Briefing reveals minimum wage growth

The European Trade Union Institute has produced a new briefing on the 2022 minimum wage directive which is set to come into force in November this year. Titled Dawn of a new era? The impact of the European directive on adequate minimum wages in 2024, it looks at how statutory minimum wages rose at the start of 2024, and suggests that “recent developments in various EU countries indicate that even before its transposition, the directive is already influencing national minimum wage setting and political debates”.

It says that the so-called “double decency threshold", referring to the indication in the directive that a minimum wage could be set at 60% of the medium wage and 50% of the average wage, is now reflected in legislation in Bulgaria, and has been accepted politically in Croatia, Estonia and Ireland.

This helped ensure that 15 of the 22 EU states with statutory minimum wages saw them go up by more than inflation in 2024, with the biggest real-terms growth in Croatia – up by 10.7%, Poland – up by 9.6%, Bulgaria – up by 8.9%, and the Netherlands – up by 8.5%.