Minimum wage raised 20 percent
Mexico raised its national minimum wage 20 percent this week, but it still doesn’t amount to even $1 an hour.
The Labor Department said the lowest legal wage will be 123.22 pesos a day starting Jan. 1, or about $6.50 at current exchange rates.
That is a boost from the 120.68-peso minimum wage prevailing this year.
While the increase well above the 3 percent annual inflation rate, it is barely enough to keep one person over the poverty line, even though Mexico’s constitution says it should be enough to support a worker and his family.
Mexico has been the object of criticism for keeping wages artificially low, something critics say has been used to lure auto assembly and manufacturing jobs from the United States.
22,000 this year, compared with 31,685 in 2018, the Lusaka-based association said on Tuesday. Zambia’s government introduced a 10 percent levy in January that requires crocodile farmers to pay the duty up front, before they can export their produce.
About $1.3 million of crocodile skins are stuck in cold storage because farmers can’t raise the money to pay the tax, association Chairman Johann Jordan said in the statement. Farming operations have closed, he said.
The international market for crocodile skins, used to make goods ranging from Hermes International SCA handbags to LVMH Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy SA wallets, is estimated to be worth more than $100 million, according to the association.
chief brand officer resigned last week.
Mark Tritton was named CEO about two months ago after successfully rejuvenating Target’s private label brands while launching 30 new brands at the retailer as its chief merchandising officer.