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State Secretary: Hungary's minimum wage needs to rise 50% by 2027

The minimum wage needs to rise by 11-12pc per year, Sándor Czomba said, adding that GDP and inflation levels as well as productivity increases also needed to be weighed.

State Secretary Sándor Czomba said Hungary's minimum wage needs to rise to 50pc of the average gross wage, excluding bonuses, by January 1, 2027.

Czomba said that the government had established the benchmark value on the basis of a decision taken by employers and unions. He added that it would put the minimum wage between HUF 350,000 and HUF 400,000 per month by 2027.

To reach that level, the minimum wage needs to rise by 11-12pc per year, he said, adding that GDP and inflation levels as well as productivity increases also needed to be weighed.

Czomba said a government degree mandating the VKF, a forum of employers, unions and the government, to start negotiations on the minimum wage would be published soon.

Although the minimum wage for skilled and unskilled workers affects about 1m people directly, its indirect impact is much broader, he added.