President Luis Abinader announced an unprecedented 24% salary increase for workers in the construction sector.
The salary increase will be effective 21% as of May 1 and the remaining 3% provided as of October 1 of this year.
“Today I am announcing that plumbers, bricklayers, carpenters, electricians, painters, bricklayers and construction workers will receive a 24% salary increase,” said the President.
The Head of State, accompanied by the Minister of Labor, Luis Miguel De Camps, and representatives of the workers, emphasized that it is time to lay the foundations for a better future for all sectors of society.
“It is time to improve salaries to be more competitive, collect more, improve our productivity, add value, generate better services and establish a path of irreversible growth,” he said.
He added that the Dominican people for too long have lived an impoverishing growth, with many benefits for a few, and little distribution for the majority.
“Now, we are changing that dynamic and we are going to promote a fair distribution of the national wealth. And this is the way”, said the President at the headquarters of the Ministry of Labor.
He reminded that the government over which he presides will continue to give priority to social issues and will continue to work on the streets, attending to the demands of each and every Dominican man and woman.
Government investment in its people
Speaking to the media, President Abinader stressed that this is an investment by the government in its people.
“Those people who with their effort and dedication helped to raise this country; those who now, are recognized and rewarded as they deserve”, exposed President Abinader.
The governor assured that a solid economy can be generated, where a fair income policy can be achieved, and a level of investment, public-private, that meets the needs of the country.
Abinader added that he wants to go far and go fast and that is why he will continue to apply measures such as this one to improve the lives of Dominicans.
The president recalled the crisis that the world is going through, first because of the Covid-19 pandemic, which is in the background, and currently because of the effects of the war in Europe.
“There is no circumstance that can stop us. We have to move forward to continue, we have to do to change,” said the president, reflecting on past experience.
He noted that faced with the reality he faced upon assuming the commitment to lead the government, he made the decision to work hard to create an infrastructure of opportunities throughout the country, under any circumstance, with the route clear and the north marked. “Only in this way could we guarantee that the advances and achievements we made would not be diluted, leaving Dominicans vulnerable once again,” he pointed out.
DR with more confidence in the region
President Abinader stressed that today the Dominican Republic is the country in the region that generates the most confidence for foreign and local capital investors, which is the result of the medium and long term plans that the government is putting in place.
He pointed out that more important than having designed and implemented these plans, what has really allowed it to show results is the guiding principle that guides its actions: promoting economic growth, but with inclusion and fair redistribution.
“Talking about inclusion is the same as talking about social dialogue, but dialogue does not consist of listening and casting on deaf ears, but rather listening and addressing together the demands and vindicating rights that have been owed to the people for years,” he said. He emphasized that for this reason he made the announcement in order to fulfill this commitment and lay the foundations for the fair growth of the Dominican working class.
14 salary increases
Meanwhile, the Minister of Labor, Luis Miguel De Camps, emphasized that the construction sector is one of the pillars of economic development in every nation and this is especially so in the Dominican Republic, where the growth of housing solutions and the execution of large infrastructure works, place the country as a leading market in the region.
De Camps highlighted that more than 14 minimum wage increases have been achieved during the government of President Abinader.
In this sense, he added that the admirable growth that the construction sector contributes to the economy would mean very little if those who make it possible, the workers, do not receive a fair pay and the protection of their rights in a system of social security and labor risks that guarantee them the enjoyment of decent conditions.
In the announcement ceremony participated, the president of CONEP, Pedro Brache; the vice-president of CONEP, Cesar Dargam; the director of INFOTEP, Rafael Santos Badía; the general director of the Wages Committee of the Ministry of Labor, Angel Martín Mieses; the executive director of COPARDOM, Pedro Rodríguez; the president of CNUS, Rafael -Pepe- Abreu; the vice president of CNUS and president of FENTICOMMC, Pedro Julio Alcántara; the president of Constructora Bisonó, Rafael Vitelio Bisonó “Don Tato” and his son Juan Antonio Bisonó.
Also, the executive director of HAGECO, Michel Youd El-Hage; of COPARDOM, Erick Bueno; the president of CAPOCON, Eduardo Domínguez Imbert; of ACOPROVI, Jorge Montalvo; of CASC, Gabriel Del Río and of CNTD, Jacobo Ramos.
Also, FENTICOMMC secretary general and carpenter, César Soto; FENTICOMMC secretary of Affairs and Conflicts, Inocencio Candelario; FENTICOMMC plumber, Balerio Martínez; FENTICOMMC master builder and mason, Luis Vargas; FENTICOMMC electrician, Pablo Martínez; FENTICOMMC bricklayer, Federico Vásquez; FENTICOMMC mason, Enrique Ruiz; and FENTICOMMC painter, Freddy Amparo.
