"Haiti textile workers reject government’s modest pay raise, maintain strike", 8 May 2026

Textile workers in northeast Haiti have rejected the government’s newly offered minimum wage, saying it does not reflect the rising cost of living and vowing to continue their strike.

The May 4 minimum wage increase...has failed to ease tensions at the CODEVI industrial park...where thousands of workers have mobilized since April. Workers who produce apparel, T-shirts and knit goods for export, primarily to the United States, are demanding a daily wage of 3,000 gourdes, or roughly $23. They argue the government’s increase — which added about $2.40 to the pre-strike daily wage, raising it to $7.70 — no longer meets basic needs...

“One thousand gourdes [$7.70] is nothing compared to the cost of living. We are demanding 3,000 gourdes [$23] after 10 years without a meaningful pay increase,” said Denise Joseph, a worker at the Group M2 factory.

“We work hard every day, but our wages no longer allow us to live with dignity,” added Phara Louis, a mother of two...

The wage dispute is unfolding amid prolonged economic deterioration in Haiti. Inflation has remained persistently high in recent years, sharply reducing purchasing power for low-income workers, while the gourde has continued to lose value against the U.S. dollar.

Fuel prices and transportation costs have become central grievances for workers, many of whom spend a substantial portion of their daily earnings commuting to factories or buying basic necessities. Protesters argue that wages have failed to keep pace with inflation despite repeated increases in living costs.

The crisis exposes the fragility of Haiti’s export-led assembly model, which depends heavily on low-wage labor and preferential U.S. market access while operating in an environment plagued by gang violence, political instability and crumbling infrastructure.

Factory owners and business groups argue that higher wages could further strain an industry already struggling with insecurity, shipping disruptions and competition from lower-cost manufacturing hubs elsewhere in the Caribbean and Central America...

Authorities have attempted to resume operations at CODEVI, but union leaders say several organizers have been dismissed, a move they denounce as retaliation.

“These dismissals are meant to weaken the movement,” said Roselin Jean, a UTRACO member. “But we will continue with our demands.”...

The standoff also comes at a delicate moment for Haiti’s textile industry, as manufacturers seek to reassure international buyers that production can continue despite the country’s worsening security crisis...