Despite active hostilities, life in Ukraine continues. People work, factories produce products, and the economy will develop. Although at a much slower pace than usual.
Therefore, against the background of a stable and extremely unpleasant increase in prices, another process is observed - a gradual increase in wages. So now we will tell you more about what the minimum and average wages will be in Ukraine in 2024.
Minimum salary
It is from this indicator that the budget and taxes are calculated. And as part of the 2024 budget, a new minimum wage in Ukraine was set at the level of UAH 7,100 from January 1 and UAH 8,000 from April 1. In addition, the subsistence minimum was increased to UAH 2,920 per person per month.
Projected salary in Ukraine 2024
The year has just begun, so we can only talk about salary projections. And according to Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 1315 of December 15, 2023, based on macro indicators of the country's economic and social development, in 2024 the average salary is forecast to increase to UAH 21,809. Which, taking into account the planned inflation, will increase real income by 8.5 percent. And in the following years - even more. It is also planned to reduce unemployment - from 19.7 to 15 percent.
How real is it? Well, in 2023 it was predicted to grow to UAH 18,261. That didn't work out. Even taking into account the huge inflation of 28.4 percent, the real increase was only 1.4 percent, that is, almost imperceptible. Which, however, is not surprising, because last year was very difficult for Ukraine.
What is the current average salary in Ukraine?
It is clear with the forecasts, but what is the real situation at the moment? According to minfin.com.ua, the average salary in Ukraine in 2023 was UAH 17,176. That is, it increased by 25 percent compared to last year. At the same time, the smallest growth was observed in the spheres of education, health care and agriculture - somewhere up to 13-14 thousand. And the actual growth, taking into account inflation, was a total of 6 percent.
Average salary by region
Wages in Ukraine were not evenly distributed even before the war, and after production in many regions suffered serious destruction, the spread became even greater. And calculating statistics has become less convenient. However, according to work.ua - the largest job search site, the situation is approximately this.
The average salary in Kyiv and the region is UAH 21,800. The most popular professions are sales consultant, driver, sales manager, administrator. The highest salaries are C++ developers, team leaders, telecommunications engineers, and military personnel.
The average salary in Lviv and the region is UAH 20,000. Professions - sales manager, driver, cook, consultant, handyman, accountant. The highest salaries are for the military, international drivers and advertisers.
The average salary in Odesa and the region is UAH 18,300. Professions salesman-consultant, sales manager, driver, accountant, barista. The highest salaries are in the military, CFOs, sales managers, and brokers.
The average salary in Dnipro and the region is UAH 19,000. Professions - salesman-consultant, driver, accountant, porter and, suddenly, locksmith. The highest salaries are military.
The average salary in Kharkiv and the region is UAH 18,000. Professions - salesman-consultant, accountant, driver, porter, storekeeper, administrator. The highest salaries are military.
The average salary in Poltava and the region is UAH 16,000. Professions - salesman-consultant, barista, handyman, cashier, accountant. The highest salaries are military.
Average salary in the world
In American and European sources, the average salary is calculated differently than here. All taxes that a person has to pay are usually taken into account there. And this is sometimes almost a third of the total amount. Plus, again, the indicators are calculated as an average across the country, while the situation can vary quite a lot in different regions.
We will not provide a complete list of average salaries, but we will voice a couple so that you roughly understand the general situation.
According to countrycassette.com, the average salary in Ukraine, including taxes, is just over $387. The lowest average salary in Europe... Something at the level of the Dominican Republic, Kenya and Morocco. It is worse only in the poorest countries of Africa, Central and South-East Asia. In Russia, according to the same data, the average salary is almost 576 dollars, which brought it to 62nd place in the overall rating. Slightly better than India, Ecuador and Iraq. But it is very far from normal countries. And the first places in the rating are occupied by Switzerland - more than 6 thousand, Singapore - a little more than 5 thousand and the USA - 4232 dollars. Then the gaps decrease - about 3 thousand in Canada, 2.9 - in Great Britain, 2.5 in France and Japan. In Poland, by the way, the average salary is 1127 dollars.
But it is worth considering that the absolute value of the average salary is only an indirect indicator of the standard of living, since in prosperous countries the prices of clothes, basic necessities and, which still causes some surprise among Ukrainians, the Internet are higher.
Conclusion
Only time will tell how reliable the forecasts of the Cabinet of Ministers will be regarding the growth of the average salary in Ukraine in 2024 and the following years. After all, now a lot depends not on the laws of the economy, but on political decisions and global support, which our diplomats continue to work on. So who knows, maybe in 2 years we will look condescendingly at the line with the name of a certain country on the level of Pakistan and Iraq, where average salaries are about 130 dollars.
