Wage arrears in Ukraine reach almost US$122 mln in March

Ukrainian enterprises' wage arrears due to be paid to workers in March 2021 grew by 5.3% from February 2021, to UAH 3.38 billion, or US$121.6 million, as of April 1, 2021.

Read alsoSoftware developers get highest salaries in UkraineIn particular, wage arrears in the industry accounted for the lion's share, namely 77.6%, while the share of those in the field of professional, scientific and technical activities was 7.4%, according to the State Statistics Service.

At the same time, more than half of such arrears was posted in Ukrainian-controlled districts of Donetsk region (23.3%), Kharkiv region (13.8%), and the city of Kyiv (13%).

Wage arrears at enterprises that halted filing relevant reports in 2019-2020 stood at UAH 165.8 million (US$6 million) as of April 1, 2021.

The report does not include information from temporarily occupied areas in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, the city of Sevastopol, and certain areas in Donetsk and Luhansk regions, it said.

Minimum wage

The minimum wage in Ukraine from January 1, 2021, increased to UAH 6,000 (US$216).

It is expected to reach UAH 6,500 (US$234) on December 1, 2021.

Hourly minimum wage in 2021 will grow to:

UAH 36.11 (US$1.30) from January 1, 2021;

UAH 39.12 (US$1.41) from December 1, 2021.

Average wage

The average nominal wage of a full-time employee grew by 15% in Ukraine in January 2021 year-over-year, to UAH 12,337, or US$444.

Background

Ukrainian enterprises' wage arrears due to be paid to employees in January 2021 grew by 13.8% from December 2020, to UAH 2.97 billion (US$106.9 million) as of February 1, 2021.