The Minimum Wage Determination Commission held its first meeting on Wednesday to determine the minimum wage to be paid in 2016. The government, employers and employees reached consensus on increasing the minimum wage during the meeting, which was chaired by Labor and Social Security Minister Süleyman Soylu. The first session of the meeting mainly discussed the burden of the recalculated minimum wage of TL 1,300 ($450) on employers. The government will come to the table with concrete steps to ease the burden on employers in the second session of the meeting, which is scheduled for Dec. 10. The new minimum wage is slated to take effect as of the New Year. Prior to the Nov. 1 election, the Justice and Development Party (AK Party), which won enough seats in Parliament to form a single-party government, promised to raise the minimum wage from TL 1,000 to TL 1,300 per month. During the meeting, employee representatives requested that TL 1,300 be paid as a net salary to minimum wage workers without any cuts, while the government assured that the minimum wage would not be affected by an employee's corresponding tax bracket. The employers said they found the government's attitude toward reducing the cost of the new minimum wage positive.

Soylu: New minimum wage to cover the whole year

Soylu said the government observed both fiscal discipline and the status of the business community as well as employees in a rational manner during the talks. Stressing that the minimum wage would not be reduced to TL 1,260 because of the income scale, Soylu said the recalculated minimum wage of TL 1,300 would be effective throughout 2016. "There is no need to worry as between TL 30 and TL 70 will not be cut from the minimum wage because of the tax bracket. Certainly, we observe labor life, production, competition and fiscal disciplines. I believe we will reach a conclusion on which all parties will agree," Soylu said.

Employers hope their burden will be eased

Metin Demir, the supervisory board member of the Turkish Confederation of Employer Associations (TİSK), said the first session of the meeting was good, adding that the government has taken up an attitude to ease the burden on employers. According to Demir, the confederation requested that the government shoulder responsibility and share the burden of the new minimum wage, as the business community cannot handle it on its own in the current economic environment. The Treasury, as well as finance and development ministries, will work on launching incentives to ease additional taxes and premiums accompanying the new minimum wage. Explaining his hope that the government will take concrete steps in the second meeting, Demir said the first meeting was very positive, as it avoided weakening the competitive power of the private sector on Turkey's way to achieving its 2023 targets.

Confederation of Turkish Trade Unions (TÜRK-İŞ) Secretary-General of Education Nazmi Irgat suggested TL 1,300 should be paid as a net salary to minimum wage workers without any cuts, adding, "The minimum wage should not undergo cuts stemming from the tax bracket in the upcoming months of the year, as there is already a heavy tax burden on wageworkers."

Irgat stressed that the minimum living allowance should be increased to the minimum wage level and that the minimum wage should be regarded as a social wage. "We expect the government, which adopted a different attitude in previous years, to work on a generally-accepted minimum wage, which is based on a base pay determined by scientific and objective data," he said.