The president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, announced on December 15 that there will be a salary increase that will start next year. However, this measure will not benefit all sectors, but it will benefit many professions and workers. According to the Colombian president, the goal of this salary increase is to recover the economic power that many Colombians have lost due to the inflation that the country has experienced during the last year.

The President Gustavo Petro established a salary increase of 16%, along with a transportation subsidy that also increased by 20%. As result, from 2023 the minimum wage in Colombia will be 1,300,000 COP.

How Did They Get To This Agreement?

Although the salary increase is something that could benefit many people, this has caused a bit of concern in some sectors. That is why this agreement was achieved by taking into account the representatives of different business associations.

Together, representatives of business associations, the labor union, and the Colombian government agreed that increasing the minimum wage was an appropriate measure to continue boosting the country’s economy, by giving people more purchasing power. For this reason, they jointly agreed to increase 16% for the minimum wage and 20% for transportation assistance. In this way, more than 30% of the working population in Colombia should benefit.

Since it is not a secret, President Gustavo Petro also admitted that many international organizations are not very optimistic about the nation’s economic growth forecast, so he hopes that this increase and reactivation of domestic consumption can boost the demand that exists between the most vulnerable sectors.

The president of the country’s main union also spoke about how important it was to have reached this agreement and also trusts that thanks to this collective decision, Colombians will be able to improve their purchasing power during next year.

What To Expect for the Next Year?

Currently, inflation is reaching historical limits in Colombia. This economic phenomenon tends to affect households with low income to a greater extent, so it was necessary to take a measure that could help this part of the population. In 2023 there may be more commercial and economic movement because by receiving a higher salary, each person will have more economic power to invest or spend.

Also, since small and medium-sized companies are the ones with the highest concentration of minimum wages, it is expected that those that might have a hard time with this new measure will receive some kind of support.

In case you are planning to invest in properties or businesses in Colombia, 2023 could be a better year than 2022 to carry it out. The increase in the minimum wage could be a boost for Colombians to feel freer to shop and spend their money, as well as being more interested in creating their own businesses. While this salary increase might seem problematic for small and medium-sized businesses, the benefits are expected to be much greater for everyone.