Second quarter of 2013 Annual growth in labour costs slowed to 0.9% in both euro area and EU27 - Main contents
STAT/13/135
16 September 2013
Second quarter of 2013
Annual growth in labour costs slowed to 0.9% in both euro area and EU27
Hourly labour costs1 in the euro area2 (EA17) rose by 0.9% in the year up to the second quarter of 2013, compared with +1.7% for the first quarter of 20133. In the EU272, the annual rise was also 0.9% up to the second quarter of 2013, compared with +2.0% in the previous quarter3. These figures are published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.
The two main components of labour costs are wages & salaries and non-wage costs. In the euro area, wages & salaries per hour worked grew by 1.1% and the non-wage component by 0.1% in the year up to the second quarter of 2013, compared with +1.8% and +1.4% respectively for the previous quarter. In the EU27, hourly wages & salaries rose by 1.0% and the non-wage component by 0.3% in the year up to the second quarter of 2013, compared with +2.0% for both components for the first quarter of 2013.
Figures and graphics available in PDF and WORD PROCESSED
Breakdown by economic activity
In the euro area, hourly labour costs rose by 1.8% in industry, 0.7% in construction, 0.8% in services and 0.3% in the mainly non-business economy in the year up to the second quarter of 2013. In the EU27, labour costs per hour grew by 1.7% in industry, 0.4% in construction, 0.9% in services and 0.4% in the mainly non-business economy.
Member States
Among the Member States for which data are available for the second quarter of 2013, the highest annual increases in hourly labour costs for the whole economy were registered in Estonia (+7.7%), Lithuania (+6.5%) and Romania (+6.0%). Decreases were recorded in Slovenia (-5.9%), Cyprus (-4.6%), Croatia (-0.6%) and Spain
(-0.3%).
Figures and graphics available in PDF and WORD PROCESSED
-
*Not working day adjusted
-
-The Labour Cost Index is a short-term indicator showing the development of hourly labour costs incurred by employers. It is calculated dividing the labour cost by the number of hours worked. Therefore, the development of both variables, labour costs and hours worked, affects the evolution of the index.
The quarterly changes in hourly employers’ costs are measured for the total labour costs and the main components, namely wages and salaries on one hand, and labour costs other than wages and salaries (non-wage costs) on the other hand. Total labour costs (TOT) cover wage and non-wage costs less subsidies. They do not include vocational training costs or other expenditures such as recruitment costs, spending on working clothes, etc.
Wage and salary costs (WAG) include direct remuneration, bonuses, and allowances paid by an employer in cash or in kind to an employee in return for work done, payments to employees saving schemes, payments for days not worked and remuneration in kind such as food, drink, fuel, company cars, etc.
Labour costs other than wages and salaries (OTH - non-wage costs) include the employers’ social contributions plus employment taxes regarded as labour costs less subsidies intended to refund part or all of the employer’s cost of direct remuneration.
Eurostat publishes Labour Cost Index data for NACE Rev. 2 sections B to S. The aggregate is referred to as "Whole economy" for the sake of simplification, even if agriculture, activities of households as employers and activities of extraterritorial organisations are excluded. For more breakdowns and further definitions please refer to:
http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/statistics_explained/index.php/Labour_cost_index_-_recent_trends
-
-The euro area (EA17) consists of Belgium, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Italy, Cyprus, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia and Finland.
Up to 30 June 2013, the European Union (EU27) included Belgium (BE), Bulgaria (BG), the Czech Republic (CZ), Denmark (DK), Germany (DE), Estonia (EE), Ireland (IE), Greece (EL), Spain (ES), France (FR), Italy (IT), Cyprus (CY), Latvia (LV), Lithuania (LT), Luxembourg (LU), Hungary (HU), Malta (MT), the Netherlands (NL), Austria (AT), Poland (PL), Portugal (PT), Romania (RO), Slovenia (SI), Slovakia (SK), Finland (FI), Sweden (SE) and the United Kingdom (UK). From 1 July 2013 the European Union (EU28) also includes Croatia (HR).
