Average Prague wages grew 7% in Q1 2019, now up to 41,450 crowns monthly

Averages wages are up in the Czech Republic. In first three months of 2019 the average gross monthly nominal wage per full-time employee increased by 7.4 percent compared to the same period of the previous year. In real terms, adjusted for inflation, the monthly wage grew by 4.6 percent, according to the Czech Statistical Office.

Prague again led the country with the highest average wages, but the growth was only 7 percent.

In the first quarter of the year, the average gross monthly nominal wage for a full-time employee in the national economy was CZK 32,466, or CZK 2,236 more than in the same period of 2018. Consumer prices grew by 2.7 percent, meaning wages increased by 4.6 percent in real terms.

Nationwide, the highest average wages were found in the financial and insurance sector, at CZK 59,869, up 8.3 percent compared to the same time last year. This was closely followed by information and communication at CZK 59,364, up 4.3 percent.

Work in electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply also paid well, at CZK 51,338, up 7.2 percent.

The lowest average wages were in accommodation and food service, at CZK 19,121, up 7 percent. Other low pay sectors include administrative and support service activities; miscellaneous services; and agriculture forestry and fishing.

Prague has the highest average wages in the Czech Republic. The average Prague wage in Q1 2019 was CZK 41,450, up CZK 2,700 or 7.0 percent compared to the same time period of 2018. The lowest wages were in the Zlín region, at CZK 28,553.

Compared to the fourth quarter of 2018, the seasonally adjusted average wage in first quarter of 2019 in the Czech Republic increased by 1.9 percent.

The median wage in the Czech Republic was CZK 27,582, up 7.4 percent compared to the same period of the previous year. The median wage is in the middle of the wage distribution. That means half of the wages are lower and half of the wages are higher than the median wage.

Some 80 percent of employees earned wages between CZK 14,566 and CZK 51,420.

Men still earn more than women in the Czech Republic. The male median wage reached CZK 29,936 while women earned CZK 24,982.

The number of employees in the Czech Republic increased by 32,900, or 0.8 percent. The total number of registered full-time employees in the Czech Republic was 4,017,100.

The Czech Republic has the lowest unemployment in Europe. In April, the unemployment rate in the Czech Republic was 2.1 percent, according to the Czech Statistical Office. The male unemployment rate, seasonally adjusted, was 1.8 percent, and female unemployment rate reached 2.5 percent.

The low unemployment rate has been putting upward pressure on wages, as employers have to compete to attract qualified candidates.