More than 1.4 million employees in Romania or 26% of the total 5.5 million active employees in the country (those for whom employers paid all taxes), earn minimum wage, Labor Inspection Department data show. The number of those earning minimum wage is 400,000 lower than in January 2018, but 130,000 higher than in 2015.
“The successive and significant minimum wage hikes led to the current situation, i.e. the number of minimum wage employees being higher. Whereas five years ago companies would try to make sure they had as few employees earning minimum wage as possible, they have been unable to keep up with successive hikes of the minimum wage over the past few years so the number of employees at this pay level went up,” said Oana Botolan Datki, SEE managing partner of human resources company CTeam Human Capital.
Statistics show the percentage of employees making minimum wage dropped from 33% in the total number of active employees (5.5 million) at the end of January 2018 to 26% in January 2019. However, the number of minimum wage employees was 25% of the total employees five years ago, 1% lower than in 2019.
Minimum wage in Romania is now RON1,263 in net amount per month, 73% higher than in 2015 and 9% higher than in January 2018.(EUR1=RON4.7440)
(English version by Loredana Fratila-Cristescu)