The minimum wage for the next year will be decided upon according to the inflation rate, Ali Rabiee, minister of cooperatives, labor and social welfare announced on Monday.
“We are going to discuss all the proposals regarding the minimum wage and any possible increase in the minimum wage amount. But at the end of the day, the law is the most important reference to be taken into account,” he was quoted by ISNA as saying.
Based on the labor law, every year, the Supreme Labor Council - a body affiliated to the labor ministry, sets the minimum wage for workers with regard to the official inflation rate.
Pointing to the parliament’s latest attempt to reform the labor law, Rabiee said, “If the changes are made without considering the necessary preconditions like the unemployment benefits, the move would be problematic.”
He further said that the labor market is suffering from what he called “supply and demand imbalance” adding, “Any hasty changes to the labor law will lead to creation of more problems in the job market.”
Based on the Iranian labor law, monthly minimum wage for the current Iranian year (which started March 21) was set at 6,089,100 rials ($229 based on the official exchange rates), which could be higher considering fringe benefits.
The Supreme Labor Council made a proposal based on which the minimum wage for workers could rise slightly for the second time in a year.
