Second place in Europe
Germany will soon be a pioneer when it comes to the minimum wage
02/17/2022 11:42 am
With an amount of 9.82 euros, Germany is noticeably behind other EU countries when it comes to the minimum wage. This could change soon. With the planned increase to 12 euros, Germany would be among the top in Europe. Only one other EU country is already paying a higher sum.
With the planned increase in the minimum wage to 12 euros, Germany will assume a pioneering role in Europe, according to the Social Science Institute (WSI) of the Hans Böckler Foundation, which is close to the trade unions. Within the European Union, the future German minimum wage level will only be surpassed by Luxembourg, where a minimum wage of 13.05 euros is currently in force, the WSI stated in its international minimum wage report.
At the moment, however, the minimum wage in Germany, at EUR 9.82, is still below the level in neighboring countries such as the Netherlands (EUR 10.58), France (EUR 10.57) and Belgium (EUR 10.25). With the decision to raise the price to EUR 10.45 on July 1, Germany is catching up with this group. The authors of the study, Malte Lübker and Thorsten Schulten, emphasized that with the planned increase to 12 euros, Germany could even advance “from being a laggard in minimum wage policy to a pioneer”.
According to the report, outside the EU, Australia with the equivalent of 12.91 euros and New Zealand with 11.69 euros currently have a minimum wage level similar to that which is to apply in the Federal Republic of Germany in the future. In Great Britain, the minimum wage will be raised to the equivalent of 11.05 euros in April this year. Minimum wages in southern and eastern Europe are still significantly lower than in western Europe. The minimum wage in Bulgaria is currently 2 euros, in Romania 3.10 euros and in Hungary 3.21 euros. In Greece it is 3.83 euros, in Portugal 4.26 euros and in Spain 6.06 euros.
According to the WSI, however, the differences in level also partly reflect the different costs of living. According to the report, most European countries increased their minimum wages at the turn of the year – by an average of 4.0 percent in the EU. Adjusted for inflation, this means an increase of 1.4 percent.