International Labour Organization: Real wages will continue to decline this year

Xinhua Beijing, November 4, according to the United Nations web site reported that the International Labor organization November 3 issued a report said, affected by the global economic crisis, labor real wages in 2008 years, and despite the current emergence of some preliminary signs of economic recovery, the expected real wages will continue to fall further this year. The report notes that of the 53 countries that provided the data, the median wage growth rate fell from 4.3% in 2007 to 2008 years of 1.4% per cent.　　Among the 10 members of the group of 20, the median wage growth rate was reduced from 1% in 2007 to 0.2% per cent in 2008.　　In the first quarter of 2009, real wages in half of the 35 countries that provided the data decreased from the average for the same period in 2008. In response to concerns about low wages and heightened social injustice, many countries have adopted measures to raise minimum wage standards. Of the 86 countries that provided the data, half of the countries ' minimum wage growth in 2008 exceeded the inflation rate.　　The report notes that raising the minimum wage is an important policy tool for achieving social security and can be used in conjunction with other income support measures and tax relief measures.　　The report also notes that, before the onset of the economic crisis, wage levels have been stagnant for a long time compared to the increase in labour productivity, which, coupled with the growing inequality of society, has contributed to the economic crisis, in part, by the inability of many families to increase consumption unless they are indebted. The report argues that the link between productivity growth and wage increases in the future is crucial for economic and social sustainability. Employers should improve their competitiveness by increasing productivity rather than cutting wages, and workers need to have enough bargaining power to protect their wages.