BEIJING, May 19 (Xinhua) -- The All China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU) has called on provincial governments to raise their legal minimum wage amid concerns the real value of the minimum wage is slipping.

    A statement from the ACFTU said some governments had yet to set per-hour minimum wage standards, some had failed to include unemployment insurance, workers' injury insurance, medical insurance and public housing funds when setting minimum wage standards.

    Employers in some areas are by-passing local minimum wage standards by implementing a piecework wage system.

    The Chinese government established a minimum wage system in 1993, which the country's 31 provincial, autonomous region and municipal authorities were responsible for implementing.

    Minimum wage levels in some areas were considered too low to ensure low-income groups and an inadequate minimum wage would enlarge the income gap.

    Beijing's 2004 minimum wage of 545 yuan a month was just 20 percent of the city's average income, down from 39 percent in 1994.

    The ACFTU statement has called on governments to adjust their minimum wage levels to 40 to 60 percent of local average incomes within three to five years.

    An official with the Ministry of Labor and Social Security said most provincial governments should adjust minimum wage levels every other year, taking into account economic indicators such as local unemployment rates, economic levels, social insurance and public housing funds. Enditem