The Czech minimum wage, currently at 13,350 crowns, is the lowest in
Central Europe, and in terms of buying power, such employees are even worse
off, the business daily Hospodářské noviny writes.
Unions are lobbying for the minimum wage to rise to 15,000 crowns next year
while employers’ associations propose a rise of just 700 crowns. About
150,000 people are in minimum wage jobs, according to the newspaper.
Czechs’ comparative purchasing power should rise from 66 percent of the
average of euro zone countries now to 71 percent next year, according to
the Ministry of Finance.