The net average salary at national level, that includes both the salaries, bonuses, food & holiday vouchers, dropped by 1.1% in May reaching EUR 459, despite the 19% increase in the minimum wage starting May 1.

However, the annual earnings growth (May 2016 compared to May 2015) accelerated, reaching 14.2%, up from 12.3% in April.

Local economists have warned that the wage growth has been too rapid, generating an unemployment rate of 6.6% in May, compared to 6.4% in April. The gap between the evolution in the number of unemployed and the dynamic of the real net wage has reached the highest level since the pre-crisis period, according to a report by local lender Banca Transilvania.

editor@romania-insider.com