A week after announcing a government campaign against stealing and “skimming” by workers in the state-run economy, Cuban leader Fidel Castro decreed hikes in wages, pensions and electricity rates. The wage hike – the third this year – will bring the average worker’s monthly salary to about 16 dollars, up two dollars from the previous rate. Wages are extremely low in Cuba, with the average worker earning in a month what a plumber in the United States makes in a half-hour, partly because citizens’ expenses also are very low. Food, housing, education, transportation and other goods and services are heavily subsidized by the government. Full Story