“Companies have to create an environment that provides people with the clarity to envision where they are in their careers today and what they can become. The goal is to enable them to align their personal, professional and financial goals to achieve satisfaction and fulfillment. That’s what individuals are seeking — a clear sense of mission and purpose.” – Bert Miller, President & CEO, MRINetwork
EMEA
Business France, the national agency supporting the international development of the French economy, recently announced that since January 1, 2022, French employers who want to bring foreign talent to work for them in the country need to pay them more. The French minimum wage has increased by 0,9 per cent since that date, which also affects the minimum wage requirement for Talent Passport applicants.
A Talent Passport is a residence permit issued to nationals of third countries who have a Master’s degree or equivalent earned in France; those holding a highly skilled position; and those recruited by a company recognised as innovative by the French Ministry of Economy. The document permits its holder to remain in France for multiple years, and at the end of the second year, to even change employers. According to the rules, in order for an employee to acquire a Talent Passport, gross annual pay should be at least 1.8 times the statutory national minimum wage (SMIC), i.e. €34,627.32.
As of last October, French authorities also made changes to the application procedure for the Talent Passport. Non-European citizens now have to make a request to the Ministry of Economy in order to get an opinion on the nature of the business and its project creation.
Learn more at France Increases Minimum Salary Requirements for Talent Passport Residence Permit | SchengenVisaInfo.com.
ASIA PACIFIC
According to a Reuters survey, nearly 80 percent of the economists polled said that Japan’s policies aimed at raising workers’ wages are “unlikely to trigger a virtuous cycle of growth and wealth distribution that will support the economy this year.” The world’s third-largest economy grew at a sharper pace than previously expected in the final quarter of 2021, as consumer demand recovered after taking a heavy coronavirus pandemic-induced hit in July-September, the poll also showed.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has rolled out policies aimed at raising wages as part of his commitment to push for a broader distribution of wealth, which he sees as key for helping boost household income and the economy’s broader pandemic recovery. Since he took office in October, Kishida has urged Japanese firms whose earnings have recovered to pre-pandemic levels to raise wages 3 percent or more, promising bold tax deductions for companies that increase pay.
Wage hikes hold the key to the premier’s aim of defeating deflation by reversing a cycle of tame wage growth and weak consumer spending while encouraging Japanese firms to spend their record cash piles on boosting wages and investment. Most of the analysts polled by Reuters, however, doubted the government’s policies would be successful.
Read the full story at Japan PM Kishida’s wage policies unlikely to support economy this year, most economists say: Reuters poll | Reuters.
THE AMERICAS
The minimum wage in Brazil for 2022 will be BRL 1,212. The new value is BRL 112 above the current minimum wage and restores the current year’s high inflation. The value of the new minimum wage was slightly above the one approved in 2022’s Budget by Congress on December 21, based on the 10.18% forecast for the INPC, the index of inflation used by the federal government for the readjustment. The change occurs due to the increase in inflation in the last months of the year. The 10.18% readjustment is the biggest since 2016 — when the minimum wage had an 11.6% readjustment.
Colombia and Mexico, two of Latin America’s largest economies, have also released minimum wage adjustments for 2022. In Colombia, the minimum wage will go from just over COP 908,400 to COP 1 million, plus COP 117,172 for transportation vouchers — around $279.10 per month. Although it has been one of the largest readjustments in recent years, the Colombian minimum wage is still below that of other countries in the region. In Mexico, the Council of Representatives of the National Minimum Wage Commission decided that the general minimum wage will be increased from MXN 141.70 to MXN 172.87 per day. In the so-called free trade zone, in the North of the country, the value of the minimum wage will go from MXN 213.39 to MXN 260.34 per day.
Read more at Brazil raises the minimum wage 10.18% for 2022 | LABS.