The minimum is growing faster than wages
Yesterday, based on the results of the second quarter, the government raised the living wage in Russia to 1,185 rubles per capita. For able-bodied citizens, the cost of living is now 1,290 rubles, for pensioners - 894 rubles, for children - 1,182 rubles.

The living wage is not for living, but for calculations. But the calculations are also very strange. The minimum wage is 132 rubles, which is an order of magnitude less than the subsistence level. At one time, the law on the living wage was adopted by the communists to mock the government. This had no effect on the government; it is quietly busy with amazing calculations. True, discussions regularly arise in the White House about the need to equate the minimum wage to the subsistence level, but it also regularly dies down, after which officials leave for government dachas.
The cost of living is recalculated quarterly, in accordance with rising inflation. The difference between the first and second quarters was not very large - 4.2%, which - another mystery - is quite different from the price increase over the three months of the second quarter.
If we compare the cost of living with the average salary in Russia, the picture here is not very reassuring. Wage growth has not yet outpaced the cost of living. In January, the average monthly salary was 1,830 rubles. According to government forecasts, in December it will rise to 2,085 rubles. The cost of living will probably also increase by December - to 1300-1400 rubles. That is, the average monthly salary in Russia is now approximately 50% higher than the subsistence level. Last year this ratio was higher - up to 80%. And before the crisis in 1998, the average salary in the country was twice the cost of living.

IRINA Kommersant-GRANIK

Newspaper "Kommersant" No. 149 dated 08/15/2000, p. 2

Authors:

Irina Granik