Minimum wage, a cornerstone of labor law in many countries, represents the lowest hourly, daily, or monthly wage an employer is legally obligated to pay workers. Just as currency and economics vary from country to country, each country has a unique approach to minimum wage. While occasionally a topic of controversy and political debate, many governments implement such policies to protect employees from exploitation and ensure a basic standard of living. Over the last few years, high inflation rates and increased cost of living worldwide have decreased earners' purchasing power. As a result, governments across the globe have taken pains to address this crisis, with some choosing to pass laws to increase their minimum wage. In this report from Madison Trust, we’ll explore the minimum wage worldwide and where it’s increased over the last year.
The History of Minimum Wage and Why It Matters
The concept of a minimum wage isn’t new and has been a tradition for over a century. New Zealand was the first nation to introduce a minimum wage in 1894, followed closely by Australia in 1896. Throughout the 20th century’s labor activism movement, many countries followed, including the United States in 1938. While wages aren’t the only component of a healthy economy, they have certainly proven to be a key factor in higher satisfaction rates among a population. Data consistently shows that countries with the highest minimum wages seem to be the happiest.
As evidenced by the countries with the highest and lowest minimum wages in the world, such policies can significantly improve the quality of life for workers and stimulate the economy. In Venezuela, for example, which has one of the lowest minimum wages in the world, hyperinflation has rendered the minimum wage nearly worthless, leaving millions unable to afford essentials like food, housing, and healthcare. The Gambia, too, has a low minimum wage that has not seen an increase in some time and had a poverty rate of over 50% in 2020.
On the other end of the spectrum, nations like Australia, Luxembourg, and the United Kingdom have the highest minimum wage in the world. Australia and Luxembourg both rank among the top 10 happiest countries in the world, with the UK still ranking in the top 20.
How Minimum Wages Vary Across Countries
Even in how they’re administered, minimum wages worldwide are far from uniform. While some nations enforce a single national wage, others adopt more complex systems that vary by region, industry, or even age.
National Laws: On a federal level, countries like the U.S. and France have laws that dictate what the minimum wage must be across the entire nation. This can either be a law, decree, or statute set by the government.
Regional and State-specific Legislation: In countries such as India and China, wages differ by region or state. In China, urban centers like Beijing and Shanghai offer higher minimum wages than rural areas. In the U.S., states also can set minimum wages, so long as they aren’t lower than the federal minimum. For instance, California’s minimum wage is significantly higher than the federal standard, reflecting the state’s higher cost of living.
Industry-specific: Some nations tailor wages to specific trades to help boost up crucial parts of their economies. Panama, for instance, adjusts minimum wages based on industry, with minimum wage scales across 20 different sectors. In addition to allowing states to set their own minimum wages, India also sets different minimum wages for labor across three categories: unskilled, skilled, and highly skilled.
Age and Experience: Certain places, such as the United Kingdom, have taken a rare and sometimes controversial approach, where minimum wages vary by age. Under this system, adults over 21 are guaranteed a higher minimum wage than workers aged 21, 18, and younger.
Inflation and Wage Increases
From 2020 onward, the COVID-19 pandemic significantly disrupted global economies. Factors such as supply chain bottlenecks, rising demand, and higher production costs, compounded by geopolitical tensions, have fueled inflation in many parts of the world. By 2024, these pressures had reached levels governments could no longer ignore, prompting widespread minimum wage adjustments.
In America, several states, such as Massachusetts, California, and New York, have increased their minimum wages to nearly double the federal minimum. Many countries in the EU, including Poland, Croatia, and Bulgaria, have passed dramatic increases to their minimum wages to outpace inflation and give their workers better purchasing power.
Some countries regularly increase their minimum wages through automatic indexation, where minimum wages are increased yearly based on economic conditions such as inflation. This system is used in countries such as Belgium, France, Israel, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands. It has allowed wages in these nations to keep up with the dramatic inflation seen in the aftermath of the pandemic.
Conclusion
The global minimum wage increases in 2024 reflect a broader acknowledgment of the challenges posed by inflation and the growing cost of living. From nations grappling with severe economic crises, like Argentina and Venezuela, to those aiming to maintain their high standards of living, such as Australia and Luxembourg, the global commitment to these policies plays a critical role in safeguarding economic stability.
In a world grappling with inflation, inequality, and rapid economic shifts, it’s essential to safeguard your future. If you want to take control of your retirement assets, contact Madison Trust today to learn more about how our Self-Directed IRAs can help you prepare.
