Several socialist deputies submitted a law proposal aiming to set the gross minimum wage at 14.87 euros per hour. Currently, it is set at 9.65 euros, an amount that is “clearly insufficient for facing daily living expenses,’’ according to the president Elio Di Rupo, Laurette Onkelinx, Ahmed Laaouej and Frédéric Daerden.
“We cannot tolerate that a worker be poor. Yet, it is obvious that the current inter-professional minimum wage does not protect the worker from poverty,’’ they declare.
Invoking the socialist union figures, the deputies esteem that the first two quarters of the lowest-income population are unable to meet their expenses and are forced to go into debt or liquidate part of their heritage. The third quarter is pretty close to balancing its budget, while only the final quarter, with the highest income, disposes of a genuine saving ability.
30,000 euros per year is necessary to live “with dignity,’’ without going into debt or reducing health expenses, while preserving a social life and vacations, indicate the authors of the text. In order to accomplish this, an hourly wage of 14.87 euros is necessary, that is approximately 2,305 euros gross/month, which is still far from the median income of 18.07 euros/hour, they add.
The Brussels Times
