Cuban Journalist Highlights Economic Struggle with 5,000 Peso Bill: "It's More Than My Current Salary"

Cuban journalist Yirmara Torres Hernández has turned a seemingly "enthusiastic" video into a stark representation of Cuba's dire economic situation. In the clip, she holds up a 5,000 peso bill for the first time, realizing it surpasses her entire monthly salary.

During a course at the Cuban Journalists Union (UPEC) in Matanzas, Torres Hernández shared the video on Facebook. A colleague attempted to purchase a 60-peso snack with the 5,000 peso bill, highlighting the absurdity of the situation. "First time seeing a 5,000 peso Cuban bill... and it's more than my current salary," she captioned the video.

The scene is striking for several reasons: it underscores the meager wages of those deemed "soldiers of the Revolution" and inadvertently reveals the cash shortage plaguing the nation. This issue is expected to worsen in August when Torres Hernández’s salary will total 7,000 pesos, combining a 5,000 and a 2,000 peso bill.

The Digital Salary Dilemma

Perhaps the most glaring irony is not the amount itself, but the manner of payment. "We get paid digitally, which feels like we're not paid at all," she lamented, referring to the fact that state workers receive bank transfers in a country where daily commerce relies heavily on cash.

"Cuban journalists earn less than this," she added in the video, concluding with a statement that encapsulates the state of Cuban state media: "Pretty bills, but it's a shame they buy so little."

"In the end, it's always the same people who get screwed," the journalist concluded, a sentiment that needs little further explanation.

Public Reaction and Economic Realities

The comments on her video reveal that Torres Hernández's experience is far from unique. Many viewers admitted to never having seen such a bill, with user Xiomara Miyares stating, "We're both not getting paid in that bill, if we manage to get paid at all," to which Elda M Tundidor replied, "Now we're three, and it's a big count."

Commentator Maykel Delgado put the bill's value into perspective: "5,000 pesos equal a deodorant." Torres Hernández replied, "More or less. Or a bottle of oil. Incredible."

User Lily La Fé noted that those with physical cash are "privileged," while Otmara Bartumeut warned that high-denomination bills "are snatched up by private businesses and banks; they will not circulate, that's for sure."

Delgado further elaborated on the mistrust of banks: "No one in their right mind would keep large sums in national currency, as it devalues daily and is worthless elsewhere," adding that Cubans avoid deposits because banks "are unreliable" and frequently fail to return money when needed.

User Hiram Torres cautioned that issuing high-denomination bills "will bring more inflation," a prediction with which the journalist concurred.

This episode encapsulates the economic spiral gripping Cuba after decades of dictatorial management: the regime prints larger bills in response to inflation, inadvertently accelerating the peso's decline in value, while state workers receive their salaries digitally in a cash-centric economy.