Annual increase in labour costs at 5.1% in euro area (2024)

Euro indicators 17 June 2024 Next release: 16 September 2024

First quarter of 2024

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Increase at 5.5% in EU

Overview

In the first quarter of 2024 the hourly labour costs rose by 5.1% in the euro area and by 5.5% in the EU, compared with the same quarter of the previous year. These figures are published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.

The two main components of labour costs are wages & salaries and non-wage costs.

In the euro area, in the first quarter of 2024 compared with the same quarter of the previous year

  • the costs of hourly wages & salaries increased by 5.3%, while

  • the non-wage component increased by 4.5%.

In the EU, in the first quarter of 2024 compared with the same quarter of the previous year

  • the costs of hourly wages & salaries increased by 5.8% and

  • the non-wage component increased by 4.8%.

Annual increase in labour costs at 5.1% in euro area (1)

Breakdown by economic activity

In the first quarter of 2024 compared with the same quarter of the previous year, hourly labour costs in the euro area rose by 5.3% in the (mainly) non-business economy and by 5.0% in the business economy:

  • +4.8% in industry,

  • +5.2% in construction and

  • +5.0% in services.

In the EU, hourly labour costs grew by 5.6% in the (mainly) non-business economy and by 5.5% in the business economy:

  • +5.5% in industry,

  • +5.8 % in construction and

  • +5.5% in services.

In the EU, in the first quarter of 2024 compared with the same quarter of the previous year, the economic activity (NACE Rev. 2 sections) that recorded the highest increases in hourly wage costs were:

  • R – ‘Arts, entertainment and recreation’ (+8.7%)

  • B – ‘Mining and quarrying’ (+7.8%).

The lowest annual increases were recorded in NACE Rev.2 sections:

  • L – ‘Real estate activities’ (+0.7%)

  • D – ‘Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply’ (+2.3%).

In the EU, in the first quarter of 2024 compared with the same quarter of the previous year, the economic activity (NACE Rev. 2 sections) that recorded the highest increases in the non-wage component were:

  • I – ‘Accommodation and food service activities’ (+7.1%)

  • R – ‘Arts, entertainment and recreation’ (+7.0%)

The lowest annual increases were recorded in NACE Rev.2 sections:

  • L – ‘Real estate activities’ (+1.7%)

  • Q – ‘Human health and social work activities’ (+1.9%).

Annual increase in labour costs at 5.1% in euro area (2)

Hourly wage costs across countries

In the first quarter of 2024 compared with the same quarter of the previous year, the highest increases in hourly wage costs for the whole economy were recorded in Romania (+16.4%), Bulgaria (+15.8%), Croatia (+15.3%), Poland (+14.1%) and Hungary (+13.7%). Two more EU Member States recorded an increase above 10%, namely: Latvia (+12.7%) and Lithuania (+11.1%).

Annual increase in labour costs at 5.1% in euro area (3)

Tables

Nominal hourly labour costs of whole economy

(NACE Rev. 2 sections B to S)

