The average gross annual wage stood at €21,519 in Spain in 2021, up 4.9% from €20,503 in 2020. The increase is the highest recorded since 2008, when they grew by more than 5%, but it is still far from the rise of 2007, when salaries were revalued by 7.3% just before the financial crisis broke out. However, behind this figure there is some small print, which is analysed today by…
After the trade unions and employers have reached an agreement this week, the minimum wage in Spain will rise 4% to 736 euros, paid 14 times a year. This is 29 euros more per month than the current amount.
The difference between top managers’ salaries in Ibex-35 companies and the lowest salaries in these same firms is on average 207 times, which shows the salary gap in Spain is increasing.
The figures from the Q2’16 Labour Costs Survey for Spain confirmed that salaries are stagnating. Corporate profit margins in the Spanish economy has been dependent on wage contention, but Afi’s analysts remember that they don’t just depend on wage developments. The trend in productivity and prices is also important.
Popular chairman Angel Ron’s proposal to raise salaries in line with productivity in order to speed up the consolidation of economic growth is clearly at least worthy of a discussion. In the short-term, it would have repercussions not only on corporate profits but also on improving confidence, the recovery in consumption, the increase in production and job creation.