TOP 27 – What is the hourly wage in the EU? Where is Romania?

A full-time employee in the United States works 36.4 hours per week.

This means that the average US worker works about 10 hours more per year than an EU worker.

TOP 27 – Cost of working one hour in the EU

In 2023, Germany’s average working cost per hour was 41.90 euros, ranking fifth. Labor costs in Germany have risen sharply over the past year, but the increase was not as sharp as in 2022.

The main reason for the wage increase is higher wages due to rising energy and food costs, the union-affiliated Hans-Böckler Foundation reported.

The average increase in the German private sector is 5%. At the EU level, labor costs will increase by 5.6% in 2023.

What is the situation in Eastern Europe?

Across all Eastern European EU member states, the increase was 2%. Hungary and Romania led the way with increases of 17.3%. Despite the significant increases in costs in Hungary and Romania, the cost of an hour of work in these countries remains well below the EU average.

The average cost of one hour of work in the EU is 31.60 euros, 13.30 euros in Hungary and 10.80 euros in Romania. The cheapest is Bulgaria, at 9.20 euros per hour.

The labor costs in the study include not only total wages, but also employers’ social security contributions, training and improvement costs, and taxes considered as labor costs. The institute used the latest data provided by the European Statistical Office (Eurostat).

source: Romanian Newspapers

Also read: Romanians work more than Germans, but productivity is below EU average