The Statistical Office of the Republic of Serbia (RZS) has published the results of the 2022 Wage Structure Survey, revealing that the average annual salary was 1,366,633 dinars, or 640.30 dinars per hour of work. The median annual salary was 1,108,667 dinars, which represents 81.1% of the average annual salary, meaning that half of all employees earned up to this amount.
According to RZS data, the largest group of employees, 21%, earned an annual salary between 600,000 and 800,000 dinars, while 15.9% earned between 800,000 and 1 million dinars. 4.6% of employees earned less than 600,000 dinars, while 29.5% earned more than 1.4 million dinars annually.
RZS also noted that employees earning lower wages are defined as those earning up to two-thirds of the median hourly wage. This group accounted for 21.8% of all employees, meaning just over a fifth of employees earned less than 350 dinars per hour. The survey also highlighted a positive correlation between income levels and education, with employees holding the seventh and eighth levels of education earning 2.4 times more than those with the lowest educational levels, and 1.8 times more than employees with third- and fourth-level education.
The highest salaries, averaging 1,445,970 dinars, were earned by employees aged 30 to 39, while the lowest salaries were recorded among those aged 15 to 29, averaging 1,281,332 dinars.
In terms of company size, employees in large businesses with more than 1,000 employees earned 32.5% more than those working in small businesses with 10 to 49 employees.
Data also confirms that employees with higher qualifications earn more. The highest salaries were earned by those in leadership roles (directors, officials, and lawmakers), who earned 66.1% more than the overall average. The lowest salaries were found among those in simple jobs and service or retail positions.
The highest average salaries in 2022 were recorded in the Information and Communications sector (3,102,133 dinars, 127% higher than the average), followed by the Financial Activities and Insurance sector (2,005,339 dinars) and the Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services sector (2,036,843 dinars). In contrast, employees in Education earned 8.4% less than the overall average, or 2.5 times less than the highest-paid sectors.
The data also showed significant salary differences based on employment type. Employees with permanent contracts earned the highest average annual salary of 1,413,302 dinars, which is 64.7% higher than employees with temporary contracts and 30.2% more than those with fixed-term contracts.
The gender pay gap stood at 12.1%, meaning that women, on average, earned 12.1% less than men. Additionally, quarterly and annual bonuses were paid to 23.2% of all employees, with an average of 33,145 dinars, or 2.4% of the average annual salary.
Employees had an average of 26 days of annual leave, with those employed in the private sector receiving 22 days, and those in the public sector receiving 31 days.
The average number of paid working hours in October 2022 was 171.
RZS reminds that the Wage Structure Survey is conducted every four years under the Law on Official Statistics. This survey for 2022 is being carried out for the second time as a regular survey, after the previous one for 2018.
