits that those receiving benefits will have, such as the unemployment benefit, the special maternity allowance, the special one-off aid for vulnerable social groups. “The increase in the minimum wage drags up all 13 total categories of allowances, benefits and subsidized programs, linked to the minimum wage. First and foremost, the regular unemployment benefit increases to 510 euros from 400 euros, which was in 2019, as well as the maternity benefit, which was recently extended to self-employed mothers and female farmers, as well as all active employment programs of the Public Service of Employment (DYPA)” he said.

The press conference was attended by the Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Security, Vassilis Spanakis and the general secretaries, Anna Stratinaki and Nikos Milapidis.

Presenting the government’s decisions on the minimum wage in more detail, the Minister of Labor and Social Security, Domna Michailidou, focused on the following data:

Evolution of the minimum wage: From 650 euros, which was in 2019, the minimum wage increased to 663 euros in January 2022, to 713 euros in May 2022, to 780 euros in April 2023 and to 830 euros from April 2024 .

From 2019 onwards, the minimum wage, with 14 payments, has increased by 180 euros, i.e. an increase of 27.7%. Greece is in 11th place among the 22 EU member states. that have a statutory minimum wage.

What is the increase at 12-month level: On a twelve-month basis, as calculated by Eurostat, the minimum wage with a new increase is 968.33 euros and the annual salary is 11,620 euros. That is, the cumulative increase from June 2019 translates into 210 euros per month.

How the net minimum wage is formed: With the new increase of 6.4%, the net minimum wage, with 14 payments, is formed at 715 euros from 547 euros, which was in 2019. On a twelve-month basis, the net minimum wage amounts to 834 euros from 638 euros, which was in 2019. Thus, the annual net benefit for employees amounts to 2,352 euros. This is an increase of over 30% compared to 2019.

Number of employees covered: The employees who are paid the minimum wage are 559,274, that is, 25,726 less than in 2022 and 85,726 less than in 2021. So, more of our fellow citizens in recent years receive a salary higher than the minimum.

How much is the minimum wage increasing for workers with seniority: Even more is the increase in annual wages for workers with seniority. With one three years, the minimum wage increases to 913 euros on a 14-month basis and to 1,065 euros on a 12-month basis. With two three-year terms, the minimum wage is 996 euros on a 14-month basis and 1,162 euros on a 12-month basis. With three three-year terms, the minimum wage increases to 1,079 euros on a 14-month basis and to 1,259 euros on a 12-month basis.

How many benefits and how much they are affected: The new increase in the minimum wage also drags up 13 categories of benefits, benefits and subsidized schemes, such as the special maternity benefit, which was recently extended to self-employed mothers, is paid for nine months and is equal to minimum wage and the special assistance of vulnerable groups, which is paid once, increases as well as the minimum wage, by 6.4%. That is, with the increase, it amounts to 764 euros and, of course, the unemployment benefit, which corresponds to 55% of the minimum wage and concerns 502,745 beneficiaries. From 1 April 2024, the unemployment benefit increases to 509.71 euros per month, 110 euros higher than in 2019.