% change compared with same quarter of previous year - calendar adjusted

Q1 2023

Q4 2023

Q1 2024

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

Euro area

5.2

4.9

6.4

3.4

3.2

4.1

5.1

5.3

4.5

EU

5.4

5.2

6.2

4.1

3.9

4.5

5.5

5.8

4.8

Belgium

9.6

10.1

8.3

6.9

7.0

6.7

2.3

2.2

2.3

Bulgaria

15.3

15.8

12.5

11.9

12.2

10.4

15.8

15.8

15.9

Czechia

7.4

7.3

7.5

6.0

6.0

6.0

5.9

5.8

6.0

Denmark

2.9

2.9

3.3

2.0

1.9

2.5

2.5

2.5

2.7

Germany

6.1

5.3

8.5

2.3

2.1

2.9

5.9

6.3

4.4

Estonia

11.7

12.0

11.1

10.8

10.9

10.7

7.4

7.5

7.1

Ireland

10.6

4.2

67.1

8.1

2.6

48.3

5.6

4.8

10.2

Greece

6.1

6.4

5.0

6.5

6.5

6.4

9.0

7.9

12.6

Spain

4.6

4.4

5.2

5.4

4.4

8.5

4.7

4.5

5.3

France

4.3

4.5

4.0

2.9

2.7

3.4

2.7

2.6

2.9

Croatia

11.4

11.4

11.7

15.6

15.6

15.8

15.2

15.3

14.9

Italy

1.8

1.5

2.8

0.0

0.0

-0.2

3.1

3.3

2.6

Cyprus

6.0

6.2

5.3

4.9

5.1

4.2

4.9

4.5

6.5

Latvia

6.3

6.5

5.4

10.9

11.1

10.5

13.6

12.7

16.9

Lithuania

13.6

13.2

22.3

11.2

11.2

11.2

10.9

11.1

7.7

Luxembourg

4.1

4.0

5.3

8.2

8.1

8.9

5.3

5.4

4.5

Hungary

9.6

9.7

8.5

16.2

16.4

15.2

13.7

13.7

14.1

Malta

8.5

4.5

:c

3.2

3.3

2.2

4.2

5.5

:c

Netherlands

5.3

5.2

5.7

5.4

5.7

4.3

7.8

7.6

8.2

Austria

5.2

5.5

4.2

8.0

8.0

7.8

9.8

9.8

9.9

Poland

10.8

10.8

11.0

13.1

13.1

13.1

14.1

14.1

14.0

Portugal

6.7

6.4

7.8

6.3

6.0

7.4

6.2

6.3

6.1

Romania

14.4

14.4

14.0

16.8

16.9

16.7

16.4

16.4

16.5

Slovenia

7.2

7.4

6.3

11.8

12.5

7.7

9.3

9.6

8.2

Slovakia

7.5

7.7

7.2

9.0

9.6

7.1

11.2

9.8

15.5

Finland

-0.2

-0.4

0.6

4.2

4.1

4.9

3.4

4.1

0.2

Sweden

2.5

3.4

0.8

4.6

4.4

5.1

4.0

4.1

3.7

Norway

3.7

3.4

5.4

8.9

5.1

31.2

4.8

4.7

4.7

Iceland

8.3

8.2

8.6

8.6

8.4

9.3

10.2

10.2

10.3

Labour cost data are subject to revision, in particular for the latest quarters, when new source data become available.

: not available c confidential

TOTAL = total labour costs WAGES = wage and salary costs OTHER = non-wage costs

Source dataset: lc_lci_r2_q

Annual increase in labour costs at 5.1% in euro area (4)

Nominal hourly labour costs of business economy

(NACE Rev. 2 sections B to N)

