Greeks remain among poorest in Europe despite economic growth and wage increases

Athens, Greece – Despite promises of growth and improved living standards, Greek workers had the second-lowest real wages in the European Union (EU) in 2023, ahead of only Bulgaria, according to Eurostat data.

When the New Democracy party came to power in 2019, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis called on citizens to help build a merit-based, efficient economy. Five years later, Greece's average annual wage lags far behind Eastern European countries that joined the EU nearly 25 years after it did.

“From 2019 to 2024, Bulgaria gained 11 points while we gained only three. If this continues, Bulgaria will overtake us in two or three years,” Yiorgos Christopoulos, spokesman for the Greek Labour Federation (GSEE), told Al Jazeera.

The latest GSEE report shows Greece's living standard relative to the EU average has risen only from 65.5% to 68.5%, despite the economy growing at nearly twice the EU rate since 2020.

Wages up, taxes down, but purchasing power falls

The re-elected New Democracy government in 2023 pledged to restore living standards. The minimum wage has been raised to 920 euros per month, from 580 euros during the crisis, and is expected to reach 950 euros next year. The average monthly wage has also increased to 1,516 euros, meeting a pledge a year early.

Income tax has been cut by two percentage points per bracket, with an additional two-point cut per dependent. Under-25s are exempt from tax on earnings below 20,000 euros.

“The country that tightened its belt now has the highest growth rate in Europe, unemployment down from 18% to 8%, 500,000 new jobs, public debt down 30 points, while wages rise and taxes fall,” Prime Minister Mitsotakis declared at the Thessaloniki International Fair in September 2024.

However, in real purchasing power, Greek incomes have lost one-third of their value over the past 15 years. The main cause is inflation outstripping wage growth.

“Inflation in our country is much higher than the EU average, while real wages are lower,” explained Efi Achtsioglou, former Labour Minister under the Syriza government (2016-2019).

Weak collective bargaining

According to Achtsioglou, the deeper cause is that the share of workers covered by collective bargaining agreements has fallen to under 20%, while an EU directive requires over 80%. “We had more collective agreements in 2018, after the crisis things got worse,” she said.

About 90% of Greek workers are employed in businesses with fewer than 10 employees, making collective agreements even more important, Achtsioglou stressed.

Workplace deaths surge

Greece records far more work-related deaths than official figures show. The Labour Ministry reported 51 cases in 2023, but the Technical Workers' Federation (OSETEE) counted 179. In 2024 alone, the record number reached 201, and in the first four months of 2025 there have already been 47.

OSETEE points out that sectors such as shipping, security, mining, the military, and self-employment (which accounts for 20% of the workforce) are not included in state statistics. “Deaths in hospital or traffic accidents are also not counted as workplace accidents,” said OSETEE president Andreas Stoimenidis.

In 2023, New Democracy passed a law allowing up to 13-hour workdays for a single employer. Achtsioglou warned: “Statistics show accidents often happen at the end of shifts.”

The International Labour Organization (ILO) also confirmed that Greece underreports workplace fatalities in its 2025 data.

One-quarter of last year's deaths occurred in construction and agriculture, and 15 in tourism – all sectors employing large numbers of migrant workers. Greece is actively recruiting 200,000 more foreign workers for these sectors, raising safety concerns.

“There may be unconscious bias against migrant workers when it comes to safety,” Lefteris Papagiannakis, head of the Greek Refugee Council, told Al Jazeera.