The average hourly labor costs in Cyprus increased from €18 in 2021 to €19.4 in 2022, according to Eurostat. Hourly labor costs were the lowest in the EU in Bulgaria (€8.2) and Romania (€9.5), and highest in Luxembourg (€50.7), Denmark (€46.8) and Belgium (€43.5). Within the euro area, hourly labor costs increased in all member states in 2022, with the largest increases recorded in Lithuania (+13.3%), Ireland (+9.3%), and Estonia (+9.1%). In Cyprus, the largest increase was 8%. The phasing out of COVID-19-related support schemes across most EU countries made a positive contribution to the growth in hourly labor costs in 2022. The two main components of labor costs are wages and salaries, and non-wage costs (such as employers' social contributions), with the latter representing 19.9% of total labor costs in Cyprus, lower than both the EU and euro area averages.
Labor cost is defined as the total expenditure borne by employers for employing staff, while average hourly labor cost is defined as the total labor cost divided by the corresponding number of hours worked by all employees.
Source: CNA and Eurostat
