Turkey raises monthly minimum wage by 30% for 2025

Turkey's net monthly minimum wage will be 22,104 Turkish lira ($630.36) in 2025, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday, marking a 30% increase from 2024.

The minimum wage hike, which impacts some 9 million workers and is seen as a benchmark for the increase in private sector salaries, is expected to elevate inflation in the coming months, according to economists.

 

According to Reuters calculations based on central bank studies, a 25% wage increase would raise annual inflation by between 1.5 and 5 percentage points.

 

Turkish inflation declined to 47.09% in November from an annual high of 75% in May, mainly due to tight monetary and fiscal policies. However, the improvement in the print was slower than previously forecast according to the central bank.

The announced increase falls 17 percentage points below November's annual inflation rate of 47.09 percent. The government's decision to base the wage increase on an "expected inflation rate" rather than the current rate has been viewed as an attempt to curb inflation.

The Confederation of Turkish Trade Unions (Türk-İş), which represents workers in minimum wage negotiations, boycotted the Dec. 24 meeting. The union stated it "decided not to attend the meeting organized without any information on the minimum wage proposal."

($1 = 35.0659 liras)