AmCham calls for minimum wage to be based on private sector competitiveness

Prishtina, May 14, 2019 – Following the latest calls of political groups in increasing the minimum wage, the American Chamber of Commerce in Kosovo reiterates its position that the minimum wage must be a reflection of the economic indicators in the country and should not be changed without considering the competitiveness of the private sector.

AmCham believes that free workforce is amongst the main factors that impact not only the competitiveness of the businesses, but the efforts of Kosovo in attracting foreign direct investments.

In addition, increasing the minimum wage could further deteriorate the unemployment amongst youth and workers with lower skills, who usually are beneficiaries of the minimum wage, whereas, according to the Labor Force Survey of the Kosovo Agency of Statistics, Kosovo has the highest unemployment rate amongst youth with over 55%.

Therefore, AmCham urges the Assembly and the Government to unconditionally avoid decisions that can lead to deterioration of such indicators despite the short-term benefits.