As part of Eurostat's guidelines for the dissemination of data when the EU is enlarged, the aggregate data series commented on in this News Release refer to the official composition of the EU in the most recent quarter for which data is available. Thus News Releases with data for quarters up to the second quarter of 2013 comment on EU27 series, while Releases with data for the third quarter of 2013 onwards will comment on EU28 series.
Eurostat's guidelines can be found on the Eurostat website:
http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/cache/ITY_PUBLIC/GUIDE_ENLARG_2007/EN/GUIDE_ENLARG_2007-EN.PDF
-
-Compared with News Release 95/2013 of 17 June 2013, annual growth rates for the total economy for the first quarter of 2013 were revised from +1.6% to +1.7% for the EA17 and from +1.9% to +2.0% for the EU27.
Issued by: Eurostat Press Office
Tim ALLEN
Tel: +352-4301-33 444
eurostat-pressoffice@ec.europa.eu
Eurostat news releases on the internet:
For further information on data:
Sammy LAURITSEN
Tel: +352-4301-35 742
Hubertus VREESWIJK
Tel: +352-4301-34 323
estat-labour-cost-indices@ec.europa.eu
Selected Principal European Economic Indicators: http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/euroindicators
Nominal hourly labour costs
% change compared with same quarter of previous year - working day adjusted
Whole economy (NACE Rev. 2 sections B to S)
Q2 2012
Q3 2012
Q4 2012
Q1 2013
Q2 2013
TOTAL
WAGES
OTHER
TOTAL
WAGES
OTHER
TOTAL
WAGES
OTHER
TOTAL
WAGES
OTHER
TOTAL
WAGES
OTHER
EA17
2.1
2.3
1.8
1.9
2.1
1.7
1.6
1.6
1.4
1.7
1.8
1.4
0.9
1.1
0.1
EU27
2.1
2.1
2.0
2.0
2.0
2.0
1.5
1.4
1.7
2.0
2.0
2.0
0.9
1.0
0.3
EU28
2.1
2.1
2.0
2.0
2.0
2.0
1.5
1.4
1.7
2.0
2.0
2.0
0.9
1.0
0.3
BE
2.7
2.7
2.8
2.0
2.1
2.0
2.7
2.7
2.6
2.6
2.7
2.5
2.2
2.2
2.1
BG
7.3
8.3
2.7
7.9
8.7
3.9
7.5
8.4
3.1
4.7
4.5
5.3
3.4
3.2
4.9
CZ*
4.7
4.7
4.8
4.5
4.5
4.5
1.3
1.3
1.2
5.4
5.4
5.4
1.5
1.5
1.4
DK
1.8
1.7
1.9
1.6
1.6
1.9
1.5
1.4
1.9
1.0
1.0
1.2
1.4
1.4
1.2
DE
3.2
3.7
1.2
3.0
3.3
1.9
3.0
3.5
1.4
3.7
3.3
5.1
1.8
2.0
1.4
EE
4.5
4.2
4.5
6.0
6.4
6.2
6.7
6.6
7.7
