Real wages in Romania rose by 45.7 percent between 2008 and 2017, while productivity increased by only 27 percent, but the wage costs burden for the employers is acceptable due to lower taxes, National Bank of Romania (BNR) chief economist Valentin Lazea said on Wednesday.
“For the 2008-2017 period, net real wages increased by 45.7 percent, the productivity – by 27 percent, so the real net wage grew much faster than productivity,” Lazea said, cited by Mediafax.
The economist pointed out that another key-indicator, the unit labor cost (ULC) – wages seen from employer’s perspective -, increased by only 14.7 percent during the same period, due to lower taxes on wages.
Lazea forecasts that wages in Romania will continue to increase as a consequence of high migration rates, skilled workforce shortage and rising wages in the public sector.
Romania’s average net monthly earnings growth rate eased to 13.3 percent year-on-year in July, the slowest pace since February, National Institute of Statistics (INS) data.
The average net monthly earnings declined by 0.5 percent month-to-month, from RON 2,721 (EUR 584) in June – a record high – to RON 2,708 (EUR 582) in July.