Salary, more precisely - its size and terms of payment - those are the main characteristics of the future workplace that concern almost every job seeker. Therefore, it is not surprising that one of the main issues constantly discussed in the press and raised by potential candidates on the eve of the next election is the minimum wage. So, what is the minimum wage that can be considered fair?
Minimum wage and cost of living
One of the most interesting and controversial economic issues in the post-Soviet space is the concept of a living wage and its relationship with the minimum wage. So, how do you calculate the cost of living, and what should be the minimum wage? The subsistence minimum, as a rule, means the minimum acceptable amount of income that can provide an individual person (in no way as part of a household of several entities!) The maintenance of his life. Simply put, this is a valuation of a certain conditional consumer basket.
In our country, it includes potatoes, bread, pasta, cereals, fruits, meat, eggs, etc. In addition to food, non-food items are included in the basket in an amount equal to half the cost of food. The cost of various services, including a communal apartment, also accounts for half the cost of a conventional food basket. The subsistence minimum is calculated on the basis of statistical data, that is, it has a certain basis. Therefore, it seems that the answer to the question of what minimum wage should be paid to employees is obvious - not lower than the subsistence level.
Russia: minimum wage and fines
In Russia, the main document that determines what minimum wage should be assigned to employees is the corresponding law regulating the minimum wage. Initially, they were guided not only in determining positions of interaction between workers and employers, but also in calculating a number of penalties and determining the amount of registered capital for commercial companies. However, with a rather rapid increase in the minimum wage, which seeks for the average wage in the country as a whole, in addition to reducing the difference in the welfare of workers receiving a minimum wage and workers whose earnings are comparable to the average wage in the industry, a paradox arose when a possible sharp increase in administrative fines (which can be imposed on anyone, for example, for violation of traffic rules) could lead to a certain social tension.
Therefore, since 2009, to determine the amount of administrative fines, they are guided by the category “base amount”, which significantly differs to a lesser extent from what the minimum wage in Russia is paid on the date of the violation.
Minimal level in Russia
The cost of living is calculated separately by region and is subject to periodic adjustment, taking into account price increases and the inflation component. The minimum wage is adjusted, unfortunately, not so often, because for its guaranteed payment a certain economic base is needed both at enterprises and in the budget sphere. At the same time, it is the value of the subsistence minimum that is taken into account when determining the size of a social pension. That is, a certain paradox has developed in Russia: the minimum wage, which is now paid, does not keep up with the cost of living. A rather specific category of poor people appeared - the working population. Naturally, this phenomenon was considered at all levels of government with simultaneous attempts to develop a strategy to determine what the minimum wage in Russia will make it possible to solve the problem of poverty of the working population.
Minimum wage by region
Legislatively fixed only the lower limit of the minimum wage. Regions are given the right, in the presence of their own financial and economic resources, to independently determine what minimum wages will be paid within their borders. The most “poor”, subsidized, of course, are forced to focus on the federal standard. However, donor regions act differently in the existing legal framework: if you turn to the official sources of regions and territories for information about what is currently the minimum wage paid on their territory, the spread will be quite significant. For example, the minimum wage in Moscow from January 1, 2016 amounts to 18 742 rubles with the legislatively established 6 204 rubles. The authorities signed business agreements with business representatives.
What is the minimum wage from January 1, 2018 will be paid in Russia
One of the main tasks facing the Government of the Russian Federation today is to bring the minimum wage to a living wage. A specific schedule has been drawn up, which is reflected in the legislation, in accordance with which the dates of the next increase are determined. A rather serious increase is planned for 2018 - by 22%, which will provide three-quarters of the cost of living. The minimum salary, which from January all employers will be required to pay guaranteed, will amount to 9, 489 rubles. By region, it may slightly differ upwards due to the presence of district coefficients. Corresponding summary tables have already appeared on most accounting resources and in mailing lists for subscribers.
Prospects for further changes in the minimum wage
In addition to this January, a gradual increase was planned to increase the minimum wage only from January 2019. However, based on the stabilization of positive phenomena in the economy recorded by the Ministry of Economic Development, the current President of the Russian Federation V.V. Putin has already declared a possible increase in the minimum wage as early as May 2018. The relevant law has not yet been adopted.
Minimum wage and taxes
An important point is that, in addition to stimulating the purchasing power of the population through the growth of its incomes, an increase in the minimum wage, as a rule, helps to “remove from the shadows” part of the tax base. It’s no secret that after a significant increase in the tax burden on business since 2013, which has arisen due to an increase in contributions to the pension system, some representatives of the business community have had to withdraw part of the business community to optimize their tax burden (and sometimes just for survival) business in the shade. First of all, of course, it was a payroll fund. Part of the income of employees from the official version simply migrated to envelopes. Accordingly, budget revenues from income tax and contributions to compulsory medical and social insurance decreased. It is likely that the pension system did not receive the deductions expected from the increased standards.
