News

San Jose. Costa Rica unions called yesterday for a general strike for March 10 to demand salary increases and show their opposition to tax reform promoted by the Government.

"The agenda consists of several control points, but the first specific objective is to achieve a sustained policy of increasing wages for private and public sectors, and thus end the wage freeze," said a statement from the Association of Secondary School Teachers (APSE), representing the "union movement" in the country.



Unions are unhappy with the 2.33% wage increase set by the Government for the first half of 2011, arguing that it is a real increase and that does not meet the rising prices of goods and services.



The other objective of the strike is to protest against the tax reform promoted by the Government and is under consideration in the Legislature, as "seriously affect the working people," the APSE. Among other things, tax reform proposes the creation of a value-added tax from 14% to replace sales tax which will tax 13% and some services, according to the Government, consume the most wealthy and were exempt such as private health and education.



The reform also includes companies charge an income tax of 15%, as well as overseas remittances, interest, dividends, capital gains and rents. The Government seeks to reform those with more money pay more taxes and raising the tax burden from 13.5% today to 17%.



Source: La Prensa.com