APSN Banner

MP: $115 minimum salary not enough

Source
Dili Weekly - September 12, 2013

Ezequiel Freitas – Member of National Parliament Mateus de Jesus says the $115 minimum salary for workers is not enough to cover basic necessities, as the price of goods continues to rise.

SEPFOPE Director General Jacinto Gusmao recognized the minimum salary of $115 was insufficient to pay for everyday necessities. The CNRT MP said based on his observations the cost of basic necessities increased every day.

"I believe that with $115 you can't do anything, especially living in Dili," said MP de Jesus in National Parliament. According to him, $115 could be enough for those who are single but it was very difficult for those who already had a family.

Meanwhile, the General Director at the Secretariat of State for Professional Training and Employment Jacinto Barros Gusmao said based on the law setting the minimum wage, every two years they would review the law.

"We conducted research and decided on a minimum salary of $170... but the Council of Ministers said we should look again at the public service level one, and we adjusted it to become $115," he said.

He acknowledged a salary of $115 was not enough based on what he felt and saw. "I eat one sack of rice in three days as there's a lot of us, so we eat ten sacks of rice in one month," said the General Director.

Country