The Chamber of Commerce of Quito (CCQ) called on the National Council for Work and Wages (CNTS) to deal with wage policy in a technical way and to generate jobs instead of “politicizing wages”. The call comes in the midst of waiting for a meeting of representatives of workers and employers to determine the single basic wage (OB) for 2024.

The national government announced last week that, unless there is an agreement between workers and employers, next year’s increase will be $25 on top of the current $450 wage, which would remain at $475, fulfilling the president’s offer Guillermo Lasso during the campaign to raise $25 each year during his administration.

2024 pay rise: Workers propose to match basic pay to vital $550 basket, employers hope calculation is technical

According to the workers, the request is for the SBU to equal the price of the vital basket of $550, while the employers have indicated that the technical posts prevail.

The CCQ “reaffirms the importance of addressing wage policy in a technical manner, the responsibility” of the National Labor and Wages Council, the entity said in a statement released this Tuesday, October 24.

Workers: The outgoing government has offered a $25 increase and must deliver

According to the Chamber, instead of “politicizing salaries”, it believes that it should focus on “generating new adequate jobs, promoting the country’s productivity”.

The business union pointed out that despite recent wage increases, it was not possible to restore the corresponding employment levels of 2019. According to the National Institute of Statistics and Censuses (INEC), the corresponding employment rate in 2019 was 38.3%; in 2021 (32.5%); and 2022 (34.4%).

“It is clear that the anti-technical increase in the single basic wage does not effectively address the structural challenges we face. Encouraging employment and increasing business productivity are priority goals. We call for concrete and technical measures to be taken to address these challenges,” the CCQ said.