The Minister of Finance, Felix Mlusu, recently said the government is amidst reviewing the minimum wage from the current rate of K35,000 per month to K50,000 per month. While the ministry is engaging the Malawi Congress of Trade Union (MCTU) and Employers Consultative Association of Malawi (Ecam), there is a debate on how to implement the development, considering which sectors can the minimum wage be applied to.

MCTU General Secretary, Denis Kalekeni, told The Daily Times newspaper that the minimum wage may be adjusted to K50, 000 for all sectors except domestic workers and that this should be implemented effective January 1 2021.

On the other hand, there has been concern if employers are capable of paying the current minimum wage, let alone the proposed K50,000. When the current minimum wage passed in parliament last October, the Employers Consultative Association of Malawi (Ecam) expressed fears of potential job losses due to the increment. Ecam executive director George Khakhi said the 40% increment is a struggle for employers to pay, which may result in retrenchment of employees while others may shift to automation to minimise production costs, thereby impacting on jobs.