Minimum wage per month in national currency rose 95% , from RON500 to RON975 in the last seven years. Romania is followed by Bulgaria, with a 64% increase, and Slovakia and Latvia, with 58% and 57%, respectively.
Minimum wage per month in euros in Romania rose 57% from EUR139 to EUR218, the third fastest growth in EU. Bulgaria ranks first, with a 64% increase, from EUR112 to EUR184, followed by Slovakia, with a 58% salary hike in the last seven years, from EUR241 to EUR380.
Compared with 2008, minimum wages in 2015, expressed in national currency, increased in every member state having a national minimum wage, except Greece where they dropped by 14%, from EUR794 per month to EUR684, while in Ireland, it remained unchanged at EUR1,462.
In January 2015, ten member states had minimum wages below EUR500 per month: Bulgaria (EUR184), Romania (EUR218), Lithuania (EUR300), the Czech Republic (EUR332), Hungary (EUR333), Latvia (EUR360), Slovakia (EUR380), Estonia (EUR390), Croatia (EUR396) and Poland (EUR410). In five other member states, minimum wages were between EUR500 and EUR1,000 per month: Portugal (EUR589), Greece (EUR684), Malta (EUR720), Spain (EUR757) and Slovenia (EUR791).
In the remaining seven member states, minimum wages were well above EUR1,000 per month: the United Kingdom (EUR1,379), France (EUR1,458), Ireland (EUR1,462), Germany (EUR 1,473), Belgium and the Netherlands (both EUR1,502) and Luxembourg (EUR1,923).
Minimum wage per month in purchasing power standards (PPS) rose at the fastest pace in Romania, by 79%, followed by Bulgaria and Latvia, with a 67% growth between 2008 and 2015.
To remove the effect of differences in price levels between the countries, special conversion rates called purchasing power parities (PPPs) are used.