Planning Minister chairs The National Council for Wages first meeting

The Higher Council for Wages held a meeting headed by Dr. Hala El-Said, Minister of Planning and Economic Development, Chairperson of the National Council for Wages (NCW), via video conference.




The meeting witnessed the presence of the ministers of manpower, supply, and internal trade, the head of the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics, representatives of the ministries of the public business sector, social solidarity, the National Council for Women, the head of the Central Agency for Organization and Administration, representatives of business organizations, representatives of the General Federation of Egyptian Trade Unions.



This is the first meeting of the National Council for Wages after its reform decision No. 2659 of 2020.


The council meeting began with the formation of its three committees, which are the Prices and Living Standards Committee headed by the Minister of Supply and Internal Trade, the Wages and Allowances Committee headed by the Minister of Manpower, and the Complaints Committee headed by Counselor Abdel Hamid Bilal.



The Prices and Living Standards Committee reviews the development of inflation rates, the development of price growth rates for the most important commodities, the development of consumer spending according to the different commodity and service consumer groups and weights, and the average wages according to the different economic activities and professions.

The Committee on Prices and Living Standards is working on presenting a preliminary proposal to harmonize the development of prices and different aspects of spending with average wages, reviewing the validity of the minimum wage applied in Egypt annually with the different aspects of consumer spending and the development of economic conditions and price levels, and to present practical proposals that can be presented to the Council National Wages to reduce the phenomenon of high prices and the positive impact on the living standards of citizens.



The Wages and Allowances Committee is concerned with studying the quarterly report of the Prices and Living Standards Committee and the practical proposals submitted by it, studying the development of unemployment rates and ways to overcome them, studying international experiences of the minimum wage, as well as reviewing the levels of the minimum wage, making recommendations and proposing a new minimum in cooperation with the committee Prices and living standards in preparation for submission to the National Council of Wages.


The Wages and Allowances Committee is also working on proposing the percentage of the annual periodic increment that can be used as a guide in the private sector in light of various economic indicators, in a manner that guarantees a decent life for citizens and is compatible with the economic conditions of the Egyptian state. The complaints committee is concerned with studying complaints submitted by employees in the private sector regarding the lack of / or low percentage of the periodic increment.




The meeting discussed the approval of the new periodic allowance for the private sector for the year 2021, in addition to a draft law on the minimum wage for workers in the private sector.




The National Council for Wages, according to the decision of the Prime Minister, is responsible for setting a minimum wage at the national level and reviewing the minimum wage at the end of each fiscal year. Taking into account the development of prices and the cost of living, in addition to examining the complaints of establishments that are unable to pay the periodic increment, and examining the wage structure for the various professions, sectors, and activities in the country.