Nicaragua’s Sandinistas Pass 'Major Victory' for Workers

Nicaragua’s Sandinista government on Tuesday officially approved an annual 8.25 percent minimum wage increase for nine sectors of the country’s economy.

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The ruling Sandinista National Liberation Front, FSLN, party approved the measure following negotiations that took place last week between labor unions, private employers and government officials. The increase will be applied in two stages: one of 4.125 percent as of March 1 and the other, also 4.125 percent, as of September 1, La Prensa reports.

The increase will benefit workers in agriculture, food production and textile industries, among others.

“This is a major victory for Nicaragua’s workers,” Nicaraguan Minister of Labor Alba Luz Torres said about the plan, according to La Prensa.

“The wage increase is another achievement of (President) Daniel Ortega’s policy of dialogue, alliance, and consensus with the private sector.”

The plan will boost Nicaragua's average monthly minimum wage for unskilled workers to about US$195.60, the highest rate in the country’s history. Although neighboring Honduras and Costa Rica have higher monthly minimum wages, US$353 and US$516 respectively, Nicaraguan Cordobas have higher purchasing power for low-cost products provided by the state.

Nicaragua is also one of the few countries in Central America to offer universal health care, education and government-subsidized housing, alleviating citizens from paying for these services with their personal incomes.

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“We have achieved something great,” labor leader Luis Barbosa said, La Prensa reports.

“This agreement brings stability for workers in our country while ensuring that investment continues."

Included in the agreement are workers of Nicaragua’s tobacco industry, which has grown exponentially in recent years. Over 87 companies grow, cure, ferment and produce cigars in the country’s northern Esteli region. Around 35,000 are estimated to work for the tobacco industry there.

Also included are Nicaragua’s coffee workers, who are central to the country’s economy. Coffee production is one of the Central American country’s most important industries, given its rich volcanic soil and ideal growing conditions.

The coffee industry contributes US$400 million to Nicaragua’s economy and employs hundreds of thousands of people.