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The minimum salary does not cover even food in the Dominican Republic

Today the National Salary Committee will meet in order to deal with a salary increase

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The minimum salary does not cover even food in the Dominican Republic
SANTO DOMINGO. Justin food, a small family of four members (mother father and children) should spend on breakfast lunch and dinner each day, in the least of cases tested, an amount of RD $362, which multiplied by the 30 days of a month produces an amount of RD $10,860, which represents 96.17% of the highest minimum wage of RD$11,292 and 157.84% with relation to the lowest minimum wage of RD$6880.

Those numbers, which do not include the part where the workers have to find money to pay for services of water, electricity, telephone and detergents for washing, reflect the reality at a time when the prices of some basic foods and the salaries of a great number of heads of families in the country have to stretch every peso so they can cover the basic needs of a month with their limited income.

In order to carry out this exercise, the Diario Libre went to a colmado in a barrio of the capital, where the poor people who sustain through their labor the different companies of the country make their purchases.

The Diario Libre team went to Villa Duarte, and there in the colmado Felix II, on Real Street, they conversed with a housewife who they found buying a pound and a half of chicken at RD$45 a pound and the other ingredients to prepare food for herself, her two children and her husband.

The lady, who agreed to make a note of everything that she buys daily, said that she normally buys 2 pounds of rice at RD$25 a pound, because she doesn't like the rice that is sold at RD$20; in addition, she buys RD$15 of oil, RD$12 of tomato paste, a bouillon cube for RD$6, a sour orange at RD$10 to wash the meat, RD$5 on vegetables, RD$5 of onion, RD$5 of garlic and RD$30 of softened beans.

Likewise, this lady related that for dinner, she normally buys eight pieces of bread which cost RD$40, RD$10 of butter, six chocolate tablets at RD$7 and RD$15 of sugar. She said that these foods are normally also bought for breakfast.

The numbers regarding the cost of living in the country show that a family of four members in this country cannot even supply the food necessities of a month with a minimum salary of RD$6880, because according to the calculation carried out yesterday by Diario Libre, in order to acquire the food for a complete day they would have to spend some RD$10,860, which would generate a deficit of RD$3990 for the person responsible of this expenditure.

Another case is that of Amparo Cecelia Minaya, who lives in Los Mina Nuevo, together with her family of four members, and who spends each day on breakfast about RD$100. She said that she normally buys RD$50 of bread, RD$10 of butter, two chocolate tablets at RD$6; RD$15 of sugar and a small box of milk at RD$15.

For the noon meal, this woman said that she buys a pound and a half of rice at RD$20, a pound of chicken at RD$45, a bitter orange at RD$10, RD$15 of oil, RD $20 of softened beans, a bouillon cube for RD$5; RD$5 of garlic, RD$5 of vegetables, RD$5 of salt and RD$10 of tomato paste. For dinner she buys six plantains at RD$10 each; five eggs at RD$5, RD$15 of oil and RD$15 of salami, because there is one who does not eat eggs.