CUT: Bolsonaro deceives his voters with the end of real wage increases for the minimum wage.
According to the president of the CUT (Unified Workers' Central), Vagner Freitas, the end of the minimum wage valorization policy is yet another attack by the Jair Bolsonaro government on workers. "All the measures announced by the government so far are aimed at wage and pension cuts. Furthermore, all of them benefit the employer and harm the worker," says Vagner; according to him, Bolsonaro "deceives his voters" by promoting measures that contradict the expectations of a large part of those who supported him.
Current Brazil Network - According to the president of CUT (Central Única dos Trabalhadores), Vagner Freitas, the end of the minimum wage valorization policy, foreseen in the 2020 Budget Guidelines Law project sent by the government to the National Congress, is yet another attack by Bolsonaro on workers. "All the measures announced by the government so far are aimed at wage and pension cuts. Furthermore, all of them have benefited the employer and harmed the worker," Vagner told the organization's website.
According to the union president, Bolsonaro "is deceiving his voters" by promoting measures that contradict the expectations of a large portion of those who supported him. "He said he would run a different government, to improve the condition of the poor, and he's doing the same as all right-wing presidents like him, he's taking the bread out of the mouths of the workers."
Reaction
The government's decision also resonated among social movements and in the National Congress. Guilherme Boulos, leader of the MTST (homeless workers' movement) and former presidential candidate for the PSOL party, expressed his opinion on his Twitter profile: "Bolsonaro is ending the policy of increasing the minimum wage. From 2020 onwards, there will only be inflation adjustments, without any real increase. If Congress has any dignity, it will block this absurdity. If not, it will be up to the people to take to the streets and stop it by force."
"With extremely high unemployment, the minimum wage is the livelihood of families: 80% of Brazilians depend on it directly or indirectly. Brazil is one of the countries with the highest income concentration. Bank profits (2018) were R$ 100 billion. Meanwhile, the government is ending the minimum wage policy: Inflation + GDP," Senator Paulo Paim (PT-RS) also highlighted on social media.
Economist Marcio Pochann, president of the Perseu Abramo Foundation, points out that the measure further contributes to the current stagnation. "More cold water on the slowdown of the national economy, with the end of Moderfrota, which financed the purchase of agricultural equipment by BNDES, and the abandonment of the real increase in the minimum wage. If in the 4th quarter of 2018, GDP rose 0,1%, in the 1st quarter of 2019 it may be even lower."