Pay developments 2011

According to EIRO’s annual analysis of pay trends, average collective agreed nominal pay increases in 2011 did not differ greatly from 2010 in most of the 13 countries with available data. Most variations ranged between 0.1 and 0.4 percentage points, except for Belgium with the highest growth in nominal pay increases, and Portugal and Malta where the biggest reductions took place. In most Member States, the nominal increases agreed for 2011 did not compensate for the rise in prices. The report also examines collectively agreed pay increases in three selected sectors (chemicals, retail and civil service). The civil service sector stands out particularly as one in which a significant number of countries registered pay freezes or cuts. The effects of the recession on wage setting are still being felt throughout the European Union and all the evidence points to the continuation of very modest pay increases, freezes and cuts.