Minimum wage of R$ 724 comes into effect on the 1st.
The value is 6,78% higher than the current R$ 678; this percentage is above the inflation measured by the IPCA, which, according to the most recent projection from the Focus bulletin, should close the year at 5,72%; the increase in the minimum wage is foreseen in the Annual Budget Law of 2014.
Mariana Branco
Reporter from Agência Brasil
Brasilia - The new minimum wage of R$ 724 will come into effect tomorrow (1st). The amount is 6,78% higher than the current R$ 678. The percentage is above the inflation measured by the Broad Consumer Price Index which, according to the most recent projection of the Focus bulletin, released at the beginning of last week by the Central Bank, should close the year at 5,72%.
The increase in the minimum wage is stipulated in the 2014 Annual Budget Law and was approved by Congress the week before Christmas. On December 23rd, President Dilma Rousseff signed the decree with the adjustment and confirmed the new amount on her Twitter account.
According to information from the Inter-Union Department of Statistics and Socioeconomic Studies, the minimum wage will inject R$ 28,4 billion into the economy in 2014. According to the entity's calculations, the new value allows the purchase of 2,23 basic food baskets. This is the highest purchasing power ratio since 1979.
The minimum wage came into effect in Brazil on May 1, 1940, during the Getúlio Vargas administration. The Federal Constitution establishes that the amount should be sufficient to cover the basic needs of the worker and their family: food, housing, education, health, leisure, clothing, hygiene, transportation, and social security.