HAVANA - Cuba announced a major increase in government salaries Wednesday, saying days after President Fidel Castro declared war on the nation's "new rich" that it wanted to reward workers with high productivity and advanced university degrees.
The Communist Party daily Granma said on its front page that higher-level workers unaffected by a minimum wage increase in May would be eligible for productivity payments and bonuses for having a master's or doctorate.
The announcement appeared aimed easing state workers' lives in a country where many have been engaging in illegal side activities to make ends meet.
Castro last week announced a crackdown on Cubans who make a living stealing gasoline and other state goods, as well as those the government reluctantly licensed as self-employed tradesmen or private restaurant owners during tougher economic times.
In a speech, Castro complained that the "new rich" corrupt state workers and take advantage of cheap utilities and other subsidies while enjoying hefty profits from their private ventures.
"It is a fundamental principle of the revolution to raise workers' income, beginning with those perceived to have the lowest salaries, and from there progressively eliminate the social differences that increased during the special period," the party daily said, referring to the measures adopted during the severe financial crisis brought on by the Soviet Union's collapse.
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Cuba Raises Pay, Castro Attacks 'New Rich'
