Forums > General > General Forum

selcraig

Sep 18, 2003, 10:28 AM

Post #1 of 4 (450 views)

Shortcut

oaxaca salary figures

Can't Post |

hi folks: for an upcoming article in Smithsonian Magazine, I need the following figures and the sources for Oaxaca City:

1. hourly, weekly or monthly wage of workers such as a police officer, school teacher, bank teller, etc.

2. the minimum wage in oaxaca state, or the current national minimum wage?

3. and an annual per capita income figure for oaxaca state?

thanks so much for your help. we're consulting oaxaca friends, state tourism people, etc., but nothing definitive is developing quickly. surely one of you has a good source for this. feel free to contact me me off-list at selcraig@swbell.net

thanks,

bruce selcraig.

TomG

Sep 18, 2003, 6:56 PM

Post #2 of 4 (413 views)

Shortcut

Re: [selcraig] oaxaca salary figures

Can't Post | Private Reply

I'll be watching this with great interest. I hope you get some good input.

I'd be incline to compare any administrative produced numbers with actual man-on-the-street experienced numbers.

Jennifer Rose published this years new minimum wage scale for the country here months ago. they were informative, but I don't know how they compare with reality.

jennifer rose

Sep 18, 2003, 8:41 PM

Post #3 of 4 (396 views)

Shortcut

Re: [selcraig] oaxaca salary figures

Can't Post |

At http://www.mexicanlaws.com/Minwages2003.htm is shown an explanation of the minimum wage, categories and zones.

The minimum wage is a daily -- not an hourly -- rate. Wages must be paid in cash. There are other means of employee benefits above and beyond the minimum wage, known as "Previsión Social," which can pass to the employee without the full tax impact of wages -- bonuses, food coupons, extra time off, medical benefits, savings plans, etc.

The minimum wage is an elusive figure, because the statutory benefits -- paid health care, a Christmas bonus of 2 weeks' pay, 125% of regular pay for vacation periods, and retirement -- add a whole lot more. And then union contracts enhance those figures even more. And then, particularly in the case of public school teachers, many work two shifts (which work out to be practically a regular US workday), which means double salary and double benefits.

The minimum wage is more of a benchmark from which everything else is derived. Even fines for criminal acts are x-times the minimum wage. See http://www.mexico-business.net/...LaborLegislation.pdf for an overview.

raferguson

Sep 19, 2003, 6:25 PM

Post #4 of 4 (347 views)

Shortcut

Re: [selcraig] oaxaca salary figures

Can't Post | Private Reply

Here is a useful link with the text of the minimum wage law, Comision National de Salarios Minimos. Oaxaca is zone C, 40.3 pesos per day

http://www.fiscalistas.net/dof/smgyp.html/

If you look around on that website you may find more info, I have something that I printed from last year that listed 88 occupations, each with it's own minimum wage. Amusingly, the occupation of reporter had by far the highest minimum wage, roughly double that of most occupations. Want to bet that the government knows about the power of the press?

http://www.fergusonsculpture.com