Portugal’s wage increase 7th highest in Europe
Portugal had the 7th highest minimum wage increase in Europe in 2020 according to a report from Eurofound.
The report from the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions analysed 22 countries, putting Luxembourg at the top with €2.202.
Portugal come in 11th position with a minimum salary of €776 a month (14 months) having had the 7th highest increase in Europe.
The “difficult economic situation” caused by the pandemic “negatively affected the evolution of minimum salaries” in countries, but the majority nevertheless saw increases, although the institution notes that the “increases in minimum salaries in 2021 are more modest than in 2020,” with an average growth of 3%.
Luxembourg was top of the table with a minimum salary of €2,202 per month, an increase of 2.8% on 2020. The UK (€1903 +6.3%), Ireland (€1,724 +1%), Netherlands (€1,685 +1.9%) and Belgium (€1,626 +0%) were in the top 5.
Lower down the list comes Portugal in 11th place with a minimum salary of €776 per month and Greece (€758).
In 2020 the Portuguese minimum salary was €741 a month, but the increase had been greater (+6%).
Among the countries with the greatest salary increases were Latvia (+16.35%), Slovenia (+8.9%) and Slovakia (+7.4%).
The lowest minimum salaries were Bulgaria (€332), Latvia (€500) and Croatia (€563). Minimum salary values in Belgium, Spain, Greece and Estonia remained unaltered in 2020.