Minimum Wage Around The World : by Tyler Durden

Minimum Wage Around The World

Tyler Durden
Tue, 03/21/2023 – 05:45

​ Minimum Wage Around The World

The purpose of a minimum wage is to establish a baseline income level for workers in a given jurisdiction. Ideally it’s enough to cover basic needs like food and housing, but this isn’t always a guarantee.

To see how the minimum wage differs around the world, Visual Capitalist’s Marcus Lu and Sam Parker have visualized data from Picodi, which includes values for 67 countries as of January 2023.

Monthly Minimum Wage, by Country

The following table includes all of the data used in this infographic.

Each value represents the monthly minimum wage a full-time worker would receive in each country. Picodi states that these figures are net of taxes and have been converted to USD.

Country
Increase compared to Jan 2022
Minimum wage as of Jan 2023 (full-time, USD)
Cyprus
104.5%
$854
Argentina
100.0%
$336
Turkey
32.5%
$457
Moldova
27.1%
$180
Latvia
25.8%
$555
Malaysia
24.6%
$289
Pakistan
24.5%
$111
Romania
21.9%
$393
Germany
21.2%
$1,594
Belarus
18.8%
$189
Lithuania
18.5%
$646
North Macedonia
17.4%
$298
Mexico
17.1%
$315
Chile
16.9%
$369
Russia
16.6%
$224
Kazakhstan
16.4%
$131
Colombia
16.0%
$249
Hungary
15.3%
$383
Netherlands
14.6%
$1,895
Poland
14.3%
$584
Belgium
14.3%
$1,509
Serbia
14.2%
$347
Estonia
14.2%
$704
Azerbaijan
13.3%
$186
Albania
12.9%
$265
Slovenia
12.6%
$896
US
12.0%
$1,550
Croatia
11.9%
$571
Uzbekistan
11.4%
$72
Paraguay
11.4%
$323
Armenia
10.3%
$138
Peru
10.0%
$233
Bosnia and Herzegovina
9.9%
$324
Bulgaria
9.3%
$315
Luxembourg
9.2%
$2,140
Philippines
9.0%
$141
Uruguay
8.9%
$424
Brazil
8.5%
$232
India
8.1%
$95
Indonesia
7.9%
$173
Greece
7.8%
$626
Portugal
7.3%
$690
UK
7.2%
$1,705
Slovakia
6.9%
$572
South Africa
6.6%
$226
France
6.6%
$1,380
Czechia
6.0%
$643
Vietnam
5.7%
$162
Ecuador
5.6%
$407
New Zealand
5.4%
$1,866
Ireland
5.1%
$1,753
Canada
5.0%
$1,545
Thailand
4.8%
$195
Australia
4.7%
$2,022
South Korea
4.6%
$1,333
Taiwan
4.0%
$800
Bolivia
3.9%
$284
Guatemala
3.6%
$383
Malta
3.1%
$788
Ukraine
0.0%
$146
Israel
0.0%
$1,389
Puerto Rico
0.0%
$1,328
Hong Kong
0.0%
$959
Saudi Arabia
0.0%
$958
Spain
0.0%
$925
Montenegro
0.0%
$459
Nigeria
0.0%
$68
Luxembourg, Australia, Netherlands, New Zealand, and Ireland (around $1900) have the highest monthly minimum wage (with US 8th after Germnay and UK).

Nigeria, Uzbekistan, and India have the lowest monthly minimum wage (around $70)

Generally speaking, developed countries have a higher cost of living, and thus require a higher minimum wage.

Two outliers in this dataset are Argentina and Turkey, which have increased their minimum wages by 100% or more from January 2022 levels.

Turkey is suffering from an ongoing currency crisis, with the lira losing over 40% of its value in 2021. Prices of basic goods have increased considerably as the Turkish lira continues to plummet. In fact, a 2022 survey found that 70% of people in Turkey were struggling to pay for food.

Argentina, South America’s second-biggest economy, is also suffering from very high inflation. In response, the country announced three minimum wage increases throughout 2022.

Minimum Wage in the U.S.

Within the U.S., minimum wage varies significantly by state. We’ve visualized each state’s basic minimum rate (hourly) using January 2023 data from the U.S. Department of Labor.

America’s federal minimum wage has remained unchanged since 2009 at $7.25 per hour.

Each state is allowed to set their own minimum wage, as long as it’s higher than the federal minimum. In states that do not set their own minimum, the federal minimum applies.

If we assume someone works 40 hours a week, the federal minimum wage of $7.25 translates to an annual figure of just $15,080 before taxes. California’s minimum wage of $15.50 translates to $32,240 before taxes.

For further perspective, check out our 2022 infographic on the salary needed to buy a home across 50 U.S. cities.

Tyler Durden
Tue, 03/21/2023 – 05:45