Romania ranks second after Russia in terms of wage rises in 2009

Wages in Romania will increase by some 14.5 percent in 2009, while the advance in Russia will be 14.8 percent, according to a study carried out by German Kienbaum executive search company.

"If we consider also the inflation rate registered in participant countries, Romania ranks first in terms of salary rises in 2009, exceeding Russia, where wage increase forecasts are very high, and inflation indexes are equally elevated," said Kienbaum Country Manager for Romania and Bulgaria, Paul Milata.

Salaries will rise 8.2 percent in Slovakia, 7.8 percent in the Czech Republic, and 7.2 percent in Poland. The wage rises in Eastern Europe are higher than those in the West, where Austria leads by 4 percent, followed by Belgium and Spain with 3.9 percent each.

According to Raiffeisen Bank Chief Economist Ionut Dumitru, Salaries increases in 2009 will be of some 10 percent. "In the past few years we had the highest salary increases in the region, but unfortunately these exceed productivity. At present, there is an imbalance between wage increases and productivity, which puts pressure on companies, and these can no longer handle large wage increases," added Dumitru.

According to Simona Simion-Popescu, Regional HR Manager for Xerox, the highest salary increases will be for top performers and key employees, but this also depends on the company. "Everyone is cautious at present. Many companies have drawn up more conservative models for salary increases. This is a delicate moment. I do not know how the business will be affected, but we are advancing towards a 15 percent wage increase," added Simion-Popescu.

Business Standard