ACCRA, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- The Ghanaian government increased the national daily minimum wage by 10 percent, according to a statement released here late Wednesday by the National Tripartite Committee (NTC).
The new daily minimum wage in Ghana effective from January next year, according to the NTC, will be 14.88 Ghana cedis (1.03 U.S. dollars).
According to the committee, it took into account the current economic challenges, cost of living, sustainability of businesses, and desirability of attaining higher levels of employment, as well as the need for rapid restoration of macroeconomic stability.
The government urged all establishments whose daily minimum wages were lower than the new rates to raise them as of Jan. 1 next year.
Employers who fail to pay the minimum wage may be subject to punishment. Meanwhile, the NTC is currently in negotiations with organized labor and other institutions over the salary increment for public sector workers.
Ghana has been buffeted by economic hardships as inflation soared and the local currency depreciated in recent months, prompting rising living costs for its citizens. ■