Romania, the only State in the European Union Where the Purchasing Power of the Minimum Wage Has Fallen.
4 Articles
4 Articles
Romania is the only country in the European Union where real purchasing power of the minimum wage has fallen. Although the minimum wage has been increased to 3,700 gross lei since 1 July, inflation continues to "eat on average about 200 lei per month of Romanian income.
According to the latest report "Minimum wakes in 2026: Annual review", published by Eurofound on Tuesday, Romania was the only of the 22 EU states with national minimum wage that did not raise its level between January 2025 and January 2026. The gross minimum wage remained at 4,050 lei, and its value calculated in euro fell from 814 to 795 euro, on the basis of exchange rate developments. The Eurofound chart also indicates a loss of nearly 8% of…
Two separate wage increases implemented in 2022 and 2023 largely compensated for the minimum wage's losses due to high inflation. However, the abandonment of interim wage increases starting in 2024 altered the trajectory of wage increases against inflation. This situation began to put pressure on real purchasing power.
Gross national minimum wages increased between January 2025 and January 2026 in 21 of the 22 Member States with a national minimum wage. Romania was the only country where the level remained unchanged, although a 7% increase was applied in July.
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