RAISING THE MINIMUM WAGE Through creative activism a group of young activists contributed to concrete improvements for low-income families in El Salvador For many years El Salvador has had one of the lowest minimum wages in Latin America. In the autumn of 2016, a group of participants in a Campaign training at Global Platform El Salvador decided to focus on the unfair minimum wages as the topic of their campaign. Combining public actions, coverage in national television and radio, funny and sarcastic videos and a meme-based social media strategy, the campaign ended up attracting the attention of a lot of young people who otherwise seemed rather apathetic about the issue. Alliances with more than 15 movements and organisations nationwide expanded the reach of the campaign and resulted in greater national exposure. In December 2016 El Salvador’s Minimum Wage Council approved the largest minimum wage increase in the history of the country, raising the minimum wage of apparel sector workers by around 29 per cent and the minimum wage of the country’s lowest paid workers by 102 per cent. Following this victory, the campaign has become a point of reference demonstrating the impact a campaign designed and executed by young people can have.
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