At his inaugural address after being sworn in, the prime minister, António Costa, noted that during the previous parliament the minimum salary had been increased by almost 20 percent.


“Still, we are all aware that we are short of what is necessary for labour to be valued fairly, so in this parliament we must aspire to have a greater increase in the minimum salary,” he said. “To that end, the national minimum wage will evolve each year, once the social partners have been consulted, due to the dynamics of employment and economic growth, but the government aims to reach €750 in 2023.”


If that target is met, according to the prime minister, in both parliaments taken together the minimum salary will have risen by around 50 percent from the original €505.


“This is the greatest ever progress in the evolution of minimum pay in our country and … brings us closer to convergence with the European Union average,” he noted.


According to Costa, the national minimum salary “continues to have a very important social function in eradicating poverty and reducing inequalities, with advantages in a multi-annual preview of its evolution, opening up prospects for progress workers and a horizon of predictability for businesses.”


Also on pay, the prime minister invited the social partners – unions and employers - to negotiate “without prejudice to a comprehensive agreement on income policy for the legislature - an agreement that can serve as a reference for collective hiring and provide a clear increase in the salaries for qualified young people, as ... the state will do with its career for higher technicians.”