The loss of the minimum wage against inflation has been laid bare

Economist Mahfi Eğilmez has provided a detailed analysis of how the minimum wage, announced at 28,075 TL for 2026 with a 30 percent increase, has suffered a loss against inflation and the cost of living. Eğilmez stated that the cost of fighting inflation is once again being placed on the shoulders of workers and retirees.

According to Eğilmez's calculations, the average inflation rate for 2025 was 35.91 percent. The Turkish Statistical Institute's (TÜİK) year-end inflation forecast is at the 30 percent level. The rent increase rate for December was also calculated at 35.91 percent. In this scenario, tenants are expected to face a 35.91 percent rent increase in 2026.

According to data from TÜRK-İŞ, the hunger threshold for a family of four was determined to be 29,828 liras as of November 2025. When December is added, this threshold is estimated to rise to 30,500 liras. At the beginning of 2025, the net minimum wage had been set at 22,104 liras.

THE INSUFFICIENCY OF THE MINIMUM WAGE

According to research by the Bahçeşehir University Center for Economic and Social Research (BETAM), the residential rent price across Turkey is 240.5 liras per square meter. Assuming a family of four lives in a 60-square-meter home, the rent is calculated at 14,430 liras. This amount will rise to 16,391 liras in 2026, meaning nearly 60 percent of the minimum wage will go toward rent.

Eğilmez states that for the minimum wage at the beginning of 2025 to maintain its purchasing power, it would have needed to be 30,041 liras in 2026. However, the announced minimum wage of 28,075 liras remains below this level. Even based on year-end inflation, it is calculated that the minimum wage should have been 28,735 liras.

Eğilmez expresses that in line with inflation forecasts for 2026, the minimum wage should have been 33,333 liras, but the announced figure is 5,258 liras lower. When annual average inflation rates are taken into account, this difference rises to 7,269 liras.

In conclusion, Eğilmez, who states that the announced minimum wage remains below the current hunger threshold and that the burden of fighting inflation is once again placed on workers and retirees, emphasizes that this situation is not sustainable.