Private sector workers increased by 263,263 – 12.4% increase in average salary compared to 2019 according to ERGANI’s annual report
A significant increase in employment and wages results from the annual report of the “ERGANI” Information System for 2022 in relation to both the previous year and 2019, the last year before the pandemic, as stated in a statement from the ministry’s press office Labor and Social Affairs.
The report captures the evolution of salaried employment (dependent labor relationship under private law) and records, among other things:
- Increase in the number of employees by 13.3%, from 1,986,336 in 2019 to 2,249,599 in 2022. The increase is greater for women (15.8%).
- Average monthly earnings rose by 12.4%, a rate that exceeds the rise in intervening inflation.
- Improvement in wages not only at the minimum wage but also across the income brackets, as a result of the combination of the growth of the economy as a whole and the increase of the minimum wage in particular.
The Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, Kostis Hatzidakis, said: “Since 2019, the labor market has made quantitative and qualitative leaps: Employment and wages in the private sector have improved significantly. More workers put more money in their pockets, even after accounting for inflation.
This result was not accidental but is due to the government’s overall economic policy and in particular, as far as wages are concerned, the double increase of the minimum wage decided last year.
An increase which proved in practice to have only positive results: it improved the wages of thousands of workers without jeopardizing employment, entrepreneurship and growth. So, with the most official data, the catastrophism of SYRIZA is collapsing.
Of course, a lot still needs to be done for the unemployed and the employed. DYPA’s programs for the unemployed are many times more than those of the SYRIZA period.
At the same time, the government, knowing that there must be even more substantial support for the workers, will continue to increase the minimum wage this year, taking into account the needs of the workers, the endurance of the businesses and of course the results of the consultation that will start in the next few days. No one is celebrating these developments. But no one is allowed to demagogue by silencing or distorting any positive developments.”
In particular, from the annual report of ERGANI, the following emerges, among others:
1. Employees in the private sector increased in the period 2019-2022 by 263,263 people or 13.3%. The increase was greater for women (+15.8%) than for men (+11.1%), with the result that the share of women in the total number of salaried employees increased by 1.1 units (from 46.6% in 2019 to 47.7 in 2022).
These data come to confirm Eurostat data, according to which Greece is the champion in the EU in terms of reducing unemployment between 2019-2022, both for the entire population (-30.3%), and for women ( -28.8%) with the rate of decrease being three times the corresponding European average.
2. The average monthly earnings in 2022 amounted to 1,176.5 euros compared to 1,046.3 euros in 2019. It should be noted that the General Consumer Price Index increased by 9.73 points in this period (from 101.26 to 110.99 with a base year in 2000). Consequently, the increase in average monthly wages (12.4%) exceeds the rise in the general price level.
3. The positive picture is evident across the range of wage scales in general and in particular in the minimum wage scale.
Particularly:
– The report shows the positive effect of the double increase in the minimum wage that took place last year. The number of workers in the lowest income brackets (up to 700 euros per month) decreased in 2022 by 269,512 people compared to 2021. The 17.2% decrease in workers receiving less than 500 euros (part-time workers) is particularly noteworthy ). It is recalled that the minimum wage increased on January 1, 2022 from 650 to 663 euros and on May 1, 2022 from 663 to 713 euros.
– The number of employees in all wage scales above 700 euros increased accordingly. In particular, compared to 2021, the number of employees with salaries from 701-1000 euros per month increased by 39.6%, while compared to 2019, the increase in the number of employees in this bracket exceeds 60%. At the same time, however, compared to 2019, the number of employees receiving more than 1,000 euros increased by 23% (+167,993).
That is, an increase in the number of employees is not only observed in the income brackets close to the minimum wage (which is to be expected after the double increase), but also extends to the higher wage brackets. Due to the growth and positive outlook of the economy more workers are able to ask for wages significantly above the minimum and more companies are able to give them.
The number of employees per range of monthly salaries in 2019, 2021 and 2022 is recorded in the table:
4. In 2022, 29,680 more companies filed an annual staff table than in 2019 (+11.2%) and 3,084 more than in 2021 (+1.057%). Specifically, the companies that employed workers with a private law employment relationship in 2022 were 294,892, compared to 291,808 in 2021 and 265,212 in 2019.
The ERGANI report is based on the personnel table submitted annually by all employers, in which the total number of personnel they employ as dependent workers at the time of submission is recorded.
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