Venezuela Celebrates May Day with New Minimum Wage

[Catherina]

Venezuela Celebrates May Day with New Minimum Wage

Imagen activaCaracas, May 1 (Prensa Latina) Venezuelan workers celebrate May Day today with an upward adjustment of 20 percent in minimum wage, as part of a plan for gradual increases in 2013.

The Republic's President Nicolas Maduro signed a decree yesterday night, which took compensation to 2.457 bolivars (about $ 390 dollars).

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According to the government, this wage adjustment system proceeds according to the rate of economic growth and the control on the Consumer Price Index.

Also, the Executive's provisions consider a further increase of 10 percent as of September, while the third review will be in November.

http://www.plenglish.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1369301&Itemid=1

In the States and in Europe, workers are losing their rights. In Latin America, they're winning them. The total minimum wage increase for Venezuela in 2013 is 45%.

How are we going to celebrate Labor Day this year?

[Warren Stupidity]

1. Oh the horrors of this oppressive dictatorship.

[Catherina]

2. Lol! You always have the right reaction

[Starry Messenger]

3. Yes, those fascists.

It's probably a staged head-fake.

[Daniel537]

4. The same way we celebrate every year.

More low-paying jobs with no benefits and unlivable wages, and a good dose of cutting on the safety net side just for kicks. Oh, and after all that we tell the rest of the world how evil socialism is.

[Catherina]

5. It's disturbing. Workers in Europe can't even celebrate, they protest against austerity, slave labor

Our situation is criminal.

May Day protests against austerity, 'slave labour'


Date: May 02 2013

Tens of thousands of angry protesters staged May Day rallies in several countries of the crisis-wracked eurozone Wednesday, as fury erupted at demonstrations in Bangladesh after a deadly building collapse.

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"This austerity is ruining and killing us," read one banner in Madrid, blasting the unpopular German-led policy of squeezing budgets in response to the eurozone's three-year debt crisis as unemployment hit 27 percent of Spain's working population.

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Pope Francis meanwhile used a private mass in his residence to mark May Day, urging political leaders to fight unemployment in a sweeping critique of "selfish profit" that he said "goes against God".

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In Dhaka, protesters holding red banners and flags chanted "Hang the Killers, Hang the Factory Owners" after the devastating caving in of the garment factory, as rescuers warned the final toll could surpass 500.

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Thousands marched in Portugal, with anger directed against the so-called Troika - the European Commission, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund - that has imposed strict austerity measures in return for bailouts worth billions of euros.

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http://www.smh.com.au/business/may-day-protests-against-austerity-slave-labour-20130502-2iu4z.html?skin=text-only

[Judi Lynn]

6. That's some article! Astonishing. The writer did a wonderful job laying it all out.

Not like the stories we used to see as children, with our corporate media huddling together and wringing their hands over the prospect of those mean old "commies" marching in their huge parades in Moscow. There we all were, gaping at photos, year after year, as people marched, and trucks pulling giant rockets drove slowly down the street.

Quite a bit more to talk about these days, isn't there?

Thanks!