Turkey’s minimum wage erodes by $19 in one month after dollar hits historic high

Turkey’s minimum wage of 17,002 lira eroded by $19 in one month after workers received their first salaries with the hike at the end of January.

Wednesday February 28 2024 02:55 pm

Duvar English

Turkey’s new minimum wage amounted 17,002 Turkish liras eroded by 592 liras ($19) in one month after received for the first time by the workers at the end of January.

Dollar/lira, which saw 31.38810 in the morning hours of Feb. 28, reached an all-time high.

When it was first announced by the government on Dec. 27, 2023, the new minimum wage was 578 dollar. Many opposition leaders and labor unions has warned that the increase would erode instantly due to severe depreciation of lira.

The minimum wage stood at 545 dollars as of Feb. 28, 33 dollars less than its initial announcement.

The Turkish government announced that there would be no further increase in the minimum wage throughout 2024.

Turkey’s hunger threshold for a family of four exceeded 15,000 Turkish liras ($494 based on Jan. 31 exchange rates) in January 2024, whereas the poverty threshold was recorded as 49,019 liras ($1,615 based on Jan. 31 exchange rates), according to the research of Confederation of Turkish Trade Unions (Türk-İş).