One in seven employees in the EU is a low-paid worker
Behnam Norouzi, Unsplash
In 2022, 14.7 per cent of employees in the EU were classified as low-paid, meaning that their earnings were less than two-thirds of the median hourly wage in their country of residence. This figure is down from 2018, when the proportion of such workers was 16.2 per cent. Nevertheless, the problem remains relevant, especially among certain categories of employees.
According to Eurostat, women are more likely to face low incomes than men. In 2022, 17.1 per cent of women were low paid compared to 12.6 per cent of men. In 2018, the difference was even more marked: 18.2 per cent among women and 12.5 per cent among men.
Young people under 30 are also at risk, with 25.2 per cent of workers in this age group receiving low wages in 2022. In older age groups, the figure was much lower: 12.1 per cent among employees aged 30 to 49 and 13.4 per cent among employees over 50. This is due to the fact that younger employees often work on temporary contracts or in entry-level positions, where salaries tend to be lower.
Eurostat data shows a clear link between educational attainment and earnings. In 2022, 27.5 per cent of employees with a low level of education were low paid, compared to 17.5 per cent of employees with a medium level of education. Only 4.8% of employees with a college degree were in the low-wage category. These data emphasise the importance of investing in education and professional development to increase income and social mobility.
The situation of low wages in the EU varies greatly from country to country. In 2022, the highest percentage of low-paid workers was recorded in Bulgaria (26.8%), followed by Romania (23.9%), Latvia (23.3%), Greece (21.7%), Estonia (21.2%) and Cyprus (20.0%). These countries are characterised by relatively low minimum wages and large income disparities between economic sectors.
At the same time, in Portugal (1.8 per cent), Sweden (4.1 per cent), Finland (6.5 per cent), Italy (8.8 per cent), Slovenia (9.4 per cent), and France and Denmark (9.7 per cent each), the share of low-paid workers was below 10 per cent. This is due to higher minimum wages, strong trade unions and active state social protection policies.
The highest percentage of low-paid workers was recorded in the hotel and restaurant sector - 35.1 per cent of all employees in this industry. Administrative and support services (32.3 per cent), including temporary workers and employment agency staff, ranked second. This is explained by the seasonal nature of employment and the high share of temporary contracts in these sectors.
The type of contract also significantly affects the level of wages. Among employees with temporary employment contracts, 27.2 per cent received low incomes, compared to only 12.6 per cent of employees with open-ended contracts. This emphasises the need to strengthen social protection and regulation of temporary employment in the EU.
Eurostat data show that despite the overall decline in the share of low-paid workers, the problem remains significant for many EU countries. The main factors affecting wages include gender, age, education level, country of residence, industry and type of labour contract. Women, young people and employees with low levels of education are most vulnerable to low earnings.
