Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero today announced a hike in the minimum wage and in pensions for 2011 in a bid to help those worst affected by the country's economic crisis.
'Despite the economic crisis, we continue to make a special effort at solidarity,' he told a year-end news conference. He said the minimum wage will rise by 1.3% and pensions by an average of 2.3%.
He said 2010 'has been a difficult year,' but 2011 'should be a year in which we go from recession to recovery'. He also predicted the country would see 'positive growth' in the fourth quarter after three months of stagnation.
The Spanish economy, the EU's fifth largest, slumped into recession during the second-half of 2008 due to the collapse of a property bubble. It emerged with tepid growth of just 0.1% in the first quarter and 0.2% in the second, but then stalled with zero percent growth in the third.
The government this year introduced tough austerity measures in a bid to slash its soaring public deficit and ease fears of a Greek-style EU bailout of the economy.
