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Pay is set by sector: Wage Councils and the national minimum wage

Last verified: 2026-10-28 · Status: Changing

In Uruguay pay is not only a matter of contract and market: tripartite Wage Councils set minimum wages by job category and periodic increases for every private sector worker in each activity group. Sector agreements signed by the most representative organisations bind every employer in the sector once registered and published, and company deals cannot go below them. Below all of this sits the national minimum wage, UYU 25,383 a month from 1 July 2026 (about US$631).

USD figures use UYU 40.210 per US dollar, the BCU quotation for DLS. USA BILLETE on 27 October 2026; UI amounts use UYU 6.6803 per UI (BCU, 28 October 2026), except cash limits, which the law converts at the first day of the month: UYU 6.6516 per UI on 1 October 2026 (BCU). Retrieved from the BCU quotations service on 2026-10-28; conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

National minimum wage, monthly, from 1 July 2026	25383 UYUDecreto 319/025 art. 2, as of 2026-07-01 · in force
National minimum wage, monthly, in US dollars	631 USDDecreto 319/025 art. 2; BCU rate 27 Oct 2026, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
National minimum wage, hourly (monthly / 200)	126.92 UYUDecreto 319/025 art. 2, as of 2026-07-01 · in force
National minimum wage increase for 2026	7.54 %Decreto 319/025, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Days for the Executive to convene a Wage Council when requested	15 daysLey 10.449 art. 5, as of 2026-10-28 · in force

The rule

1. Wage Councils fix category minimums and raises for everyone. Wage Councils set the minimum wage by job category and update the pay of all private sector workers, and may set working conditions where employer and worker delegates agree. Their decisions take effect for the whole activity group once registered and published by the Executive Power. The Executive must convene a council within 15 days when a representative organisation asks, and need not convene one where a collective agreement signed by the most representative organisations is in force.
Cost to do it: No filing fee; the cost is the published category minimums and adjustments for your group, which can be well above the national minimum.
Example: Two companies hiring the same job title can owe different minimum pay depending on the activity group each belongs to. / Price USD payroll from the group's published scale converted at the BCU rate, not from a single national figure.Ley Nº 10.449 (Wage Councils), as reworded by Ley Nº 18.566 of 11 September 2009, Ley 10.449 art. 5 (text given by Ley 18.566 art. 12), 2009-09-11 official text · verified 2026-10-28

2. Councils are tripartite, seven members each. The Consejo Superior Tripartito classifies activities into groups, and each group has a Wage Council of seven members: three appointed by the Executive Power (one presides), two by employers and two by workers, chosen in consultation with the most representative organisations.
Cost to do it: Employers participate through their chamber; joining it is how a company influences its group's outcome.
Example: A software company's pay floor is negotiated by its group's employer delegates, the union delegates and the government. / Not applicable.Ley Nº 10.449, as reworded by Ley Nº 18.566, Ley 10.449 art. 6 (text given by Ley 18.566 art. 13), 2009-09-11 official text · verified 2026-10-28

3. Sector agreements bind the whole sector and cannot be undercut. Collective agreements may be negotiated at sector, company, establishment or any other level, but lower level bargaining cannot reduce the minimums of higher level agreements, unless the Wage Council allows it. Individual contracts cannot modify an agreement to the workers' detriment, and a sector agreement signed by the most representative organisations is mandatory for all employers and workers at that level once registered and published by the Executive Power. The parties set the agreement's term, extension and termination procedure.
Cost to do it: Compliance cost only; no registration fee is set in these articles.
Example: A company that negotiates its own agreement with its union must still respect the sector agreement's minimums. / Not applicable.Ley Nº 18.566 (collective bargaining in the private sector), art. 15, 16 and 17, 2009-09-11 official text · verified 2026-10-28 · changed: Ley Nº 20.145 of 17 May 2023 art. 4 repealed the second paragraph of Ley 18.566 art. 17, which had kept expired agreements in force until replaced; the parties now set term and extension themselves.

4. National minimum wage: UYU 25,383 a month from 1 July 2026. The Executive set the national minimum wage at UYU 24,572 a month from 1 January 2026 and UYU 25,383 from 1 July 2026, a 7.54 percent total annual increase in two steps (4.1 and 3.3 percent). The daily wage is the monthly amount divided by 25 and the hourly wage the monthly amount divided by 200.
Cost to do it: UYU 25,383 a month, UYU 1,015.32 a day or UYU 126.92 an hour as an absolute floor.
Example: A full time worker in the lowest category of any sector cannot earn less than UYU 25,383 a month from July 2026. / About US$631 a month, US$25 a day or US$3.16 an hour.Decreto Nº 319/025 of 26 December 2025 (published 12 January 2026), art. 1 and 2, 2025-12-26 official text · verified 2026-10-28

Layer	Who sets it	Binding on	Rule
National minimum wage	Executive Power after consulting the Consejo Superior Tripartito	All private employers	Decreto 319/025; Ley 18.566 art. 10
Wage Council category minimums and raises	Tripartite council per activity group	Whole activity group once published	Ley 10.449 art. 5
Sector collective agreement	Most representative employer and worker organisations	Whole sector once registered and published	Ley 18.566 art. 16
Company agreement	Company and union	That company; cannot go below higher levels	Ley 18.566 art. 15
Individual contract	Employer and worker	Cannot worsen collective terms	Ley 18.566 art. 16

Layers of pay regulation

Worked example

A foreign retailer opening in Montevideo checks its activity group's latest Wage Council decision for each category it hires (cashier, stock clerk, supervisor) and the dates of the periodic raises, then confirms each rate is above UYU 25,383 (US$631) a month, the national floor since 1 July 2026.

Step by step

Identify your activity group and subgroup in the Wage Council classification before hiring.
Load the category minimums and adjustment dates from the latest published decision or sector agreement into payroll.
Diarise the next bargaining round; raises usually apply to the whole payroll, not only to minimum earners.
Consider joining the relevant employer chamber, which appoints the employer delegates.

Common traps

Assuming the national minimum wage is the only floor: Wage Council and sector agreement minimums bind once published (Ley 10.449 art. 5; Ley 18.566 art. 16).
Negotiating a company deal below the sector agreement: lower level bargaining cannot reduce higher level minimums (Ley 18.566 art. 15).
Applying raises only to minimum earners: councils update the pay of all workers in the group (Ley 10.449 art. 5).

Sources

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