7.5
8.0
7.4
7.7
7.8
7.0
IE
0.9
0.9
1.1
1.6
1.4
4.9
1.3
1.0
4.9
0.8
0.7
2.1
0.6
0.5
2.1
EL
-8.7
-8.3
-9.4
-13.3
-10.9
-16.6
-5.1
-3.8
-7.1
-9.5
-10.1
-7.5
:
:
:
ES
0.5
0.6
0.2
0.6
0.7
0.3
-3.4
-4.4
-0.7
-0.9
-1.4
0.5
-0.3
-0.6
0.8
FR
2.1
2.0
2.3
2.4
2.5
2.2
1.9
2.1
1.7
0.1
1.6
-3.1
0.5
1.9
-2.7
HR*
3.6
3.6
3.6
0.9
0.9
0.9
1.8
1.8
1.8
4.1
4.1
4.1
-0.6
-0.6
-0.6
IT
1.3
1.3
1.5
1.9
2.0
1.6
1.2
1.4
0.9
2.5
2.4
3.1
0.6
0.5
0.7
CY
0.8
0.8
1.1
0.0
0.0
-0.3
-0.8
-0.7
-0.9
-1.5
-2.0
1.5
-4.6
-4.6
-4.3
LV
4.7
4.7
4.9
3.4
3.6
2.7
3.7
3.9
3.1
4.7
4.7
5.5
4.3
4.3
4.1
LT
3.2
2.6
4.6
5.3
5.0
6.3
4.7
4.0
6.5
4.8
4.4
5.9
6.5
6.0
8.0
LU
2.2
2.2
2.6
3.2
3.2
3.5
2.2
2.2
2.7
4.9
4.7
5.0
2.2
2.2
2.3
HU
4.5
c
c
5.8
5.3
8.9
5.1
4.5
7.9
4.7
5.1
3.6
3.5
3.5
3.4
MT
3.8
3.9
3.1
2.3
2.5
1.6
3.7
3.9
4.0
5.2
5.7
3.1
4.2
4.3
3.0
NL
2.0
1.0
5.5
2.6
1.3
7.6
1.8
0.6
6.1
0.9
0.3
3.0
0.3
-0.3
2.3
AT*
7.5
7.6
7.4
5.5
5.6
5.3
5.3
5.2
5.4
4.9
4.7
5.6
1.1
1.0
1.6
PL
3.8
3.8
3.7
4.4
4.4
4.5
1.8
1.8
1.9
3.8
3.8
3.9
2.0
2.0
2.2
PT
-9.6
-10.1
-8.0
-9.6
-7.6
-16.0
-8.1
-6.9
-11.8
-1.9
-1.6
-3.0
0.3
-0.1
1.8
RO
7.0
7.0
7.0
7.2
7.2
7.1
7.6
7.6
7.6
8.6
8.6
8.6
6.0
6.0
6.0
SI
3.1
3.9
-1.9
-0.9
-0.7
-2.1
-1.9
-1.6
-4.0
-3.8
-3.8
-3.7
-5.9
-5.9
-5.9
SK
3.6
3.4
4.1
1.5
1.4
3.0
3.8
3.7
3.6
5.5
5.1
7.0
3.3
2.3
6.2
FI
5.2
5.2
5.3
4.5
3.8
4.3
4.1
3.8
3.9
2.5
3.4
2.0
2.9
4.0
2.6
SE
4.0
3.5
5.0
3.8
3.3
4.8
3.6
3.2
4.7
2.2
2.5
1.6
0.9
1.2
0.2
UK
1.1
0.6
1.8
0.9
0.8
2.2
0.2
-0.4
2.0
1.8
1.5
4.3
0.9
0.6
0.9
Labour cost data are subject to revision, in particular for the latest quarters, when new source data become available.
-
:Data not available * Not working day adjusted c Confidential
TOTAL = total labour costs WAGES = wage and salary costs OTHER = non-wage costs
Nominal hourly labour costs for the business and mainly non-business economy
% change compared with same quarter of previous year - working day adjusted
Business economy
(NACE Rev. 2 section B to N)
Mainly non-business economy
(NACE Rev. 2 section O to S)
Q2/12
Q3/12
Q4/12
Q1/13
Q2 2013
Q2/12
Q3/12
Q4/12
Q1/13
Q2 2013
TOT
TOT
TOT
TOT
TOT
