FIJI’S business community has raised concerns about calls for an $8-per-hour living wage, warning that such a move must be carefully weighed against current economic pressures, productivity levels, and the sustainability of enterprises.
The Fiji Commerce and Employers Federation (FCEF) said it supports fair wages and decent work but argued that pushing for a new wage system in the current economic climate would place further strain on both businesses and government.
FCEF Chief Executive Officer Edward Bernard said the proposal from the Fiji Trades Union Congress (FTUC) was not grounded in “good faith”, given the challenges facing the economy.
“Demanding for a new wages system in an economic climate where businesses and even the Government is trying to survive and continue to employ workers, is not good faith on the part of FTUC,” he said.
The federation said any discussion on a living wage must consider Fiji’s broader economic realities, including low productivity, widening skills gaps, high youth unemployment, and rising production and freight costs.
It also cited warnings from the World Bank that Fiji’s economic growth could fall below 3 per cent unless urgent reforms are implemented to improve productivity and strengthen fiscal discipline.
FCEF noted that Fiji’s minimum wage had increased significantly in recent years, rising by 115 per cent since 2015 from $2.32 to $5 per hour, and by 86.6 per cent over the past three years alone.
It also argued that Fiji’s minimum wage is more than 60 per cent higher than Papua New Guinea’s, despite PNG having a much larger economy.
The federation further pointed to sectoral wage increases, adjustments to meal allowances, and an estimated $1.4 billion in household remittances as evidence of rising incomes.
FCEF said living wage frameworks, as guided by the International Labour Organisation and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, must consider national circumstances and enterprise sustainability.
It added that in some countries, including New Zealand, living wage benchmarks are not mandatory.
