Austria in the top league in the EU when it comes to labor costs
Austria is one of the countries in Europe with the highest labor costs. According to the EU statistics authority Eurostat, the average hourly labor costs in Austria in 2021 were 37.5 euros. The EU average was 29.1 euros, in the euro zone 32.8 euros. Labor costs were lowest in Bulgaria at EUR 7 and highest in Denmark at EUR 46.9 per hour.
The cost statistics include not only gross wages and salaries including bonus payments and the company cars and apartments provided, but also indirect costs such as employer contributions to social security, costs for further training and wage-related taxes. Data from companies with at least ten acceptances were taken into account.
Employer share in Austria also above EU average
The proportion of indirect costs – mainly employers’ social security contributions – accounted for around a quarter, according to data published today by Eurostat. This share was highest in Sweden and France in 2021 at over 30 percent, but it was also above the EU average in Austria.
Viewed by industry or sector, wage costs are highest in public administration, with an EU average of EUR 30.3 per hour. The cheapest hour is 26.0 euros in the construction industry.
Working hours are 1.7 percent more expensive on average
In 2020, the number of hours worked increased by 1.7 percent on average in the EU last year. In the euro zone, the increase in costs was 1.2 percent.
Labor costs have risen in all EU countries except Italy (minus 1.6 percent) and Spain (minus 0.3 percent). The larger increases were in Lithuania (12.5 percent), Estonia (6.5 percent), Cyprus and Slovenia (both 6.2 percent) and Latvia (6.1 percent). In Austria, the cost increase of one percent was below the average for the euro zone.