Which Countries Have Increased Minimum Wage the Most in 2024?
|
Country |
Minimum Hourly Wage (USD) |
Increase? |
How Much? (Percentage) |
|
Nigeria |
$1.01 |
Yes |
133.30% |
|
Kosovo |
$2.18 |
Yes |
105.00% |
|
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines |
$2.30 |
Yes |
66.00% |
|
Samoa |
$1.72 |
Yes |
61.30% |
|
Laos |
$0.71 |
Yes |
56.25% |
|
Mauritania |
$7.09 |
Yes |
50.00% |
|
Lebanon |
$2.15 |
Yes |
50.00% |
|
Namibia |
$1.00 |
Yes |
50.00% |
|
Turkey |
$3.90 |
Yes |
49.00% |
|
Angola |
$0.50 |
Yes |
45.00% |
|
Palau |
$5.00 |
Yes |
42.90% |
|
Suriname |
$1.42 |
Yes |
40.00% |
|
Sri Lanka |
$0.37 |
Yes |
40.00% |
|
Iran |
$0.90 |
Yes |
35.00% |
|
Tajikistan |
$0.47 |
Yes |
33.30% |
|
Timor-Leste |
$0.93 |
Yes |
30.00% |
|
Mauritius |
$1.11 |
Yes |
29.00% |
|
Fiji |
$2.22 |
Yes |
25.00% |
|
Moldova |
$1.67 |
Yes |
25.00% |
|
Northern Cyprus |
$4.63 |
Yes |
23.50% |
|
Botswana |
$0.55 |
Yes |
23.50% |
|
Ghana |
$0.14 |
Yes |
22.00% |
|
Kazakhstan |
$0.95 |
Yes |
21.40% |
|
Mexico |
$1.75 |
Yes |
20.00% |
|
Mongolia |
$1.21 |
Yes |
20.00% |
|
Saint Kitts and Nevis |
$3.98 |
Yes |
19.40% |
|
Myanmar |
$0.40 |
Yes |
17.20% |
|
Trinidad and Tobago |
$3.03 |
Yes |
17.00% |
|
Russia |
$1.34 |
Yes |
16.67% |
|
Bulgaria |
$3.59 |
Yes |
15.40% |
|
Cape Verde |
$0.92 |
Yes |
15.40% |
|
Argentina |
$14.89 |
Yes |
15.00% |
|
Croatia |
$6.55 |
Yes |
15.00% |
|
Jamaica |
$2.05 |
Yes |
15.00% |
|
Serbia |
$2.84 |
Yes |
13.70% |
|
Malaysia |
$1.64 |
Yes |
13.30% |
|
Estonia |
$5.07 |
Yes |
13.00% |
|
Belarus |
$1.19 |
Yes |
13.00% |
|
Lithuania |
$6.90 |
Yes |
12.39% |
|
North Macedonia |
$2.30 |
Yes |
11.86% |
|
Jersey |
$15.11 |
Yes |
10.90% |
|
Malta |
$5.73 |
Yes |
10.80% |
|
Mozambique |
$0.44 |
Yes |
10.50% |
|
Madagascar |
$0.36 |
Yes |
10.40% |
|
Nicaragua |
$1.21 |
Yes |
10.10% |
|
Czech Republic |
$5.33 |
Yes |
10.06% |
|
Romania |
$5.32 |
Yes |
9.50% |
|
Slovakia |
$5.07 |
Yes |
8.80% |
|
Chile |
$3.46 |
Yes |
8.69% |
|
South Africa |
$1.57 |
Yes |
8.50% |
|
Colombia |
$2.03 |
Yes |
8.40% |
|
Ukraine |
$1.16 |
Yes |
8.33% |
|
Poland |
$7.58 |
Yes |
7.60% |
|
Uzbekistan |
$0.50 |
Yes |
7.14% |
|
Andorra |
$8.50 |
Yes |
7.00% |
|
Honduras |
$2.90 |
Yes |
7.00% |
|
Brazil |
$1.13 |
Yes |
6.97% |
|
Germany |
$13.95 |
Yes |
6.80% |
|
United Kingdom |
$15.84 |
Yes |
6.70% |
|
Isle of Man |
$14.87 |
Yes |
6.50% |
|
Greece |
$6.27 |
Yes |
6.40% |
|
Croatia |
$5.71 |
Yes |
6.33% |
|
Ireland |
$14.69 |
Yes |
6.30% |
|
Macau |
$4.00 |
Yes |
6.25% |
|
Portugal |
$6.33 |
Yes |
6.10% |
|
Vietnam |
$0.94 |
Yes |
6.00% |
|
Kenya |
$0.26 |
Yes |
6.00% |
|
Bolivia |
$1.88 |
Yes |
5.85% |
|
Panama |
$1.53 |
Yes |
5.80% |
|
Latvia |
$4.62 |
Yes |
5.71% |
|
Israel |
$9.48 |
Yes |
5.50% |
|
Uruguay |
$2.46 |
Yes |
5.50% |
|
Kyrgyzstan |
$0.21 |
Yes |
5.30% |
|
Japan |
$6.85 |
Yes |
5.10% |
|
Spain |
$9.55 |
Yes |
5.00% |
|
Morocco |
$1.66 |
Yes |
5.00% |
|
Guatemala |
$1.57 |
Yes |
5.00% |
|
Cameroon |
$0.45 |
Yes |
5.00% |
|
Paraguay |
$1.99 |
Yes |
4.40% |
|
Slovenia |
$7.78 |
Yes |
4.24% |
|
Taiwan |
$6.04 |
Yes |
4.08% |
|
Canada |
$12.38 |
Yes |
3.90% |
|
Bosnia and Herzegovina |
$1.90 |
Yes |
3.86% |
|
Australia |
$16.37 |
Yes |
3.75% |
|
Indonesia |
$1.18 |
Yes |
3.50% |
|
India |
$0.26 |
Yes |
3.30% |
|
Luxembourg |
$16.17 |
Yes |
3.20% |
|
Netherlands |
$14.44 |
Yes |
3.09% |
|
Ecuador |
$3.43 |
Yes |
2.20% |
|
New Zealand |
$13.81 |
Yes |
2.00% |
|
France |
$13.33 |
Yes |
2.00% |
|
Costa Rica |
$2.78 |
Yes |
1.83% |
|
Belgium |
$14.58 |
Yes |
1.80% |
|
South Korea |
$7.30 |
Yes |
1.70% |
|
Monaco |
$12.68 |
Yes |
1.13% |
|
San Marino |
$10.00 |
No |
0.00% |
|
United States |
$7.25 |
No |
0.00% |
|
The Bahamas |
$6.50 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Hong Kong |
$5.14 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Estonia |
$5.09 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Oman |
$4.70 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Barbados |
$4.25 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Hungary |
$4.22 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Antigua and Barbuda |
$3.33 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Montenegro |
$3.29 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Palestine |
$2.98 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Belize |
$2.50 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Albania |
$2.49 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Saint Lucia |
$2.41 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Jordan |
$2.17 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Marshall Islands |
$2.00 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Qatar |
