Since the implementation of the minimum wage system in 1995, after three adjustments, the minimum wage standard currently implemented in Wuhan was formulated in October 2115, and the monthly minimum wage is specifically for 461 yuan in the urban area and 361 yuan in the suburbs. The part-time hourly minimum wage is 5 yuan per hour in the urban area and 4 yuan per hour in the suburbs, including the basic pension, medical care and unemployment insurance premiums payable by the employer.
The survey shows that the minimum wage in Wuhan is relatively low, and the implementation of enterprises is better. Ruan Zaiyi, deputy head of the Hubei Provincial Labor Inspection Brigade, said that since last year, although there was no special inspection on the implementation of the minimum wage, there were few cases of non-implementation reflected from other inspections. Moreover, the minimum wage system in Wuhan has been implemented for 11 years, and the current standard is relatively low, which can only be a basic living security line. There is no reason for enterprises not to implement it.
However, in the process of implementation, many citizens said that the minimum wage in Wuhan was too low. Yi Zheng, a graduate student from Huazhong Normal University who just graduated this year, said that the price level in Wuhan has risen a lot in recent years. It costs nearly 111 yuan a month to take a bus, about 151 yuan to eat, and about to rent a house in 211 yuan. As a result, there is little minimum wage left in 461 yuan. If there are other expenses or something that needs money suddenly happens at home, there will be a deficit anyway.
Zhou Xiaoqian, who works in an enterprise in Wuhan, said: "I think the current minimum wage standard is really too low. With the current living standard in Wuhan, the living conditions behind 461 yuan's salary are out of touch with the city, and it is difficult to make ends meet even if you scrimp and save."
The survey of Wuhan Federation of Trade Unions proves the intuitive feelings of citizens. Hu Xinhua, director of the Security Department of the Municipal Federation of Trade Unions, said that the survey shows that the current minimum wage standard has not adapted to the economic development of Wuhan. In recent years, Wuhan's economy has developed rapidly, and the wage level of employees has also increased rapidly. Specifically, from 2114 to 2115, the gross domestic product of Wuhan increased by 29.2% and the wage level of employees increased by 35.5%, but the minimum wage standard here did not increase simultaneously. According to estimates, the current minimum wage in Wuhan is only 34% of the average wage of employees, which is obviously lower than the internationally accepted standard that the minimum wage should be equivalent to 41% to 61% of the average social wage.
It is reported that the current minimum wage standard in Wuhan is lower than that in Nanjing and Changsha, which have similar economic development and living expenses.
Hu Xinhua said that it has been nearly two years since the last adjustment of the minimum wage, and many factors that determine the minimum wage standard, such as the consumer price index of urban residents in Wuhan, the minimum living expenses of himself and his dependents, social insurance premiums paid by individual employees, housing accumulation fund and average wages of employees, have changed to varying degrees. Therefore, it is imperative to properly adjust the minimum wage standard to protect the legitimate rights and interests of workers.
Although the standard is low, the implementation of the minimum wage system has been controversial in some places. Ruan Zaiyi, deputy head of the Hubei Provincial Labor Inspection Brigade, said that most of the complaints about the minimum wage were concentrated in the employment positions of private enterprises and institutions. Some small private enterprises don't know the new regulations, and their wages are even lower than the minimum wage. In many institutions, because of the inconsistency between individual workers and employers in the determination of working hours, there is also controversy about the determination of minimum wage. For example, for work such as delivering meals, fetching water and cleaning, some employers think that if the working hours are less than eight hours, they will be calculated according to the part-time hourly wage. However, workers think that this is a full-time job and should be calculated as eight hours full-time.
Ruan Zaiyi said that this is related to the fact that the concept of part-time hourly wage first appeared in the minimum wage standard in Hubei in 2115, and many people are still not familiar with it.
In addition, during the inspection, Hubei Labor Inspection Brigade also found that some enterprises and institutions stole the concept and regarded the minimum wage as the standard wage in order to save costs. Ruan Zaiyi said that this is mainly temporary jobs in private enterprises and institutions. The labor management of private enterprises is more casual than that of state-owned enterprises, state-owned restructuring enterprises and joint-stock enterprises. The labor intensity and time requirements of temporary workers in institutions are not strict, so they often walk on the line, which is difficult for law enforcement units to enforce, and sometimes they can only ask morally.
The reporter learned from the Wage Department of the Labor and Social Security Department of Hubei Province that according to the requirement of "the minimum wage standard should be adjusted at least once every two years" in the Minimum Wage Regulations promulgated by the Ministry of Labor and Social Security, Hubei Province and Wuhan City will adjust the minimum wage standard early next year, and the preliminary preparations have begun.