WAG
OTH
TOT
TOT
TOT
TOT
TOT
WAG
OTH
EA17
2.6
2.3
2.1
1.9
1.1
1.4
0.3
1.1
1.2
0.3
1.3
0.3
0.5
-0.3
EU27
2.6
2.4
2.2
2.1
1.1
1.3
0.4
0.9
1.1
0.1
1.7
0.4
0.4
0.0
EU28
2.7
2.4
2.2
2.1
1.1
1.3
0.4
1.0
1.1
0.1
1.7
0.4
0.4
0.0
BE
3.3
2.5
2.6
2.5
2.0
2.0
2.0
1.2
0.8
2.9
2.9
2.8
2.9
2.6
BG
8.7
9.7
8.2
4.2
2.7
2.6
3.6
2.4
2.6
5.0
6.8
6.2
5.8
9.1
CZ*
4.9
3.8
1.8
5.0
1.6
1.6
1.6
4.3
6.5
-0.4
6.5
1.0
1.0
1.0
DK
1.6
1.4
1.3
1.2
1.8
1.7
1.9
2.0
2.1
1.8
0.6
0.7
0.8
-0.1
DE
3.3
3.4
3.1
3.9
1.7
1.9
1.3
2.5
2.2
3.0
3.3
2.1
2.2
1.8
EE
4.8
6.5
7.1
7.6
9.1
9.1
8.8
3.8
4.7
5.1
7.0
3.9
4.5
2.4
IE
1.3
2.8
2.5
1.6
1.1
1.0
3.3
-0.1
-0.8
-1.4
-0.7
-0.5
-0.5
-0.2
EL
-3.4
-8.2
-3.1
-11.0
:
:
:
-16.9
-20.9
-8.8
-6.9
:
:
:
ES
0.9
1.0
0.3
-0.1
0.3
0.0
1.4
-0.5
-0.3
-11.7
-2.4
-1.7
-2.0
-0.6
FR
2.1
2.2
1.7
-0.1
0.3
2.1
-3.4
2.1
2.9
2.6
0.7
0.8
1.6
-0.8
HR*
3.4
1.0
2.2
5.4
0.7
0.7
0.7
4.1
0.5
1.3
1.9
-2.8
-2.8
-2.8
IT
1.8
2.9
2.3
3.0
1.9
1.6
2.7
0.4
-0.1
-0.5
1.7
-1.8
-1.4
-2.9
CY
1.4
0.8
0.7
1.0
-2.9
-2.9
-2.8
-0.2
-1.6
-3.6
-6.5
-8.0
-8.0
-7.8
LV
4.8
3.8
3.7
4.8
4.2
4.4
3.5
4.6
3.3
3.4
4.2
4.4
4.1
5.6
LT
3.8
5.1
6.0
5.9
8.1
7.3
10.0
2.0
6.2
1.8
2.2
3.3
3.3
3.3
LU
2.2
3.3
2.3
5.4
2.4
2.3
2.5
2.4
2.9
1.9
3.1
1.9
1.9
1.7
HU
6.1
6.7
6.4
3.4
3.4
3.4
3.3
0.6
3.6
1.8
8.2
3.9
3.9
3.7
MT
3.1
3.6
3.6
5.6
4.6
4.5
5.4
5.3
0.2
4.0
4.4
3.5
3.9
0.9
NL
1.8
2.5
1.5
1.3
0.2
-0.7
3.5
2.2
2.7
2.3
0.2
0.3
0.3
0.0
AT*
6.8
4.1
3.8
4.3
2.3
2.1
2.8
10.0
8.8
10.5
6.3
-1.8
-2.0
-1.3
PL
3.8
4.4
1.9
3.8
1.9
1.9
2.1
3.4
4.7
1.4
3.9
2.3
2.3
2.3
PT
-0.1
-11.5
-0.5
-1.6
1.7
0.7
5.6
-21.0
-6.9
-18.7
-2.4
-1.7
-1.3
-2.8
RO
7.3
6.5
5.7
5.5
3.4
3.4
3.4
6.1
9.6
14.1
19.4
15.1
15.1
15.1
SI
4.3
0.3
-0.7
-1.8
-5.7
-5.7
-5.6
0.2
-3.4
-4.7
-8.3
-6.3
-6.3
-6.6
SK
3.0
1.1
3.3
5.2
2.9
2.0
6.3
5.0
2.8
5.1
6.2
4.4
3.2
6.2
FI
5.5
5.0
4.6
2.7
1.8
3.1
1.0
4.8
3.8
3.5
2.2
0.5
0.5
0.6
SE
4.1
4.0
3.8
1.7
1.2
1.7
0.2
3.8
3.4
3.3
3.1
0.3
0.4
0.2
UK
2.2
1.8
1.6
1.8
1.1
0.9
0.8
-1.4
-0.8
-3.0
1.8
0.2
-0.2
1.2
Labour cost data are subject to revision, in particular for the latest quarters, when new source data become available.