$1.72 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Guyana |
$1.65 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Philippines |
$1.64 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Maldives |
$1.63 |
No |
0.00% |
|
El Salvador |
$1.60 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Seychelles |
$1.58 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Gabon |
$1.56 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Kuwait |
$1.52 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Thailand |
$1.50 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Dominica |
$1.48 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Vanuatu |
$1.43 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Libya |
$1.29 |
No |
0.00% |
|
China |
$1.27 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Peru |
$1.27 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Armenia |
$1.19 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Azerbaijan |
$1.17 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Belarus |
$1.15 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Dominican Republic |
$1.14 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Equatorial Guinea |
$1.12 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Iraq |
$0.99 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Kiribati |
$0.98 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Republic of the Congo |
$0.94 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Algeria |
$0.85 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Papua New Guinea |
$0.80 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Tunisia |
$0.80 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Côte d'Ivoire |
$0.78 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Comoros |
$0.76 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Bangladesh |
$0.70 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Lesotho |
$0.67 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Chad |
$0.64 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Nepal |
$0.61 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Solomon Islands |
$0.55 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Cuba |
$0.54 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Togo |
$0.54 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Benin |
$0.53 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Pakistan |
$0.52 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Eswatini |
$0.48 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Senegal |
$0.42 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Afghanistan |
$0.41 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Haiti |
$0.41 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Central African Republic |
$0.36 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Democratic Republic of the Congo |
$0.31 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Niger |
$0.31 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Burkina Faso |
$0.30 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Bhutan |
$0.29 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Sierra Leone |
$0.28 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Malawi |
$0.25 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Mali |
$0.25 |
No |
0.00% |
|
North Korea |
$0.25 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Zambia |
$0.24 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Uganda |
$0.20 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Guinea-Bissau |
$0.18 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Syria |
$0.15 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Tanzania |
$0.14 |
No |
0.00% |
|
The Gambia |
$0.10 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Georgia |
$0.04 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Venezuela |
$0.02 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Sudan |
$0.01 |
No |
0.00% |
|
Austria |
None |
||
|
Bahrain |
None |
||
|
Brunei |
None |
||
|
Burundi |
None |
||
|
Cyprus |
None |
||
|
Denmark |
None |
||
|
Djibouti |
None |
||
|
Egypt |
None |
||
|
Eritrea |
None |
||
|
Ethiopia |
None |
||
|
Federated States of Micronesia |
None |
||
|
Finland |
None |
||
|
Grenada |
None |
||
|
Guernsey |
None |
||
|
Guinea |
None |
||
|
Iceland |
None |
||
|
Italy |
None |
||
|
Liechtenstein |
None |
||
|
Nauru |
None |
||
|
Norway |
None |
||
|
Rwanda |
None |
||
|
São Tomé and Príncipe |
None |
||
|
Singapore |
None |
||
|
Somalia |
None |
||
|
South Sudan |
None |
||
|
Sweden |
None |
||
|
Switzerland |
None |
||
|
Tonga |
None |
||
|
Tuvalu |
None |
||
|
United Arab Emirates |
None |
||
|
Yemen |
None |
||
|
Zimbabwe |
None |
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