Last year labour costs in Slovakia increased at roughly the same pace as in the European Union as a whole; at 0.9 percent, according to a UniCredit Bank analysis released on Monday.
“While in Romania and Estonia these costs in the euro currency increased by as much as 6.7 percent, in Cyprus and Greece they fell significantly”, said bank analyst Ľubomír Koršňák. Compared to the other Višegrad Four countries, they increased more slowly in Slovakia than in Poland, but faster than in the Czech Republic and Hungary. “A significant role in both cases was played by the weakening of the exchange rates of the currencies used in these countries, which increased the competitiveness of their workforces in international comparisons. Employee costs in the Czech Republic and Slovakia have almost evened out, but the average Slovak employee generated more added value for the same cost”, said Koršňák.
Labour productivity measured as added value per employee in Slovakia is the highest among all EU-member countries in Central and Eastern Europe. Meanwhile, the highest employee costs in the region by far are seen in Slovenia.
