Istanbul, June 22 (IANS) Turkish exporters have welcomed a 34-per cent hike in the minimum wage, but called for measures to curb inflation.
The monthly net minimum salary will increase to 11,402 Turkish liras ($484.08) beginning on July 1, Xinhua news agency reported.
Cetin Tecdelioglu, Acting Chairman of the Turkish Exporters Assembly, said on Wednesday in a statement that the increase in minimum wage met expectations.
“We think that it is good to improve the living conditions of our employees. We believe that this increase will also bring dynamism to the domestic market,” he added in a written statement.
Guven Karaca, Chairman of the Board of Istanbul Leather and Leather Products Exporters’ Association, said the stronger the employees, the stronger the production, but warned the main problem is inflation.
“At the point where inflation cannot be resolved, minimum wage increases will be a step that will satisfy the employees for a temporary period of time at a time of global recession,” Karaca added.
Ahmet Hayri Diler, Chairman of the Board of Istanbul Carpet Exporters’ Association, also agreed that inflation should be curbed after the hike in the minimum wage.
Turkey’s annual inflation fell to 39.6 per cent in May after touching a 24-year peak of 85.5 per cent in October last year. In a recent statement, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his government would focus on reducing inflation to single digits.
–IANS
int/khz/