Shura gives nod to wage hike demand in private sector

Muscat: As part of efforts to raise the living standard of a large segment of workers employed in the private sector and increase their contribution to the per capita income, the Majlis Ash'shura on Tuesday approved the requests to raise the wages of Omanis working in the private sector.

Raising the minimum wages of Omanis in the private sector will aid their purchasing power and subsequently improve the cash flow in the local market.

Earlier in the day, Dr Tahira al Lawati, representative of the Wilayat of Muttrah, issued an urgent statement regarding the conditions for obtaining housing assistance, where she asked about the mechanism for determining the mechanism.

She added that there had been an increase in inflation in the Sultanate of Oman between 2000 and 2022 by 150 per cent, according to figures from the Central Bank of Oman, and the value-added tax (VAT) of 5 per cent increased the burden on families with limited income, and low levels of salaries for workers in the private sector, which has been set at RO 325. She also pointed out the continuous problem of layoffs in the private sector, and many of them are reassigned to low salaries and wages.

She added that the living situation of low- and medium-income families whose income is less than RO 500 must be taken into account in the housing assistance programme, and RO 500 must be set as the appropriate limit for the conditions for applying for housing assistance instead of RO 300.

The Majlis Ash'shura also approved the expressed requests to improve the efficiency of the tax system while collecting dues and also approved the requests to implement the production of medical water and submit it to the government to consider its medical aspects and their compatibility with the health standards required for such projects.

Yousef bin Salim al Mashikhi, representative of the state of Rakhyout, read an urgent statement about Salalah International Airport and the high prices of domestic tickets between Muscat and Salalah airports where he mentioned that there are some challenges and obstacles that exist at Salalah Airport and called for measures to increase air traffic for various airlines at Salalah International Airport.