% change compared with same quarter of previous year - calendar adjusted

Q1 2023

Q4 2023

Q1 2024

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

Euro area

5.7

5.3

6.9

4.1

3.8

5.3

5.0

5.0

4.9

EU

6.0

5.8

6.6

4.7

4.5

5.5

5.5

5.6

5.3

Belgium

9.7

10.3

8.2

6.9

6.9

6.8

2.3

2.3

2.3

Bulgaria

16.7

17.2

13.7

11.2

11.6

9.1

15.8

15.7

16.1

Czechia

8.1

8.0

8.2

6.8

6.8

6.9

6.6

6.5

6.8

Denmark

3.1

3.1

3.0

2.3

2.2

2.8

2.8

2.8

3.1

Germany

6.9

6.4

8.7

2.5

2.3

3.4

5.9

6.1

5.4

Estonia

11.0

11.0

11.1

8.4

8.6

8.0

7.3

7.5

6.7

Ireland

14.3

3.8

98.9

14.6

4.8

77.6

6.4

5.4

10.5

Greece

9.7

10.0

8.7

8.5

8.0

10.4

11.8

10.0

18.9

Spain

4.9

4.7

5.5

6.5

5.7

9.0

5.0

4.8

5.6

France

4.0

4.3

3.2

3.1

2.9

3.7

3.0

2.8

3.3

Croatia

11.6

11.6

12.0

14.5

14.4

15.0

12.2

12.3

12.1

Italy

1.7

1.2

3.0

2.3

2.2

2.7

1.6

1.7

1.2

Cyprus

5.7

5.7

5.8

4.4

4.4

4.4

5.3

4.8

7.4

Latvia

6.2

6.3

5.5

10.7

10.8

10.1

13.1

12.9

14.1

Lithuania

14.0

13.7

19.8

11.3

11.3

11.0

10.3

10.4

9.3

Luxembourg

3.8

3.6

5.1

7.5

7.4

8.7

4.9

5.0

4.2

Hungary

17.0

17.4

14.2

15.4

15.5

14.5

13.5

13.5

13.4

Malta

12.8

6.7

:c

4.4

4.4

5.8

4.6

4.7

2.8

Netherlands

6.1

5.4

9.0

5.5

5.5

5.7

7.2

6.9

8.6

Austria

5.1

5.4

4.3

8.5

8.6

8.1

10.2

9.9

11.1

Poland

10.7

10.6

10.9

12.8

12.8

12.9

13.2

13.2

13.2

Portugal

6.0

5.7

7.0

6.3

6.1

7.2

4.6

4.6

4.6

Romania

16.5

16.5

16.2

17.3

17.4

17.3

15.9

15.9

16.1

Slovenia

8.1

8.1

7.8

12.6

13.3

8.5

9.5

9.6

8.4

Slovakia

7.1

7.3

6.8

7.2

8.1

4.6

11.0

9.3

16.1

Finland

0.4

0.2

1.0

5.1

5.0

5.7

2.3

2.9

-0.6

Sweden

2.2

4.0

-1.6

4.0

4.8

2.2

5.1

4.5

6.2

Norway

3.7

3.3

5.9

8.5

3.8

35.4

5.4

5.3

5.6

Iceland

9.3

9.3

9.1

8.6

8.6

8.7

10.0

9.9

10.1

Labour cost data are subject to revision, in particular for the latest quarters, when new source data become available.

TOTAL = total labour costs WAGES = wage and salary costs OTHER = non-wage costs

Source dataset: lc_lci_r2_q

Annual increase in labour costs at 5.1% in euro area (5)

Nominal hourly labour costs of mainly non-business economy

(NACE Rev. 2 sections O to S)

% change compared with same quarter of previous year - calendar adjusted

Q1 2023

Q4 2023

Q1 2024

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

Euro area

4.2

3.8

5.4

2.0

2.1

1.7

5.3

5.8

3.8

EU

4.3

3.8

5.4

2.7

2.8

2.5

5.6

6.2

3.8

Belgium

9.5

9.7

8.6

7.1

7.2

6.8

2.2

2.2

2.3

Bulgaria

10.8

11.1

9.3

13.9

13.9

13.6

16.3

16.5

15.6

Czechia

5.7

5.8

5.5

3.8

3.8

3.8

4.1

4.1

4.1

Denmark

2.6

2.4

4.0

1.5

1.4

2.0

2.0

2.0

1.9

Germany

4.2

2.7

8.1

1.7

1.6

1.9

5.7

6.9

2.7

Estonia

13.5

14.4

11.0

17.1

16.8

17.7

7.7

7.5

8.5

Ireland

2.4

4.9

:c

-4.8

-1.5

:c

4.2

3.6

:c

Greece

0.6

0.8

-0.2

2.9

3.4

1.4

4.3

4.1

4.8

Spain

3.9

3.7

4.5

3.2

1.9

7.3

4.0

3.8

4.6

France

5.0

4.7

5.6

2.3

2.1

2.8

2.0

2.0

2.0

Croatia

10.8

10.7

10.9

17.8

17.8

17.5

21.9

22.1

20.8

Italy

2.2

2.1

2.5

-4.2

-4.0

-4.8

6.1

6.4

5.2

Cyprus

6.7

7.5

4.4

6.1

6.9

3.8

4.2

3.8

5.3

Latvia

7.1

7.4

6.0

11.6

11.7

11.3

14.4

12.0

23.7

Lithuania

12.3

11.7

29.6

11.0

11.0

11.6

12.5

12.9

3.2

Luxembourg

5.3

5.2

5.6

9.8

9.8

9.5

6.7

6.8

5.2

Hungary

-5.7

-6.0

-3.3

18.1

18.4

16.5

14.3

14.1

15.9

Malta

1.2

0.5

8.4

1.1

1.4

-1.4

3.4

7.1

:c

Netherlands

3.4

4.5

0.4

5.3

6.3

2.3

9.1

9.4

7.8

Austria

5.4

5.9

3.8

6.5

6.4

6.8

9.0

9.7

6.7

Poland

11.2

11.2

11.3

14.0

14.0

13.9

16.4

16.5

16.2

Portugal

8.3

7.9

10.1

6.2

5.9

7.7

9.3

9.3

9.2

Romania

8.1

8.2

7.5

15.2

15.3

14.9

18.0

18.0

17.6

Slovenia

5.2

5.6

3.0

9.4

10.1

5.3

9.0

9.3

7.4

Slovakia

8.4

8.6

8.1

12.9

12.9

12.9

11.7

10.8

14.4

Finland

-1.5

-1.7

-0.5

2.7

2.5

3.6

5.5

6.3

1.8

Sweden

3.1

2.1

5.3

5.8

3.7

10.4

1.9

3.3

-0.8

Norway

3.4

3.3

4.1

9.7

7.2

23.8

3.6

3.6

3.3

Iceland

6.6

6.2

7.8

8.6

8.1

10.0

10.5

10.5

10.5

Labour cost data are subject to revision, in particular for the latest quarters, when new source data become available.

