Minimum Wage Has Been Losing to Inflation for Three Years in a Row

In Turkey, the way the minimum wage has been set in recent years — except during election periods — has triggered strong reactions among workers. The main reason is simple: wage increases have consistently failed to keep pace with real inflation.

Target Inflation vs. Reality

Over the past five years, the minimum wage was set according to target inflation in three different years, yet it still fell below the actual inflation recorded in the previous year. Meanwhile, the revaluation rate used for taxes and fees has exceeded minimum wage increases in the last three years, with the exception of 2026.

For 2023, a year marked by the presidential election, the Medium-Term Program (MTP) set an inflation target of 24.9%. In reality, inflation surged to 64.3%. During that year, the minimum wage was increased twice, resulting in a total rise of 107.3%. This rate exceeded both the target and the actual inflation figures, offering workers brief relief.

Inflation Outpaces Wage Growth

That relief did not last long. For 2024, the MTP once again projected inflation at 24.9%. The minimum wage was raised by 49.1%, reaching 17,002 lira. However, inflation for the previous year came in at 64.8%, meaning inflation exceeded the wage increase by roughly 15 percentage points.

A similar pattern emerged in 2025. The MTP targeted inflation at 17.5%, while the minimum wage increase was limited to 30%. Yet inflation closed 2024 at 44.4%. Once again, the minimum wage hike lagged behind inflation by about 15 points.

TÜRK-İŞ Absent From the Table

In the 2026 Minimum Wage Determination Commission — a process TÜRK-İŞ chose not to participate in — the increase came closer to the expected inflation rate, but still fell short. The minimum wage was raised by 27% to 28,075 lira, while inflation is expected to end the year around 32%.

Falling Behind the Revaluation Rate

For years, minimum wage increases have not only trailed actual inflation but have also remained below the revaluation rate used for tax and fee increases. Excluding 2026, this trend has continued for the last three years. In 2025, the revaluation rate stood at 43.9%, while the minimum wage rose by just 30%. In 2024, the revaluation rate was 58.4%, compared to a 49.1% wage increase. Even in 2023, when the minimum wage rose sharply by 107.3%, it still remained below the revaluation rate of 122.03%.

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