Minimum pay raise triggers new price hikes in Transnistria

In July, diary products in Transnistria rose in price by 5 percent and meat and sausages by an average of 7 percent in the aftermath of a hike in the minimum wage, which from July 1 is 1,737 Transnistrian rubles (about $200), Info-Prim Neo reports. Though normally a minimum wage would mean no one should be paid below a certain level, there are still employees, mostly government-paid, who receive less – around one thousand rubles. The fixed salary of a doctor or teacher for June was not higher than 870 rubles (about $100). Because of the low profitability, industrial companies from Transnistria are unable to increase wages from incomes, therefore they are compelled to compensate for the wage hikes from the value of the produced goods. In the current circumstances, the minimum pay raise in Transnistria, compels employers to either resort to layoffs or to cut working hours from 8 to 6 or even 4 a day.