Entrepreneur and Retired Worker Fined 48,000 Pesos Amidst Worsening Hunger Crisis in Cuba

Alejandro Escalona Vega, the owner of a small food stand named Alejo, located at the entrance of a private residence, has taken to Facebook to reveal that three inspectors have imposed fines amounting to a staggering 48,000 pesos on him and his worker.

In a nation where the minimum wage is a mere 3,210 pesos, Escalona, a young entrepreneur, faces a fine of 32,000 pesos—equivalent to nearly ten minimum wages—as the business owner. Meanwhile, his employee, who is also retired, has been fined an additional 16,000 pesos for not having a formal employment contract.

Escalona captured the incident on video, sharing it on social media along with a caption expressing his outrage: "The inspectors came to pocket 32 thousand pesos, plus a 16 thousand fine for my hired worker, who is also retired. This country targets the underprivileged."

In the video, one inspector explains the legal basis for the penalties: "The gentleman is notified for not having a work contract, and the owner is notified for employing someone illegally."

The entrepreneur countered that he had never been informed of the need to amend the contract in any prior documentation, lamenting that new demands seem to arise monthly: "They create laws every day to mess with the self-employed, everyone knows that."

Escalona also criticized the banking system imposed by the regime: "Deposit 100 thousand pesos on the card, 100 thousand pesos. And you are supposed to withdraw it at certain banks. It’s a lie, I can't withdraw it. I'm not some king with access to places to get cash."

Although the video doesn't explicitly mention it, many Cubans noticed the stark physical contrast between the inspectors—well-fed compared to the average citizen facing chronic shortages—and their surroundings. Social media users quickly pointed this out.

A survey conducted by the Food Monitor Program and Cuido60 in May 2026 showed that 33.9% of Cuban households reported that at least one member had gone to bed hungry over the past year.

Widespread Use of Fines as Fiscal Strategy

The situation faced by Escalona is far from unique. According to research by elTOQUE, fines have become a systematic method of fiscal collection at the expense of the private sector.

By the end of the first quarter of 2025, the regime had issued 425,012 fines, contributing over 1,000 million pesos to the state budget. By July of that year, the total had surged to over 661,000 fines, generating 2,177 million pesos.

This systematic approach was highlighted in December 2024 when the government announced that inspectors would be paid "based on results," linking their compensation to the number and amount of fines issued.

Erratic Price Controls and Economic Mismanagement

In April 2026, a viral complaint surfaced, revealing that inspectors admitted to issuing fines even in the absence of actual violations to meet internal revenue targets.

The backdrop is a chaotic pricing policy that has solved nothing. The regime set price caps on six basic products in July 2024, adjusted them in 2025, reinstated them in September of that year, and partially removed them in July 2026 through Decree 156, which lifted caps on rice, chicken, oils, and powdered milk. Yet, inflation and hunger remain unaddressed.

While inspectors scrutinize every contract of a retired worker in a neighborhood entrance, the military conglomerate GAESA—which controls between 40% and 70% of Cuba's formal economy, including tourism, keys, trade, and natural resources—operates without independent audits or publicly available financial statements, beyond the reach of ordinary fiscal oversight.

Escalona has been summoned to the Directorate of Inspection, with a five-day window to appeal the sanctions. His video concludes with a telling sentiment: "I won’t resolve anything."