-
:Data not available * Not working day adjusted
TOT = total labour costs WAG = wage and salary costs OTH = non-wage costs
Nominal hourly labour costs by main economic activity branches for the business economy
% change compared with same quarter of previous year - working day adjusted
Industry
(NACE Rev. 2 sections B to E)
Construction
(NACE Rev. 2 section F)
Services
(NACE Rev. 2 section G to N)
Q2/12
Q3/12
Q4/12
Q1/13
Q2 2013
Q2/12
Q3/12
Q4/12
Q1/13
Q2 2013
Q2/12
Q3/12
Q4/12
Q1/13
Q2 2013
TOT
TOT
TOT
TOT
TOT
WAG
OTH
TOT
TOT
TOT
TOT
TOT
WAG
OTH
TOT
TOT
TOT
TOT
TOT
WAG
OTH
EA17
2.9
2.8
2.6
3.1
1.8
2.1
1.1
2.9
2.6
2.0
0.9
0.7
0.9
0.0
2.4
2.0
2.0
1.4
0.8
1.0
-0.1
EU27
3.0
2.8
2.7
3.2
1.7
1.9
1.0
3.0
2.7
1.1
1.0
0.4
0.6
-0.3
2.4
2.1
2.0
1.8
0.9
1.1
0.2
EU28
3.0
2.8
2.7
3.1
1.7
1.9
1.0
3.0
2.7
1.1
1.0
0.4
0.6
-0.3
2.4
2.1
2.0
1.8
0.9
1.1
0.2
BE
3.9
2.6
2.7
2.4
1.8
1.9
1.7
3.8
2.8
2.9
2.7
2.3
2.3
2.5
3.0
2.4
2.6
2.4
2.0
1.9
2.0
BG
3.4
4.1
4.5
4.2
3.8
3.7
3.9
2.2
1.7
-0.5
-0.4
4.9
4.5
7.6
12.6
14.0
11.5
4.8
1.9
1.8
3.0
CZ*
5.9
4.2
0.7
5.3
1.7
1.8
1.7
1.5
0.4
0.0
5.0
2.7
2.7
2.7
4.5
4.0
3.0
4.8
1.3
1.3
1.3
DK
1.5
0.8
0.4
1.8
2.0
2.1
1.9
2.2
0.0
0.2
-1.3
-0.8
-0.6
-1.4
1.6
1.7
1.8
1.3
1.9
1.8
2.2
DE
3.1
3.1
3.1
5.1
2.0
2.2
1.5
3.2
4.1
2.0
1.2
0.0
0.1
-0.3
3.5
3.4
3.2
3.4
1.8
1.9
1.2
EE
6.7
6.7
7.6
8.2
6.8
7.0
6.2
9.0
10.6
12.9
10.6
12.3
12.9
10.7
3.1
5.6
5.9
6.8
9.7
9.6
9.8
IE
3.2
5.8
1.4
1.3
-1.0
c
c
-5.6
6.4
5.5
-1.1
7.0
6.5
13.7
2.0
1.1
2.3
2.1
0.9
0.6
1.6
EL
-7.3
-9.3
-9.4
-4.6
:
:
:
-9.8
-13.7
-5.2
-6.1
:
:
:
-1.9
-7.4
-1.3
-13.0
:
:
:
ES
3.1
2.3
1.6
2.1
1.1
1.3
1.2
4.1
2.2
0.8
0.2
1.7
1.4
2.3
-0.5
0.2
-0.2
-1.1
0.0
-0.6
1.3
FR
2.5
2.2
2.1
0.2
0.8
2.5
-2.7
1.7
2.4
1.6
-0.6
-0.6
1.4
-5.7
2.1
2.2
1.5
-0.2
0.3
2.0
-3.5
HR*
4.9
1.7
2.9
6.4
1.5
1.5
1.5
2.0
1.2
5.0
6.5
2.6
2.6
2.6
