Who is really affected by the revaluation of the minimum wage? – The Express

“The group of experts recommends refraining from any boost to the minimum wage on January 1, 2024. The only automatic revaluation mechanisms preserve the purchasing power of the minimum wage in view of the increase in the price index at consumption”, assure the experts.

The minimum wage benefits from a mechanical increase each year, calculated according to two criteria: inflation observed for the 20% of households with the lowest incomes and half of the gain in purchasing power of the basic hourly salary of workers and employees. (SHBOE). “Over three years, from January 1, 2021 to December 31, 2023, the minimum wage will have been increased seven times for a total of 13.5%,” notes the report.

“No boost, because it is not effective in fighting poverty, because it could increase poverty with effects on the employment of vulnerable people,” the group’s president told AFP. of experts, the economist Gilbert This. In an interview with L’Express, in 2021, the specialist spoke of this French exception: “Among the thirty OECD countries with a national minimum wage, only three others have an automatic revaluation mechanism, and only on the inflation.”

For her part, the general secretary of the CGT, Sophie Binet, contests this analysis, highlighting wages indexed to inflation in Belgium or higher remuneration in industry in Germany. “The real experts on the minimum wage are the employees who are more and more numerous, and especially numerous, to be paid the minimum wage,” she declared to AFP, noting that 57% of minimum wage workers are now women, compared to 55% last year.

But, for the group of experts, “the legal minimum wage increases in France are not very effective in reducing working poverty, the main factors of which are a low number of hours worked and family configuration”, with reference to part-time and to single-parent families.

“An additional increase in the minimum wage would also contribute to further compressing the range of salaries at the level of the minimum wage”, warn the experts while the percentage of employees directly affected by the revaluation of the minimum wage on January 1 increased from 12% in 2021 to 17.3% in 2023. Never in France, for more than thirty years, has the share of minimum wage workers among employees been so high.

“There are 3.1 million employees who are paid the minimum wage, while there were 2.5 million last year,” notes Sophie Binet, adding that this “stark increase demonstrates the decline in remuneration.” Who are they ? Their profile is less heterogeneous than the rest of the employees, they are mainly women, more than 57%. Furthermore, part-time employees are more frequently represented.

Like last year, experts recommend reforming the system by modifying the indexation rules. Among their proposals is automatic indexation on the average of changes in minimum wages for a panel of branches, according to the Dutch or German model. Proposals described as “red rag” and “real provocation” by the general secretary of the CGT. “The only thing that protects employees in France is the minimum wage. It is not increasing enough, but fortunately it is there, because other salaries are increasing much less,” notes Sophie Binet.

Consequences of the increase in the minimum wage, certain conventional minimum remuneration levels are found below. The professional branches therefore have the obligation to bring their grids up to standard. At the last count, around forty are still in a situation of non-compliance since May 1, of which 11 are monitored by the Ministry of Labor, underline our colleagues from the Echoes.