: not available c confidential

TOTAL = total labour costs WAGES = wage and salary costs OTHER = non-wage costs

Source dataset: lc_lci_r2_q

Annual increase in labour costs at 5.1% in euro area (6)

Nominal hourly labour costs by main economic activity branches for the business economy

Nominal hourly labour costs of Industry

(NACE Rev. 2 sections B to E)

% change compared with same quarter of previous year - calendar adjusted

Q1 2023

Q4 2023

Q1 2024

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

Euro area

5.2

5.1

5.4

4.2

4.0

4.6

4.8

4.9

4.5

EU

5.7

5.8

5.4

4.9

4.9

4.9

5.5

5.7

5.0

Belgium

9.2

9.8

7.9

5.5

5.6

5.5

3.4

3.4

3.4

Bulgaria

18.6

19.6

13.7

10.9

11.3

9.1

13.9

14.0

13.6

Czechia

8.6

8.5

9.1

6.1

6.0

6.2

6.8

6.8

6.6

Denmark

3.8

3.9

2.8

1.1

0.7

3.1

2.1

2.0

2.3

Germany

6.2

6.1

6.7

3.3

3.3

3.6

5.0

5.3

4.0

Estonia

8.2

8.3

8.1

3.9

3.7

4.4

7.9

8.0

7.6

Ireland

10.0

5.4

37.3

7.2

4.6

20.9

5.7

5.5

6.4

Greece

3.1

3.1

2.9

5.1

4.6

7.3

7.3

6.2

11.5

Spain

5.3

5.0

6.0

5.5

5.0

6.9

4.6

4.2

5.8

France

4.1

4.5

3.2

3.5

3.1

4.4

3.2

3.0

3.8

Croatia

9.4

9.3

9.8

14.3

14.2

15.0

13.6

13.5

13.7

Italy

1.8

1.6

2.5

2.8

2.9

2.6

3.4

3.5

3.0

Cyprus

5.5

5.5

5.6

5.1

5.1

5.4

5.5

5.1

7.4

Latvia

6.6

7.0

5.3

9.7

9.9

8.8

12.3

12.2

12.7

Lithuania

11.8

11.2

:c

10.8

10.9

:c

11.1

11.4

:c

Luxembourg

2.4

2.3

3.7

8.8

8.7

9.7

5.4

5.7

2.9

Hungary

20.1

20.7

16.2

14.7

14.9

13.8

13.2

13.1

13.7

Malta

14.3

8.3

:c

4.5

4.8

0.6

7.1

7.3

3.2

Netherlands

4.6

4.7

4.4

6.4

6.2

7.2

:c

:c

:c

Austria

4.9

5.0

4.6

7.5

7.2

8.4

7.9

7.5

9.3

Poland

10.1

10.1

10.1

13.6

13.6

13.8

13.5

13.5

13.5

Portugal

7.1

6.9

7.7

6.3

6.1

6.9

4.8

4.8

4.7

Romania

16.9

16.9

16.5

16.6

16.6

16.6

14.4

14.4

14.2

Slovenia

7.7

7.5

8.5

13.3

14.5

6.6

8.2

9.0

3.9

Slovakia

6.3

6.9

4.8

6.9

7.9

4.2

12.0

10.8

15.6

Finland

0.9

0.7

1.5

6.4

6.2

7.3

1.3

1.7

-0.6

Sweden

2.1

3.8

-1.7

3.4

4.2

1.6

5.1

4.7

6.1

Norway

3.6

2.6

9.1

9.6

3.7

43.8

4.5

4.8

2.1

Iceland

8.8

9.0

8.3

9.7

9.9

8.6

13.5

13.6

13.5

Labour cost data are subject to revision, in particular for the latest quarters, when new source data become available.

