The Cypriot government decided yesterday to raise the National Minimum Wage to €1,088 gross (from €1,000) for the next two years (2026–2027).
The Minister of Labor, Marinos Mousiouttas, stated that the proposal for the adjustment of the National Minimum Wage took into account the inflation rate for 2024 (1.8%) as well as the forecast for 2025 (0.2%), which together total 2.0%, the expected economic growth rate for the same period, projected at 3.9% and 3.4% respectively, significantly higher than the Eurozone average, as well as the reduction of unemployment to 4.9% in 2024, with a forecast of 4.3% for 2025, a level corresponding to full employment conditions.
“It does not meet the increased cost of living and does not ensure a decent standard of living,” say the unions.
He also noted that the decree includes a provision according to which the monthly minimum wage for employees with less than six months of continuous service increases from €900 to €979.
Workers’ unions had requested that the minimum wage reach €1,125, arguing that the increase is not €88 but approximately €67, since the minimum wage together with the Automatic Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) currently amounts to around €1,021.
The unions are calling for a “substantial increase” in the minimum wage, claiming that the current level does not meet the increased cost of living and does not guarantee a decent standard of living for low-wage workers.
Source: EFSYN