In ten years, average wages have grown less than inflation

In the decade between2014 and 2024 in Italia le average wages have not recovered the growth of inflation. For private sector employees, the average annual salary rose from 21,345 euros in 2014 to 24,486 euros in 2024, an increase of 14.7% over the decade. In the public sector, however, it rose from 31,646 euros to 35,350 euros, equal to +11.7%. In the same period of time, however, cumulative inflation rose by approximately20%with the acceleration concentrated above all in 2022 (+8.1%) due to the invasion of Ukraine by Russia and in 2023 (+5.4%) with the consequent surge incost of energy.

The data processed by the Civ ofInpsthey help to better understand the picturestagnation in real wagesrecalled by several independent analyses. As noted last summer theOECDfor example, despite a relatively large increase over the past year, “early 2025 ireal wages” in Italy “they were still 7.5% lower than at the beginning of 2021”.

Wage recovery and structural factors

In the last two years, we read in the INPS document, a recovery has been observedreal wagessupported by the subsequent slowdown in inflation and the effect ofcontract renewalsarrived late. The report also underlines that wage dynamics remain linked to the trend oflabor productivityinfluenced in Italy by structural factors such as sectoral composition, lowtechnological innovationand room for improvement in bureaucracy and infrastructure.

The marked pay gaps in Italy

To confirm this dynamic, one striking fact is: in 2024 theaverage annual salaryin Italy for employees it stands at 24,486 euros, compared to an average abroad of74.254 euro. Furthermore, the national data hides a markedterritorial divide: nel Nord Ovestthe average salary is 28,852 euros, in the North East 25,723 euros, in the Center 23,850 euros, while it drops in theSouth at 18,254 eurosand in the Islands at 17,898 euros.

As the governor of Bank of Italy recalledFabio Panettain a speech at the University of Messina, “a young graduate in Germany earns on average 80 percent more than an Italian peer, while the difference compared to France is 30 percent.gaps that have widenedover the years.”

Occupational composition and productivity

The INPS dossier also analyzes the composition of employment by economic sector between 2014 and 2024, photographing a shift towardsservices. Industry in the strict sense, which in 2014 represented 28.1% of employees (3.95 million), fell to 24.5% in 2024, despite the number of employees rising to 4.33 million. At the same time, the weight of services has increased in all areas, with the sole exception of trade, which has lost around half a percentage point of its share of the total. A fact that has an impact onlabor productivity.

The unions’ proposals: bargaining and pirated contracts

Commenting on the INPS report, the trade unions focused attention on the need to review some mechanisms ofbargainingand to create a regulatory barrier to the proliferation ofpirate agreementsasking to arrive at a legal text that favors the criterion of representation.

The leader of the CGILMaurizio Landinihe recalled that “in 1993 there were 150/160 collective agreements, today there are more than a thousand. We can no longer pretend, thepirate contractsrepresent a problem.” He then added: “The numbers presented here say very precise things, that between 2014 and 2024 inflation was higher than salary renewals. Thepurchasing powerin these ten years it has not been protected”. The CGIL secretary proposed a reflection: “It is no longer possible to renew contracts every three or four years but there is a need to reach almost aannual salary negotiationfor a certain recovery of inflation”.

For the secretary of UilPierpaolo Bombardierifrom the data it emerges that “there is a difficulty in recovering purchasing power and we need to work differently on contracts. We propose asecond level bargainingto be extended throughout the territory, is currently done in 26% of cases. Is there a possibility of expanding it? In our opinion, yes, perhaps expanding it at a territorial or sectoral level.”

According to the CISL confederal secretaryMattia Pirulli: “La decentralized bargainingit must be strengthened, it is the tool for redistributing wealth. Systemic action is needed to counteract thecontractual dumpingwhich is particularly prevalent in the service sector”.