The hourly cost per employee amounts to EUR 4.6 in Romania, compared to an hourly cost of EUR 31.4 in Germany. It will take at least 30 years for a Romanian employee to reach the current salary level of an employee in Germany, according to Ziarul Financiar’s estimations based on the average salary growth in Romania over the past 15 years.

The average hourly labor cost in the EU is currently EUR 24.6. Romania ranks second to last in the EU after Bulgaria, where a company spends EUR 3.8 per hour per employee.

“We have the lowest labor costs in the EU, but also the worse conditions for business. We can request higher salaries, if we offer better conditions, related to infrastructure or the number of taxes that have to be paid,” said Paul Patrascu, HR director for Eastern Europe with Fujikura Automotive.

editor@romania-insider.com