Wages still rising, but well below inflation

Wages om the Netherlands increased by 3.4 percent last month on average, according to preliminary figures from the employers’ association AWVN. While salaries are still rising, the increases are well below inflation in the Netherlands, which amounted to 11.6 percent last month according to the European harmonized method.

At 3.4 percent, the wage increase in July was slightly lower than in May and June but still at the highest level in almost 14 years, the AWVN said to NU.nl. “The weakening is only incidental. We have a total of 800 collective labor agreements, of which about 500 will be renewed this year. Last month there were a number of agreements with a lower wage increase,” a spokesperson said.

According to the AWVN, the overall trend for wage increases is upward. “That has been the case for a year and a half, and we are also at a high level in July. The last time wages rose by 3.4 percent was in October 2008.”

The AWVN did not want to speculate on what will happen in the coming months and whether wages would continue to rise at this “historically high level.” “That trend will continue for a while unless the global economy collapses.

While wages are increasing at historic rates, inflation is unfortunately also breaking records. Due to the war in Ukraine, among other things, Netherlands households are facing higher and higher energy bills and food prices. In July, inflation increased the fastest in the Netherlands of all eurozone countries.