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Jeffrey Franks: There is a possibility of raising minimum salary, we shall see how much
The head of the International Monetary Fund mission to Bucharest, Jeffrey Franks, said Monday that there might be room for an increase of the Romanian minimum wage, but any decision in this respect should be carefully analyzed.Franks said any minimum wage raise should be carefully analyzed as a too high increase could have negative effects.IMF officials met with Romanian union leaders on Monday for talks on the minimum wage, the labor market and the absorption of EU funds.
According to union leader Bogdan Hossu, IMF representatives told unionists the minimum wage might be increased, but things should be done in such a way so as to avoid an increase in the unemployment rate.An IMF mission is currently in Bucharest to review Romania's progress under the stand-by arrangement, which was approved in May 2009. The IMF loan is part of a larger financial package that also includes funds from the European Commission, the World Bank and other international lenders.
Romania received so far around EUR11.5 billion in IMF money and EUR3.6 billion from the EU. According to the terms of the IMF deal, the country should receive mid-December the seventh installment worth some EUR870 million.