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Bangladesh plans to raise wages for garment workers after factory collapse raises scrutiny

The Canadian PressMay 12, 2013 04:15

DHAKA, Bangladesh - Bangladesh's government plans to raise the minimum wage for garment workers after the deaths of more than 1,100 people in the collapse of a factory building focused attention on the textile industry's dismal pay and hazardous working conditions. A new minimum wage board will issue recommendations for pay raises within three months, Textiles Minister Abdul Latif Siddiky said Sunday. The Cabinet will then decide whether to accept those proposals. The wage board will include representatives of factory owners, workers and the government, he said.

Government approves 1.9 percent rise in minimum wage

Thomson ReutersApril 15, 2013 08:30

LONDON (Reuters) - The government approved a 1.9 percent rise in the minimum wage on Monday, giving the country's lowest-paid employees a bigger increase than most other workers but one that is still less than inflation. The minimum wage for workers aged 21 and older will rise to 6.31 pounds an hour on October 1, up from 6.19 pounds and in line with recommendations from an independent panel of experts, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills said.

Obama's minimum wage pledge divides analysts, business

Agence France-PresseMarch 9, 2013 21:46

President Barack Obama's pledge to raise the minimum wage by 24 percent has divided economists and businesses who warn it could threaten recent improvements in jobless numbers. Obama has stated that his administration plans to increase the existing minimum hourly rate from $7.25 to $9, vowing to press ahead with the initiative despite the sequester budget crisis. "There are other areas where we can still make progress even with the sequester unresolved," Obama said, referring to $85 billion of drastic budget cuts that went into effect on March 1.

German opposition forces pace on minimum wage

Thomson ReutersFebruary 21, 2013 10:15

BERLIN, Feb 21 (Reuters) - Opposition parties in Germany are preparing to introduce a draft law on a minimum wage to the Bundesrat upper house on March 1, a newspaper reported on Thursday, raising the pressure on Chancellor Angela Merkel on the issue. Germany is one of only a few countries in Europe with no mandatory, across-the-board minimum wage and the opposition Social Democrats (SPD) have made it a top campaign issue ahead of a September election in which conservative Merkel is seeking a third term.

Minimum wage hike may hurt corporate profits, Obama says

Thomson ReutersFebruary 14, 2013 21:46

WASHINGTON, Feb 14 (Reuters) - President Barack Obama said on Thursday that raising the minimum wage, as he has proposed, might trim corporate profits, but he added that U.S. firms were enjoying robust earnings and needed customers with money to spend. "It might have some modest impact on their profits," he said in an on-line video question and answer session sponsored by Google+.

ANALYSIS-Economists split on Obama's call to raise minimum wage

Thomson ReutersFebruary 13, 2013 20:31

By Jason Lange WASHINGTON, Feb 13 (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama argues an increase in the federal minimum wage will fight poverty without causing companies to lay off workers. Top economists, however, are sharply divided on that question. For at least a century, academics have debated whether setting a floor for salaries would do more harm than good.