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About 1,500 people protested in Venezuela on Friday, condemning a 26 per cent increase in government-backed income as inadequate, with the country’s economic crisis deepening.
The adjustment, announced on Thursday by acting president Delcy Rodriguez, raised the monthly “comprehensive minimum income” from $190 to $240. The package, however, is largely made up of bonuses that do not count toward pensions or other benefits.
Demonstrators marched through central Caracas, chanting that bonuses cannot replace proper wages, while smaller demonstrations were also reported in other parts of the country.
Participants described the increase as far below the cost of living, with a teacher calling it unacceptable and a union leader dismissing it as deceptive.
Juraina Palacios, a 55-year-old teacher, said of Rodriguez: “What she did yesterday was an outrage.”
“It’s a joke, a trick,” said union leader Franklin Velasquez, 61.
The discontent comes as the cost of basic needs continues to rise, with estimates putting the monthly food bill for a family of five at about $700.
Announcing the new minimum wage package on Thursday, Rodríguez had presented the adjustment as “the most significant increase in recent years” but acknowledged that it was still “not enough.”
Labour groups say frustration is growing in an economy still grappling with prolonged inflation, which stood at 475 per cent in 2025. They argue that workers should not continue to shoulder the burden of a crisis they did not create.