2.6
0.5
1.3
4.7
0.0
0.0
-0.1
IT
2.4
3.3
3.0
2.5
2.2
1.9
3.0
3.6
3.5
4.7
4.7
2.8
2.2
4.2
1.2
2.5
1.3
3.2
1.5
1.2
2.2
CY
0.5
0.7
0.6
-1.3
-6.1
-6.1
-5.9
1.5
1.1
2.0
-5.2
-5.6
-5.7
-5.6
1.6
0.8
0.4
2.3
-1.7
-1.7
-1.8
LV
4.0
4.4
4.8
5.1
5.0
4.9
5.2
1.7
3.3
2.8
6.1
8.5
8.6
8.3
5.4
3.5
3.4
4.5
3.5
3.8
2.3
LT
4.7
5.1
5.7
4.3
5.8
5.4
7.0
5.9
5.6
3.6
16.5
12.4
9.8
18.2
3.0
5.1
6.5
4.9
8.4
7.9
9.8
LU
2.1
1.3
2.5
3.2
3.7
3.9
2.6
2.8
2.9
3.3
5.2
2.1
2.0
2.0
2.1
3.7
2.1
5.8
2.1
2.1
2.6
HU
8.2
7.4
7.4
4.4
3.5
3.4
3.4
2.8
2.3
1.8
6.3
6.8
6.8
6.3
4.7
6.6
6.0
2.4
3.0
3.0
3.0
MT
3.4
-0.1
4.5
6.2
3.8
4.0
3.3
-0.2
3.5
3.0
-2.5
2.6
2.6
1.3
3.3
5.0
3.3
6.2
5.0
4.8
6.5
NL
2.1
2.6
2.3
2.8
c
c
c
4.2
2.2
0.7
-3.4
c
c
c
1.5
2.6
1.4
1.4
c
c
c
AT*
5.7
5.9
3.1
4.8
3.4
3.2
3.8
5.4
2.5
2.4
4.0
2.7
2.6
2.8
7.7
3.5
4.4
4.1
1.6
1.5
2.2
PL
3.8
5.7
4.1
4.6
2.0
2.0
2.0
1.4
0.5
-3.1
0.0
0.9
0.9
0.8
4.2
3.9
0.8
3.8
2.1
2.0
2.4
PT
-7.1
-1.9
-2.9
-2.4
1.0
-0.2
6.0
1.9
-12.3
0.8
1.0
4.7
3.5
9.0
4.3
-17.0
0.7
-1.6
1.4
0.6
4.7
RO
8.3
6.7
6.0
7.0
5.0
5.0
5.0
4.5
4.9
1.0
2.2
3.6
3.6
3.6
6.9
6.6
6.1
5.0
2.2
2.2
2.2
SI
8.5
2.4
0.9
3.6
-5.6
-5.4
-6.6
-3.5
-6.3
-1.9
-4.1
-3.6
-3.8
-2.5
2.6
-0.3
-1.8
-5.2
-6.0
-6.1
-5.3
SK
5.8
2.3
5.8
8.7
4.9
4.5
6.2
5.2
2.6
-8.2
1.3
0.4
-0.4
2.5
0.6
-0.1
2.9
3.0
1.6
0.3
6.7
FI
5.0
5.4
5.8
1.9
2.6
4.6
1.2
6.8
4.9
4.9
6.9
2.8
3.3
2.0
5.7
4.7
3.8
2.7
1.2
2.1
0.8
SE
4.4
4.6
4.9
1.0
0.3
0.9
-0.9
4.4
3.7
3.8
2.7
1.6
2.3
-0.2
3.9
3.8
3.4
1.8
1.5
1.9
0.6
UK
2.2
1.4
2.6
2.6
0.7
0.8
-0.4
3.4
3.8
-3.2
-0.2
-2.0
-1.6
-4.9
2.0
1.7
2.0
1.7
1.5
1.2
1.6
Labour cost data are subject to revision, in particular for the latest quarters, when new source data become available.
-
:Data not available * Not working day adjusted c Confidential
TOT = total labour costs WAG = wage and salary costs OTH = non-wage costs