Of the 19 groups of activities for which Monstat publishes the average net salary, in five the average salary is above one thousand euros, while the average in only two areas is below the 700 euros of the announced future amount of the minimum salary.
A total of 24,5 thousand workers, or 9,7 percent of the total number of employees, work in areas where the average salary is over one thousand euros. Average salaries below the national average, which amounted to 825 euros in March, are found in 12 areas where 188 employees work, or 75 percent of the total number.
It is not possible to extract more precise data from official statistics, but it generally shows that the minority with good salaries raises the average.
In a recent report for Montenegro, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) stated that 75 percent of employees earn less than 700 euros, and that "there is a significant grouping of about 33 percent of the salary distribution at the current level of the minimum wage of 450 euros."
The IMF did not state the source of its data, and it performed this calculation to try to determine if it is possible and how to reach an average salary of 1.000 euros and a minimum of 700 euros by the end of the year, instead of the current 450 euros. The prime minister promised these two figures by the end of the year Milojko Spajic through the so-called "Europe Now 2" program. Although there are still seven months left until this deadline, it is still not known how it will be done.
The IMF states that the target average salary of 1.000 could mathematically be reached by increasing the minimum wage, which many employers would not support, or by canceling contributions to pension insurance, which the state budget would not support.
"Increasing the minimum wage from 450 euros to 700 euros will result in an increase in the average net salary by 30 percent," stated the IMF.
This would mean that with this measure alone, the current net salary of 825 euros would be increased to 1.072 euros. However, the IMF believes that it is questionable whether employers, who now insure employees for the minimum amount of wages or only slightly more than that, would be able to withstand this increase, that is, whether they would be able to provide the necessary amount of money from business to pay the increased wages.
"If, simultaneously with the increase in the minimum wage, pension contributions were completely abolished, the average gross wage and thus the average cost of labor for employers would remain approximately the same. This is because the reduction of costs to employers, due to the abolition of pension insurance contributions, would compensate for the increase in expenses due to the increase in the minimum wage", stated the IMF.
This institution states that increasing the minimum wage to 700 euros without canceling contributions to pension insurance would lead to a significant increase in inflation, because employers would have to increase the prices of their products and services in order to provide money for increased wages.
If contributions for pension insurance were abolished, the state treasury would be left without those revenues, which are planned for this year in the amount of 550 million euros. The IMF states that, in the event of the cancellation of this contribution, the state coffers could provide that money only by increasing the VAT from the current 21 to 30 percent, which, according to them, would again lead to high inflation.
According to Monstat data, the highest average earnings in March were in financial activities, banking and insurance and amounted to 1.303 euros. However, only 4,6 thousand employees work in this area, or 1,8 percent of the total number.
The second area with the highest net earnings is electricity supply with a March average of 1.203 euros, in which 3.602 workers work or 1,4 percent of the total number. Earnings in this area increased significantly at the beginning of last year when EPCG increased the calculation coefficients for employees.
The third area in terms of salary is "information and communication" with a cut of 1.056 euros, in which 11.154 workers work or 4,5 percent of the total number. In this area, there are telecommunications companies that raise the average, but also media where earnings are around or below the average.
And mining, where 1,9 thousand workers work, has a salary that is 35 euros higher than a thousand. The main company in this area is Pljevlja Coal Mine, where earnings also increased significantly two years ago. This area includes several quarries and companies registered for stone processing.
The average salary of exactly one thousand euros in March was in the real estate business, where 3.181 workers or 1,2 percent of the total number were registered.
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