Threat to minimum wage in Romania

Eugen Teodorovici, the Romanian minister of finance, has suggested that the national minimum wage should be scrapped for the private sector. 


In an interview last month, he said that the state “should not be in the market” and that, although the government could set a benchmark for the minimum wage in the private sector, it was up to employers to decide how much to pay. 


However, his remarks have been dismissed by Lia Olguţa Vasilescu, the minister of labour, who said they were Teodorovici’s private opinion and not part of the government’s programme. Romania has the third lowest minimum wage in the EU, equivalent to €408 a month.


€1 = 89p on 20 September