The topic of living standards in our country has always been relevant. It is no secret that a significant percentage of the population lives below the poverty line, living in more than a modest salary. Therefore the concept minimum wage Every Russian knows firsthand.
Perhaps the minimum wage abbreviation can be decrypted by everyone - this is a designation of the financial minimum established by law, applied in the field of remuneration and amounting to the amount equal to the minimum income necessary to ensure a standard of living. This indicator also serves as the basis for calculating the size of unemployment benefits.
More on the concept of minimum wage
The minimum wage is regulated by Article 1 of the Federal Law of June 19, 2000 No. 82-FZ, entitled “On the Minimum Wage” and the Labor Code of the Russian Federation (Article 133).
The minimum wage exists both federal and regional. The size of the first is calculated by law, the second - depending on the economic and social characteristics of the region.
The value of the minimum wage is tied to a strictly fixed amount of working time. It does not include allowances, bonuses, increases, surcharges for "harmfulness" or work in special conditions, etc. It consists only of regular payments that are made from month to month.
What else is it for?
In addition to setting the minimum wage, the minimum wage is used:
- to calculate sick pay (i.e. disability benefits);
- set the amount of a variety of payments: tax, fines, etc .;
- determine the size of deductions for the self-employed population;
- evaluate pension rights.
In our country, the minimum wage is determined at the federal level for all regions. According to the Federal Law of the Russian Federation No. 82-FZ, organizations funded from the state budget, from the funds of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation or from regional funds, as well as all other employers, are required to ensure compliance with the norms at their own expense.
What has changed in the minimum wage in the current 2015?
Since an ever-increasing minimum income is required to ensure a standard of living, the minimum wage is also subject to constant change. Now this amount is 5 965 rubles. (for comparison: in 2014, it amounted to 5,554 rubles.).
This increase in the minimum wage in the current year (by 411 rubles) was proposed by the State Duma of the Russian Federation (within the framework of its bill), the date of its entry into force is 01.01.2015. Such an increase is justified by the actual increase in inflation, which amounted to 7.4% last year.
The explanation of the bill states that its purpose is to gradually bring the minimum wage to the minimum income by 2018 to meet the established subsistence minimum (now it is 8,794 rubles).
Minimum wage and disability benefits
The size of the minimum wage for sick leave (both federal and regional) is used only in some cases. Its basic principles have not changed this year and do not require additional explanations.
According to Art. 14 of the Federal Law No. 255, according to the minimum wage, the following categories of persons are calculated:
- not having earnings in the billing period;
- citizens whose average earnings for the last month are less than the minimum monthly wage established at the federal level;
- leaving for maternity leave;
- wanting to receive childcare benefits.
If a person worked part-time, payment shall be established in proportion to the length of the working time. But this does not apply to maternity allowance - its value does not depend on the number of hours worked.
Regions and the minimum wage: what size is where accepted
As already emphasized, the minimum wage is subject to calculation in the case of full implementation of the working time standard within a month. Art. 91 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation determines the standard duration of labor time during the week equal to 40 hours.
And, of course, in different regions the minimum wage is different. Its sum reaches the greatest value in the capital and large cities.So, the minimum wage in Moscow is now equal to 14500 rubles., In St. Petersburg - 9445 rubles. In Yekaterinburg, its value is 8154 rubles.
The minimum wage, equal to 5965 rubles, is set for cities such as Kazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Chelyabinsk, Samara, Krasnoyarsk, Ufa, Voronezh and Volgograd.
Other regions of the country
If we consider and compare with each other the sizes of the minimum wage in different corners of our big Motherland, then the picture emerges as follows. In the Belgorod region, for example, this is 7279 rubles, in the Bryansk region - 6500 rubles, in the Ivanovo region - 8645 rubles, in the Kaluga region - 8303 rubles.
In a number of areas, extrabudgetary organizations of the minimum wage are set at the level of the cost of living as per 1 sq. Km. 2014, to state employees - in the form of a certain amount. This was recorded in the Kostroma region (5965 rubles for those working in the public sector), Kursk, Lipetsk regions, Perm Territory (5965, 6000 and 5965 rubles, respectively).
In other regions, budget and extrabudgetary organizations have fixed minimum wages. For comparison: in the Tambov region it is 5815 rubles. for state employees and 7000 rubles. for everyone else; in Tverskaya - 6000 and 7000 rubles. respectively; in Tula - 10,000 and 12,000 rubles .; in Yaroslavl - 6,000 and 8,021 rubles. etc.
