At least 22 regional administrative entities around China have raised their monthly minimum wage levels since the start of the year, with five local governments lifting them to the 2000 yuan (USD$302.18) threshold or above.
Since the start of December both Zhejiang province on China’s eastern coast and Liaoning province in the north-east have raised their minimum wage levels, with the former mandating four minimum wage grades of 2010 yuan, 1800 yuan 1660 and 1500 yuan.
According to the China News Service at least 22 of the country’s regional governments have raised their minimum wage levels in 2017, including Beijing, Fujian, Gansu, Guizhou, Heilongjiang, Henan, Inner Mongolia, Jiangsu, Jilin, Liaoning, Hubei, Hunan, Ningxia, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanxi, Shenzhen and Zhejiang.
This marks a sizeable increase compared to 2016, when only 9 regional authorities in China saw first to increase wage levels.
Su Hainan, vice-head of the China Association of Labour Studies (中国劳动学会), said to China News Service that the country’s current “Minimum Wage Regulations” mandate adjustments to minimum wage levels once every two years.
Last year China’s economy came under considerable downward pressure, while this year its performance has improved, prompting many regional authorities to make adjustments given their absence in 2016.
A total of five local governments have raised the minimum wage to the 2000 yuan threshold or above, including Shanghai (2,300 yuan), Shenzhen (2,130 yuan), Zhejiang (2,010 yuan), Tianjin (2,050 yuan) and Beiing (2,000 yuan).
