Overview
- Eurozone negotiated wages rose by 4.5 percent in 2024, delivering a 2.1 percent real pay increase after inflation.
- Austria, Portugal and Slovakia led real wage gains with increases of 5.4 percent, 4.5 percent and 3.8 percent respectively.
- Most eurozone countries still have lower real wages than in 2020, with Czechia, Italy and Spain suffering losses of 11.4 percent, 9.1 percent and 5.6 percent.
- Germany achieved a 2.8 percent real wage increase in 2024 but its pay remains 4.7 percent below 2020 levels.
- Strike volume in the eurozone has surged over the past two years, with Belgium (107 days), France (102 days) and Finland (93 days) logging the highest totals and Germany registering 21 lost days per 1,000 employees.