Baghdad The Financial Advisor to the Prime Minister, Muzher Muhammad Salih, said today, Thursday, that the last structure and amendments to salaries and wages in the Iraqi state was in 2008, that is, nearly 14 years ago, during which the country went through different conditions related to inflation and the great disparity in living standards.
Salih added in a press statement, that “the controversy today is about adjusting salaries and correcting their structures, and this is something that is required in all administrative and financial systems in the world.”
He explained, “The salaries of current state employees constitute 42% of the total government expenditures, which in turn constitute 50% of the gross domestic product, meaning that salaries constitute 20% of the gross domestic product, and this will weigh on the total expenditure in the economy, whether directly or indirectly.
He stressed, “There is inconsistency and disparity in salaries between one Ministry and another, and the general problem, in my estimation, is the minimum salaries, as there are those who receive a salary close to social welfare, and this is not commensurate with the efforts made, so the minimum wages must be modified and taking into account the living.
He continued, “The direction of Al-Sudani’s government is to address the support of the poor classes and those with the minimum government wage,” noting that “this is left to the House of Representatives and the duty to include it in the general budget in order to do justice to the salaries of the crushed employees.”
Source: National Iraqi News Agency