The size of the minimum wage by years
Periodically, the minimum wage is revised according to the changed standard of living and the percentage of inflation. It is interesting to look at these figures, reflecting the socio-economic realities of society. So, in 2000 there was the lowest minimum wage - only 132 rubles. (since July). From 01.01.2001 its amount was already taken equal to 200 rubles, from 01.07.2003 - 300 rubles, from 01.05.2002 - 450 rubles, from 01.10. 2003 - 600 rubles, and from 01.01.2005 - 720 rubles.
Further dynamics are as follows: September 2005 - 800 rubles, May 2006 - 1100 rubles, September 2007 - 2300 rubles, January 2009 - 4330 rubles, January 2010 - 4330 rubles, June 2011 - 4611 rubles. Recently, the change in the size of the minimum wage occurs once a year - January 1. This amount amounted to:
- in 2012 - 4611 rubles;
- in 2013 - 5205 rubles;
- in 2014 - 5554 rubles;
- in 2015 - 5965 rubles.
Basic information on the minimum wage
A lot of questions are asked regarding him, requiring clarification. Consider the most typical of them and clarify what's what (in some cases, recall again).
- Is the minimum wage regulated by law? Yes, as already mentioned, the main legal acts are the Labor Code of the Russian Federation and Law No. 82-FZ.
- How many levels does the minimum wage in Russia have? Two: federal and regional. But if the federal minimum wage is the same for all regions (now 5965 rubles), then by region the figures can vary significantly.
- How to calculate the minimum wage? What is included in it? It is determined on the basis of a monthly salary, compensatory and social payments, as well as bonuses and other types of incentives to which they do not apply. Salary is subject to indexation (Labor Code of the Russian Federation, Section 134) in proportion to price increases.
- How is the minimum wage linked to the amount of working time? It is calculated on the basis of the full norm (working week - not more than 40 hours) and with the condition that the full amount of labor duties is fulfilled.
Other important issues
Are trade unions and employer representatives entitled to participate in the discussion of the minimum wage and decide on its size? Only at the regional level (through a tripartite agreement). At the federal level, the decision is made by the government.
What criteria are used to determine the minimum wage in Russia? These are the basic needs of the workers themselves and their families, the level of salary in the country in general, changes in the cost of living, the size of social benefits, a comparison of the standard of living of various population groups, and other economic and social factors.
What is the poverty line and how is it expressed in money? It is determined by the cost of living. Its size for the 1st quarter of 2015 is 9,662 rubles. Where did this figure come from? This is a cost estimate of the minimum set of necessary products, other goods and services for normal life and the preservation of human health. This also includes various mandatory fees and charges.
When living wage last changed and what is the percentage of the minimum wage in relation to its size? The mentioned value (9662 rubles) was adopted from 01.01.2015. The minimum wage in the current year is 61.7% of it.
What does statistics say?
Rosstat reports that in 2014 over 16 million Russians (11.2% of the population) lived below the poverty line. In the previous 2013, this indicator was lower by 600,000 people.
The control over the observance of legal norms regarding the minimum wage in any organizations by the state is entrusted to the following bodies:
- federal labor inspectorate;
- the prosecutor's office;
- Social Insurance Fund (FSS).
If employers violate the law in this area, administrative responsibility is provided. A manager or an individual entrepreneur can be punished with a fine in the amount of 1000 - 5000 rubles, the organization will have to pay from 30 to 50 thousand. Moreover, a fine will be imposed simultaneously on the organization and on the official. Repeated violation leads to disqualification for a period of 1 to 3 years.
How often does this happen, and who controls this issue
Despite the lack of accurate statistics, it is known that the prosecutor's office of the Russian Federation identified and eliminated more than 800,000 cases of violations in this area. More than 51,000 violators suffered administrative responsibility, 832 managers were disqualified.
Trade unions and employer representatives, as a rule, are not involved in the process of monitoring compliance with the law, their function is to monitor timely payments, labor protection, and the creation of safe working conditions.
Where to go if you think that your work is paid below the minimum wage? Clarifications, in addition to the union or labor inspection, can be given by the accountant or directly by the management of the enterprise. According to the law, within 3 days after a written request, the employee has the right to receive a certified copy of any documents related to his labor activity. In case of refusal by the employer, you have the right to demand the provision of information in court.
We hope that the information provided in the article was useful to the reader and helped answer some pressing questions related to remuneration.
