25 Aug 2014

Flosse says Tahiti minimum wage cut temporary

4:07 pm on 25 August 2014

The French Polynesian president says the proposed 330 US dollar cut to the monthly minimum wage to build a massive new resort area would be limited to its construction phase.

Gaston Flosse was responding to a resounding rejection of the idea by an advisory body made up of employers and employees, which said it would be hard to justify having two sets of wages and would endanger social peace.

The government, which wants to build a three billion US dollar resort complex on Tahiti to create jobs and boost tourism, says the monthly minimum wage should be dropped to just over 1,300 US dollars for those working on the site.

Flosse says this cut should be limited to three years which is equivalent to the construction phase.

He says he is surprised about suggestions that unemployed people would forgo the minimum pay when they otherwise get nothing.

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Photo: Presidence Polynesie francaise