: not available c confidential

TOTAL = total labour costs WAGES = wage and salary costs OTHER = non-wage costs

Source dataset: lc_lci_r2_q

Annual increase in labour costs at 5.1% in euro area (7)

Nominal hourly labour costs of Construction

(NACE Rev. 2 section F)

% change compared with same quarter of previous year - calendar adjusted

Q1 2023

Q4 2023

Q1 2024

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

Euro area

5.4

4.4

8.6

4.9

3.5

9.3

5.2

5.4

4.5

EU

5.6

4.8

7.9

5.5

4.4

9.0

5.8

6.1

5.0

Belgium

10.0

10.7

8.8

7.1

7.1

7.1

2.3

2.3

2.3

Bulgaria

14.2

14.2

13.9

19.4

20.4

14.1

19.3

20.6

12.7

Czechia

9.3

9.3

9.3

8.1

8.1

8.2

5.9

5.9

6.0

Denmark

3.5

3.5

3.3

2.9

2.8

3.2

3.3

3.4

2.7

Germany

3.7

3.0

5.7

2.4

2.2

3.3

6.3

7.0

4.0

Estonia

5.2

5.3

5.0

4.4

4.3

4.5

6.2

6.5

5.4

Ireland

:c

3.3

:c

:c

4.5

:c

:c

7.1

:c

Greece

12.5

9.8

22.0

7.0

7.3

6.5

13.9

12.2

19.5

Spain

4.2

3.8

5.2

6.3

5.9

7.4

3.4

2.5

5.3

France

4.3

5.0

2.4

2.9

2.9

3.0

2.3

2.4

2.2

Croatia

13.6

13.6

13.4

17.1

17.2

16.3

11.6

12.0

8.8

Italy

4.6

4.5

4.9

2.3

1.7

3.8

4.3

4.8

2.9

Cyprus

5.6

5.6

5.7

3.6

3.6

3.7

4.5

4.0

6.7

Latvia

-0.6

-0.1

-2.6

9.7

10.2

8.0

14.7

14.7

14.7

Lithuania

15.9

16.6

0.3

15.9

16.2

7.5

15.5

14.5

40.8

Luxembourg

4.9

4.9

5.3

9.0

8.8

10.1

6.5

6.4

7.1

Hungary

15.4

15.6

13.7

16.8

16.8

17.1

17.0

16.9

17.6

Malta

8.5

8.4

9.8

0.7

1.0

-3.0

4.5

5.0

-4.0

Netherlands

5.3

6.2

2.3

1.3

2.1

-1.7

:c

:c

:c

Austria

5.4

5.3

6.0

8.8

8.1

11.2

10.0

8.7

14.6

Poland

4.2

4.2

4.3

11.6

11.6

11.6

16.7

16.7

16.6

Portugal

7.1

5.3

13.7

4.9

3.1

11.3

4.3

4.3

4.2

Romania

21.9

21.9

21.7

30.1

30.1

30.2

20.5

20.5

20.6

Slovenia

8.0

8.1

7.9

12.1

12.6

9.3

10.7

10.5

11.0

Slovakia

11.0

6.8

26.4

6.5

8.5

0.7

9.0

6.7

16.1

Finland

-3.8

-3.8

-3.6

3.1

3.0

3.4

6.6

7.5

2.6

Sweden

2.5

4.1

-1.2

4.6

4.5

4.8

5.6

5.0

7.2

Norway

5.6

5.6

5.8

6.0

3.2

22.1

5.8

5.6

6.9

Iceland

9.8

9.8

9.7

8.2

8.1

8.6

11.0

11.1

10.8

Labour cost data are subject to revision, in particular for the latest quarters, when new source data become available.

c confidential : not available

TOTAL = total labour costs WAGES = wage and salary costs OTHER = non-wage costs

Source dataset: lc_lci_r2_q

Annual increase in labour costs at 5.1% in euro area (8)

Nominal hourly labour costs of Services

(NACE Rev. 2 sections G to N)

