The Colombian Government issued Decree 2647 of December 23, 1999, regulating the minimum wage to be in effect in Colombia as of 1 January, 2000 and up to 31 December, 2000.

The wages from 1999 and year 2000 are shown below:

Minimum Wage

1999 (Decree 2560, 1998)

2000 (Decree 2647, 1999)

Daily (in Col. Ps.)

$ 7.882,00

$ 8.670,00

Monthly (in Col.Ps.)

$ 236.460,00

$ 260.100.00

The new wage is in fact an increase of 9.9974% over the last year´s minimum.

The minimum wage rule for the legal 48 hour-working week (normally divided into 8 hours per day for 5 working days.)

The minimum wage is specially important in Colombia, not only as a reference for labor costs but also because many items are indexed by the Government to it, such as the cost of fines.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about specific circumstances.