The gradual change of Venezuela with the use of dollar It is widening wage inequality between public and private sector workers, as those paid in foreign currency have greater purchasing power, while others face prohibitive prices, employees, retirees and economists said.
Foreign exchange transactions increased in the country following the government of the illegitimate president Nicholas Maduro relaxed controls on the economy in 2019, a measure that has given some companies some oxygen, but that still does not guarantee a full recovery of economic activities, following eight years of collapse and annual inflation of 222%, according to data officers.
Public sector workers are the most affected by the shift in the government’s economic policy, since their salaries are paid in the local currency, the bolívar, and increases are sporadic. In the private sector, at least 63% of salaries are paid in foreign currency, according to calculations by the Venezuelan Finance Observatory.
“We have been suffering from low wages for some time”said Seyyer Chacona 43-year-old nurse who works in a hospital in San Cristobalcapital of the border state Tachirawhich suffers from frequent power failures. “I don’t earn enough to change the oil in my car”added the worker who earns regarding 250 bolivars a month, which is equivalent to US$ 55.
Low wages have a ripple effect, with public sector employees and retirees protesting weekly for higher wages near government offices in various cities across the country.
In the first quarter of the year there were 700 labor protests, 27% more than in the same period of 2021, according to the non-governmental organization Venezuelan Observatory of Social Conflict.
“The hyperinflation that led to the largest transactions in dollars and that has allowed a slight recovery in some activities, deepened the differences between wages in the private and public sectors”said Omar Zambranoeconomist and director of the local firm Anova Policy.
“Everything was dollarized, except for the public sector, which does not generate enough foreign currency and with almost two million employees cannot pay higher salaries”he added.
A limited government response has pushed some employees out of their jobs, said three unionists who asked to withhold their names, adding that the layoffs have impacted the provision of basic services and the operations of state-owned companies. , including oil company PDVSA, already battered by years of disinvestment, mismanagement and US sanctions.
The communications and labor ministries did not respond to requests for comment. In recent days, the vice president, Delcy Rodriguezsaid that to the extent that more income is guaranteed to the country, the well-being of workers is improved.
salary is not enough
In Venezuela, public sector employees earn the equivalent of between US$30 and US$100, according to the latest government salary revisions. Meanwhile, in the private sector, their employees earn between a minimum of US$106 and a maximum of US$247 per month, the Venezuelan Finance Observatory calculated in April.
Because of the low salaries Ramona Francoa 59-year-old teacher, left her teaching position at a public school in Maracaibostate capital Zuliaa once oil-rich state, and now subsists by selling lunches at home at a cost of $1 a meal.
“Years ago, being a teacher in Venezuela was an opportunity to grow because salaries were enough to live on, but today it is illogical that a teacher’s salary is not enough for a kilo of cheese”Franco added, whose salary was regarding US$15 with 19 years of teaching experience.
An amount that is far removed from the cost of the basic food basket, which is around US$300.
Hernando González, 23, has been working as a waiter in a restaurant in Maracaibo for two months, and his monthly salary is around US$100. Before working in the business, he made home deliveries by bicycle, but the income was intermittent and He chose to look for a permanent job.
“The economic situation of this country is no secret to anyone, so I try to extend the payment as long as I can for food, and what my one-year-old son needs”added González, who receives a mixed salary, in bolivars and dollars, and still uses his bicycle to go to work.
Meanwhile, pensioners, who contributed for years to the social security system, receive the equivalent of US$30 per month, an amount set by the State, and which is equal to the minimum wage.
“I contributed 35 years to social security and the pension goes to buying medicines”said Alis Moreno, 67, during a protest by pensioners in front of the headquarters of the Ministry of Labor, in Caracas.
“I felt middle class, now I ask for alms to survive”added Moreno, who in order to earn a little more money sells candies in the subway Caracas and earn for your sales between US$2.5 and US$5 a day.