% change compared with same quarter of previous year - calendar adjusted

Q1 2023

Q4 2023

Q1 2024

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

Euro area

5.9

5.5

7.4

4.1

3.7

5.2

5.0

5.0

5.1

EU

6.1

5.8

6.9

4.6

4.3

5.2

5.5

5.5

5.4

Belgium

9.7

10.3

8.2

7.5

7.5

7.5

1.8

1.8

1.8

Bulgaria

16.0

16.4

13.8

10.7

11.1

8.6

16.3

16.1

17.8

Czechia

7.4

7.5

7.2

7.3

7.3

7.4

6.5

6.3

7.0

Denmark

2.9

2.8

3.0

2.7

2.7

2.7

3.1

3.0

3.4

Germany

7.8

7.1

10.6

2.1

1.7

3.3

6.4

6.4

6.5

Estonia

13.2

13.1

13.5

11.2

11.6

10.3

7.2

7.5

6.5

Ireland

11.5

3.5

85.7

10.0

4.8

44.0

5.9

5.2

10.0

Greece

11.7

12.2

10.0

9.6

9.1

11.6

13.1

11.1

21.2

Spain

4.8

4.6

5.4

6.9

5.9

10.0

5.3

5.1

5.6

France

3.9

4.2

3.3

3.1

2.9

3.6

2.9

2.8

3.3

Croatia

12.4

12.4

12.8

14.2

14.1

14.8

11.8

11.7

11.9

Italy

1.1

0.5

3.0

2.1

1.9

2.8

0.1

0.2

-0.2

Cyprus

5.7

5.7

5.8

4.3

4.3

4.3

5.3

4.9

7.5

Latvia

7.0

7.1

6.8

11.2

11.3

10.9

13.1

12.8

14.5

Lithuania

14.6

14.4

19.6

10.9

10.8

12.2

9.3

9.3

7.4

Luxembourg

3.7

3.6

5.3

7.2

7.1

8.4

4.6

4.7

4.0

Hungary

15.2

15.5

13.0

15.7

15.8

14.8

13.3

13.4

12.8

Malta

12.8

6.2

:c

4.6

4.6

8.0

4.1

4.2

3.3

Netherlands

6.6

5.5

11.1

5.7

5.6

6.1

:c

:c

:c

Austria

5.2

5.6

3.9

9.0

9.5

7.5

11.5

11.5

11.5

Poland

11.8

11.7

12.1

12.3

12.3

12.4

12.6

12.6

12.6

Portugal

5.3

5.2

5.7

6.5

6.4

6.8

4.5

4.5

4.5

Romania

15.5

15.5

15.3

15.8

15.8

16.1

15.9

15.9

16.6

Slovenia

8.4

8.6

7.3

12.2

12.6

9.9

10.2

10.0

11.6

Slovakia

7.4

7.6

6.8

7.6

8.3

5.4

10.5

8.5

16.4

Finland

0.8

0.7

1.6

4.8

4.7

5.2

2.2

2.9

-1.1

Sweden

2.2

4.1

-1.7

4.1

5.1

1.9

4.9

4.4

6.2

Norway

3.3

3.1

4.7

8.6

4.0

35.4

5.7

5.4

7.0

Iceland

9.4

9.4

9.3

8.2

8.1

8.6

8.6

8.5

8.8

Labour cost data are subject to revision, in particular for the latest quarters, when new source data become available.

c confidential : not available

TOTAL = total labour costs WAGES = wage and salary costs OTHER = non-wage costs

Source dataset: lc_lci_r2_q

Annual increase in labour costs at 5.1% in euro area (9)

Nominal hourly labour costs of wage and non-wage component by NACE Rev. 2 sections in the EU

