The Russian State Duma has approved the increase of the Russian minimum monthly wage by 21 percent, the RIA Novosti news agency reported Tuesday.
Starting from July 1, the minimum monthly salary will be raised from the current 6,204 rubles ($96) to 7,500 rubles ($116).
The decision to boost wages was announced on March 25 by Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev at a forum for the ruling United Russia party. He called for deputies to prepare and pass the bill as soon as possible.
Despite the increase, the monthly minimum remains significantly lower than the current subsistence wage, which was estimated by the Ministry of Labor earlier this year to be 9,452 rubles ($146).
