Salaries not bouncing back soon
The Greek labor market is likely to wait a long time for its full recovery, given that financial activity – particularly in the sectors of commerce, food service, hospitality and transport – will remain uncertain until the end of the pandemic, according to the Labor Institute of the General Confederation of Greek Labor (INE GSEE).
In its latest bulletin the institute records that the effect of the pandemic on the labor market in 2020 has been considerable, with 27% of workers on furlough, while the impact on incomes has been huge.
INE GSEE found that the average gross salary in 2020 fell 2.5% compared to the year before. Given also the limited changes to employment, that reduction has originated almost entirely from the drop in wages. In total, salaries sank 4.5% in the second quarter of 2020 from a year earlier, with the slide continuing in the second half of last year, albeit at a slower pace.
The sectors where the decline was strongest, the Labor Institute found, were agriculture, manufacturing, construction, commerce, food service, accommodation and transport, as well as arts and entertainment.
