The minimum wage for unskilled workers had been raised from 74.40 kina per ($27) fortnight to 201.60 kina ($75).
The new rate is still awaiting government approval before being implemented, phased over a 12-month period.
But businesses warn that jobs will have to go to accommodate these increases, and a number of important resource projects might be stalled.
This would hurt the PNG economy at a time when the global economy is in recession.
Feedbacks from a nationwide survey conducted by the PNG Chamber of Commerce and Industry indicated that the new minimum wage would be a disaster for PNG.
One company told PNGCCI that they would have to cut staff numbers by 15 percent and pass extra cost to consumers because it cannot absorb such a drastic increase.
Another company operating a massive project warned that 8,000 jobs could be lost and that would spell the end of the project. PNGCCI did not identify this company.
The chamber was told that another company had laid off 150 workers and more would follow, while a plantation owner in Madang said he would either reduce working hours or lay off workers to fit in the new wage structures.
“At full rate, ability to pay will become an issue,” and “Pushing more people back onto the streets is certain to increase law and order problems,” were some comments the PNGCCI received.
PNGCCI president John Leahy said: “The last thing we needed in the current global economic turmoil is for bureaucrats to be deciding what businesses can afford in terms of wages and conditions.
“It is simple economic reality that without productivity gains, higher wages will mean less people employed.
“A number of people have commented that higher wages were fair and they will improve living standards of those who are employed. That is true, but, at the cost of those who would lose their jobs or miss out on opportunities that would otherwise be created,” Leahy said.
“PNG is a long way from full employment, so the focus should be on creating jobs, not the other way around.
“Overall, economic welfare is reduced by increasing the wages of those privileged enough to be in employment.”
He suggested that the determination be scrapped altogether and let market forces determine the level of wages, or phase it in over a period of four years to provide time for companies to adjust.