% change compared with the same quarter of the previous year - calendar adjusted

Q1 2023

Q4 2023

Q1 2024

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

TOTAL

WAGES

OTHER

B: Mining and quarrying

7.5

7.3

8.1

10.8

11.1

9.9

7.0

7.8

4.4

C: Manufacturing

5.6

5.6

5.4

4.7

4.7

4.8

5.7

5.8

5.1

D: Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply

9.1

9.9

6.5

5.3

5.3

5.3

2.5

2.3

3.1

E: Water supply; sewerage, waste management and remediation activities

5.3

5.6

4.3

5.3

5.5

5.0

5.4

5.7

4.7

F: Construction

5.6

4.8

7.9

5.5

4.4

9.0

5.8

6.1

5.0

G: Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles

5.7

5.4

6.6

5.2

4.9

6.3

4.5

4.6

4.4

H: Transport and storage

7.5

7.2

8.3

6.1

5.8

7.0

5.2

5.1

5.5

I: Accommodation and food service activities

10.0

7.3

21.2

4.6

4.2

5.9

6.4

6.2

7.1

J: Information and communication

5.3

5.5

4.8

4.8

4.8

5.0

5.8

5.6

6.2

K: Financial and insurance activities

5.2

5.2

5.0

4.0

4.4

2.9

5.3

5.8

3.9

L: Real estate activities

5.9

6.1

5.3

3.1

2.9

3.5

0.9

0.7

1.7

M: Professional, scientific and technical activities

4.7

4.7

4.8

1.9

1.6

3.0

6.7

6.7

6.5

N: Administrative and support service activities

7.9

7.5

9.2

5.4

5.3

5.7

6.4

6.3

6.6

O: Public administration and defense; compulsory social security

3.4

3.1

4.0

3.0

3.2

2.5

5.9

6.4

4.7

P: Education

3.5

3.2

4.4

3.1

3.3

2.4

6.5

7.0

4.9

Q: Human health and social work activities

5.3

4.6

7.5

2.5

2.2

3.1

4.5

5.4

1.9

R: Arts, entertainment and recreation

5.6

5.2

6.7

2.1

3.0

-0.8

8.3

8.7

7.0

S: Other service activities

3.7

3.7

3.9

2.1

2.4

1.4

5.1

5.4

4.1

Labour cost data are subject to revision, in particular for the latest quarters, when new source data become available.

TOTAL = total labour costs WAGES = wage and salary costs OTHER = non-wage costs

Source dataset: lc_lci_r2_q

Annual increase in labour costs at 5.1% in euro area (10)

Notes for users

Revisions and timetable

The Labour Cost Index data are subject to revision, in particular for the latest quarters, when new source data become available. The original data, before any subsequent revision, are also available here.

Compared with the News Release of 19 March 2024, the annual growth rate of the hourly labour costs, for the total economy in the fourth quarter of 2023 remained unchanged (+3.4%) for the euro area. It was revised from +4.0% to +4.1% for the EU.

Eurostat has started releasing early estimates for the hourly labour costs of the euro area and of the EU, around 50 days after the reference quarter. Early estimates for the first quarter of 2024 have been released on 21 May 2024 and early estimates for the second quarter are scheduled on 21 August 2024.

In the case of Ireland, the annual growth of hourly wages was impacted downwards by the phasing out of the Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme (EWSS) introduced by government in March 2020 to support wages during the COVID-19 pandemic. It enabled employees, whose employers' business activities were adversely affected by the pandemic, to receive supports directly from their employer through the payroll system.

Methods and definitions

The Labour Cost Index is a short-term indicator showing the development of hourly labour costs incurred by employers, in nominal terms, that is without adjusting for price developments. It is calculated dividing the labour cost in national currency by the number of hours worked. Therefore, the development of variables, labour costs and hours worked, affect the evolution of the index (base year = 2020).

The quarterly changes in hourly employers’ costs are measured for total labour costs and its main components: wages and salaries; and non-wage costs (labour costs other than wages and salaries). Total labour costs (TOT) cover wage and non-wage costs less subsidies. They do not include vocational training costs or other expenditures such as recruitment costs, spending on working clothes, etc.

Wage and salary costs (WAG) include direct remuneration, bonuses, and allowances paid by an employer in cash or in kind to an employee in return for work done, payments to employees saving schemes, payments for days not worked and remuneration in kind such as food, drink, fuel, company cars, etc.

Labour costs other than wages and salaries (OTH - non-wage costs) include the employers’ social contributions plus employment taxes regarded as labour costs less subsidies intended to refund part or the entire employer’s cost of direct remuneration.

Eurostat publishes Labour Cost Index data for NACE Rev. 2 sections B to S. The aggregate is referred to as "Whole economy" for the sake of simplification, although sections A: ‘Agriculture, forestry and fishing’; T: ‘Activities of households as employers; undifferentiated goods and services producing activities of households for own use’ and U: ‘Activities of extraterritorial organisations and bodies’ are excluded. Section N: ‘Administrative and support service activities’ includes the activities of temporary employment agencies.

Geographical information

The euro area (EA20) includes Belgium, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia and Finland.

The European Union (EU27) includes Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Finland and Sweden.

For more information

  • Website section on labour costs

  • Database section on labour costs

  • Statistics Explained article on labour cost index

  • Euro indicators dashboard

  • Release calendar for Euro indicators

  • European Statistics Code of Practice

Get in touch

Media requests

Eurostat Media Support

Phone: (+352) 4301 33 408

E-mail: eurostat-mediasupport@ec.europa.eu

Further information on data

Ines KOLAKOVIC

Phone: (+352) 4301 32 179

E-mail: estat-labour-cost-indices@ec.europa.eu

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Annual increase in labour costs at 5.1% in euro area (2024)

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