Clarification on Sri Lanka’s National Minimum Wage Ranking

Clarification on Sri Lanka’s National Minimum Wage Ranking

1. The Ministry of Labour wishes to clarify the recent media reports on the international comparison of national minimum wages, in which Sri Lanka was reported to be ranked 120th globally. The reported comparison is based on 2024 data published by “Visual Capitalist”.
2. It is important to clarify that the report is not an International Labour Organization’s (ILO) report, and the ILO has confirmed that it had no involvement in the preparation or publication of the ranking. The ILO has indicated that the report may have drawn minimum wage data from ILOSTAT, the ILO’s publicly available database of internationally comparable labour Statistics, including data on statutory minimum wages and purchasing power parity (PPP)-adjusted values. While PPP adjustments facilitate cross-country comparisons of purchasing power, such comparisons should be interpreted with caution. Minimum-wage systems vary considerably in their geographical, sectoral and occupational coverage, meaning that simple rankings may not compare equivalent wage-setting arrangements. They also do not reflect the effective coverage of minimum wages or levels of compliance
3. It is also important to consider the significant changes that have taken place in Sri Lanka’s national minimum wage since 2024. At the beginning of 2024 the national minimum wage was Rs. 12,500 per month and from 11th September 2024, the national minimum wage was increased to Rs.17,500. However, the report does not clearly indicate whether calculation of Sri Lanka’s position was based on the minimum wage of Rs.12,500 or the revised minimum wage of Rs.17,500. In addition, workers were also entitled to mandatory Budgetary Relief Allowances of Rs. 3,500, which brought the total applicable minimum monthly remuneration to Rs. 21,000. It is not clear whether this allowance was taken into account in calculating the wage figure used for the international comparison.
4. More importantly, Sri Lanka’s national minimum wage has subsequently been increased. The national minimum wage was increased to Rs.27,000 per month with effect from April 2025 and to Rs.30,000 from January 2026. The previous Budgetary Relief Allowances were also incorporated into the new minimum wage. Accordingly, the current national minimum wage is Rs.30,000 per month, compared with Rs.12,500 at the beginning of 2024.
5. The reported 120th ranking is based on 2024 data and therefore does not reflect the current position, Between the beginning of 2024 and January 2026 Sri Lanka’s national minimum wage has been increased by more than 87%. The Ministry therefore wishes to emphasize that the reported ranking should be viewed in its proper context and should not be interrupted as an assessment of Sri Lanka’s current wage level, as it does not reflect the significant progress made in 2025 to strengthen and improve the national minimum wage.