The Minimum Wage Advisory Board has passed the decision to allocate USD 369 as the minimum wage in the Maldives.
On October 4, the Minimum Wage Advisory Board concluded its final report to be presented to the economic minister on the recommended minimum wage allocation in the Maldives, in accordance to the sixth amendment to the Employment Act. In its report, the Minimum Wage Advisory Board has allocated minimum wages for three different categories of businesses, as well as the civil service sector.
The board decided on a minimum wage of USD 369 per month for small enterprises, where an employee works 8 hours per day. For medium level enterprises and civil servants, the minimum wage has been allocated as USD 453. For large businesses, the minimum wage has been allocated as USD 576.
Furthermore, the Minimum Wage Advisory Board has recommended the moratorium on allocating minimum wage for foreign workers to be extended to 5 years, instead of the 2 years specified in the Employment Act. The board said the minimum wage for foreign workers can be allocated earlier if the board believes there is a change of situation where the minimum wage for foreign workers can be imposed earlier. The board also stated the moratorium should not be an opportunity given to businesses to employ more foreigners.
The allocation of the minimum wage comes at a time civil servants have been expressing concerns over their salaries. The government had previously stated the new national pay framework, which is set to be come in to effect next year, will resolve the concerns related to civil servant salaries.