Protests return to Venezuela in the face of inflation that erodes wages

Hundreds of teachers marched through downtown Caracas on Monday, joined by nurses, retirees and other workers, to demand higher wages to compensate for the rapidly depreciating local currency.

Workers organized at least 50 protests on Monday and more than 150 across the country in the past week, according to preliminary estimates by the Venezuelan Observatory of Social Conflict, which tracks social unrest in the country.

The teachers’ average monthly salary of about 500 bolívares (about US$25) is barely enough to pay for public transportation, the protesters said.

“In addition to being a teacher, I am a nail technician, pastry chef and graphic designer”, said Inés Gil, 43, a Caracas public school teacher who, like others, dressed in black to symbolize her mourning for a living wage. “We have to be searching to survive”.

By allowing the free circulation of the dollar, the socialist government of President Nicolás Maduro helped orchestrate a recovery after the economic crisis of 2013-2020, one of the deepest falls in world history. But while many private sector employees are now paid in dollars and enjoy an increased standard of living, public sector workers who are paid in bolivars, affected by inflation, are being left behind.

Workers organized at least 50 protests on Monday and more than 150 across the country in the past week, according to preliminary estimates by the Venezuelan Observatory of Social Conflict, which studies social unrest in the country.

At Monday’s protest, protesters smashed and trampled bolívars as they chanted that they needed living wages to stay in their country. More than seven million Venezuelans have left the country in recent years.

“Protests are seen daily in Caracas, but there are 40 to 50 peoplesaid Carlos Julio Rojas, an activist who joined the march. “A protest of this caliber, in Caracas, has not been seen since 2019.

Maduro may be reluctant to order a violent crackdown like the one seen in the past. He is awaiting the release of more than $1 billion frozen by US sanctions, and another wave of bloodshed could see Washington blocking his access to the funds.

In an attempt to quell the protests, the government gave Gil and other teachers a US$30 bonus on Sunday. The government has often appeased such protests with aid and bonus payments, but it can’t be very generous given its weak finances.

The Bloomberg Latte Index, which measures the price of a cup of coffee, rose 53% in December. The Central Bank of Venezuela has not published official inflation figures since October.

“I’m sick and I don’t have insurance or money to pay for the MRIs I need”, said Heyra Vega, 49, who did not elaborate on her medical problems. “This time we lost our fear. We are tired, it is a tiring situation for one”.