The new value of the minimum wage – R$ 1,320.00 – takes effect today (1st). The National Congress approved the readjustment in December last year, as a way to compensate for the devaluation of the Real in the face of last year’s inflation. In 2022, the value was R$ 1,212.00.
The Bolsonaro government even proposed BRL 1,302.00, but during the debates in the National Congress, the Senate Budget Consultancy pointed out that the proposed amount would only be enough to replace the inflationary losses of the period, not representing any real gain for those whose source of income is tied to the minimum. After that, senators and federal deputies approved the General Budget of the Union for this year with a minimum of R$ 1,320.00.
The readjustment with 2.7% real gain, that is, higher than last year’s inflation, will increase federal expenses by around R$ 6.8 billion. This is because the pensions administered by the National Institute of Social Security (INSS) and various social and labor benefits, such as unemployment insurance, PIS/Pasep allowance, the Continued Provision Benefit (BPC) and others, are linked to the national base, having to be corrected.
Valuation
The union centrals, on the other hand, demanded that the federal government re-apply the Minimum Wage Valorization Policy, according to the terms agreed in 2007 and abandoned in 2019. With that, the floor should be R$ 1,342.00, contemplating the inflation measured by the National Consumer Price Index (INPC) – which, in 2022, reached 5.8% -, plus the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of two years earlier – 4.6% in 2020.
According to the Inter-Union Department of Statistics and Socioeconomic Studies (Dieese), last November, the minimum wage necessary to meet the basic needs (food, housing, clothing, education, hygiene, transportation, leisure and social security) of a family of four should be around R$ 6,575.30.
