Is relocating abroad an attractive option?

The labour costs worldwide are rising quickly due to factors such as the increasing minimum wage. Is it more attractive to relocate business activities to another country? WPS wrote several blog posts intended to give you a better idea of the increasing labour costs in other countries. These blog posts provide detailed explanations of the minimum wage in six countries and a forecast for the future, where possible.

Australia
In the past nine years, the minimum wage has risen by a total of 28%. A horticultural employee’s wage in 2009 was $14.31, but this has already gone up by over $2.00 in five years. The minimum wage rose again in 2017 by $2.00, compared to 2013. Read more

Brazil
The minimum wage increased by 103% from 2009 through 2017. This is an insanely massive increase for employers in Brazil. In 2009, the national minimum wage was set at R$460.90, but this increased by 50% (to R$678.00) within five years. The national minimum wage rose to R$937.00 (2017) in the following years. Read more

Canada
The agricultural province of Ontario has had to deal with a lot. Back in 2007, the minimum wage was still at $8.00, but it increased by 30% to $10.25 within four years. The biggest minimum wage increase is being implemented in early January 2018. The minimum wage rises from $11.40 to $14.00. This is an increase of 23% in just one year. The minimum wage will increase yet again to $15.00 in 2019. The total increase from 2007 through 2019 equals 88%. Read more

Germany
The minimum wage in Germany has been stipulated in a special law since 2015. The first minimum wage in 2015 was set at €8.50 an hour. The wage level will be reviewed every two years by the Minimum Wage Commission and a proposal is prepared for the government in which the independent commission follows the general pay scale development. The minimum wage increased to €8.84 in 2017. This is a 4% increase, compared to two years earlier. Read more

The Netherlands
Wages within the greenhouse horticulture sector have increased by 8.65% in the past 5.5 years. The largest increase in the minimum wage, namely 5%, occurred in the past year and a half. Read more

The United States
Nineteen states raised the minimum wage in 2017 and announced the plans for the coming years. The average minimum wage in the United States has increased by 13% between 2013 and 2017. Each state in the US has its own minimum wage because the cost of living is different in each one. The biggest wage increase was in California. The minimum wage will rise from the 2017 rate of $10.50 to $15.00 in 2022. This is an increase of 43%. In addition, there will be high increases in Colorado, Maine, New York, Oregon, and Washington. Read more

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